Serpens

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Serpens
Constellation
Serpens CaputSerpens Cauda
List of stars in Serpens
Abbreviation
Ser
Genitive
Serpentis
Pronunciation /srpnz/,
genitive /srpnts/
Symbolism
the Snake
Right ascension Serpens Caput: 15h 10.4m to 16h 22.5m
Serpens Cauda: 17h 16.9m to 18h 58.3m
Declination
Serpens Caput: 25.66 to 03.72
Serpens Cauda: 06.42 to 16.14
Family Hercules
Area
Serpens Caput: 428 sq. deg.
Serpens Cauda: 208 sq. deg.
Total: 637 sq. deg. (23rd)
Main stars
11
Bayer/Flamsteed
stars 57
Stars with planets
15
Stars brighter than 3.00m
1
Stars within 10.00 pc (32.62 ly)
2
Brightest star Ser (Unuk lh i) (2.63m)
Ne rest st r
GJ 1224
(24.60 ly, 7.54 pc)
Messier objects 2
Bordering
constell tions Serpens C put:
Coron Bore lis
Botes
Virgo
Libr
Ophiuchus
Hercules
Serpens C ud :
Aquil
Ophiuchus
S gitt rius
Scutum
Visible t l titudes between +80 nd 80.
Best visible t 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of July.
Serpens ("the Serpent", Greek )
s a constellat
on o the northern hem
sphere. One o
 the 48 constellat
ons l
sted by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy,
t rema
ns
one o the 88 modern constellat
ons de
ned by the Internat
onal Astronom
cal U
n
on. It
s un
que among the modern constellat
ons
n be
ng spl
t
nto two non-c
ont
guous parts, Serpens Caput (Serpent's Head) to the west and Serpens Cauda (S
erpent's Ta
l) to the east. Between these two halves l
es the constellat
on o O
ph
uchus, the "Serpent-Bearer". In 
gurat
ve representat
ons, the body o the s
erpent
s represented as pass
ng beh
nd Oph
uchus between Mu Serpent
s
n Serpen
s Caput and Nu Serpent
s
n Serpens Cauda.
The br
ghtest star
n Serpens
s the red g
ant star Alpha Serpent
s, or Unukalha

,
n Serpens Caput, w
th an apparent magn
tude o 2.63. Also located
n Serpens
Caput are the naked-eye globular cluster Mess
er 5 and the naked-eye var
ables
R Serpent
s and Tau4 Serpent
s. Notable extragalact
c objects
nclude Seyert's
Sextet, one o the densest galaxy clusters known; Arp 220, the prototyp
cal ultr

alum
nous
nrared galaxy; and Hoag's Object, the most amous o the very rare c
lass o galax
es known as r
ng galax
es.
Part o the M
lky Way's galact
c plane passes through Serpens Cauda, wh
ch
s th
ereore r
ch
n galact
c deep-sky objects, such as the Eagle Nebula (IC 4703) an
d
ts assoc
ated star cluster Mess
er 16. The nebula measures 70 l
ght-years by
50 l
ght-years and conta
ns the P
llars o Creat
on, three dust clouds that beca
me amous or the
mage taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. Other str
k
ng obje
cts
nclude the Red Square Nebula, one o the ew objects
n astronomy to take o
n a square shape; and Westerhout 40, a mass
ve nearby star-orm
ng reg
on cons
s
t
ng o a molecular cloud and an H II reg
on.
Contents [h
de]
1 H
story
2 Character
st
cs
3 Notable eatures
3.1 Stars
3.1.1 Head stars
3.1.2 Ta
l stars
3.2 Deep-sky objects
3.2.1 Head objects
3.2.2 Ta
l objects
3.3 Meteor showers
4 Reerences
5 External l
nks
H
story[ed
t]
Serpens shown as a snake be
ng held by Oph
uchus
n Uran
a's M
rror.
Serpens held by Oph
uchus, as dep
cted
n Uran
a's M
rror, a set o constellat
o
n cards publ
shed
n London c. 1825. Above the ta
l o the serpent
s the now-ob
solete constellat
on Taurus Pon
atov

wh
le below
t
s Scutum
In Greek mythology, Serpens represents a snake held by the healer Asclep
us. Rep
resented
n the sky by the constellat
on Oph
uchus, Asclep
us once k
lled a snak
e, but the an
mal was subsequently resurrected ater a second snake placed a rev

val herb on
t beore
ts death. As snakes shed the
r sk
n every year, they wer
e known as the symbol o reb
rth
n anc
ent Greek soc
ety, and legend says Ascle
p
us would rev
ve dead humans us
ng the same techn
que he w
tnessed. Although th

