Оңтүстік жұлдыздар шоқшасы - Пеш (Fornax)

Constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere
the constellation

Fornax ('/f//ɔr//n//æ//k//s/) is a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere, partly ringed by the celestial river Eridanus. Its name is Latin for furnace. It was named by French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1756. Fornax is one of the 88 modern constellations. The three brightest stars—Alpha, Beta and Nu Fornacis—form a flattened triangle facing south. With an apparent magnitude of 3.91, Alpha Fornacis is the brightest star in Fornax. Six star systems have been found to have exoplanets. The Fornax Dwarf galaxy is a small faint satellite galaxy of the Milky Way. NGC 1316 is a relatively close radio galaxy. The Hubble's Ultra Deep Field is located within the Fornax constellation. It is the 41st largest constellation in the night sky, occupying an area of 398 square degrees. It is located in the first quadrant of the southern hemisphere (SQ1) and can be seen at latitudes between +50° and 90° during the month of December.

The French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille first described the constellation in French as le Fourneau Chymique (the Chemical Furnace) with an alembic and receiver in his early catalogue, after he had observed and catalogued almost 10,000 southern stars during a two year stay at the Cape of Good Hope. He devised fourteen new constellations in uncharted regions of the Southern Celestial Hemisphere not visible from Europe. All but one honoured instruments that symbolised the Age of Enlightenment. efn|1=The exception is Mensa, named for the Table Mountain. The other thirteen (alongside Fornax) are Antlia, Caelum, Circinus, Horologium, Microscopium, Norma, Octans, Pictor, Pyxis, Reticulum, Sculptor and Telescopium.

In Chinese astronomy, the stars that correspond to Fornax are within the White Tiger of the West (西方白虎, Xī Fāng Bái Hǔ).

Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion (2007). Stars and Planets Guide, Collins, London. Princeton University Press, Princeton. .