In
typography
Typography is the art and technique of Typesetting, arranging type to make written language legibility, legible, readability, readable and beauty, appealing when displayed. The arrangement of type involves selecting typefaces, Point (typogra ...
, an asterism, , is a typographic symbol consisting of three
asterisks
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star.
Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...
placed in a
triangle
A triangle is a polygon with three corners and three sides, one of the basic shapes in geometry. The corners, also called ''vertices'', are zero-dimensional points while the sides connecting them, also called ''edges'', are one-dimension ...
, which is used for a variety of purposes. The name originates from the
astronomical
Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest include ...
term for a
group of stars.
[From the Greek ''astēr'' (star) Alexander Humez, Nicholas D. Humez (2008). ''On the Dot: The Speck That Changed the World'', p. 72 & 186n. .]
The asterism was originally used as a type of
dinkus
In typography, a dinkus is a typographic symbol which often consists of three spaced asterisks or bullet (typography), bullets in a horizontal row, i.e. or . The symbol has a variety of uses, and it usually denotes an intentional omission or a ...
in typography, though increasingly rarely.
It can also be used to mean "untitled" or author or title withheld as seen, for example, in some editions of ''
Album for the Young
''Album for the Young'' ('), Op. 68, was composed by Robert Schumann in 1848 for his three daughters. The album consists of a collection of 43 short works. Unlike the ', they are suitable to be played by children or beginners. The second part, st ...
'' by composer
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...
(
№ 21, 26, and 30).
In
meteorology
Meteorology is the scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere and short-term atmospheric phenomena (i.e. weather), with a focus on weather forecasting. It has applications in the military, aviation, energy production, transport, agricultur ...
, an asterism in a
station model plot indicates moderate snowfall.
Dinkus
A dinkus is a typographical device to divide text, such as at
section breaks. Its purpose is to "indicate minor breaks in text", to call attention to a passage, or to separate sub-chapters in a book. An asterism used this way is thus a type of dinkus: nowadays this usage of the symbol is nearly obsolete.
[Radim Peško, Louis Lüthi (2007). ''Dot Dot Dot 13'', p. 193. Stuart Bailey, Peter Bilak, eds. .] More commonly used dinkuses are three
dots
Directly observed treatment, short-course (DOTS, also known as TB-DOTS) is the name given to the tuberculosis (TB) control strategy recommended by the World Health Organization. According to WHO, "The most cost-effective way to stop the spread of ...
or three asterisks in a horizontal row.
See also
*
Asterism (disambiguation)
Asterism may refer to:
* Asterism (astronomy), a pattern of stars
* Asterism (band), a Japanese rock band
* Asterism (gemology), an optical phenomenon in gemstones
* Asterism (typography), (⁂) a moderately rare typographical symbol denoting a br ...
(other uses of the word)
*
*
*
References
{{Typography-stub
Typographical symbols
Punctuation