Greek Constellation Mythology

There's Greek constellation mythology that make up the night sky. The names of Greek gods and characters name several of the 88 constellations recognized by the International Astronomical Union, and other constellations get their names from Greek terms.

Why Is There Greek Mythology in the Sky?
The Greeks were one of the first cultures to create star constellation names. When they looked at the night sky, they saw shapes in the groups of stars, giving rise to constellation astronomy. The Greeks themselves saw the constellations as creations of the gods, naming them after animals and objects, including the 12 constellations that make up the signs of the Zodiac.

These names were passed down, and during the fifth century BC, many of the constellations came to be associated with Greek myths. In the second century AD, a Roman astronomer, Ptolemy of Alexandria, published the Almagest, a book grouping 1,022 stars visible from the northern hemisphere into 48 constellations. Ptolemy drew heavily on Greek mythology and language to describe the shapes in the sky, forever marrying mythology with astronomy.

Scholars believe that many of the star myths are based on poems written by Hesiod and Pherecydes. Only fragments of the poems survive, but the names bestowed onto the constellations were used as a reference by Ptolemy when he created his list.

Spotting Constellations
It is easy to get a star map and a telescope to find some of the more famous constellations:

• Cancer the Crab: This is the crab that was sent by Hera to annoy Hercules while he was fighting the Hydra. Hera honored Cancer by placing him in the sky. Best seen in mid-March in the northern sky.
• Canis Major: The Big Dog is one of two hunting dogs belonging to Orion the Hunter. The dogs were placed in the sky along with Orion after a scorpion killed him. Canis Major includes Sirius, the Dog Star, which is the brightest star in the night sky. Best seen from November to March, the constellation is southeast of Orion.
• Cygnus the Swan: When Phaëthon fell out of the Chariot of the Sun into the River Eridanus, Cygnus, his brother, repeatedly dove in to find him. In mercy, the gods made him into a swan. Visible in the northern sky.
• Draco the Dragon: He protected the golden apples of the Hesperides, and the Golden Fleece in the Garden of Ares. Visible every night in the Northern Hemisphere.
• Lyre the Harp: The harp was invented by Apollo and given to Orpheus, whose beautiful music could tame wild animals. When Orpheus' wife Eurydice died, Orpheus descended to the Hades to retrieve her soul. Persephone released her soul on one condition: that Orpheus not look back as they walked back to the land of the living. They almost made it, but at the last minute, Orpheus looked back and his wife disappeared. After he died, Zeus placed his lyre in the sky as a tribute. Best seen in summer, it is near Draco and the Swan.
• Orion the Hunter: Orion was a great hunter who fell in love with Artemis, the moon goddess. This angered her brother Apollo. Apollo tricked Orion into fighting Scorpius, the giant scorpion. Both Orion and Scorpius died in battle and Zeus put Orion in the winter sky and Scorpius in the summer sky so they cannot fight. Orion is visible in the winter night sky, and is easy to spot if you look for the three stars in a short, diagonal line that make up his belt.