View source for Scutum (constellation)

{{Short description|Small constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere}}
{{Infobox constellation
|name = Scutum
|abbreviation = Sct
|genitive = Scuti
|pronounce = {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|k|juː|t|əm}},<br />genitive {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|k|juː|t|aɪ}}
|symbolism = the [[Shield]] of [[John III Sobieski]]
|RA = {{RA|18.7}}
|dec= {{DEC|−10}}
|family = [[Hercules Family|Hercules]]
|quadrant = SQ4
|areatotal = 109
|arearank = 84th
|numbermainstars = 2
|numberbfstars = 7
|numberstarsplanets = 1
|numberbrightstars = 0
|numbernearbystars = 0
|brighteststarname = [[Alpha Scuti|α Scuti]]
|starmagnitude = 3.85
|neareststarname = [[LHS 3398]]
|stardistancely = 41.54
|stardistancepc = 12.74
|numbermessierobjects = 2
|meteorshowers = [[June Scutids]]
|bordering = [[Aquila (constellation)|Aquila]]<br /> [[Sagittarius (constellation)|Sagittarius]]<br />[[Serpens|Serpens Cauda]]
|latmax = [[80th parallel north|80]]
|latmin = [[South Pole|90]]
|month = August
|notes=
}}

'''Scutum''' is a small [[constellation]]. Its name is [[Latin]] for [[shield]], and it was originally named '''Scutum Sobiescianum''' by [[Johannes Hevelius]] in 1684. Located just south of the [[celestial equator]], its four brightest stars form a narrow diamond shape.  It is one of the 88 [[IAU designated constellations]] defined in 1922.

==History==
[[Image:Scutum Sobiescianum.PNG|thumb|left|''Scutum Sobiescianum'' in ''Firmamentum Sobiescianum sive Uranographia'' 1690]]

Scutum was named in 1684 by Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius<ref>[http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/scutum.html Star Tales ― Scutum] by [[Ian Ridpath]]</ref> (Jan Heweliusz), who originally named it ''Scutum Sobiescianum'' (Shield of Sobieski) to commemorate the victory of the Christian forces led by Polish King [[John III Sobieski]] (Jan III Sobieski) in the [[Battle of Vienna]] in 1683. Later, the name was shortened to Scutum.

Five bright stars of Scutum ([[Alpha Scuti|α Sct]], [[Beta Scuti|β Sct]], [[Delta Scuti|δ Sct]], [[Epsilon Scuti|ε Sct]] and [[Eta Scuti|η Sct]]) were previously known as 1, 6, 2, 3, and 9 Aquilae respectively.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Wagman | first=M. | title=Flamsteed's Missing Stars | journal=Journal for the History of Astronomy | issue=3 | volume=18 | pages=212–213 |date=August 1987 | bibcode=1987JHA....18..209W | doi=10.1177/002182868701800305| s2cid=118445625 }}</ref>

The constellation of Scutum was adopted by the [[International Astronomical Union]] in 1922 as one of the 88 constellations covering the entire sky, with the official abbreviation of "Sct".<ref name="pa30_469">{{cite journal | last=Russell | first=Henry Norris |author-link=Henry Norris Russell | title=The New International Symbols for the Constellations | journal=[[Popular Astronomy (US magazine)|Popular Astronomy]] | volume=30 | page=469 | bibcode=1922PA.....30..469R | date=1922}}</ref> The constellation boundaries are defined by a quadrilateral. In the [[equatorial coordinate system]], the [[right ascension]] coordinates of these borders lie between {{RA|18|21.6}} and {{RA|18|59.3}}, while the [[declination]] coordinates are between −3.83° and −15.94°.<ref name="boundary">{{Cite journal | title=Scutum, Constellation Boundary | journal=The Constellations | publisher=[[International Astronomical Union]] | url=https://www.iau.org/public/themes/constellations/#sct | access-date=3 September 2020 }}</ref>

Coincidentally, the Chinese also associated these stars with battle armor, incorporating them into the larger [[Asterism (astronomy)|asterism]] known as ''Tien Pien'', i.e., the Heavenly Casque (or Helmet).<ref>Richard H. Allen (1899) Star Names and Their Meanings, p. 363</ref>

