Bright stars that are traditionally the most noticeable from Terra are generally either very
energetic main sequnce "dwarf" stars (category O,B and A, Size V) that lie withing about 100 light
years (LY) of Terra, or various kinds of subgiant and giant stars (Sizes II, III and IV lying
within about 1000 LY. The biggest of these starts, the supergiants (Size Ia and Ib), can be seen
with the naked eye as far as 5000 LY. These distances generally overlap with Charted Space,
meaning that nearly all of those that carry Bayer notation (stars that received Greek lettering
before the name of their constellation) are well within the mapped confines of Traveller.
Now in of themselves these bright stars are of little economic importance, and are unlikely to
elicit any kind of visit from pcs. But these are celestial landmarks rather like lighthouses that
can give a campaign rather more flavor. Several Trav sectors contain the name of an important or
significant star, even if in reality those stars are nowhere near their namesakes. Nevertheless
these named sectors have more permanence and significance in their regions of space.
The rl Galactic coordinate system uses the Milky Way equator to determine stellar longitude. The
Prime Galactic Meridian (0 degrees) cuts through the galactic center almost straight through the
constellation Sagittarius (in line with the imaginary line created by the Third Imperium called
Reference). The antipode of this meridian (180 degrees) cuts through point OGC (Opposite Galactic
Center), which is located in the constellation Taurus, not too far away from Aldebaren and the
Hyades star cluster. These meridians converge at the Northern Galactic Pole in Coma Berenices, and
the Southern Galactic Pole in Sculptor. This "true" galactic alignment is difficult to ascertain
from Terra, owing to the fact that the Sol system's ecliptic plane is skewed 60 degrees above and
below the galactic ecliptic plane. By convention the Galactic Equator cuts an imaginary horizontal
plane through the observed portions of the galaxy's spiral arms that is approximately parallel
with the plane of rotation, and is approximately median within the main stellar population of the
arms.
The "equatorial constellations" tend to fall within 30 degrees of this this median line, and are
close enough to it that they can remain reasonably within it. These are the primary constellations
used for stellar "street lamps". The high latitude constellations can run out of galactic space
rather quickly, and these are rarely used to mark astrograpic location beyond 500 LY. Polaris
(Alpha Ursus Minorae) is actually a star located outside of the ecliptic plane within the
mysterious Halo, for example.
The equatorial constellations are (in respective order from 0 to 360 degrees):
1. 0 to 90 degrees: These constellations begin at the coreward end of the former 3rd Imperium,
running from Reference to a line of sight running through Magyar Sector towards the Aslan Hierate.
The former Imperium runs from Sagittarius through Aquila and Hercules, the Zhodani Consulate
running from Aquila to Cygnus. Sagittarius, Capricornus and Aquila constitue three of the five
mythical "skyways" popularized during the Rule of Man period.
Sagittarius (The Archer)
Corona Austrailus (Southern Crown)
Microscopium (The Microscope)
Ophiuchus (The Sephent Bearer)
Serpens Caput (Serpents Head)
Serpens Cauda (The Serpents Tail)
Scutum (The Shield)
Capricornus (The Fish-Goat)
Aquila (The Eagle)
Hercules (The Hero) (Eastern part only)
Delfinus (The Dolphin)
Sagitta (the Arrow)
Vulpecula (The Fox)
Lyra (The Harp)
Cygnus (The Swan)
2. 90 to 180 degrees: These constellations run from the Aslan Hierate from just below the Great
Rift, though rimward space back around to Reference. Cassiopeia is tangential with the rimward
edge of the Rift.
Lacerta (The Lizard)
Cepheus (The King)
Cassiopeia (The Queen)
Andromeda (The Maiden) (Western part only)
Perseus (The Hero)
Auriga (The Charioteer)
Taurus (The Bull)
3. 180 to 270 degrees: These constellations complete the rimward sky around the former Solomani
Confederation. These run around the trailing edge, through the Hive Federation (from Columba to
Vela) and terminate in the former region of neutral space between the Federation and the former
Two Thousand Worlds.
Gemini (The Twins)
Orion (The Hunter)
Monoceros (The Unicorn)
Lepus (The Rabbit)
Canis Major (The Big Dog)
Columba (The Dove)
Puppis (The Stern)
Volans (The Flying Fish)
Carina (The Keel) (Southern half)
Vela (The Sails) (Southern half)
4. 270 to 360 degrees: These constitute the Coreward-Trailing quadrant. The former Two Thousand
Worlds run from Carina to Centaurus (rather coincidentally). The trailing sectors of the former
Imperium are mostly confined to a region between northern Centaurus (when viewed from Terra), Ara,
Lupus, Libra and Scorpio. Scorpio and Centaurus are the last two "skyways" of the Rule of Man,
imaginary stellar highways created in the popular press during the 2Is early reign and expansion.
Carina (Northern half)
Vela (Northern half)
Musca (The Fly)
Crux (The Southern Cross)
Centaurus (The Centaur)
Circinus (The Artist's Compass)
Norma (The Carpenter's Square)
Ara (The Altar)
Lupus (The Wolf)
Virgo (The Virgin) (Western Portion only)
Pavo (The Peacock)
Libra (The Scales)
Scorpio (The Scorpion)
Telescopium (The Telescope)
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