s
s l
kely the log
c or Serpens' presence w
th Oph
uchus, the true reason
s
st
ll not ully known. Somet
mes, Serpens was dep
cted as co
l
ng around Oph
uch
us, but the major
ty o atlases showed Serpens pass
ng e
ther beh
nd Oph
uchus'
body or between h
s legs.[1]
In some anc
ent atlases, the constellat
ons Serpens and Oph
uchus were dep
cted
as two separate constellat
ons, although more oten they were shown as a s
ngle
constellat
on. One notable 
gure to dep
ct Serpens separately was Johann Bayer;
thus, Serpens' stars are cataloged w
th separate Bayer des
gnat
ons rom those
o Oph
uchus. When Eugne Delporte establ
shed modern constellat
on boundar
es
n
the 1920s, he elected to dep
ct the two separately. However, th
s posed the prob
lem o how to d
sentangle the two constellat
ons, w
th Deporte dec
d
ng to spl
t
Serpens
nto two areasthe head and the ta
lseparated by the cont
nuous Oph
uchus.
These two areas became known as Serpens Caput and Serpens Cauda,[1] caput be
ng
the Lat
n word or head and cauda the Lat
n word or ta
l.[2]
In Ch
nese astronomy, most o the stars o Serpens represented part o a wall su
rround
ng a marketplace, known as T
ansh
, wh
ch was
n Oph
uchus and part o He
rcules. Serpens also conta
ns a ew Ch
nese constellat
ons. Two stars
n the ta

l represented part o Sh
lou, the tower w
th the market o
ce. Another star
n
the ta
l represented L
es
, jewel shops. One star
n the head (Mu Serpent
s) mar
ked T
anru, the crown pr
nce's wet nurse, or somet
mes ra
n.[1]
There were two "serpent" constellat
ons
n Babylon
an astronomy, known as Muuu and B

amu. It appears that Muuu was dep
cted as a hybr
d o a dragon, a l
on and a b
rd, an
d loosely corresponded to Hydra. Bamu was a horned serpent (c.. N
ng
shz
da) and
roughly corresponds to the constellat
on o Eudoxus o Cn
dus on wh
ch the (Serpen
o Ptolemy
s based.[3]
Character
st
cs[ed
t]
Serpens
s the only one o the 88 modern constellat
ons to be spl
t
nto two d
s
connected reg
ons
n the sky: Serpens Caput (the head) and Serpens Cauda (the ta

l). The constellat
on
s also unusual
n that
t depends on another constellat

on or context; spec

cally,
t
s be
ng held by the Serpent Bearer Oph
uchus.[
1]
Serpens Caput
s bordered by L
bra to the south, 
rgo and Botes to the east, Cor
ona Boreal
s to the north, and Oph
uchus and Hercules to the west; Serpens Cauda

s bordered by Sag
ttar
us to the south, Scutum and Aqu
la to the east, and Oph

uchus to the north and west. Cover
ng 636.9 square degrees total,
t ranks 23rd
o the 88 constellat
ons
n s
ze. It appears prom
nently
n both the northern a
nd southern sk
es dur
ng the Northern Hem
sphere's summer.[4] Its ma
n aster
sm
cons
sts o 11 stars, and 108 stars
n total are br
ghter than magn
tude 6.5, th
e trad
t
onal l
m
t or naked-eye v
s
b
l
ty.[4]
Serpens Caput's boundar
es, as set by Eugne Delporte
n 1930, are de
ned by a 15
-s
ded polygon, wh
le Serpens Cauda's are de
ned by a 25-s
ded polygon. In the
equator
al coord
nate system, the r
ght ascens
on coord
nates o Serpens Caput's
borders l
e between 15h 10.4m and 16h 22.5m, wh
le the decl
nat
on coord
nates
are between 25.66 and 03.72. Serpens C ud 's bound ries lie between right scension
s of 17h 16.9m nd 18h 58.3m nd declin tions of 06.42 nd 16.14.[5] The Intern tio
n l Astronomic l Union (IAU) dopted the threeletter bbrevi tion "Ser" for the
constell tion in 1922.[5][6]
Not ble fe tures[edit]
St rs[edit]
See lso: List of st rs in Serpens
He d st rs[edit]
The p ttern of st rs in Serpens C put seen with the n ked eye, with
tri ngle m
rking the he d nd
line of st rs extending down m rking the upper body
The constell tion Serpens (C put) s it c n be seen by the n ked eye
M rking the he rt of the serpent is the constell tion's brightest st r, Alph Se
rpentis. Tr dition lly c lled Unuk lh i, is red gi nt of spectr l type K2III l
oc ted pproxim tely 23 p rsecs dist nt with visu l m gnitude of 2.630 0.009,[
7] me ning it c n e sily be seen with the n ked eye even in re s with subst nti
l light pollution. A f int comp nion is in orbit round the red gi nt st r,[8]
lthough it is not visible to the n ked eye. Situ ted ne r Alph is L mbd Serpe
ntis, m gnitude 4.42 0.05 st r r ther simil r to the Sun[9] positioned only 12
p rsecs w y.[10] Another sol r n log in Serpens is the prim ry of Psi Serpent
is, bin ry st r[11] loc ted slightly further w y t pproxim tely 14 p rsecs.
[12]
Bet , G mm , nd Iot Serpentis form distinctive tri ngul r sh pe m rking the
he d of the sn ke, with K pp Serpentis being roughly midw y between G mm nd I
ot . The brightest of the four with n pp rent m gnitude of roughly 3.67, Bet
Serpentis is white m insequence st r roughly 160 p rsecs dist nt.[13] It is l
ikely th t ne rby 10thm gnitude st r[14] is physic lly ssoci ted with Bet ,
lthough it is not cert in.[15] The Mir v ri ble R Serpentis, situ ted between
Bet nd G mm , is visible to the n ked eye t its m ximum of 5thm gnitude, but
, typic l of Mir v ri bles, it c n f de to below m gnitude 14.[16] G mm Serpen
tis itself is n Ftype subgi nt loc ted only 11 p rsecs dist nt nd thus is qui
te bright, being of m gnitude 3.84 0.05.[17] The st r is known to show sol rlik
e oscill tions.[18]

