- Sagitta is a dim but distinctive constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for ‘arrow’, not to be confused with the significantly larger constellation Sagittarius ’the archer’. It was included among the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy, and it remains one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. Although it dates to antiquity, Sagitta has no star brighter than 3rd magnitude and has the third-smallest area of any constellation.
- Delta Scuti (stars.astro.illinois.edu)
Modest Delta Scuti (in Scutum, the Shield), shining only at 5th magnitude (4.71) in a relatively obscure modern constellation best known for its placement in the Milky Way, stands out as the prototype of one of these, the pulsating “Delta Scuti stars,” of which Caph in Cassiopeia is the brightest.
