Scutum (constellation)

Image:Scutum Sobiescianum - Prodromus astronomiae 1690 (5590349).jpg

Scutum was named in 1684 by Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius[http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/scutum.html Star Tales ― Scutum] by Ian Ridpath (Jan Heweliusz), who originally named it Scutum Sobiescianum (Shield of Sobieski) to commemorate the victory of the Christian forces led by Polish King John III Sobieski (Jan III Sobieski) in the Battle of Vienna in 1683. Later, the name was shortened to Scutum.

Five bright stars of Scutum (α Sct, β Sct, δ Sct, ε Sct and η Sct) were previously known as 1, 6, 2, 3, and 9 Aquilae respectively.{{cite journal | last=Wagman | first=M. | title=Flamsteed's Missing Stars | journal=Journal for the History of Astronomy | issue=3 | volume=18 | pages=212–213 |date=August 1987 | bibcode=1987JHA....18..209W | doi=10.1177/002182868701800305| s2cid=118445625 }}

The constellation of Scutum was adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1922 as one of the 88 constellations covering the entire sky, with the official abbreviation of "Sct".{{cite journal | last=Russell | first=Henry Norris |author-link=Henry Norris Russell | title=The New International Symbols for the Constellations | journal=Popular Astronomy | volume=30 | page=469 | bibcode=1922PA.....30..469R | date=1922}} The constellation boundaries are defined by a quadrilateral. In the equatorial coordinate system, the right ascension coordinates of these borders lie between {{RA|18|21.6}} and {{RA|18|59.3}}, while the declination coordinates are between −3.83° and −15.94°.{{Cite journal | title=Scutum, Constellation Boundary | journal=The Constellations | publisher=International Astronomical Union | url=https://www.iau.org/public/themes/constellations/#sct | access-date=3 September 2020 }}

Coincidentally, the Chinese also associated these stars with battle armor, incorporating them into the larger asterism known as Tien Pien, i.e., the Heavenly Casque (or Helmet).Richard H. Allen (1899) Star Names and Their Meanings, p. 363

{{See also|List of stars in Scutum}}

Image:ScutumCC.jpg

Image:Scutum 20191227.jpg

Scutum is not a bright constellation, with the brightest star, Alpha Scuti, being a K-type giant star{{cite journal | bibcode=1989ApJS...71..245K | doi=10.1086/191373| title=The Perkins catalog of revised MK types for the cooler stars| journal=The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series| volume=71| pages=245| year=1989| last1=Keenan| first1=Philip C.| last2=McNeil| first2=Raymond C.}} at magnitude 3.85. However, some stars are notable in the constellation. Beta Scuti is the second brightest at magnitude 4.22, followed by Delta Scuti at magnitude 4.72. It is also known as 6 Aquilae.{{cite journal

| last=Wagman | first=M.

| title=Flamsteed's Missing Stars

| journal=Journal for the History of Astronomy | volume=18 | issue=3

| page=212 |date=August 1987

| bibcode=1987JHA....18..209W | doi=10.1177/002182868701800305| s2cid=118445625

}} Beta Scuti is a binary system,{{cite journal | bibcode=2016ApJS..227....4H | title=Surveying the Bright Stars by Optical Interferometry. I. A Search for Multiplicity among Stars of Spectral Types F-K | journal=Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series | volume=227 | pages=4 | number=1 | last1=Hutter | first1=D. J.| last2=Zavala | first2=R. T. | last3=Tycner | first3=C. | last4=Benson | first4=J. A. | last5=Hummel | first5=C. A. | last6=Sanborn | first6=J. | last7=Franz | first7=O. G. | last8=Johnston | first8=K. J. | year=2016 | doi=10.3847/0067-0049/227/1/4 |arxiv = 1609.05254 | s2cid=118803592 | doi-access=free }}{{cite journal | bibcode=2005AJ....129.1700P | title=The Fine Guidance Sensor Orbit of the G4 Bright Giant HD 173764 | journal=Astronomical Journal | volume=129 | issue=3 | page=1700 | last1=Parsons | first1=S. B.| last2=Franz | first2=O. G. | last3=Wassermann | first3=L. H.| year=2005 | doi=10.1086/427853 | doi-access=free }} with the primary with a spectral type similar to the Sun, although it is 1,270 times brighter. Delta Scuti is a bluish white giant star, which is now coming at the direction of the Solar System. Within 1.3 million years it will come as close to 10 light years from Earth,{{citation | display-authors=1 | last1=García-Sánchez | first1=J. | last2=Weissman | first2=P. R. | last3=Preston | first3=R. A. | last4=Jones | first4=D. L. | last5=Lestrade | first5=J.-F. | last6=Latham | first6=D. W. | last7=Stefanik | first7=R. P. | last8=Paredes | first8=J. M. | title=Stellar encounters with the solar system | journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics | year=2001 | volume=379 | issue=2 | pages=634–659 | bibcode=2001A&A...379..634G | doi=10.1051/0004-6361:20011330 | doi-access=free }} and will be much brighter than Sirius by that time.

