Capricornus - The Goat

Learn about the constellation Capricornus - The Goat, location, facts, mythology, meteor showers and deep space objects.

It is commonly called Capricorn, especially in astrology. It is commonly called the sea goat, as it is in an area of the sky known as the Sea.

Location: Northern Autumn 21h RA -20° Dec

This constellation is one of the oldest to have been identified, possibly the oldest, despite its dimness. The constellation may owe its antiquity to the fact that at that time, the northern hemisphere's Winter Solstice occurred while the sun was in Capricorn. The concern for the sun's rebirth might have rendered astronomical and astrological observation of this region of space very important.

Capricornus Mythology

Since it falls in an area of the sky known as the sea, it became considered a sea-goat (in the same sense as a sea maiden). Depictions of a goat or goat-fish have been found on Babylonian tablets dating back three thousand years.

Capricornus Deep Space Objects

Several galaxies and star clusters are contained within Capricornus. Messier 30 is a globular cluster located 1 degree south of the galaxy group NGC 7103. The constellation also harbours the wide spiral galaxy NGC 6907.

In this table, the observation month represents the month in which the object reaches its highest point in the sky. It can also be viewed a few months before and after depending on your location. Direction is the compass direction in which the object is located, with Z meaning Zenith or overhead.