Scorpius the Scorpion

constellation · zodiac · stars

Ancient scorpion shape. Scorpius is one of the oldest constellations, recognized by people long before the Greeks even named it. Ptolemy, a famous Greek astronomer, listed it as one of 48 major constellations nearly 2,000 years ago.

Milky Way neighbor. Scorpius sits right near the center of the Milky Way, our galaxy, which makes it extra packed with stars when you look up at it. It's squeezed between two other zodiac constellations called Libra and Sagittarius.

Bright red giant. The brightest star in Scorpius is called Antares, which means 'rival of Mars' because it glows with a reddish color like the planet Mars. It's a massive red giant star that's much bigger than our Sun.

Southern sky treasure. Scorpius hangs out in the southern half of the night sky, so if you live north of the equator, you might need to travel south to see it clearly. People in the Southern Hemisphere get an amazing view of this constellation.