SkyEye: Draco

The Dragon

Abbreviation:	Dra
Genitive:	Draconis
Origin:	[antiquity]
Fully Visible:	4°S – 90°N

It is difficult to say which Greek myth inspired the constellation's name. The dragon may be the deadly monster Typhon. Or it may represent Ladon, the dragon who guarded the golden apples in the Garden of the Hesperides. He was slain by Heracles when the Greek hero was sent to steal the golden apples as part of his 'Twelve Labours'.

The constellation of Draco

Notable Features

Visible Named Stars
α Dra	Thuban	This was the northern polar star during the construction of the Great Pyramids of Egypt and because of the effects of axial precession, it will once again take pride of place in 20350 CE! It sometimes appears as Adib (from the Arabic al‑dhiʾb meaning 'the wolf') in older star atlases and catalogues. In Chinese astronomy, this star is known as Youshu, from Yòu Shū meaning 'the right pivot'.
β Dra	Rastaban	This is actually the third-brightest star in the constellation, not the second.
γ Dra	Eltanin	This K-type giant is the brightest star in the constellation, followed by Rastaban and then Thuban.
δ Dra	Altais	This star sometimes appears as Nodus Secundus (from the Latin nodus secundus meaning 'the second knot') in older star atlases and catalogues. It also appears as Gianfar (from the Persian jauzahr which is a technical term for lunar nodes) in Antonín Bečvář's Atlas of the Heavens — Ⅱ Catalogue 1950.0.
ζ Dra	Aldhibah	This star sometimes appears as Nodus Primus (from the Latin nodus primus meaning 'the first knot') in older star atlases and catalogues. In Chinese astronomy, this star is known as Shangbi, from Shàng Bì meaning 'the first minister'.
η Dra	Athebyne	This star sometimes appears as Dhibain in older star atlases and catalogues. In Chinese astronomy, this star is known as Shaozai, from Shào Zăi meaning 'the second premier'.
ι Dra	Edasich	This star is known to have at least one exoplanet and served as the northern pole star in 4700 BCE. It sometimes appears as Aldib (from the Arabic al‑dhiʾb meaning 'the wolf') in older star atlases and catalogues. In Chinese astronomy, this star is known as Zuoshu, from Zuŏ Shū meaning 'the left pivot'.
λ Dra	Giausar	In Chinese astronomy, this star is known as Shangfu, from Shàng Fŭ meaning 'the first minister'.
μ Dra	Alrakis	This star sometimes appears as Arrakis in older star atlases and catalogues.
ξ Dra	Grumium	The name of this star is a corruption of the Latin word for 'muzzle' or 'snout'. It is located in the head of the dragon.
σ Dra	Alsafi	Alsafi has a high proper motion.
ψ¹ Dra	Dziban	In Chinese astronomy, this star is known as Nushi, from Nŭ Shĭ meaning 'the female protocol'.
7 Dra	Tianyi	This star's name is taken from Chinese, not Arabic, sources.
8 Dra	Taiyi	Similarly, the official name of this star comes from traditional Chinese sources.
42 Dra	Fafnir	This fifth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet. It is located north of κ Cyg.
HD 161693	Alruba	At sixth-magnitude, this star is just visible to the naked eye.
Other Interesting Stars
GJ 725 A, GJ 725 B		The two components of this star are just under 12 light years away from the Sun, making them some of the closest stars to us. This binary system is found near the star ο Dra on the sky map.
HD 109246	Funi	This ninth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet.

C3		Optical aids are required to see this barred spiral galaxy. It appears as number 4236 in the New General Catalogue.
C6	Cat's Eye Nebula	NGC 6543 is a planetary nebula, only visible through a telescope. It was the first planetary nebula to be observed with a spectroscope and the emission lines that were detected in its spectrum settled the argument as to whether these objects were nebulous or stellar in nature.
Meteor Shower Radiants
009 DRA	Draconids	The slow, faint, yellow meteors in this October shower are the remnants of the comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, and the shower seems to occur only when the parent comet is close to perihelion. The radiant is well-placed for northern observers, being in the 'lozenge'-shaped head of the dragon.
184 GDR	July γ Draconids	This recently-discovered minor shower was first detected by radar in 2016 but has not been seen since.