Corona Borealis

BRITTANY TUTTLE

The constellation Corona Borealis is located in the northern hemisphere half way between the constellations Acturus and Vega. The seven main stars are grouped into a U-shape, resembling a crown. These stars are (clockwise) Theta Coronae Borealis, Nusakan, Gemma, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and Iota Coronae Borealis. The constellation received its name due to its u-shape, resembling a crown. It has been called "The Crown" since classical times. There are several myths explaining its existance in the sky. The most popular myth is that the crown is the headband of Ariadne, the daughter of Minos. When Dionysus came upon her on the island of Naxos, he threw her the jeweled band into the sky to prove his godhood and then claimed her as his wife. It is best seen in July (at around 9:00 PM) and visible between lattitudes 90 and -50 degrees.

Corona Borealis

	Coordinates
Star	RA	Decl	m	Class	M	Distance
Beta	15:27:49.7	−29° 6′ 21"	3.66	F0p	-.97	34.96 pc
Theta	15:32:55.8	−31° 21′ 33"	4.16	B6V	2	95.32 pc
Gemma	15:34:41.3	−26° 42′ 53"	2.22	A0V	+.42	22.91 pc
Gamma	15:42:44.6	−26° 17′ 44"	3.82	A0	+2.0	44.48 pc
Delta	15:49:35.6	−26° 4′ 6.2"	4.6	G5	+2.59	50.73 pc
Epsilon	15:57:35.3	−26° 52′ 40"	4.14	K2IIab	+6.89	70.42 pc
Iota	16:1:26.6	−29° 51′ 3.8"	4.98	A0	+6.89	107.64 pc

Corona Borealis: Interesting Features

Galaxy NGC 5958

NGC 5958 is a small galaxy at RA 15h 34.7m, +28 deg 40m. Listed at visual magnitude (mv) 12.6 and about 1' across, this spiral galaxy can be found by offsetting the telescope from Beta CrB

Galaxy

HD 143761 Plantary System

Parent Star: Rho Coronae Borealis (HD 143761) (G2 V) in the constellation of Corona Borealis is located at a distance of 54.5 Light Years from our Solar system. The apparent Magnitude of the star is 5.41. Co-ordinates are Right Ascension: 16 01 03.39 & Declination: -+33 18 51.5. Orbiting around HD 143761 is planet Rho Coronae Borealis b is believed to be a Clarified Jovian and its exitence has been confirmed. The Planet's Appearance is Blue and cloudless. The planet Orbits around the star every 39.945 Days and was discovered by Whipple AFOE team in 1997.

HD 140913 Plantary System

The parent star of this planetary system is HD 140913 (G0 V). It is located in the constellation of Corona BorealisHD 140913 b is believed to be a brown dwarf and its exitence has been confirmed. The Planets Appearance is Dark brown haze. The planet is positioned on the edge of Habitability Zone at Mean Orbital Distance of 0.54 AU. The planet Orbits around the star every 147.94 Days and was discovered by Mayor and Queloz, and Mazeh et al in 1996. at a distance of 156.42 Light Years from our Solar system.

NGC 6109 Galaxy

NGC 6109 (16 17.7, +35 00) is perhaps the brightest of a collection of faint galaxies, between and north of Sigma and Nu CrB. 6109 is mv 12.7, spiral, about 1' across; Uranometria shows eight NGC galaxies here within a 1-degree field, with two others nearby. Most of the galaxies found in Corona Borealis are very faint and difficult to see.

Sources

Constellation Chart., http://www.wingmakers.co.nz/Corona_Borealis.html .
This site gave information on the areas of interest in Corona Borealis as well as a background on how the name came about.
Dolan, Chris. "Corona Borealis." 2 Dec 2009. http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/constellations/Corona_Borealis.html.
This website gave information on where the constellation of Corona Borealis could be seen in the sky and when to view it.
"Astronomy: Constellations- Corona Borealis" 1 Dec 2009 http://www.scenta.co.uk/tcaep/astronomy/constellations/16010081.htm.
This website provided chart information as well as information on the individual stars in the constellation.

[constellation reports] [ASTR/GEOL 1070] [barransclass]