Pictor, mythology, history, characteristics and observations by telescope

	Pictor or the painter, at first was known like the Small horse of the Painter, since French astronomer Nicolas Louis of the Caille introduced it in century XVIII with the name of Equuleus Pictoris. But later in 1877 Gould it synthesized the term to the present denomination denominated Pintor or Pictor (Pic).

Pictor, is a small constellation of 200º square hair net from skies of visible Europe and in the South hemisphere from the months of September to April, culminating to high altitude. The constellation is crossed by the austral parallel of 50º. Its location is easy when being to the east of the shining Canopus star of the constellation of Carina although it is formed by very weak stars.

Pictor limits the east with the constellations of Caelum and Dorado, to the south with Volans and Dorado, to the east with Carina and Puppis and to the north with the constellations of Columba and Caelum.

To date, I have not been able to locate it to be in very austral latitudes from the island of Majorca where alive, although I do not discard to someday make a trip to the seas of the south, and to lose to me in an island of the desert Pacific to be able to contemplate and to locate the constellations that I have left to discover.

Constellation of Pictor

Main stars

Alpha, a; with a white magnitude of 3.25 it is of color, or spectral type To, located to the south of the constellation near the limits with Carina; light is to 99 years and it reveals to us that the star is 38 times more luminous than the Sun.

Beta, b; with a magnitude of 3.86, light is to 63 years, its color is white of type To, is 8 times more luminous than our Sun, is located to the north of the constellation.

Gamma, g; it stars orange, about phantom K, whose magnitude is of 4.5 which light of us is to 173 years, is a star 37 times more luminous than our Sun.

Other objects

R Pictoris; it stars variable of the red Mira type and therefore, that oscillates between magnitudes 6.7 and 10.0 in an average period of 172 days.

To date observations by telescope have not been made since it is located in the South hemisphere, next to the celestial and invisible South Pole from where I write these lines to you, Majorca, Spain, although I do not discard to someday make a trip to the seas of the south, and to lose to me in an island of the Pacific to be able to contemplate and to locate the constellations that still I have left to discover.

Next in the following window you can select the constellation that you want to locate, to observe and to discover following with the thematic one of the Web of Masm.