Delt Serpentis, forming p rt of the body of the sn ke between the he rt nd the

he d, is multiple st r system[19] positioned round 70 p rsecs from E rth. Co
nsisting of four st rs, the system h s tot l pp rent m gnitude of 3.79 s vie
wed from E rth,[20] lthough two of the st rs, with
combined pp rent m gnitud
e of 3.80, provide ne rly ll the light.[21] The prim ry, white subgi nt, is
Delt Scuti v ri ble with n ver ge pp rent m gnitude of 4.23.[22] Positioned
very ne r Delt , both in the night sky nd likely in ctu l sp ce t n estim t
ed dist nce of round 70 p rsecs,[23] is the b rium st r 16 Serpentis.[24] Anoth
er not ble v ri ble st r visible to the n ked eye is Chi Serpentis, n Alph C nu
m Ven ticorum v ri ble situ ted midw y between Delt nd Bet which v ries from
its medi n brightness of 5.33 by 0.03 m gnitudes over period of pproxim tely
1.5 d ys.[25]
The two st rs in Serpens C put th t form p rt of the Sn ke's body below the he r
t re Epsilon nd Mu Serpentis, both thirdm gnitude Atype m insequence st rs.
[26][27] Both h ve peculi rity: Epsilon is n Am st r,[28] while Mu is
bin r
y.[29] Loc ted slightly northwest of Mu is 36 Serpentis, nother Atype m inseq
uence st r. This st r lso h s peculi rity; it is bin ry with the prim ry co
mponent being L mbd Botis st r, me ning th t it h s sol rlike mounts of c rb
on, nitrogen, nd oxygen, while cont ining very low mounts of iron pe k element
s.[30] 25 Serpentis, positioned few degrees northe st of Mu Serpentis, is sp
ectroscopic bin ry[31] consisting of hot Btype gi nt nd n Atype m inseque
nce st r. The prim ry is slowly puls ting B st r, which c uses the system to v
ry by 0.03 m gnitudes.[32]
Serpens C put cont ins m ny RR Lyr e v ri bles, lthough most re too f int to b
e seen without profession l photogr phy. The brightest is VY Serpentis, only of
10th m gnitude. Interestingly, this st r's period h s been incre sing by pproxi
m tely 1.2 seconds per century.[33] A v ri ble st r of
different kind is T u4
Serpentis, cool red gi nt th t puls tes between m gnitudes 5.89 nd 7.07 in 87
d ys.[34] This st r h s been found to displ y n inverse P Cygni profile,[35] w
here cold inf lling g s on to the st r cre tes redshifted hydrogen bsorption li
nes next to the norm l emission lines.[36]
Sever l st rs in Serpens h ve been found to h ve pl nets. The brightest, Omeg S
erpentis, loc ted between Epsilon nd Mu, is n or nge gi nt with pl net of p
proxim tely 1.7 Jupiterm sses.[37] NN Serpentis, n eclipsing postcommonenvel
ope bin ry consisting of white dw rf nd
red dw rf,[38] is very likely to h
ve two pl nets c using v ri tions in the period of the eclipses.[39] Although it
does not h ve pl net, the sol r n log HD 137510 h s been found to h ve bro
wn dw rf comp nion within the browndw rf desert.[40]
PSR B1534+11 is system consisting of two neutron st rs orbiting e ch other, on
e of which is puls r with period of 37.9 milliseconds. Situ ted pproxim tel
y 1000 p rsecs dist nt, the system w s used to test Albert Einstein's theory of
gener l rel tivity, v lid ting the system's rel tivistic p r meters to within 0.
2% of v lues predicted by the theory.[41] The Xr y emission from the system h s
been found to be present when the nonpuls r st r intersects the equ tori l pul
s r wind of the puls r, nd the system's orbit h s been found to v ry slightly.[
42]
T il st rs[edit]
The p ttern of st rs in Serpens C ud seen with the n ked eye, with line of st
rs m rking the t il
The constell tion Serpens (C ud ) s it c n be seen by the n ked eye
The brightest st r in the t il, Et Serpentis, is simil r to Alph Serpentis' pr
im ry in th t it is red gi nt of spectr l cl ss K. This st r, however, is know
n to exhibit sol rlike oscill tions over
period of pproxim tely 2.16 hours.[
43] The other two st rs in Serpens C ud forming its sterism re Thet nd Xi S
erpentis. Xi, where the sterism crosses over to Mu Serpentis in the he d, is

