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The Pleiades (/ ˈ p l iː. ə d iː z, ˈ p l eɪ-, ˈ p l aɪ-/), [8] [9] also known as Seven Sisters and Messier 45 (M45), is an asterism of an open star cluster containing young B-type stars in the northwest of the constellation Taurus.
In some accounts, their mother was called Aethra, another Oceanid. [7] Aside from the above-mentioned sisters (the Hyades), the Pleiades' other siblings were Hyas and the nymph Calypso who was famous in the tale of Odysseus. Sometimes they were related as half-sisters to the Hesperides, nymphs of the morning star.
As noted by scholar Stith Thompson, the constellation was "nearly always imagined" as a group of seven sisters, and their myths explain why there are only six. [3] Some scientists suggest that these may come from observations back when Pleione was further from Atlas and more visible as a separate star as far back as 100,000 BC. [4]
In the northwestern quadrant of the Taurus constellation lie the Pleiades , one of the best known open clusters, easily visible to the naked eye. The seven most prominent stars in this cluster are at least visual magnitude six, and so the cluster is also named the "Seven Sisters".
Seven Sisters may refer to: Pleiades, or Seven Sisters, a star cluster named for Pleiades (Greek mythology), the seven sisters who are companions of Artemis in Greek ...
And by way of explanation for the fact that only six of the seven stars in the constellation were readily visible, it was said that Electra, unable to behold the destruction of Troy, hid her eyes, or turned away; or, in another version, Electra, in mourning, let down her hair, and left her sisters altogether and became a "long haired star" (i.e ...
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Star map with the Pleiades (upper right) and the Hyades (centre, V-shaped head of the constellation Taurus with its main star Aldebaran, γ Tauri und ε Tauri (Ain)) at both sides of the ecliptic line (dashed red). The Golden Gate of the Ecliptic is an asterism in the constellation Taurus that has been known