Auriga (constellation) horizon. A large constellation, with an area of 657 square degrees, it is half the size of the largest constellation, Hydra. Its brightest star, Capella, is an unusual multiple star system among the brightest stars in the night sky. Beta Aurigae is an interesting variable star in the constellation; Epsilon Aurigae, a nearby eclipsing binary with an unusually long period, has been studied intensively. Because of its position near the winter Milky Way, Auriga has many bright open clusters in its borders, including M36, M37, and M38, popular targets for amateur astronomers. In addition, it has one prominent nebula, the
Eridanus (constellation) is depicted in ancient sky charts as a flowing river, starting from Orion and flowing in a meandering fashion past Cetus and Fornax and into the southern hemispheric stars. Johann Bayer's Uranometria depicts the river constellation as a flowing river. According to one theory, the Greek constellation takes its name from the Babylonian constellation known as the Star of Eridu (MUL.NUN.KI). Eridu was an ancient city in the extreme south of Babylonia; situated in the marshy regions it was held sacred to the god Enki-Ea who ruled the cosmic domain of the Abyss - a mythical conception of the fresh-water