#cygnus alpha

[quiltofstars]

Deneb, α Cygni // Wayne Malkin

Deneb (α Cygni) is a blue-white supergiant star about 2,615 light years from Earth. It is a solitary star, about 19 times the mass and 200 times the size of the Sun. Its name comes from the Arabic phrase Dhanab al-Dajājah meaning "tail of the hen."

[stardustgrey]

Finished 2 panel mosaic of the Cygnus Loop Supernova Remnant (SH 2-103) Data in H-alpha with RGB (reduced) stars)

[30403099]

some unfinished work :/

[laser-z-beam]

Since Orbit was so late in the series run it’s a shame there wasn’t an episode properly addressing Avon's, y'know, nearly fucking murdering Vila, though again I’m sure there are TONS of fanfics all about that. On that note I must say through the whole show I was honestly upset at literally nobody respecting Vila HE LITERALLY DID NOTHING WRONG!

Vila is treated as a coward and an idiot by most everybody. I do think he is a coward, but he isn't stupid, which makes his decision to stay on Blake's (and later Avon's) crew all the more interesting.

[loojii]

Constellations as blue aliens! I made these last year, only uploaded them on Patreon Aquila, Cygnus, Pavo, Canis Minor, Canis Major, Boötos, Minor Leo, Lepus, Lupus, Cetus, Centaurus, Orion

For more info about them see the lore dump under the line ~

Aquila the eagle constellation. A myth tied to the constellation tells about Zeus, who transformed himself into an eagle, and kidnaps a pretty boy to be the cup bearer of the Gods. This boy was of course Aquarius. So the characters are friends! Or well, Aquila pressures Aquarius into doing dumb stuff and Aquarius can't say no (in a way kidnapping him for a good time). Aquila's outfit is based on an eagle as well, with white on top and dark on the bottom. He, and other bird constellations, have feather like hair! He is the younger brother of Cygnus and Pavo, and the older brother of Columba and Corvus (they're a big bird family!)

Cygnus the swan constellation. A myth tied to the constellation is that about Zeus, who again transformed. He got a woman pregnant and from that a set of twins were born, one mortal and one immortal. The twin being Gemini, of course. So the character here is best friends with Gemini (she seems to be the only one that is able to handle him). Since Gemini's alpha and beta star are actually the twins, she often visits them and favors Pollux, the immortal twin from the myth. She's like a fun aunt! Another myth tells about a lover being lost or something, drowned in the river depicted by the constellation Eridanus. So she probably doesn't like her that much.

Pavo the peacock constellation. One of the myths tied to the constellation tells about a monster with many eyes that was able to act as a spy for Hera. As a thank you she put his eyes on the peacock feather and the monster himself in the sky. The constellation also depicts the captain of a ship, who are also depicted by several constellations. I don't know what to do with that part yet for this character, maybe those constellations admire Pavo as a teacher? But as for the spy part; this guy obviously loves gossip and always knows everything about everyone. He is the oldest of the bird siblings!

Canis Minor the lesser dog constellation. In the sky the dog is seen hunting Lepus, together with Canis Major and Orion. So all three of them, the characters, dislike her of course! He is always seen hanging out with Orion, following him around and being his yes-man. He's the younger brother of Canis Major naturally

Canis Major the dog constellation. Another yes-man of Orion. I like to take inspiration from myths and science when it comes to their personality / relationships but sometimes I just go by vibes too. And what I feel is that Canis Major gets awfully flustered when Ursa Major is around (yes its solely based on the fact that both of them are the only ones with Major in their name). He does not know how to deal with her overly friendly demeaner and gets kinda angry

Boötos the herdsman constellation. In the myth tied to this constellation a herdsman was killed due to his bad whinemaking skills and his daugther and dog moarned him so much that they died too. The daughter was seen as Virgo and the dog as Canis Major. So the characters are friends! Boötos also has Canes Venatici (the hunting dogs constellation, no design yet) next to him, but the reason that constellation doesn't take on the role of the dog in the myth is because it was first known as Bo's staff. So that character would also be friends with him of course! Maybe part of the dog family? But I'm not sure yet. Boötes has multiple friends but he especially adores Virgo, in his eyes he can do nothing wrong and is the depiction of perfection. Many see Virgo that way but Bo is just a bit more extreme about it. The constellation is also seen hunting Ursa Major in the sky, so maybe they don't have a good relationship?