triple st r system[8] loc ted pproxim tely 105 p rsecs w y.[44] Two of the st
rs, with
combined pp rent m gnitude of round 3.5, form spectroscopic bin r
y with n ngul r sep r tion of only 2.2 milli rcseconds,[45] nd thus c nnot be
resolved with modern equipment. The prim ry is white gi nt with n excess of
strontium.[44] Thet , forming the tip of the t il, is lso multiple system, co
nsisting of two Atype m insequence st rs with
combined pp rent m gnitude of
round 4.1 sep r ted by lmost h lf n rcminute.[8]
Lying ne r the bound ry with Ophiuchus re Zet , Nu, nd Omicron Serpentis. All
three re 4thm gnitude m insequence st rs, with Nu nd Omicron being of spectr
l type A[46][47] nd Zet being of spectr l type F.[48] Nu is bin ry st r[8]
with 9thm gnitude comp nion,[49] while Omicron is
Delt Scuti v ri ble with
mplitude v ri tions of 0.01 m gnitudes.[50] In 1909, the symbiotic nov [51] RT
Serpentis ppe red ne r Omicron, lthough it only re ched
m ximum m gnitude o
f 10.[52]
The st r system 59 Serpentis, lso known s d Serpentis, is triple st r system
[53] consisting of spectroscopic bin ry cont ining n Atype st r nd n or n
ge gi nt[54] nd n or nge gi nt second ry.[55] The system shows irregul r v ri
tions in brightness between m gnitudes 5.17 nd 5.2.[56] In 1970, the nov FH Se
rpentis ppe red just slightly north of 59 Serpentis, re ching m ximum brightn
ess of 4.5.[57] Also ne r 59 Serpentis in the Serpens Cloud re sever l Orion v
ri bles. MWC 297 is Herbig Be st r th t in 1994 exhibited
l rge Xr y fl re
nd incre sed in Xr y luminosity by five times before returning to the quiescen
t st te.[58] The st r lso ppe rs to possess circumstell r disk.[59] Another
Orion v ri ble in the region is VV Serpentis, Herbig Ae st r th t h s been fou
nd to exhibit Delt Scuti puls tions.[60] VV Serpentis h s lso, like MWC 297, b
een found to h ve
dusty disk surrounding it,[61] nd is lso UX Orionis st r
,[62] me ning th t it shows irregul r v ri tions in its brightness.[63]
The st r HR 6958, lso known s MV Serpentis, is n Alph 2 C num Ven ticorum v r
i ble th t is f intly visible to the n ked eye.[64] The st r's met l bund nce i
s ten times higher th n the Sun for most met ls t the iron pe k nd up to 1,000
times more for he vier elements. It h s lso been found to cont in excess silic
on.[65] B rely visible to the n ked eye is HD 172365,[66] likely postblue str
ggler in the open cluster IC 4756 th t cont ins l rge excess of lithium.[67]
HD 172189, lso loc ted in IC 4756, is n Algol v ri ble eclipsing bin ry[68] wi
th 5.70 d y period. The prim ry st r in the system is lso Delt Scuti v ri
ble, undergoing multiple puls tion frequencies, which, combined with the eclipse
s, c uses the system to v ry by round tenth of
m gnitude.[69]
As the g l ctic pl ne p sses through it, Serpens C ud cont ins m ny m ssive OB
st rs. Sever l of these re visible to the n ked eye, such s NW Serpentis, n e
rly Be st r th t h s been found to be somewh t v ri ble. The v ri bility is int
eresting; ccording to one study, it could be one of the first discovered hybrid
s between Bet Cephei v ri bles nd slowly puls ting B st rs.[70] Although not v
isible to the n ked eye, HD 167971 (MY Serpentis) is Bet Lyr e v ri ble tripl
e system consisting of three very hot Otype st rs. A member of the cluster NGC
6604,[71] the two eclipsing st rs re both blue gi nts, with one being of the ve
ry e rly spectr l type O7.5III. The rem ining st r is either blue gi nt or sup
ergi nt of l te O or e rly B spectr l type.[68] Also n eclipsing[72] bin ry,
the HD 166734 system consists of two Otype blue supergi nts in orbit round e c
h other.[73] Less extreme in terms of m ss nd temper ture is HD 161701, spect
roscopic bin ry consisting of
Btype prim ry nd n Ap second ry, lthough it
is the only known spectroscopic bin ry to consist of st r with excess of mercu
ry nd m ng nese nd n Ap st r.[74]
South of the E gle Nebul on the border with S gitt rius is the eclipsing bin ry
W Serpentis, whose prim ry is white gi nt th t is inter cting with the second
ry. The system h s been found to cont in n ccretion disk, nd w s one of the