==Features==

===Stars===
{{See also|List of stars in Scutum}}
[[Image:ScutumCC.jpg|thumb|left|256px|The constellation Scutum as it can be seen by the naked eye]]
[[Image:Scutum 20191227.jpg|thumb|left|256px|The constellation Scutum in the night sky, enhanced for color and contrast]]
Scutum is not a bright constellation, with the brightest star, [[Alpha Scuti]], being a K-type giant star<ref name=Keenan1989>{{cite journal | bibcode=1989ApJS...71..245K | doi=10.1086/191373| title=The Perkins catalog of revised MK types for the cooler stars| journal=The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series| volume=71| pages=245| year=1989| last1=Keenan| first1=Philip C.| last2=McNeil| first2=Raymond C.}}</ref> at magnitude 3.85. However, some stars are notable in the constellation. [[Beta Scuti]] is the second brightest at magnitude 4.22, followed by [[Delta Scuti]] at magnitude 4.72. It is also known as 6 Aquilae.<ref>{{cite journal
 | last=Wagman | first=M.
 | title=Flamsteed's Missing Stars
 | journal=Journal for the History of Astronomy | volume=18 | issue=3
 | page=212 |date=August 1987
 | bibcode=1987JHA....18..209W | doi=10.1177/002182868701800305| s2cid=118445625
 }}</ref> Beta Scuti is a binary system,<ref>{{cite journal | bibcode=2016ApJS..227....4H | title=Surveying the Bright Stars by Optical Interferometry. I. A Search for Multiplicity among Stars of Spectral Types F-K | journal=Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series | volume=227 | pages=4 | number=1 | last1=Hutter | first1=D. J.| last2=Zavala | first2=R. T. | last3=Tycner | first3=C. | last4=Benson | first4=J. A. | last5=Hummel | first5=C. A. | last6=Sanborn | first6=J. | last7=Franz | first7=O. G. | last8=Johnston | first8=K. J. | year=2016 | doi=10.3847/0067-0049/227/1/4 |arxiv = 1609.05254 | s2cid=118803592 | doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | bibcode=2005AJ....129.1700P | title=The Fine Guidance Sensor Orbit of the G4 Bright Giant HD 173764 | journal=Astronomical Journal | volume=129 | issue=3 | page=1700 | last1=Parsons | first1=S. B.| last2=Franz | first2=O. G. | last3=Wassermann | first3=L. H.| year=2005 | doi=10.1086/427853 | doi-access=free }}</ref> with the primary with a spectral type similar to the Sun, although it is 1,270 times brighter. Delta Scuti is a bluish white giant star, which is now coming at the direction of the Solar System. Within 1.3 million years it will come as close to 10 light years from Earth,<ref name=aaa379_2_634>{{citation | display-authors=1 | last1=García-Sánchez | first1=J. | last2=Weissman | first2=P. R. | last3=Preston | first3=R. A. | last4=Jones | first4=D. L. | last5=Lestrade | first5=J.-F. | last6=Latham | first6=D. W. | last7=Stefanik | first7=R. P. | last8=Paredes | first8=J. M. | title=Stellar encounters with the solar system | journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics | year=2001 | volume=379 | issue=2 | pages=634–659 | bibcode=2001A&A...379..634G | doi=10.1051/0004-6361:20011330 | doi-access=free }}</ref> and will be much brighter than [[Sirius]] by that time.

