✧ Grus

  Grus is an asterism in Grus.

                                  ⢀⣠·
                                ·⠚⠉
                                ⡇
                                ⡇
                               ⢠⠇
                               ⢸
                               ⢸
                      •⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤•
                      ⡇
                     ⢠⠇
                     ⢸
                    ⢀·
                   ·⠋

  Type            Asterism
  Constellation   Grus
  Stars           6

  More information about Grus

  Grus sits below Piscis Austrinus and is unusually well formed for a
  constellation invented in modern times, with two reasonably bright stars
  and a long neck of fainter ones. It is one of twelve that all came from
  a single sea voyage. In the 1590s two Dutch navigators, Pieter Keyser
  and Frederick de Houtman, sailed to the East Indies and spent the voyage
  measuring the positions of southern stars that no European chart had
  ever covered. Their measurements reached the German astronomer Johann
  Bayer, who printed the new figures in his star atlas in 1603, and they
  have been on the charts ever since.

  Etymology
  From        Latin
  Reading     Grus
  Literally   the crane

  The evolution of Grus over time

  -50,000 years
  
                                                        ⢀⣀⣀⡠⠤⠤⠤⠤⠔⠒⠒· Aldhanab
                                                        ·⡄
                                                         ⢇
                                                         ⢸
                                                          ⡇
                                                          ⢸
                                                          ⠈⡆
                                                           ⢳
                                                           ⠘⡄
                                                       ⢀⣀⡤⠔⠒• Alnair
                                                 ⣀⡠⠤⠖⠒⠉⠁
                                             ⢀•⠋⠉
                                             ⡜
                                            ⢰⠁
                                            ⡏
                                          ⢀⡸
                                       ⢀⡠⠚⠉·
                                    ⢀⠤⠚⠁
                                 ⢀⠴⠊⠁
                                 ·
  
  now
  
                                                               ⣠· Aldhanab
                                                            ⢀⡴⠊
                                                          ⡠⠖⠁
                                                         ⢠·
                                                         ⢸
                                                         ⡸
                                                         ⡇
                                                         ⡇
                                                        ⢸
                                                        ⢸
                                                        ⡞
                                         ⢀•⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤⠤• Alnair
                                         ⢸
                                         ⡞
                                         ⡇
                                        ⢸
                                        ⡸
                                     ⢀⡠⠋·
                                    ⠴⠊
                                    ·
  
  +50,000 years
  
                                                              ⡄
                                                             ⢠· Aldhanab
                                                             ⡜
                                                            ⢰⠁
                                                            ⡎
                                                           ⡜·
                                                          ⣰⠁
                                                         ⢠⠃
                                                        ⢀⠇
                                                        ⡞
                                                       ⡜
                                      ⢠•⣀⡀            ⣰⠁
                                      ⢸  ⠈⠉⠓⠒⠤⢄⣀     ⢠⠃
                                      ⢸         ⠉⠑⠒⠤⢤⠇
                                      ⡇              • Alnair
                                      ⡇
                                      ⡇
                                      ⡇
                                      ··
  

  Over 50,000 years either way the longest side of this figure changes by 10%, and the furthest
  any of its stars travels is 2.8 degrees. HR 8411, HR 8636 and HR 8747 drift the opposite way
  to the other 3, which travel together. Proper motion only: this is the shape changing, not the
  sky turning or the pole moving.

  curl 'skymap.sh/Grus/evolution.gif'

  where it is tonight:  skymap.sh/Grus