Constellation The Octant

Octans (The Octant): gift, map and visability

  • Meaning: The Octant
  • Best seen in: October
  • Family: Lacaille
  • Latitude: +5° to -90°

Octans or The Octant is one of the 88 constellations modern astronomers have divided the sky into. It's part of the Lacaille constellation family. Octans is best seen in October (from latitudes +5° to -90°).

It represents a navigational instrument known as a reflecting octant, invented in 1730 by the Englishman John Hadley. A Reflecting quadrant is an instrument that uses mirrors to reflect the path of light to the observer, which doubles the angle measured. A Reflecting Octant was designed in a way that the mirrors allowed the instrument to be held vertically rather than horizontally. Nine main stars make up its shape.

Octans Constellation Map

Octans Constellation Map
Octans icon

Main Stars in The Octant (Octans)

The constellation Octans contains several bright stars that make up its shape. Some of these main stars are known as:

  • Nu Octantis
  • Beta Octantis
  • Delta Octantis
  • Theta Octantis
  • Alpha Octantis
  • Polaris Australis
  • Mu-2 Octantis

Some of the deep sky objects which have been discovered in Octans include: -.

You can now name your own star in the constellation of Octans in just a few clicks. Name the star, view it in 3D and look it up with the OSR Star Finder App!

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88 constellations: Find out more about each of the 88 constellations and the 12 zodiacs!
Constellation facts about Octans

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