✧ Job's Coffin Job's Coffin is an asterism in Delphinus. ·⣄ ⠹⣝⢦⣀ ⣠· ⠈⢧⡈⠓⢦⡀ ⢠⠞⠁⠈⣇ ⠹⣄ ⠉⠳⢤⡀ ⢀⡴⠋ ⠸⡄ ⠈⢧⡀ ⠙⠲⣄ ⢀⡴⠋ ⢳⡀ ⠹⣄ ⠈⠙⠦⣄ ⣰⠋ ⢧ ⠘⢦⡀ ⣨⠟⢧⣀ ⠘⡆ ⠳⣄ ⣠⠞⠁ ⠈⠳⢤⡀ ⢹⡀ ⠘·⠁ ⠙⠲⣄⡀ ⢳ ⠙⠦⣄ ⠈⣇ ⠈⠙⢦⣀ ⠸⡄ ⠈⠳⢤⣹⡀ ⠉· Type Asterism Constellation Delphinus Stars 4 More information about Job's Coffin Job's Coffin is a tight lozenge of four stars with a fifth trailing off to make a tail, and it is faint but quite unmistakable. It is the whole of Delphinus, the dolphin, one of the smallest constellations in the sky. Where the name Job's Coffin came from, nobody knows: it turns up in English in the 1800s already in use, with nothing said about what the biblical Job has to do with it. The two brightest stars carry a joke rather than a history. They are called Sualocin and Rotanev, which is Nicolaus Venator spelled backwards, the Latinised name of an assistant at the Palermo observatory who slipped himself into the star catalogue his employer published in 1814. Not settled: No origin is recorded. The name turns up in English in the 1800s already in use, with nothing said about what Job has to do with it. Etymology From English Reading Job's Coffin Literally the coffin of Job The evolution of Job's Coffin over time -50,000 years ·⢄ ⠈⡇⠑⢤ ⠸⡀ ⠙⢢⡀ ⢧ ⠈⠢⣀ ⠘⡄ ⠈⠱⢄ ⢱ ⠑⢤ ⣇ ⠙⢢⡀ ⠸⡀ ⠈⠢⣀ ⢣ ⠈⠲⢄ ⠘⡆ ⠈⠑⢄ ⢱ ⠙⢤⡀ ⣇ ⠘⠢⡀ ⠸⡀ ⠈⠲⣀ ⢣ ⠈⠱⢄ Sualocin ⠘⡆ ⢀⣀⣀⣀⣠⠤⠤⠤⠤·⢤ ⢱⡤⠤⠤⠤⠖⠒⠒⠒⠊⠉⠉⠉⠁ ⠑⠿⡢⡀ · ⠈⠛⢶⣀ ⠉⠳⣄ ⠈⠑⢤ · Rotanev now ⡀ ·⢕⢤⡀ ⡀ ⠈⠣⡈⠑⢄⡀ ⢀⡠⠋· Sualocin ⠙⢄ ⠉⠓⢄⡀ ⢀⠴⠊ ⢇ ⠈⠣⡀ ⠉⢳⢔⡁ ⠈⢆ ⠙⢄⡠⠚⠁ ⠉⠓⢄⡀ ⠘⡄ ⠈· ⠉⠓⢄ ⠹⡀ ⠉⠲⢄⢣ ⠉· Rotanev +50,000 years · Sualocin ⡟⡄ ⡇⣇ ⢸ ⢸ ⢸ ⠈⡆ ⡎ ⢳ ⡇ ⠸⡀ ⢰⠁ ⣠· ⢸ ⣰⠃ Rotanev · ⣰⠃ ⢀⠇⡰⠁ ⢸⡰⠁ ⡞⠁ · Over 50,000 years either way the longest side of this figure changes by 109%, and the furthest any of its stars travels is 2.8 degrees. Sualocin and HR 7928 drift the opposite way to the other 2, which travel together. Proper motion only: this is the shape changing, not the sky turning or the pole moving. curl 'skymap.sh/Job%27s%20Coffin/evolution.gif' where it is tonight: skymap.sh/Job's Coffin