first discovered Serpentids, which re eclipsing bin ries cont ining exception l
ly strong f rultr violet spectr l lines.[75] It is suspected th t such Serpenti
ds re in n e rlier evolution ry ph se, nd will evolve first into double perio
dic v ri bles nd then cl ssic l Algol v ri bles.[76] Also ne r the E gle Nebul
is the eclipsing WolfRayet b
nary C Serpent
s, cons
st
ng o a WolRayet star an
d a hot O-type subg
ant. The system
s surrounded by a r
ng-shaped nebula, l
kel
y ormed dur
ng the WolRayet phase o the pr
mary.[77] The ecl
pses o the syste
m vary errat
cally, and although there are two theor
es as to why, ne
ther o th
em
s completely cons
stent w
th current understand
ng o stars.[78]
Serpens Cauda conta
ns a ew X-ray b
nar
es. One o these, GX 17+2,
s a low-mas
s X-ray b
nary cons
st
ng o a neutron star and, as
n all low-mass X-ray b
nar

es, a low-mass star. The system has been class

ed as a Sco-l
ke Z source, mean

ng that
ts accret
on
s near the Edd
ngton l
m
t.[79] The system has also been
ound to approx
mately every 3 days br
ghten by around 3.5 K-band magn
tudes, p
oss
bly due to the presence o a synchrotron jet.[80] Another low-mass X-ray b
n
ary, Serpens X-1, undergoes occas
onal X-ray bursts. One
n part
cular lasted ne
arly our hours, poss
bly expla
ned by the burn
ng o carbon
n "a heavy element
ocean".[81]
Deep-sky objects[ed
t]
Head objects[ed
t]
Mess
er 5's central dense core o stars, conta
n
ng a large number o stars pack
ed
nto a small area
Mess
er 5, a globular cluster that can be seen w
th the naked eye under good con
d
t
ons
As the galact
c plane does not pass through th
s part o Serpens, a v
ew to many
galax
es beyond
t
s poss
ble. However, a ew structures o the M
lky Way Gala
xy are present
n Serpens Caput, such as Mess
er 5, a globular cluster pos
t
one
d approx
mately 8 southwest o Serpentis, next to the st r 5 Serpentis. B rely vi
sible to the n ked eye under good conditions,[82] nd is loc ted pproxim tely 2
5,000 ly dist nt.[83] Messier 5 cont ins l rge number of known RR Lyr e v ri b
le st rs,[84] nd is receding from us t over 50 km/s.[85] The cluster cont ins
two millisecond puls rs, one of which is in
bin ry, llowing the proper motion
of the cluster to be me sured. The bin ry could help our underst nding of neutr
on degener te m tter; the current medi n m ss, if confirmed, would exclude ny "
soft" equ tion of st te for such m tter.[86] The cluster h s been used to test f
or m gnetic dipole moments in neutrinos, which could shed light on some hypothet
ic l p rticles such s the xion.[87] Another globul r cluster is P lom r 5, fou
nd just south of Messier 5. Interestingly, m ny st rs re le ving this globul r
cluster due to the Milky W y's gr vity, forming tid l t il over 30000 lightye
rs long.[88]
A rem rk ble d rk nebul complex is the L134/L183 complex. Along with
third cl
oud, they re likely fr gments of single origin l cloud loc ted 36 degrees w
y from the g l ctic pl ne, l rge dist nce for d rk nebul e.[89] The entire com
plex is thought to be round 140 p rsecs dist nt.[90] L183, lso referred to s
L134N, is p rticul rly interesting; there re sever l infr red sources within, i
ndic ting prestell r sources[91] thought to present the first known observ tion
of the contr ction ph se between cloud cores nd prestell r cores.[92] The core
is split into three regions,[93] with combined m ss of round 25 sol r m sses
.[94]
Outside of the Milky W y, there re no bright deepsky objects for m teur stro
nomers in Serpens C put, with nothing else bove 10th m gnitude. The brightest i
s NGC 5962, spir l g l xy positioned round 28 meg p rsecs dist nt[95] with n
pp rent m gnitude of 11.34.[96] Slightly f inter is NGC 5921,
b rred spir l
g l xy with LINERtype ctive g l ctic nucleus situ ted somewh t closer t d
ist nce of 21 meg p rsecs.[97] A type II supernov w s observed in this g l xy i
n 2001 nd w s design ted SN 2001X.[98] F inter still re the spir ls NGC 5964[9

