Now is a good time to find the constellations based on the Greek myth of Perseus. The chart shows the core of these constellations: Perseus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda and Pegasus. They can be found high in the sky looking south this week.
The central myth surrounds Queen Cassiopeia, who boasted of her daughter Andromeda’s great beauty. This angered the gods and they sent the sea serpent Cetus to exact revenge. The hero Perseus, who in some versions of the story rode the winged horse Pegasus, slew the sea serpent and married Andromeda. To locate the constellations, search near the zenith for the W of Cassiopeia. Then look down to find the broad sweep of stars that represents Andromeda. Perseus lies to the east of Andromeda, and Pegasus sits to the west.
Often called the square of Pegasus because of the shape of the body, this is another easily identified constellation. Fainter constellations associated with the myth but not shown in the chart are Cepheus, Cassiopeia’s husband, to the west, and Cetus, the sea serpent, to the south.