UY Scuti is a red supergiant and is also one of the largest stars currently known with a radius over 900 times that of the Sun.{{Cite journal |last1=Healy |first1=Sarah |last2=Horiuchi |first2=Shunsaku |last3=Molla |first3=Marta Colomer |last4=Milisavljevic |first4=Dan |last5=Tseng |first5=Jeff |last6=Bergin |first6=Faith |last7=Weil |first7=Kathryn |last8=Tanaka |first8=Masaomi |date=2024-03-23 |title=Red Supergiant Candidates for Multimessenger Monitoring of the Next Galactic Supernova |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=529 |issue=4 |pages=3630–3650 |doi=10.1093/mnras/stae738 |doi-access=free |arxiv=2307.08785 |bibcode=2024MNRAS.529.3630H |issn=0035-8711}} RSGC1-F01 is another red supergiant whose radius is over 1,450 times that of the Sun.{{Cite journal |last1=Decin |first1=Leen |last2=Richards |first2=Anita M. S. |last3=Marchant |first3=Pablo |last4=Sana |first4=Hugues |date=January 2024 |title=ALMA detection of CO rotational line emission in red supergiant stars of the massive young star cluster RSGC1 -- Determination of a new mass-loss rate prescription for red supergiants |journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics |volume=681 |pages=A17 |doi=10.1051/0004-6361/202244635 |arxiv=2303.09385 |bibcode=2024A&A...681A..17D |issn=0004-6361}} Scutum contains several clusters of supergiant stars, including RSGC1,{{Cite journal | last1 = Figer | first1 = D. F. | last2 = MacKenty | first2 = J. W. | last3 = Robberto | first3 = M. | last4 = Smith | first4 = K. | last5 = Najarro | first5 = F. | last6 = Kudritzki | first6 = R. P. | last7 = Herrero | first7 = A. | doi = 10.1086/503275 | title = Discovery of an Extraordinarily Massive Cluster of Red Supergiants | journal = The Astrophysical Journal | volume = 643 | issue = 2 | pages = 1166–1179 | year = 2006 |arxiv = astro-ph/0602146 |bibcode = 2006ApJ...643.1166F | s2cid = 18241900 }} Stephenson 2{{Cite journal | last1 = Davies | first1 = B. | last2 = Figer | first2 = D. F. | last3 = Kudritzki | first3 = R. P. | last4 = MacKenty | first4 = J. | last5 = Najarro | first5 = F. | last6 = Herrero | first6 = A. | doi = 10.1086/522224 | title = A Massive Cluster of Red Supergiants at the Base of the Scutum-Crux Arm | journal = The Astrophysical Journal | volume = 671 | issue = 1 | pages = 781–801 | year = 2007 | bibcode=2007ApJ...671..781D|arxiv = 0708.0821| s2cid = 1447781 }}{{Cite journal | year = 1990 | bibcode = 1990AJ.....99.1867S | pages = 1867 | volume = 99 | doi = 10.1086/115464 | title = A possible new and very remote galactic cluster | journal = The Astronomical Journal | last1 = Stephenson | first1 = C. B.}} and RSGC3.{{Cite journal | volume = 513 | journal = Astronomy and Astrophysics | title = Another cluster of red supergiants close to RSGC1 | pages = A74 | year = 2010| bibcode = 2010A&A...513A..74N | doi = 10.1051/0004-6361/200913373 | first5 = S. | last5 = Martínez-Núñez | first2 = C. | last2 = González-Fernández | first1 = I. | last3 = Marco | first3 = A. | first4 = J. S. | last4 = Clark | last1 = Negueruela|arxiv = 1002.1823 | s2cid = 118531372 }}

Image:M1-63 Nebula.jpg

Although not a large constellation, Scutum contains several open clusters, as well as a globular cluster and a planetary nebula. The two best known deep sky objects in Scutum are M11 (the Wild Duck Cluster) and the open cluster M26 (NGC 6694). The globular cluster NGC 6712 and the planetary nebula IC 1295 can be found in the eastern part of the constellation, only 24 arcminutes apart.

The most prominent open cluster in Scutum is the Wild Duck Cluster, M11. It was named by William Henry Smyth in 1844 for its resemblance in the eyepiece to a flock of ducks in flight. The cluster, 6200 light-years from Earth and 20 light-years in diameter, contains approximately 3000 stars, making it a particularly rich cluster. It is around 220 million years old,{{cite journal |title = So, Where Are the Wild Ducks?! |last = MacRobert |first = Alan |journal = Sky and Telescope |date = September 2012}} although some studies give older estimates.{{citation

| title=NGC 6705 a young α-enhanced open cluster from OCCASO data

| last1=Casamiquela | first1=L. | last2=Carrera | first2=R.

| last3=Balaguer-Núñez | first3=L. | last4=Jordi | first4=C.

| last5=Chiappini | first5=C. | last6=Anders | first6=F.

| last7=Antoja | first7=T. | last8=Miret-Roig | first8=N.

| last9=Romero-Gomez | first9=M. | last10=Blanco-Cuaresma | first10=S.

