The modern constellation
Musca
Musca () is a small constellation in the deep southern sky. It was one of 12 constellations created by Petrus Plancius from the observations of Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser and Frederick de Houtman, and it first appeared on a celestial globe in ...
is not included in the
Three Enclosures
Traditional Chinese astronomy has a system of dividing the celestial sphere into asterisms or constellations, known as "officials" ( Chinese ''xīng guān'').
The Chinese asterisms are generally smaller than the constellations of Hellenistic ...
and
Twenty-Eight Mansions system of traditional
Chinese uranography because its stars are too far south for observers in China to know about them prior to the introduction of Western star charts. Based on the work of
Xu Guangqi
Xu Guangqi or Hsü Kuang-ch'i (April 24, 1562– November 8, 1633), also known by his baptismal name Paul, was a Chinese agronomist, astronomer, mathematician, politician, and writer during the Ming dynasty. Xu was a colleague and collaborato ...
and the German Jesuit missionary
Johann Adam Schall von Bell
Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1 May 1591 – 15 August 1666) was a German Jesuit, astronomer and instrument-maker. He spent most of his life as a missionary in China (where he is remembered as "Tang Ruowang") and became an adviser to the Shun ...
in the late
Ming Dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
,
this constellation has been classified under the 23
Southern Asterisms (近南極星區, ''Jìnnánjíxīngōu'') with the names
Bee
Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamil ...
(蜜蜂, ''Mìfēng'') and
Sea and Mountain (海山, ''Hǎishān'').
The name of the western constellation in modern Chinese is 苍蝇座 (''cāng ying zuò''), meaning "the housefly constellation".
Stars
The map of Chinese constellation in constellation Musca area consists of:
See also
*
Chinese astronomy
Astronomy in China has a long history stretching from the Shang dynasty, being refined over a period of more than 3,000 years. The ancient Chinese people have identified stars from 1300 BCE, as Chinese star names later categorized in the t ...
*
Traditional Chinese star names
Chinese star names ( Chinese: , ''xīng míng'') are named according to ancient Chinese astronomy and astrology. The sky is divided into star mansions (, ''xīng xiù'', also translated as "lodges") and asterisms (, ''xīng guān''). The system of ...
*
Chinese constellations
Traditional Chinese astronomy has a system of dividing the celestial sphere into asterisms or constellations, known as "officials" (Chinese ''xīng guān'').
The Chinese asterisms are generally smaller than the constellations of Hellenistic t ...
References
{{reflist
Astronomy in China
Musca