Constellations · Constellation · Librae · Lib
Constellation
Libra
The scales — the only zodiac sign that is not a living thing. They were once the Scorpion’s claws, and their stars still carry the name.
- Genitive
- Librae
- Area
- 538 square degrees · 29th of 88
- Brightest star
- Zubeneschamali · magnitude 2.61
- Naked-eye stars
- 88 brighter than magnitude 6.5
- Highest at midnight
- early May
History
The Romans made the scales a constellation of its own; before that the Greeks knew these stars as Chelae, the claws of Scorpius.
Look for
Zubenelgenubi, “the southern claw”, and Zubeneschamali, “the northern claw”. Some observers say Zubeneschamali looks green, which no star truly is.