Minor Leo the lesser lion constellation. I was actually unaware this constellation excisted until I did this project. He is Leo's biggest fan and follows him around. Despite the name they are not related, they're just great buddies! The constellation at one point was planned to be changed into the lioness constellation, but eventually this didn't catch on. So this guy here is sometimes mistaken for a girl!

Lepus the hare constellation. In the sky the hare is seen being hunted by Orion and his two hunting dogs (Canis Major and Minor). So this character of course hates them. She's very quick on her feet and tries to outdone Orion every time she can.

Lupus the wolf constellation. The wolf is also being hunted in the sky, this time by Centaurus. So he dislikes him as well. But he's almost always silent and hangs out with Lepus a lot. It has nothing to do with their myths or anything. They just have similar names and are both being hunted, so I declared them buddies. Lepus always knows what Lupus means, without saying a word, and they are often spotted hanging out (Lupus following Lepus around)

Cetus the whale constellation. Cetus is the unofficial 14th zodiac sign, having the sun in its constellation for just one day. To represent this Cetus (the character) is engaged to Sagittarius, to one day become part of the Zodiac family (but he said yes when they were children and doesn't want to anymore, because who in thei right mind regocnizes Cetus as a Zodiac sign). The myth tied to Cetus is that of a sea monster who only came out of the sea to eat a beautiful maiden. Cetus (the character) is very insecure and never leaves her house. She's the big sis of Ophiuchus, the 13th Zodiac sign

Centaurus the centaur constellation. No, it's not Sagittarius. Both Sagittarius and Centaurus are depicted as centaurs in the sky and because of that their myths are sometimes mistaken for one another. So this guy here is very often mistaken for Sagittarius. But he's taller, better looking, stronger, more mature, etc. The myths of Centaurus go crazy and he's literly tied to everyone. In the discord server theres the ongoing joke that Centaurus is actually the main character. So this guy is just a very popular guy that everyone (excepts Sagittarius, who hates him with the might of 30 suns) likes! He is actually nice and unaware of Sagittarius hatred. Lupus, the wolf constellation, also doesn't like him but he's not as vocal about it as Sagittarius.

Orion the hunter constellation. Orion's myth he was a great hero who was defeated by a little scorpion. He and the scorpion were put in the sky but he's still avoiding the scorpion till this day (they are never seen in the same sky). The scorpion in question is of course Scorpio. Orion (the character) absolutely hates Scorpio and avoids him at all costs. He is seen hunting a hare (Lepus) in the sky together with his two hunting dogs (Canis Major and Minor). So this character of course is buddies with the two dogs and they all hate Lepus.

[astronerdscorner]

Big! Bada big boom!

NGC 6960, also known as the Veil Nebula or Witch's Broom Nebula, is part of the Cygnus Veil in the constellation Swan. It is the remains of a supernova that took place around 8,000 years ago. The distance to Earth is around 1,400 light years. The nebula is known for its impressive filigree structures and bright colors caused by ionized gas. NGC 6960 is the western part of the Veil Nebula, which is often observed in H-alpha and OIII lines.

Bilddaten:

- Dual 60 x 360s / Gain 100

- 25 Flat Dark

- 25 Flat Darks

- 25 Darks

Setup:

- Skywatcher 150/750 F5 PDS

- Omegon 571C

- Skywatcher EQ6R Pro

- Zwo Asi 178mm als Guide cam

[shaythempronouns]

Sh2-105, the Crescent Nebula

The Crescent Nebula (SH2-105, C 27, NGC 6888) is an emission nebula in the Cygnus constellation created by the stellar winds of a Wolf-Rayet star. It's part of a dense family of nebulae in Cygnus, where star forming regions are common due to the proximity to the core of the Milky Way. You can make out some of the ionized hydrogen gas surrounding the nebula in this image, visible as faint red clouds in the background.

Captured at 1650mm with an 8" Ritchey-Chretien telescope and an ASI533MM Pro. Acquisition details: * 3 hours of hydrogen alpha (7nm) - 18x600" exposures * 2 hours of oxygen iii (7nm) - 12x600" exposures

Edited in PixInsight.

