Aquarius Constellation - Constellation of Aquarius - Field around the Aquarius constelllation. The Helix planetary...

Aquarius Constellation - Constellation of Aquarius - Field around the Aquarius constelllation. The Helix planetary nebula appears as a red dot towards the center of the image. Aquarius (The Water Carrier) is a large but relatively insconspicuous southern zodiacal constellation and has an area of about 980 square degrees, which makes it the 10th largest. Its origins as a constellation can be traced back to Babylonian times and has usually been delineated as a figure pouring water from a jar in the general direction of Capricornus and Piscis Austrinus, themselves quite watery constellations. The Sun is in this part of the sky in February and March, following the Ecliptic. The constellation embraces many objects of telescopic interest, including the Helix nebula and the Mira - like variable star R Aquarii. Also notable are the globular clusters M2 (NGC 7089) and the Saturn planetary nebula NGC 7009. Best seen in the early evening in August