[[UY Scuti]] is a [[red supergiant]] and is also one of the [[List of largest known stars|largest stars currently known]] with a radius over 900 times that of the Sun.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Healy |first1=Sarah |last2=Horiuchi |first2=Shunsaku |last3=Molla |first3=Marta Colomer |last4=Milisavljevic |first4=Dan |last5=Tseng |first5=Jeff |last6=Bergin |first6=Faith |last7=Weil |first7=Kathryn |last8=Tanaka |first8=Masaomi |date=2024-03-23 |title=Red Supergiant Candidates for Multimessenger Monitoring of the Next Galactic Supernova |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=529 |issue=4 |pages=3630–3650 |doi=10.1093/mnras/stae738 |doi-access=free |arxiv=2307.08785 |bibcode=2024MNRAS.529.3630H |issn=0035-8711}}</ref> RSGC1-F01 is another red supergiant whose radius is over 1,450 times that of the Sun.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Decin |first1=Leen |last2=Richards |first2=Anita M. S. |last3=Marchant |first3=Pablo |last4=Sana |first4=Hugues |date=January 2024 |title=ALMA detection of CO rotational line emission in red supergiant stars of the massive young star cluster RSGC1 -- Determination of a new mass-loss rate prescription for red supergiants |journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics |volume=681 |pages=A17 |doi=10.1051/0004-6361/202244635 |arxiv=2303.09385 |bibcode=2024A&A...681A..17D |issn=0004-6361}}</ref> Scutum contains several clusters of supergiant stars, including [[RSGC1]],<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Figer | first1 = D. F. | last2 = MacKenty | first2 = J. W. | last3 = Robberto | first3 = M. | last4 = Smith | first4 = K. | last5 = Najarro | first5 = F. | last6 = Kudritzki | first6 = R. P. | last7 = Herrero | first7 = A. | doi = 10.1086/503275 | title = Discovery of an Extraordinarily Massive Cluster of Red Supergiants | journal = The Astrophysical Journal | volume = 643 | issue = 2 | pages = 1166–1179 | year = 2006 |arxiv = astro-ph/0602146 |bibcode = 2006ApJ...643.1166F | s2cid = 18241900 }}</ref> [[Stephenson 2]]<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Davies | first1 = B. | last2 = Figer | first2 = D. F. | last3 = Kudritzki | first3 = R. P. | last4 = MacKenty | first4 = J. | last5 = Najarro | first5 = F. | last6 = Herrero | first6 = A. | doi = 10.1086/522224 | title = A Massive Cluster of Red Supergiants at the Base of the Scutum-Crux Arm | journal = The Astrophysical Journal | volume = 671 | issue = 1 | pages = 781–801 | year = 2007 | bibcode=2007ApJ...671..781D|arxiv = 0708.0821| s2cid = 1447781 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | year = 1990 | bibcode = 1990AJ.....99.1867S | pages = 1867 | volume = 99 | doi = 10.1086/115464 | title = A possible new and very remote galactic cluster | journal = The Astronomical Journal | last1 = Stephenson | first1 = C. B.}}</ref> and [[RSGC3]].<ref>{{Cite journal | volume = 513 | journal = Astronomy and Astrophysics | title = Another cluster of red supergiants close to RSGC1 | pages = A74 | year = 2010| bibcode = 2010A&A...513A..74N | doi = 10.1051/0004-6361/200913373 | first5 = S. | last5 = Martínez-Núñez | first2 = C. | last2 = González-Fernández | first1 = I. | last3 = Marco | first3 = A. | first4 = J. S. | last4 = Clark | last1 = Negueruela|arxiv = 1002.1823 | s2cid = 118531372 }}</ref>

===Deep sky objects===
[[Image:M1-63 Nebula.jpg|thumb|right|M1-63, a bipolar planetary nebula located in the constellation of Scutum (the Shield)]]
Although not a large constellation, Scutum contains several [[open cluster]]s, as well as a [[globular cluster]] and a [[planetary nebula]]. The two best known [[deep sky object]]s in Scutum are [[Wild Duck Cluster|M11]] (the Wild Duck Cluster) and the [[Open Cluster M26|open cluster M26]] (NGC 6694). The globular cluster [[NGC 6712]] and the planetary nebula [[IC 1295]] can be found in the eastern part of the constellation, only 24 arcminutes apart.

