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Glite Dictionary
Octans

Octans

1 9.9
A faint group of stars in the far southern sky that includes the sky's south pole
  • proper noun
  • /ˈɒk.tənz/
: Octans
  • Astrologers often reference Octans when discussing navigation in the southern hemisphere.

Examples

  • Look! It's Octans in the sky!

  • In the southern sky, the constellation Octans can be used to locate the south celestial pole.

  • Navigators use Octans to help locate the south celestial pole.

  • The constellation Octans is visible only in the far southern latitudes.

  • Unlike Orion, Octans is not easily recognized by its stars.

  • I spotted the Octans constellation last night.

  • The faint stars of Octans are often overlooked by stargazers focused on brighter constellations.

Surface Forms

Octans main

Etymology

Octans comes from Latin meaning 'eighth' and was named after the sailor's measuring tool, the octant, which helped navigators measure angles at sea. It has the same root as words like octagon and octopus, which remind you of 'eight', so the faint constellation Octans was chosen as a navigation marker near the south celestial pole.