The brightest star in Crux is called Acrux. Acrux is really two stars going around (orbitting!) each other, but they are so far away that we see them as one star.
Explorers of the Southern hemisphere used Crux to guide them when
sailing. By looking at Crux, they could figure out in which direction
to sail without getting lost.
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In the foot of the cross you will find Acrux, the brightest star of this constellation. Acrux is really a double-star system. Despite its small area, Crux contains at least ten open clusters visible with small telescopes.
Because it is not visible from most latitudes in the Northern
hemisphere, Crux is a modern constellation and has no Greek or
Roman myths associated with it. Crux was used by explorers of
the southern hemisphere to point south since, unlike the north
celestial pole, the south celestial pole is not marked by any
bright star.
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Its brightest star is called Acrux, a combination of its Greek-letter designation (Alpha) and the name of the constellation. Acrux, which represents the foot of the cross, is a double-star system 200 light-years away. Despite its small area, Crux contains at least ten open clusters visible with small telescopes.
Because it is not visible from most latitudes in the Northern
hemisphere, Crux is a modern constellation and has no Greek
or Roman myths associated with it. Crux was used by explorers
of the Southern hemisphere to point south since, unlike the
north celestial pole, the south celestial pole is not marked
by any bright star.
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Last modified prior to September, 2000 by the Windows Team
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