9] nd NGC 6118, with the l tter being host to the supernov

SN 2004dk.[100]

The yellow nucleus of Ho g's Object surrounded by

blue ring of st rs
Ho g's Object, g l xy in Serpens nd
member of the very r re cl ss known s
ring g l xies
Ho g's Object, loc ted 600 million lightye rs from E rth, is one of the most f
mous of very r re cl ss of g l xies known s ring g l xies. The outer ring is
l rgely composed of young blue st rs while the core is m de up of older yellow s
t rs. The predomin nt theory reg rding its form tion is th t the progenitor g l
xy w s b rred spir l g l xy whose rms h d velocities too gre t to keep the g
l xy's coherence nd therefore det ched.[101] Arp 220 is nother unusu l g l xy
in Serpens. The prototypic l ultr luminous infr red g l xy, Arp 220 is somewh t
closer th n Ho g's Object t 250 million lightye rs from E rth. It consists of
two l rge spir l g l xies in the process of colliding with their nuclei orbiting
t dist nce of 1,200 lightye rs, c using extensive st r form tion throughout
both components. It possesses
l rge cluster of more th n billion st rs, p r
ti lly covered by thick dust clouds ne r one of the g l xies' core.[101] Another
inter cting g l xy p ir, lbeit in n e rlier st ge, consists of the g l xies N
GC 5953 nd NGC 5954. In this c se, both re ctive g l xies, with the former
Seyfert 2 g l xy nd the l tter
LINERtype g l xy. Both re undergoing burst
of st r form tion triggered by the inter ction.[102]
Seyfert's Sextet is group of six g l xies, four of which re inter cting gr vi
t tion lly nd two of which simply ppe r to be p rt of the group despite thei
r gre ter dist nce. The gr vit tion lly bound cluster lies t dist nce of 190
million lightye rs from E rth nd is pproxim tely 100,000 lightye rs cross,
m king Seyfert's Sextet one of the densest g l xy group known. Astronomers predi
ct th t the four inter cting g l xies will eventu lly merge to form l rge elli
ptic l g l xy.[101] The r dio source 3C 326 w s origin lly though to em n te fro
m gi nt elliptic l g l xy. However, in 1990, it w s shown th t the source is i
nste d brighter, sm ller g l xy few rcseconds north.[103] This object, desi
gn ted 3C 326 N, h s enough g s for st r form tion, but is being inhibited due t
o the energy from the r dio g l xy nucleus.[104]
A much l rger g l xy cluster is the redshift0.0354 Abell 2063.[105] The cluster
is thought to be inter cting with the ne rby g l xy group MKW 3s, b sed on r di
l velocity me surements of g l xies nd the positioning of the cD g l xy t the
center of Abell 2063.[106] The ctive g l xy t the center of MKW 3sNGC 5920 ppe
rs to be cre ting
bubble of hot g s from its r dio ctivity.[107] Ne r the 5th
m gnitude st r Pi Serpentis lies AWM 4, cluster cont ining n excess of met l
s in the intr cluster medium. The centr l g l xy, NGC 6051, is
r dio g l xy th
t is prob bly responsible for this enrichment.[108] Simil r to AWM 4, the clust
er Abell 2052 h s centr l cD r dio g l xy, 3C 317. Interestingly, this r dio g l
xy is believed to h ve rest rted fter
period of in ctivity less th n 200 ye
rs go.[109] The g l xy h s over 40,000 known globul r clusters, the highest kno
wn tot l of ny g l xy s of 2002.[110]
A brilli nt red g l xy on the left inter cts with
blue g l xy on the right, fo
rming the merging ctive g l xy p ir 3C 321
A composite im ge of 3C 321, merging ctive g l xy p ir
Consisting of two qu s rs with sep r tion of less th n 5 rcseconds, the qu s
r p ir 4C 11.50 is one of the visu lly closest p irs of qu s rs in the sky. The
two h ve m rkedly different redshifts, however, nd re thus unrel ted.[111] The
foreground member of the p ir (4C 11.50 A) does not h ve enough m ss to refr ct
light from the b ckground component (4C 11.50 B) enough to produce lensed im
ge, lthough it does h ve true comp nion of its own.[112] An even str nger g l
xy p ir is 3C 321. Unlike the previous p ir, the two g l xies m king up 3C 321
re inter cting with e ch other nd re in the process of merging. Interestingly
, both members ppe r to be ctive g l xies; the prim ry r dio g l xy m y be res
ponsible for the ctivity in the second ry by me ns of the former's jet driving