[xx-j4nu5-c4t5-xx]

💫Space and science themed names for your next gen of Curious kids💫

Scientists + Telescopes

Marie, Pierre (Marie and Pierre Curie, radiologists)

Blaise (Blaise Pascal, mathematician)

James, Webb (James Webb Space Telescope)

Hubble (Hubble Space Telescope)

Solar System Moons*

Phobos, Deimos (Mars's moons)

Ganymede, Io, Europa, Callisto, etc (Jupiter's moons)

Titan, Enceladus, Iapetus, Phoebe, etc (Saturn's Moons)

Triton, Nereid, Proteus, etc (Neptune's Moons)

Charon (Pluto's moon)

Stars and Other Celestial Objects

Centauri (Alpha Centauri, closest star to the sun)

Sagittarius (Sagittarius A Star, the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy)

Sirius (Brightest star in the night sky)

Halley (Halley's comet)

Orion, Draco, Canis, Ursa, Cygnus, Leo (Constellations)

*Uranus is not included in the moons category because most of its moons are named after Shakespearean characters, and we've already got a bunch of those out in Veronaville.

[the-maddest-robot]

A quick and (very) dirty mosaic of the H alpha photos I had already taken for the three major components of the Cygnus loop.

I wanted to have an idea of what a future mosaic of this target could look like (probably won't be able to do better than that before the end of the year or next summer unfortunately)

Thought I could post it here while I finish processing newer photos.

[nkp1981]

Tom Baker Photographed At "Cygnus Alpha Events", 2024

[quiltofstars]

Comet C/2021 S3 (PanSTARRS) (right) in the constellation of Cygnus // Dmitrijus Tiazlovas

The bright star at the top is Deneb (α Cygni), whose name comes from the Arabic word for "tail", as part of the phrase Dhanab al-Dajājah, or "tail of the hen."

The bright star at the left is Sadr (γ Cygni), whos name comes from the Arabic word ṣadr meaning "chest."

[magic-shop-girl]

Strange Case about Sorceress Giana

Warning: Because i'm not an expert in astronomy, i may confuse some things.

So, a few days ago I read an interesting thread about our beloved Sorceress Giana. And somehow, that thread makes me question anything about Sorceress Giana we met in the game

1. The name Giana

So in KR ver, Sorceress Giana name is spelled as "Giena". If we add it up with what we known so far about Sorceress Giana, I think it can be concluded that Giana is supposed to represent Epsilon Cygni from Cygnus Constellation.

Coincidentally, another star also shared the same name.

Now, Epsilon Cygni official name is "Aljanah". But they have another name, which is "Gienah".

Corvus (Crow) Constellation brightest star, Gamma Corvi, is also officially named "Gienah".

Ngl, when I first heard about Giana I thought she's going to represent Corvus Constellation, Considering the naming of other main characters and side character (who is named after their constellation brightest star). I was kind of surprised when I get to the part where it revealed that Sorceress Giana is from Cygnus.

But i kept thinking, why would Sorceress Giana use Epsilon Cygni another name rather than it's official name, which is Aljanah?

It almost like they wanted us to mistake Giana is from Corvus somehow.

I mean, wouldn't it be easier to use her official name?

2. Giana's Title

So from Vega, we know that Sorceress Giana is currently The Fourth Sorcerer of Cygnus

Here's the interesting things. Epsilon is the fifth letter of the Greek alphabet ( Ε, ε ).

I'm going to use Pollux here for example. The star Pollux is Beta Geminorum or β Gem, from the second letter of Greek alphabet. And Artw Pollux, despite being the brightest star of his constellation, is introduced as The Second Sorcerer of Gemini.

By that, shouldn't Giana title be "The Fifth Sorcerer of Cygnus"?

Funny thing is, Gamma Corvi Giena is the third, while Epsilon Cygni Giena is the fifth.

Artw Giana, being the fourth, will somehow put her between Gamma (3) and Epsilon (5).

Bonus: Polaris and Pole Star

Maybe I'm overthinking it, but Cygnus Constellation brightest star, Deneb, will be the North Pole Star around 9800 AD, the title currently held by Polaris.