| last11=Pancino | first11=E. | last12=Aguado | first12=D. S.

| last13=del Pino | first13=A. | last14=Diaz-Perez | first14=L.

| last15=Gallart | first15=C. | display-authors=1

| journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics

| volume=610 | id=A66 | pages=10 | date=March 2018

| bibcode=2018A&A...610A..66C | arxiv=1710.11069

| doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201732024 | s2cid=59397264 | postscript=. }} Estimates for the mass of the star cluster range from {{Val|3700|ul=solar mass|fmt=commas}}{{citation

| title=The Gaia-ESO Survey: Stellar content and elemental abundances in the massive cluster NGC 6705

| last1=Cantat-Gaudin | first1=T. | last2=Vallenari | first2=A.

| last3=Zaggia | first3=S. | last4=Bragaglia | first4=A.

| last5=Sordo | first5=R. | last6=Drew | first6=J. E.

| last7=Eisloeffel | first7=J. | last8=Farnhill | first8=H. J.

| last9=Gonzalez-Solares | first9=E. | last10=Greimel | first10=R.

| last11=Irwin | first11=M. J. | last12=Kupcu-Yoldas | first12=A.

| last13=Jordi | first13=C. | last14=Blomme | first14=R.

| last15=Sampedro | first15=L. | last16=Costado | first16=M. T.

| last17=Alfaro | first17=E. | last18=Smiljanic | first18=R.

| last19=Magrini | first19=L. | last20=Donati | first20=P.

| last21=Friel | first21=E. D. | last22=Jacobson | first22=H.

| last23=Abbas | first23=U. | last24=Hatzidimitriou | first24=D.

| last25=Spagna | first25=A. | last26=Vecchiato | first26=A.

| last27=Balaguer-Nunez | first27=L. | last28=Lardo | first28=C.

| last29=Tosi | first29=M. | last30=Pancino | first30=E.

| last31=Klutsch | first31=A. | last32=Tautvaisiene | first32=G.

| last33=Drazdauskas | first33=A. | last34=Puzeras | first34=E.

| last35=Jiménez-Esteban | first35=F. | last36=Maiorca | first36=E.

| last37=Geisler | first37=D. | last38=San Roman | first38=I.

| last39=Villanova | first39=S. | last40=Gilmore | first40=G.

| last41=Randich | first41=S. | last42=Bensby | first42=T.

| last43=Flaccomio | first43=E. | last44=Lanzafame | first44=A.

| last45=Recio-Blanco | first45=A. | last46=Damiani | first46=F.

| last47=Hourihane | first47=A. | last48=Jofré | first48=P.

| last49=de Laverny | first49=P. | last50=Masseron | first50=T.

| last51=Morbidelli | first51=L. | last52=Prisinzano | first52=L.

| last53=Sacco | first53=G. G. | last54=Sbordone | first54=L.

| last55=Worley | first55=C. C. | display-authors=1

| journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics

| volume=569 | id=A17 | pages=18 | date=September 2014

| doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201423851 | postscript=.

| bibcode=2014A&A...569A..17C | arxiv=1407.1510 | s2cid=5111744 }} to {{Val|11000|ul=solar mass|fmt=commas}}.{{citation

| title=Structure and stellar content analysis of the open cluster M 11 with 2MASS photometry

| last1=Santos | first1=J. F. C. Jr. | last2=Bonatto | first2=C.

| last3=Bica | first3=E. | display-authors=1

| journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics

| volume=442 | issue=1 | pages=201–209 | date=October 2005

| doi=10.1051/0004-6361:20053378 | postscript=.

| bibcode=2005A&A...442..201S | arxiv=astro-ph/0507216 | s2cid=15323948 }}

The space probe Pioneer 11 is moving in the direction of this constellation. It will not near the closest star in this constellation for over a million yearsPioneer 11 is travelling at ~2.4 au/yr, 41.54 ly ≈ 2.627x10⁶au. at its present speed, by which time its batteries will be long dead.

• Scutum (Chinese astronomy)
• Taurus Poniatovii - a constellation created by the Polish astronomer Marcin Odlanicki Poczobutt in 1777 to honor King of Poland Stanisław August Poniatowski.

File:Sidney Hall - Urania's Mirror - Taurus Poniatowski, Serpentarius, Scutum Sobiesky, and Serpens.jpg held by Ophiuchus, as depicted in Urania's Mirror, a set of constellation cards published in London c. 1825. Above the tail of the serpent is the now-obsolete constellation Taurus Poniatovii while below it is Scutum.]]

{{Reflist}}

• Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion (2017). Stars and Planets Guide (5th ed.), Collins, London. {{ISBN|978-0-00-823927-5}}. Princeton University Press, Princeton. {{ISBN|978-0-69-117788-5}}.

{{Commons category|Scutum (constellation)}}

• [http://www.allthesky.com/constellations/scutum/ The Deep Photographic Guide to the Constellations: Scutum]

{{Stars of Scutum}}

{{Constellations}}

{{ConstellationsByHevelius}}

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