The Indian
| Abbreviation: | Ind |
| Genitive: | Indi |
| Origin: | Frederick de Houtmann, Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser, Petrus Plancius |
| Fully Visible: | 90°S – 15°N |
Near the end of the sixteenth century, the observations of Dutch explorers Frederick de Houtman (c.1571–1627) and Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser (c.1540–1596) allowed Dutch astronomer Petrus Plancius (1552–1622) to place this constellation on his 1598 celestial globe. Although the English translation of the name is 'Indian', it is uncertain which indigenous people is represented by this figure
Notable Features
| Visible Named Stars | ||
|---|---|---|
| The brightest star in the constellation, α Ind, is third-magnitude. None of the visible stars in this constellation have an official name. | ||
| Other Interesting Stars | ||
| ε Ind | With a distance of just under 12 light years, this naked eye star is one of the nearest to the Sun. It is surrounded by a dusty ring and accompanied by not one but two brown dwarfs. | |
Copyright © 1995–2023 by L.M. Stockman and David Harper