And Vega, Alpha Lyrae, will succeed Deneb and will become the North Star at 14,500 AD

Even without the speculation above, It's strange that there's no mention of mention Deneb even once in the game.....considering Deneb being part of Summer triangle (and Vega has mentioned Altair before)

[aliengirl]

meet our babies,

Leo Eltanin & Lyra Vega

as always, the meaning of their names is below <3 (seriusly, i need to stop overthinking these things, look at that mess i made)

Leo & Lyra

Leo Eltanin -----

Leo is a prominent constellation of the zodiac, historically significant and easily recognizable. Its main stars form a shape reminiscent of a crouching lion, adding to its allure and its unmistakable presence in the night sky.

Our human eyes and brains easily pick out pairs of stars on the dome of night, especially if the two stars are relatively bright. On Northern Hemisphere summer nights, a famous pair of stars peers down at us from the northern sky. The two stars are Eltanin and Rastaban. They represent the fiery eyes of the constellation Draco the Dragon.

also, i choose Eltanin because i really wanted to name a kid "Draco", but Draco Sirius would be too harrypotter-y and I liked Orion better, and now with the twins I wanted the names to match (Leo and Lyra being both short L names), and even though Leo Draco would be cool, it would break my chain of 'constellation+star" names, so I went with Eltanin because its in the draco constellation and also points to the Vega star!!!!

Lyra Vega -----

Lyra, Latin for "harp," is a small but significant constellation in the Northern Hemisphere. Its mythological ties, its celestial highlights, including one of the brightest stars in our night sky, and its rich field of deep-sky objects, make it a fascinating topic of study in astronomy.

Vega (Alpha Lyrae) is the brightest star in Lyra and the fifth brightest star in the night sky, shining at a magnitude of 0.03. A mere 25 light-years away from our solar system, Vega is part of the prominent asterism known as the Summer Triangle, alongside Deneb (from the constellation Cygnus) and Altair (from Aquila). Vega is a relatively young star, about 455 million years old, and it's known for its abnormal speed of rotation, completing a spin around its axis in just over 12 hours.

[thethirdromana]

Kerr Avon's costumes, rated

The sequel to Romana II's costumes, rated, here by popular* request! (*maybe not very popular.)

Screengrabs from here (copied rather than linked per their FAQs). Invaluable record of what Avon actually wears in which episode from here. I haven't included overcoats, spacesuits, or anything Avon doesn't actively choose to wear, like prison clothes. Which means that rating this monstrosity

is left as an exercise for the reader.

I've also not done every single variation on black jackets with studded panels, even when they are technically different black jackets with studded panels, because otherwise we'd be here all night.

As seen in Space Fall and Cygnus Alpha.

Ugh. It's fine. The heights of bonkersness that Blake's 7 costume design would reach are not even really hinted at here. It's a perfectly reasonable outfit - grey shirt, grey trousers, grey tabard-thing. Add a name badge and Avon could be stocking shelves in a fancy supermarket. I'll allow that it does look comfortable, which will not be a theme of much else on this list. 5/10.

As seen in Time Squad.

I don't hate the brown patchwork thing (though brown is rightly Blake's colour), but what's going on with the larger square over his stomach? I feel like he's about to do some welding or something and it's there to protect his clothes, but it is his clothes. Avon only wore this outfit once, and who can blame him? 2/10.

As seen in The Web, Seek-Locate-Destroy, Mission to Destiny, Duel, Project Avalon, Breakdown, and Deliverance.

I think this one may have suffered from the passage of time. Because I look at it and think, why has Avon chosen to dress like an old-fashioned stereo system? But from the vantage point of 1978, I guess Avon had chosen to dress like a decidedly modern stereo system. Look at those rounded corners, he could be a first-gen iPod. And the matching grey of collar and cuffs is a nice touch. None of this answers the question of why he has buttons across his tits, but there are some things that are not for us to know. 8/10.

As seen in Bounty and Orac.

Oooh, green. Green is a nice change. And if you're watching Blake's 7 and you're enjoying those green sleeves, you'd better make the most of them, because other than one very notable exception, this is the last time that Avon wears an outfit that isn't brown, white, black or shades of grey for the entire rest of the series. The rest of it looks a bit like someone's Star Trek Discovery uniform cosplay got out of hand. 6/10, because green.

