Draco (Dragon)

Japanese: りゅう座(竜座) - りゅうざ（英語表記）Draco

Its abbreviation is Dra. It is a large constellation in the northern sky. It encircles the North Pole, is sandwiched between Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, and stretches in a long, narrow strip across half of the northern sky. In Greek mythology, the giant dragon Ladon guarded the golden apples of the Hesperides, and one of the hero Hercules' 12 labors was to take the apples from the garden of the Hesperides. Hercules held up the celestial sphere in place of their father, Atlas, and had Atlas take the apples for him. Alpha Thuban (the Dragon) is a giant star of type A0 with a luminosity of 3.65, and is located in the center of the dragon's body. Around 3000 B.C., it was the brightest star closest to the north celestial pole, and served as the North Star in ancient Egypt.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

略号はDra。北天の大星座。北極をとりまき，おおくま座，こぐま座にはさまれ，細長く北天を半周する。ギリシア神話では，ヘスペリデスが守る金のリンゴの番人である巨竜ラドンで，英雄ヘラクレスの12の難行の一つが，このヘスペリデスの園のリンゴをとることであった。ヘラクレスは彼女たちの父アトラスの肩代りとして天球を支え，代りにリンゴをとってもらった。α星トゥバン(竜)は光度3.65等，A0型の巨星で竜の胴の中央部に当たる星だが，前3000年ころには天の北極にもっとも近い輝星であり，古代エジプトではこれが北極星の役を果たしていた。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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