- Star Tales - Microscopium (ianridpath.com)
One of the southern constellations representing scientific instruments that were invented in 1751–52 by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille. In this case the instrument concerned is an early form of compound microscope, i.e. one that uses more than one lens.
- Silk Road (Wikipedia)
The Silk Road (Chinese: 絲綢之路) was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the East and West. The name “Silk Road”, first coined in the late 19th century, has fallen into disuse among some modern historians in favor of Silk Routes, on the grounds that it more accurately describes the intricate web of land and sea routes connecting East and Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent, Central Asia, the Middle East, East Africa and Europe.
- Microscopium (Wikipedia)
Microscopium /ˌmaɪkrəˈskɒpiəm/ (“the Microscope”) is a minor constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere, one of twelve created in the 18th century by French astronomer Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille and one of several depicting scientific instruments. The name is a Latinised form of the Greek word for microscope. Its stars are faint and hardly visible from most of the non-tropical Northern Hemisphere.
