Extinct Constellation Archives

Extinct Constellation

An extinct constellation is one that is no longer recognized an official constellation by astronomers. In the early 20th century, astronomers created a list of 88 official constellations, each with its own boundaries. All other constellations were discarded. Many other constellations had been abandoned long before then, however. Astronomers split Argo Navis, which represented the ship that carried Jason and the Argonauts, into three smaller constellations. European astronomer created dozens of new constellations from the late 1500s through the early 1800s, either to populate the southern sky, which wasn't visible from most of Europe, or to fill in blank regions between ancient constellations. Many of those constellations survived, but many others did not. The list includes Apes, the bees; Cerberus, a three-headed serpent in the hands of Hercules; George's Harp, which honored England's King George III, a patron of astronomy; and many others.