m teri l onto the l tter's superm ssive bl ck hole.[113]

A rem rk ble ex mple of gr vit tion l lensing is found in the r dio g l xy 3C 32
4. First thought to be
single overluminous r dio g l xy with redshift of z =
1.206, it w s found in 1987 to ctu lly be two g l xies, with the r dio g l xy
t the forementioned redshift being lensed by nother g l xy t redshift z = 0.
845. The first ex mple of multiplyim ged r dio g l xy discovered,[114] the so
urce ppe rs to be n elliptic l g l xy with dust l ne obscuring our view of t
he visu l nd ultr violet emission from the nucleus.[115] In even shorter w vele
ngths, the BL L c object PG 1553+113 is he vy emitter of g mm r ys. This obje
ct is the most dist nt found to emit photons with energies in the TeV r nge s o
f 2007.[116] The spectrum is unique, with h rd emission in some r nges of the g
mm r y spectrum in st rk contr st to soft emission in others.[117] In 2012, the
object fl red in the g mm r y spectrum, tripling in luminosity for two nights,
llowing the redshift to be ccur tely me sured s z = 0.49.[118]
Sever l g mm r y bursts (GRBs) h ve been observed in Serpens C put, such s GRB
970111, one of the brightest GRBs observed. Interestingly, n optic l tr nsient
event ssoci ted with this GRB h s not been found, despite its intensity. The h
ost g l xy initi lly lso proved elusive, however it now ppe rs th t the host i
s Seyfert I g l xy loc ted t redshift z = 0.657.[119] The Xr y fterglow of
the GRB h s lso been much f inter th n for other dimmer GRBs.[120] More dist nt
is GRB 060526 (redshift z = 3.221), from which Xr y nd optic l fterglows wer
e detected. This GRB w s surprisingly f int for longdur tion GRB.[121]
T il objects[edit]
Three pill rs of op que g s st nd t ll in green nebulous b ckground
The Pill rs of Cre tion, wellknown st rforming region in the E gle Nebul m
de f mous by this Hubble photogr ph
P rt of the g l ctic pl ne p sses through the t il, nd thus Serpens C ud is ri
ch in deepsky objects within our own g l xy. The E gle Nebul
nd its ssoci te
d st r cluster, Messier 16 lie 7,000 lightye rs from E rth in the direction of
the g l ctic center. The nebul me sures 70 lightye rs by 50 lightye rs nd co
nt ins the Pill rs of Cre tion, three dust clouds th t bec me f mous for the im
ge t ken by the Hubble Sp ce Telescope. The st rs being born in the E gle Nebul
, dded to those with n pproxim te ge of 5 million ye rs h ve n ver ge temp
er ture of 45,000 kelvins nd produce prodigious mounts of r di tion th t will
eventu lly destroy the dust pill rs.[101] Despite its f me, the E gle Nebul is
f irly dim, with n integr ted m gnitude of pproxim tely 6.0. The st rforming
regions in the nebul re often ev por ting g seous globules; unlike Bok globule
s they only hold one protost r.[122]
North of Messier 16, t dist nce of pproxim tely 2000 p rsecs, is the OB sso
ci tion Serpens OB2, cont ining over 100 OB st rs. Around 5 million ye rs old, t
he ssoci tion ppe rs to still cont in st rforming regions, nd the light from
its st rs is illumin ting the HII region S 54.[123] Within this HII region is t
he open cluster NGC 6604, which is the s me ge s the surrounding OB ssoci tio
n,[124] nd the cluster is now thought to simply be the densest p rt of it.[125]
Interestingly, the cluster ppe rs to be producing therm l chimney of ionized
g s, c used by the inter ction of the g s from the g l ctic disk with the g l c
tic h lo.[123]
Another open cluster in Serpens C ud is IC 4756, cont ining t le st one n ked
eye st r, HD 172365[126] ( nother n kedeye st r in the vicinity, HD 171586, is
most likely unrel ted). Positioned pproxim tely 440 p rsecs dist nt,[127] the c
luster is estim ted to be round 800 million ye rs old, quite old for n open cl
uster.[128] Despite the presence of the Milky W y in Serpens C ud , one globul r
cluster c n be found: NGC 6535, lthough invisible to the n ked eye, c n be m d
e out in sm ll telescopes just north of Zet Serpentis. R ther sm ll nd sp rse
for globul r cluster,[129] this cluster cont ins no known RR Lyr e v ri bles,

which is unusu l for

globul r cluster.[130]

