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Apus

The Bird of Paradise

Abbreviation:Aps
Genitive:Apodis
Origin:Frederick de Houtmann, Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser, Petrus Plancius
Fully Visible:90°S – 6°N

Near the end of the sixteenth century, the observations of Dutch explorers Frederick de Houtman (c.1571–1627) and Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser (c.1540–1596) allowed Dutch astronomer Petrus Plancius (1552–1622) to place this constellation on his 1598 celestial globe. The name is derived from the Greek word meaning 'without feet' which referred to the mistaken Western belief that the bird of paradise had no feet! It also appears on early atlases as Apis Indica or more correctly, Avis Indica, the Indian Bird.

The constellation of Apus

Notable Features

Visible Named Stars
The brightest star in the constellation, α Aps, is only fourth-magnitude. None of the visible stars in this constellation have an official name.
Other Interesting Stars
HD 137388 Karaka This ninth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet. The star is named for the karaka tree of New Zealand, and its planet is Kerurū which is the Māori term for the New Zealand pigeon. The star is located just south of the line joining α Aps and γ Aps.
Deep Sky Objects
C107 A medium-size telescope will resolve this globular cluster into individual stars.