Starwatch: The eagle-eyed will be able to see Aquila now

This week affords us a great view of the constellation Aquila, the Eagle. According to Greek mythology, Aquila is the bird that carried Zeus’s thunderbolt (or Jupiter’s, if you prefer Roman mythology).

It is one of the 48 constellations originally recorded by the astronomer Ptolemy in the second century, and now forms one of the International Astronomical Union’s (IAU) officially recognised 88 constellations.

The brightest star in the constellation is Altair. It is notable because it is one of the closest stars to Earth that can be seen with the naked eye. Located at a distance of approximately 17 light years, there are numerous other stars closer but these are mostly faint red dwarfs that require telescopes to bring them into view.

Altair forms part of the asterism known as the Summer Triangle, which is completed by the stars Vega in Lyra, the lyre, and Deneb in the constellation of Cygnus, the swan.

With Tarazed and Alshain, Altair marks the eagle’s tail feathers and body. The wings stretch out to both sides and the tail culminates in the star Al Thalimain Prior.

The chart shows the view looking south from London all week. Straddling the celestial equator, Aquila is easily visible from both northern and southern hemispheres.