czsky/en/constellation/vela.md

name	created_by	created_date	updated_by	updated_date
Vela	skybber	2021-08-01 07:53:52.350902	skybber	2021-08-01 07:53:52.351173

A constellation of the southern sky, the northern part of which at best only touches the southern horizon from below at midnight in mid-February in our latitudes, so we can practically never see it. The only option is to travel far south, where this majestic constellation, located in the Milky Way, rich in star clusters and nebulae, rises higher above the horizon. The Sails, along with the Stern, Keel and Compasses, are part of the old, vast constellation of the Argo Ship. After its division, Sails lost its α and β stars to the Keel, and its brightest star became γ Velorum.

The brightest part of the Milky Way in the constellation is around the relatively prominent open cluster IC 2395 (4.6mag). Several constellations also emerge from it. The surroundings of most of the brightest stars of the Sail pattern give a hazy impression. γ Velorum due to the abundance of nearby 6th magnitude stars and the bright cluster NGC 2547 (4.7mag), λ Velorum due to the small local brightening. Close to δ Velorum lies a very prominent one-degree spot, the open cluster IC 2391. δ Velorum, together with the stars κ Vel and ε and ι Carinae of the Keel, form the so-called False Cross, which is often confused with the true Southern Cross by northern sky admirers. Unlike the latter, however, it is slightly larger, more symmetrical and less bright, and its arm does not point to the region of the south celestial pole. Between the two crosses, you can find the obsolete constellation of Karl's Oak. The latter was a reminder of the huge tree trunk in Boscobel in which King Charles II of England hid day and night after his defeat by Oliver Cromwell in 1651.