The Online Star Register Blog

Thank you for visiting the Online Star Register Blog. Here we share the latest news with you about the OSR gifts, our apps and about what we love most: the universe and the stars!

Alpha Ophiuchi – Star Facts

- 13 July 2016

Alpha Ophiuchi is also called ‘Rasalhague’ and can be found in the constellation of Ophiuchus. It’s a binary star system with its main star being 2.4 times the mass of the Sun. This star system is the brightest in its constellation and the 69th most luminous in the night sky. It came very close to the Sun around 389,000 years-ago.

Let’s Explore the Stars

- 8 July 2016

There are billions upon billions of stars in the universe. But did you know each of these stars can be very different from one another? Let’s explore the stars to find out what exactly is going on waaaaaay out there…

Cancer – Constellation Facts

- 6 July 2016

Alessio Govi, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Cancer means “the crab” in Latin and is the faintest of the 12 zodiac signs. It can be found in the second quadrant of the Northern hemisphere and is located specifically between latitudes of +90° and -60°. Like all the Zodiac signs, Cancer was first catalogued in the 2nd century by Ptolemy, who was a Greek astronomer.

Alpha Leporis – Star Facts

- 5 July 2016

Alpha Leporis is located in the constellation of Lepus, ‘the Hare’, and is also called ‘Arneb’. This 13 million year-old star is considered a lower luminosity yellow-white supergiant that may be entering the last phase of its cycle. It has a mass 14 times the Sun and 129 times its solar radius. Arneb was catalogued in the 2nd century by a Greek astronomer, Ptolemy.

Camelopardalis – Constellation Facts

- 1 July 2016

Camelopardalis is the 18th largest constellation covering 757 square degrees in the second quadrant of the Northern hemisphere. It can be viewed specifically at latitudes between +90° and -10°. Camelopardalis represents the giraffe, which was once known as a camel-leopard (it has a long neck like a camel and the spots of a leopard). For this reason it actually gets its name from the Latin derivative of the Greek word for giraffe; camel (Greek kamēlos) and leopard (pardalis).

Alpha Herculis – Star Facts

- 30 June 2016

Alpha Herculis has been given an ‘Alpha’ designation; however, it’s not the brightest star in its home constellation, it’s actually 129th brightest in the night sky. Its traditional name of Rasalgethi is derived from an Arabic phrase meaning, ‘the head of the Kneeler’. The ‘head’ comes from ancient times when the constellation was shown upside down on star maps.