Circinus (Pronounciation:Sir-sin-us, Abbrev:Cir, Latin:Circini) is a constellation, one of 88 constellations that the night sky is divided into. The sky is not divided up equally between the constellations. Circinus takes up 93.353 sq. degrees of the night sky which equates to 0.23% of the night sky. The constellation gets its name as it name means The Compasses . It was not one of the original constellations that had been devised by Ptolemy, instead it was created by Abbé Nicolas Louis de Lacaille years later.
Circinus is not a member of the Zodiac group of twelve constellations that appear when the Sun sets. Circinus is a southern hemispheric constellation which means it can't be seen easily or at all from the northern hemisphere.
The brightest star in Circinus is Alpha Circini. There are 3 Extrasolar Planets (Exoplanets) in this constellation that are detailed on this site.
There is no Greek Legend behind this constellation. It was created by Abbé Nicolas Louis de Lacaille to fill in the voids in the astronomical charts.
There are no major meteor showers that radiate from within this constellation.| Name | Circinus |
| Abbreviation | Cir |
| Is a Zodiac Sign | No |
| Brightest Star | Alpha Circini |
| Area | 93.353 sq. deg. |
| Percentage of Night Sky | 0.23% |
| Size Position | 85th |
| Hemisphere | Southern |
| Site Exoplanet Count | 3 |
| Meteor Shower Count | 1 |
| Bordering / Neighbouring / Surrounding Constellations | Lupus |
| Centaurus | |
| Musca | |
| Apus | |
| Triangulum Australe | |
| Norma | |
The map was generated using Night Vision, an awesome free application by Brian Simpson.
| Star | Distance (Lt. Yrs.) | Exoplanet Count | Declination | Right Ascension |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HD 129445 | 213.74 | 1 | -68d 45` 45.4 | 14h 46m 03.38 |
| HD 134060 | 78.94 | 2 | -61d 25` 20.3 | 15h 10m 44.97 |
As there's so many stars in the cosmos, not all the stars are listed here. The site has lots of stars not listed so if your star isn't listed and you know the Henry Draper or Hipparcos ID, type https://www.universeguide.com/star/ then followed by the HIPNNNNNN or HDNNNN where NNNNN is the number part of the name. The stars that I do list have either a traditional name, a bayer or other classification name.
| Star | Distance (Lt. Yrs.) | Declination | Right Ascension |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpha Circini | 54.05 | -64d 58` 28.5 | 14h 42m 30.69 |
| AX Circini | 1647.29 | -63d 48` 35.3 | 14h 52m 35.27 |
| Beta Circini | 99.65 | -58d 48` 03.2 | 15h 17m 30.96 |
| BP Circini | -61d 27` 43.0 | 14h 46m 41.99 | |
| BU Circini | 1148.46 | -55d 36` 05.8 | 14h 45m 10.97 |
| CO Circini | 1405.88 | -66d 35` 36.7 | 14h 48m 44.56 |
| Delta Circini | 3664.76 | -60d 57` 26.1 | 15h 16m 56.90 |
| Epsilon Circini | 407.70 | -63d 36` 37.8 | 15h 17m 38.89 |
| Eta Circini | 275.94 | -64d 01` 52.9 | 15h 04m 48.05 |
| Gamma Circini | 448.64 | -59d 19` 14.5 | 15h 23m 22.66 |
| Theta Circini | 1510.02 | -62d 46` 51.6 | 14h 56m 44.00 |
| WR 66 | 644.59 | -59d 50` 30.2 | 15h 14m 57.72 |
| WR 70 | 551.88 | +62d 56` 58.0 | 16h 18m 07.00 |
| Zeta Circini | 1274.08 | -65d 59` 27.8 | 14h 54m 42.59 |