As seen in Redemption and Killer.

Obviously, this is a classic. And full marks to Paul Darrow for wearing a costume that was literally bought from a sex shop and making it look like something that anyone might wear to their normal day of fighting oppression and engaging in homoerotic tension. 10/10.

As seen in Shadow, Horizon, Gambit, and Children of Auron.

OK fine I threw away the term "classic" too soon, this is the true classic, the time Avon decided to dress as a thermal blanket and then pair that with thigh-high boots. ICONIC. What I love about this is aside from being batshit, it's actually kind of a nice outfit? I imagine that shiny fabric was absolute hell to work with but the gathering at the shoulders means it hangs surprisingly well.

It also gains at least 5 bonus points for featuring in this, one of my all-time favourite Blake's 7 moments:

I wish I could find it as a gif, but you'll just have to join me in pretending these images are moving instead. And in heaving a nostalgic sigh for the era when men were allowed to have normal bodies on TV. 15/10.

As seen in Shadow.

I've tried to go for just one main outfit per episode, because this is already very long and we're only about halfway through. But I had to make an exception for matching! outfits! And all the better for being an outfit that looks great on all three of them. I only wish that Avon could have had some silver boots like Jenna is wearing, I think it would really have completed the look. 9/10.

As seen in Weapon, Pressure Point, Countdown, and Dawn of the Gods.

In some ways, this costume is quite practical. Avon is wearing something not a million miles from bikers' leathers here, and the quilted part of the chest and back would presumably offer him a bit of protection if he got into a fight. But also, it's the colour and style of a brothel sofa, and there's no way in hell he could wear this and retain the ability to lift his arms above his head.

God, I love this show. 10/10.

As seen in Trial, Hostage, Voice From the Past, The Keeper, Star One, Aftermath, and Powerplay.

I have less to say about this because - and I mean this in full tribute to the Blake's 7 costume designers - it's just a nice jacket! It stays in keeping with the design trends we see throughout the series, with panels of different fabrics, and spacewear shiny silver bits, but ultimately you could wear this on the street today and no one would give you a second look. I quite like that about it. 8/10.

As seen Aftermath. (And the loose black shirt in Voice From the Past is similar too).

Maybe this is just my mid-00s goth-adjacent phase showing through, but I am, and always will be, a sucker for a man in this kind of shirt. 8/10, please don't make me justify this further.

As seen in Volcano and Rumours of Death.

The first of many similar black outfits, where I'm going to be selective or this will get tedious very quickly. I think this is the best of them; after this, the 80s started up in earnest, and Avon's shoulders were never allowed to be their natural width again. 9/10.

As seen in The Harvest of Kairos.

My parents haven't been camping in years, but somewhere in the attic they still have an old tent, which lives in a bag that looks a lot like this outfit. As if I needed any more reasons to dislike The Harvest of Kairos. 1/10.

As seen in Ultraworld.

Avon what are you doing. Brown is not your colour. I think I might headcanon that this is Blake's jacket, because aside from the brownness it also seems to be a fair bit too big for Avon. After a couple of seasons of squeezing him into the lobster outfit and other tight leather things, the costume designers seem to have swerved hard into boxy shapes from this point onwards. I disapprove. Honestly, I was going to skip this one except that I love what Dayna is wearing. Wish Avon could have some of that energy. 2/10.

As seen in Death-Watch.

Let's pause for a second, look to the left, and appreciate that Dayna is wearing another fabulous outfit. Now let's take a deep breath, and look at the utter monstrosity that Avon is wearing. Like a matador crossed with a bumper car. 0/10.

As seen in Rescue, Power, Traitor, Stardrive, Animals, Headhunter, Orbit, Warlord, and Blake.

Avon wears some kind of black jacket with studs for nearly all of season D, but I've picked this as the definitive one. I don't know if there's some kind of clever character development thing going on here with how big this costume is, like Avon is expanding into his leadership role, but weighed down by the responsibility too. It could be deliberate, it could just be what fashion was like in the early 80s.

