Home Articles Guide to Observing Tour of the Constellations Book Reviews

SkyTour - Aquila - The Eagle

Lyra Solar Eclipse

Aquila, which is also a summer constellation, is similar to neighboring Cygnus. Aquila is shaped more or less like a cross or a bird in flight, but its wings are a bit swept back. The "head" of Aquila is a bit off center and is called alpha Aquilae or Altair.

Altair, along with Deneb of Cygnus and Vega of Lyra, form the summer triangle. Altair with a magnitude of 0.8 is only 16 light years away from us.

Return to SkyTour Introduction