The figure in the sky: north is up, east is to the left. Larger dots are brighter stars.

Constellation

Virgo

The shape: a large Y with bright Spica.

Virgo is the goddess of the harvest; the bright star Spica means the “ear of grain” in her hand. One legend says: when she disappears from the evening sky in autumn, nature mourns – winter comes.

The stars of the figure

From bright to faint. Brightness is given in magnitudes (mag): the smaller the number, the brighter the star.

Spica · 0.97 mag
Porrima · 2.74 mag
Vindemiatrix · 2.83 mag
Zavijava · 3.6 mag

In the 3D model

In the 3D model, under “Explore”, the sky dome shows when the constellation Virgo can be seen above Switzerland. “Constellations in 3D” shows how far apart its stars really are.

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