Cygnus the Swan, the splendid bird of summer, swoops down the shimmering Milky Way next week. Its apparent movement toward the horizon signals the swan song of summer.

September’s equinox takes place next week, although the easily recognizable cross-like pattern of stars will continue to appear high overhead through early fall.

Deneb, which translates to “tail,” is one of the three stars of the Summer Triangle and anchors the constellation Cygnus. The blue-white supergiant signifies the tail-feathers of the swan.

Stretching from Deneb is the body and long neck of the swan, which stops at the star, Albireo. To the naked eye, Alberio, translating to “beak,” seems to a single star. Through a small telescope, it’s easy to see color variations of two stars. The brighter of the two gleams as topaz gold, the fainter of the binary system, is a sapphire blue.

For thousands of years, these prominent stars figured worldwide in legends and mythologies. For just as long, the neighboring musical constellation Lyra, anchored by the bright star Vega, has told the story of perhaps the greatest musician who ever lived. Orpheus, of Greek mythology, played the ancient stringed instrument so beautifully even nature paused transfixed by his music. Orpheus is perhaps best known for singing the blues for a lost love, but he symbolized the power of changing the world with sung poetry.

First Published: September 10, 2024, 9:30 a.m.
Updated: September 10, 2024, 11:35 a.m.