What I do know is that however meaningful this costuming might be, it's not flattering. 5/10, and Avon finishes the series, sadly, no better dressed than he began it.

[alphakingacademy]

Meet Colt Arvidsson 🧱

Tough as concrete and just as dense, Colt has been shaped and hardened by his harsh upbringing in Halcyon’s seedy South End. From foster care to the Hellions gang, Colt had to scrounge and scrape his way through life using his intimidating strength to help him along the way. As a result Colt learned the easiest solutions to most of life’s problems is barreling through them with brute strength, and for a while that strategy worked. With his surrogate big brother, Brody Ashford, they became a formidable duo in the Hellion ranks under the leadership of their uncle Cygnus Conway.

But after Brody causes an incident that leads to someone’s death, Colt ends up caught at the scene and arrested for the crime. Unwilling to give up his older brother, Colt is sentenced to juvenile detention to spend the rest of his adolescence there. But things change when Colt is propositioned with an opportunity: Forgo the remainder of his sentence by attending Alpha King Academy, and fully completing the lesson course to graduation.

Determined to carry out his new sentence in the Academy and keep his head down without any incidents, the overarching conspiracy seeks to disrupt those plans. Try as he might to avoid trouble, trouble keeps finding him and his newfound companions. And his bonds between his new friends and his old family are put to the test, pushing him to decide where his loyalties truly lie.

You can read more about Colt here.

[dracfields]

avon ships i'm obsessed with in no particular order (some are popular and some aren't, deal with it):

avon and blake: DUH. remember when aeryn from farscape said "you're like a plague, john crichton, and you have ruined my life. and yet, i just keep coming back"? avon could've said that about blake too (or thought so, or avoided to think so, but it would've been true in any case). he hates how much they rely on each other, how he can't control himself at all when it comes to blake, his actions contradicting his words. blake sees through his façade, and in that way he's closer to avon that anyone's ever been in years; avon is the only one who always remains critical of blake's plans and actions so blake trusts him more than anyone who follows him blindly. blake is avon's weakness and he wants so badly to be free of him but he's under his skin so even when he's gone avon's still tied to him and permanently following his track. "sentiment breeds weakness. let it get a hold of you and you're dead". sentiment ended up killing him and everyone he loved. yippee.

avon and anna: avon was the mistress here, guys, and he didn't mind, and they planned to get away and he fucked up and never forgave himself for it. but then it turns out it was all a lie, he was betrayed, he allowed for it to happen by being vulnerable and letting someone in, and it doesn't matter that she said their love WAS real. he was never free of her. and it happened all over again with blake (anna was married, and blake, too, was married to the cause, if you really think about it)

avon and jenna: might sound random and i know it's a rather niche ship but bear with me. avon and jenna who are both way too fond of blake and know the other is, too. avon trying to get jenna to leave with him and abandon blake in cygnus alpha. all their back and forth witty banter. i just think it would be neat if they had a fling, either a hate sex thing or a bitter one where they both wish they could have blake but he's just too busy with The Cause TM

avon and tarrant: i've read way, way too many a/t fic at this point, guys. tarrant being this young brat who keeps trying to undermine avon's authority, challenging his leadership as often as he can; by the end of the show, he's as loyal to avon as anyone could be. and avon puts up with it, tarrant's little more than a pain in the neck, and he doesn't care about anything anymore except when it comes to people he really cares about. in some ways tarrant felt like a cheap replacement for blake, but once avon has become the lead (blake, but not at all) tarrant is more like a discount avon. it's all wrong, but when everything has been lost, at least having something similar to what was, or to what could have been, is better than nothing... and this is why i love all these fics where a/t is a thing but avon doesn't really love tarrant, he's just a replacement for blake, and tarrant knows he's being used but he either thinks he's strong enough to put up with it OR he's stupid enough to fall in love and then he can't let go of what little he can take.

avon and servalan: i think they had crazy chemistry and it was very fun to see them trying to kill each other and then turning that into flirting because they both like that the other is smart so outsmarting each other was hot. i also like that even though the dynamic is often aggressive/dominating on avon's side the same can be said for servalan, so it's more like a back and forth. avon hates her but he also finds her attractive and intriguing because she's smart, but servalan i think was really into him and kept trying to turn him into her ally