Sextans is one of the 88 modern constellations recognized by the International Astronomical Union. Its genitive form is Sextantis, Sextansis, its standard abbreviation is Sex, it is traditionally shown as the Sextant. It belongs to the Hercules family of constellations and lies in the second quadrant of the southern hemisphere. The constellation covers about 314 square degrees of sky, ranking 47th in size among the 88. Its brightest star is α Sex at apparent magnitude 4.49. It borders Leo, Hydra and Crater. In this atlas the entity is the shared sky reference for astronomical objects catalogued by constellation, so every star, nebula or galaxy located within Sextans resolves to one identity.
Facts
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1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationWikipedia, Sextans, lead section and infoboxQuote, Wikipedia, Sextans, lead section and infobox
Sextans is a faint, minor constellation on the celestial equator which was introduced in 1687 by Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius.
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