The most prominent open cluster in Scutum is the [[Wild Duck Cluster]], M11. It was named by [[William Henry Smyth]] in 1844 for its resemblance in the eyepiece to a flock of ducks in flight. The cluster, 6200 light-years from Earth and 20 light-years in diameter, contains approximately 3000 stars, making it a particularly rich cluster. It is around 220 million years old,<ref>{{cite journal |title = So, Where Are the Wild Ducks?! |last = MacRobert |first = Alan |journal = Sky and Telescope |date = September 2012}}</ref> although some studies give older estimates.<ref>{{citation
 | title=NGC 6705 a young α-enhanced open cluster from OCCASO data
 | last1=Casamiquela | first1=L. | last2=Carrera | first2=R.
 | last3=Balaguer-Núñez | first3=L. | last4=Jordi | first4=C.
 | last5=Chiappini | first5=C. | last6=Anders | first6=F.
 | last7=Antoja | first7=T. | last8=Miret-Roig | first8=N.
 | last9=Romero-Gomez | first9=M. | last10=Blanco-Cuaresma | first10=S.
 | last11=Pancino | first11=E. | last12=Aguado | first12=D. S.
 | last13=del Pino | first13=A. | last14=Diaz-Perez | first14=L.
 | last15=Gallart | first15=C. | display-authors=1
 | journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics
 | volume=610 | id=A66 | pages=10 | date=March 2018
 | bibcode=2018A&A...610A..66C | arxiv=1710.11069
 | doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201732024 | s2cid=59397264 | postscript=. }}</ref> Estimates for the mass of the star cluster range from {{Val|3700|ul=solar mass|fmt=commas}}<ref name=WildDuck1>{{citation
 | title=The Gaia-ESO Survey: Stellar content and elemental abundances in the massive cluster NGC 6705
 | last1=Cantat-Gaudin | first1=T. | last2=Vallenari | first2=A.
 | last3=Zaggia | first3=S. | last4=Bragaglia | first4=A.
 | last5=Sordo | first5=R. | last6=Drew | first6=J. E.
 | last7=Eisloeffel | first7=J. | last8=Farnhill | first8=H. J.
 | last9=Gonzalez-Solares | first9=E. | last10=Greimel | first10=R.
 | last11=Irwin | first11=M. J. | last12=Kupcu-Yoldas | first12=A.
 | last13=Jordi | first13=C. | last14=Blomme | first14=R.
 | last15=Sampedro | first15=L. | last16=Costado | first16=M. T.
 | last17=Alfaro | first17=E. | last18=Smiljanic | first18=R.
 | last19=Magrini | first19=L. | last20=Donati | first20=P.
 | last21=Friel | first21=E. D. | last22=Jacobson | first22=H.
 | last23=Abbas | first23=U. | last24=Hatzidimitriou | first24=D.
 | last25=Spagna | first25=A. | last26=Vecchiato | first26=A.
 | last27=Balaguer-Nunez | first27=L. | last28=Lardo | first28=C.
 | last29=Tosi | first29=M. | last30=Pancino | first30=E.
 | last31=Klutsch | first31=A. | last32=Tautvaisiene | first32=G.
 | last33=Drazdauskas | first33=A. | last34=Puzeras | first34=E.
 | last35=Jiménez-Esteban | first35=F. | last36=Maiorca | first36=E.
 | last37=Geisler | first37=D. | last38=San Roman | first38=I.
 | last39=Villanova | first39=S. | last40=Gilmore | first40=G.
 | last41=Randich | first41=S. | last42=Bensby | first42=T.
 | last43=Flaccomio | first43=E. | last44=Lanzafame | first44=A.
 | last45=Recio-Blanco | first45=A. | last46=Damiani | first46=F.
 | last47=Hourihane | first47=A. | last48=Jofré | first48=P.
 | last49=de Laverny | first49=P. | last50=Masseron | first50=T.
 | last51=Morbidelli | first51=L. | last52=Prisinzano | first52=L.
 | last53=Sacco | first53=G. G. | last54=Sbordone | first54=L.
 | last55=Worley | first55=C. C. | display-authors=1
 | journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics
 | volume=569 | id=A17 | pages=18 | date=September 2014
 | doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201423851 | postscript=.
 | bibcode=2014A&A...569A..17C | arxiv=1407.1510 | s2cid=5111744 }}</ref> to {{Val|11000|ul=solar mass|fmt=commas}}.<ref name=WildDuck2>{{citation
 | title=Structure and stellar content analysis of the open cluster M 11 with 2MASS photometry
 | last1=Santos | first1=J. F. C. Jr. | last2=Bonatto | first2=C.
 | last3=Bica | first3=E. | display-authors=1
 | journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics
 | volume=442 | issue=1 | pages=201–209 | date=October 2005
 | doi=10.1051/0004-6361:20053378 | postscript=.
 | bibcode=2005A&A...442..201S | arxiv=astro-ph/0507216 | s2cid=15323948 }}</ref>

== Space exploration ==
The [[space probe]] [[Pioneer 11]] is moving in the direction of this constellation. It will not near the closest star in this constellation for over a million years<ref>Pioneer 11 is travelling at ~2.4 au/yr, 41.54 ly ≈ 2.627x10<sup>6</sup>au.</ref> at its present speed, by which time its batteries will be long dead.

==See also==
* [[Scutum (Chinese astronomy)]]
* [[Taurus Poniatovii]] - a constellation created by the Polish astronomer [[Marcin Odlanicki Poczobutt]] in 1777 to honor King of Poland [[Stanisław August Poniatowski]].
[[File:Sidney Hall - Urania's Mirror - Taurus Poniatowski, Serpentarius, Scutum Sobiesky, and Serpens.jpg|200px|thumb|right|[[Serpens]] held by Ophiuchus, as depicted in ''[[Urania's Mirror]]'', a set of constellation cards published in London c. 1825. Above the tail of the serpent is the now-obsolete constellation [[Taurus Poniatovii]] while below it is Scutum.]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion (2017). ''Stars and Planets Guide'' (5th ed.), Collins, London. {{ISBN|978-0-00-823927-5}}. Princeton University Press, Princeton. {{ISBN|978-0-69-117788-5}}.

==External links==
{{Commons category|Scutum (constellation)}}
* [http://www.allthesky.com/constellations/scutum/ The Deep Photographic Guide to the Constellations: Scutum]

{{Stars of Scutum}}
{{Constellations}}
{{ConstellationsByHevelius}}
{{Portal bar|Astronomy|Stars|Spaceflight|Outer space|Solar System}}

{{Sky|18|42|00|-|10|00|00|10}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scutum (constellation)}}
[[Category:Scutum (constellation)| ]]
[[Category:Southern constellations]]
[[Category:Constellations listed by Johannes Hevelius]]