How old is taurus constellation

Gilgamesh is sometimes associated with the nearby Orion , another ancient constellation, and the two constellations are depicted as Gilgamesh and the bull in combat. Aldebaran , Alpha Tauri, is an orange giant with an apparent magnitude varying between 0.

It is the brightest star in the constellation Taurus and the 13th brightest star in the sky. It has a diameter The star lies approximately It is classified as a slow irregular variable, type LB. Its brightness varies by about 0. Image: Mysid at wikipedia. Aldebaran also makes it easy to find the famous Hyades cluster , as it appears to be the brightest star in it. It is, however, not a member of the cluster, but merely lies in the same line of sight.

The Hyades cluster is much farther away, about light years from Earth. Elnath is the second brightest star in Taurus. It has a visual magnitude of 1.

Elnath is a giant star with the stellar classification B7III. It is times more luminous than the Sun. Like Aldebaran, it lies near the ecliptic and can be occulted by the Moon. Elnath lies on the border with the constellation Auriga, the Charioteer , and has the Bayer designation Gamma Aurigae, which is not used very often anymore. It has a visual magnitude of 3.

The two components have an orbital period of roughly days. It has a circumstellar disk of gas. The companion star is slightly less massive than the Sun. Theta Tauri is another binary star in Taurus. It is one of the stars in the Hyades cluster.

The two components in the system are separated by 5. The primary star is Theta-2 Tauri is a white giant belonging to the spectral class A7 III with a mean apparent magnitude of 3. It is a Delta Scuti variable, with variations in brightness ranging from magnitude 3. Lambda Tauri is a triple star in Taurus constellation. The main component of Lambda Tauri is an inner pair of stars, designated Lambda Tauri AB, which orbit each other every 3.

The primary component belongs to the spectral class B3 V. It has more than seven solar masses, 6. The secondary star is a subgiant of the spectral type A4 IV, about 1. The third component in the system is about half as massive as the Sun and orbits the inner pair with a period of It has an apparent magnitude of 3.

It is located near the ecliptic and can occasionally be occulted by the Moon and, rarely, by planets. Epsilon Tauri is a member of the Hyades cluster. Its age is estimated to be about million years. It orbits the star every 1. It was the first planet discovered in an open cluster and it is still the only known planet in the Hyades cluster.

Gamma Tauri is another member of the Hyades cluster. It is a giant star belonging to the spectral class G8III, approximately light years distant from the Sun.

The star lies within 2. Xi Tauri is a triple star consisting of three blue-white main sequence dwarfs of the spectral type B. It is a spectroscopic and eclipsing star system. Two of the three stars are in a close orbit, and they revolve around each other once every 7. The pair orbits the third star in the system every days. Xi Tauri has a mean apparent magnitude of 3. The system is about light years distant from the Sun.

Delta Tauri consists of three star systems, all of which are located in the Hyades cluster. All the stars in the Delta Tauri system lie close to the ecliptic and can be eclipsed by the Moon and very rarely by planets.

It is approximately light years distant from the Sun. The primary component in the system is an orange giant with the stellar classification K0 III. It is 74 times brighter than the Sun and has The companion is a 12th magnitude star located arc seconds from the primary and believed to not be physically related to it.

It orbits the primary star with a period of days. Delta-2 Tauri is a main sequence dwarf with the stellar classification A7V. It has a visual magnitude of 4. It lies 0. Delta-3 Tauri , also known as Kleeia it was after one of the Hyades sisters , is another triple star system, lying 0.

It has an apparent magnitude of 4. The primary component in the system is a white subgiant star of the spectral type A2IV. The star is an Alpha-2 Canum Venaticorum type variable, showing variations in brightness from magnitude 4.

The star has two companions, and they are 8th and 11th magnitude stars. Kappa Tauri is another star system in the Hyades cluster. The brightest components form a visual binary consisting of two A-type stars, a subgiant with a visual magnitude of 4. The two are 5. Another binary consisting of two 9th magnitude stars lies between the two bright stars. The stars are 5. Upsilon Tauri is another triple star in Taurus.

It belongs to the Hyades cluster. The system has an apparent magnitude of 4. The primary component in the system is a main sequence dwarf of the spectral type A.

The star is a Delta Scuti type variable, exhibiting variations in brightness from magnitude 4. It is a spectroscopic binary star, with components separated by 0. The third component in the system is a 12th magnitude star separated by arc seconds from the main pair.

It has a diameter times that of the Sun. It is also one of the reddest stars known, with a colour index of 2. The star is a red supergiant with the stellar classification M2Iab-Ib. It has a mean apparent magnitude of 4. It lies near the ecliptic and can be occulted by the Moon and very infrequently by planets. Rho Tauri is a white main sequence star belonging to the spectral class A8V. It has 1. It has an estimated rotation period of Rho Tauri is a Delta Scuti type variable star, exhibiting variations in brightness by 0.

The primary component in the system is a main sequence star of the spectral type F8 V and the secondary component is a main sequence star belonging to the spectral class K5 V. The star system has a combined apparent magnitude of 5. The star is a known X-ray source. Taurus is a big and prominent constellation in the northern hemisphere's winter sky, between Aries to the west and Gemini to the east; to the north lie Perseus and Auriga, to the southeast Orion, to the south Eridanus, and to the southwest Cetus.

In September and October, Taurus is visible in the evening along the eastern horizon. The most favorable time to observe Taurus in the night sky is during the months of December and January. By March and April, the constellation will appear to the west during the evening twilight. This constellation forms part of the zodiac, and hence is intersected by the ecliptic. This circle across the celestial sphere forms the apparent path of the Sun as the Earth completes its annual orbit.

As the orbital plane of the Moon and the planets lie near the ecliptic, they can usually be found in the constellation Taurus during some part of each year. It is not a member of the Hyades but sits in front of it. At 65 light years away, it is roughly half way between the Sun and the Hyades. Above the shoulder of the bull is another famous star cluster: the Pleiades or the Seven Sisters. It is a tight knot of stars, and is the only obvious star cluster that can be recognised by the naked eye.