A brilli nt red squ resh ped pl net ry nebul

The Red Squ re Nebul , one of the very few ne rperfect squ res in stronomy
MWC 922 is st r surrounded by pl net ry nebul . Dubbed the Red Squ re Nebul
due to its simil rities to the Red Rect ngle Nebul , the pl net ry nebul ppe
rs to be
ne rly perfect squ re with d rk b nd round the equ tori l regions.
The nebul cont ins concentric rings, which re simil r to those seen in the su
pernov SN 1987A.[131] MWC 922 itself is n FS C nis M joris v ri ble,[132] me n
ing th t it is Be st r cont ining exception lly bright hydrogen emission lines
s well s select forbidden lines, likely due to the presence of close bin ry
.[133] E st of Xi Serpentis is nother pl net ry nebul , Abell 41, cont ining th
e bin ry st r MT Serpentis t its center. The nebul ppe rs to h ve
bipol r s
tructure, nd the xis of symmetry of the nebul h s been found to be within 5 of
the line perpendicul r to the orbit l pl ne of the st rs, strengthening the lin
k between bin ry st rs nd bipol r pl net ry nebul e.[134] On the other end of t
he stell r ge spectrum is L483,
d rk nebul which cont ins the protost r IRAS
184180440. Although cl ssified s cl ss 0 protost r, it h s some unusu l fe
tures for such n object, such s l ck of highvelocity stell r winds, nd it
h s been proposed th t this object is in tr nsition between cl ss 0 nd cl ss I.
[135] A v ri ble nebul exists round the protost r, lthough it is only visible
in infr red light.[136]
Bright blue st rs in l rge gold cloud of g s
Westerhout 40, one of the ne rest sites of m ssive st r form tion
The Serpens cloud is m ssive st rforming molecul r cloud situ ted in the sout
hern p rt of Serpens C ud . Only two million ye rs old[137] nd 420 p recs dist
nt,[138] the cloud is known to cont in m ny protost rs such s Serpens FIRS 1[13
9] nd Serpens SVS 20.[140] The Serpens South protocluster w s uncovered by NASA
's Spitzer Sp ce Telescope in the southern portion of the cloud,[141] nd it pp
e rs th t st r form tion is still continuing in the region.[142] Another site of
st r form tion is the Westerhout 40 complex, consisting of prominent HII regi
on dj cent to molecul r cloud.[143] Loc ted round 500 p rsecs dist nt,[144]
it is one of the ne rest m ssive regions of st r form tion, but s the molecul r
cloud obscures the HII region, rendering it nd its embedded cluster tough to s
ee visibly, it is not s wellstudied s others.[145] The embedded cluster likel
y cont ins over 600 st rs bove 0.1 sol r m sses,[146] with sever l m ssive st r
s, including t le st one Otype st r, being responsible for lighting the HII re
gion nd the production of bubble.[144]
Despite the presence of the Milky W y, sever l ctive g l xies re visible in Se
rpens C ud s well, such s PDS 456, found ne r Xi Serpentis. The most intrinsi
c lly luminous ne rby ctive g l xy,[147] this AGN h s been found to be extremel
y v ri ble in the Xr y spectrum. This h s llowed light to be shed on the n tur
e of the superm ssive bl ck hole t the center, likely Kerr bl ck hole.[148] I
t is possible th t the qu s r is undergoing tr nsition from n ultr luminous i
nfr red g l xy to cl ssic l r dioquiet qu s r, but there re problems with th
is theory, nd the object ppe rs to be n exception l object th t does not comp
letely lie within current cl ssific tion systems.[147] Ne rby is NRAO 530, bl
z r th t h s been known to fl re in the Xr ys occ sion lly. One of these fl res
w s for less th n 2000 seconds, m king it the shortest fl re ever observed in
bl z r s of 2004.[149] The bl z r lso ppe rs to show periodic v ri bility in
its r dio w ve output over two different periods of six nd ten ye rs.[150]
Meteor showers[edit]
There re two d ytime meteor showers th t r di te from Serpens, the Omeg Serpen
tids nd the Sigm Serpentids. Both showers pe k between December 18 nd Decembe
r 25.[151]