Columba constellation
Latin Columba, genitive Columbae, abbreviation Col
North up, east to the left, as you see the sky. The lines are a common figure; the stars are from the catalogue.
The myth
The dove Noah sent out from the Ark, which returned with an olive branch. Petrus Plancius set it below the Hare around 1592. From Europe only low in the south.
When can Columba be seen?
It stands highest around 10 pm in January. It can be seen from everywhere south of 44°N, and it never sets south of 57°S.
The brightest stars
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Colour |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phact | α Col | 2.64 | bluish |
| Wazn | β Col | 3.12 | orange |
| – | δ Col | 3.85 | yellow |
| – | ε Col | 3.87 | orange |
| – | η Col | 3.96 | orange |
| – | γ Col | 4.36 | bluish |
| – | κ Col | 4.37 | orange |
| – | ο Col | 4.83 | orange |
The smaller the number, the brighter: below 1 are the brightest stars of the sky, 4 is hard to see under a city sky. Greek letters after Johann Bayer (1603).