Editing Pisces (constellation) (section)

== Features ==

[[File:PiscesCC.jpg|thumb|left|256px|The constellation Pisces as it can be seen by naked eye]]
The [[March equinox]] is currently located in Pisces, due south of Psc, and, due to [[precession]], slowly drifting due west, just below the western fish towards [[Aquarius (constellation)|Aquarius]].

===Stars ===
{{See also|List of stars in Pisces}}
Although Pisces is a large constellation, there are only two stars brighter than magnitude 4 in Pisces. It is also the second dimmest of the zodiac constellations.

{{Hatnote|Note: magnitude, here, means apparent magnitude}}
* Alrescha ("the cord"), otherwise [[Alpha Piscium]] (α Psc), 309.8 lightyears, class A2, magnitude 3.62, variable binary star<ref name=wraight2011>{{cite journal |bibcode=2012MNRAS.420..757W |title=A photometric study of chemically peculiar stars with the STEREO satellites - I. Magnetic chemically peculiar stars |last1=Wraight |first1=K. T. |last2=Fossati |first2=L. |last3=Netopil |first3=M. |last4=Paunzen |first4=E. |last5=Rode-Paunzen |first5=M. |last6=Bewsher |first6=D. |last7=Norton |first7=A. J. |last8=White |first8=Glenn J. |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |year=2012 |volume=420 |issue=1 |page=757 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2966.2011.20090.x |doi-access=free |arxiv=1110.6283 |s2cid=14811051 }}</ref>
* Fumalsamakah<ref name="IAU-LSN">{{cite web | url=https://www.iau.org/public/themes/naming_stars/ | title=Naming Stars |publisher=IAU.org |access-date=8 August 2018}}</ref> ("mouth of the fish"), otherwise [[Beta Piscium]] (β Psc), 492 lightyears, class B6Ve, magnitude 4.48
* [[Delta Piscium]] (δ Psc), 305 lightyears, class K5III, magnitude 4.44. Like other stars near the ecliptic, Delta Piscium is subject to lunar occultations.<ref name=Meyer1995>{{citation
 | display-authors=1 | last1=Meyer | first1=C.
 | last2=Rabbia | first2=Y. | last3=Froeschle | first3=M.
 | last4=Helmer | first4=G. | last5=Amieux | first5=G.
 | title=Observations of lunar occultations at Observatoire de la Cote d'Azur
 | journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics Supplement
 | volume=110 | pages=107 | year=1995
 | bibcode=1995A&AS..110..107M
 | postscript=. }}</ref>
* [[Epsilon Piscium]] (ε Psc), 190 lightyears, class K0III, magnitude 4.27. Has a candidate exoplanet.<ref name=Teng2021>{{citation|arxiv=2112.07169|year=2022|title=Regular radial velocity variations in nine G- and K-type giant stars: Eight planets and one planet candidate|doi=10.1093/pasj/psab112 |last1=Teng |first1=Huan-Yu |last2=Sato |first2=Bun'ei |last3=Takarada |first3=Takuya |last4=Omiya |first4=Masashi |last5=Harakawa |first5=Hiroki |last6=Izumiura |first6=Hideyuki |last7=Kambe |first7=Eiji |last8=Takeda |first8=Yoichi |last9=Yoshida |first9=Michitoshi |last10=Itoh |first10=Yoichi |last11=Ando |first11=Hiroyasu |last12=Kokubo |first12=Eiichiro |journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan |volume=74 |pages=92–127 }}</ref>
* Revati<ref name="IAU-LSN"/> ("rich"), otherwise [[Zeta Piscium]] (ζ Psc), 148 lightyears, class A7IV, magnitude 5.21. Quintuple star system.<ref name=RevatiEggleton2008>{{citation
 | last1=Eggleton | first1=P. P. | last2=Tokovinin | first2=A. A.
 | title=A catalogue of multiplicity among bright stellar systems
 | journal=[[Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society]]
 | volume=389 | issue=2 | pages=869–879 | date=September 2008
 | doi=10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.13596.x | doi-access=free | bibcode=2008MNRAS.389..869E
 | arxiv=0806.2878 | s2cid=14878976 | postscript=.}}</ref>
* Alpherg ("emptying"),<ref name="IAU-LSN"/> otherwise [[Eta Piscium]] (η Psc), 349 lightyears, class G7 IIIa, magnitude 3.62. It is a [[Gamma Cassiopeiae variable]]<ref name=Cvetkovic2010>{{citation
 | title=Eight new and three recalculated orbits for binaries
 | last1=Cvetković | first1=Z. | last2=Novaković | first2=B.
 | journal=Astronomische Nachrichten | date=March 2010
 | volume=331 | issue=3 | page=304 | postscript=.
 | doi=10.1002/asna.200911250 | bibcode=2010AN....331..304C }}</ref> with a weak magnetic field.<ref name=Auriere2015>{{citation
 | title=The magnetic fields at the surface of active single G-K giants
 | last1=Aurière | first1=M. | last2=Konstantinova-Antova | first2=R.
 | last3=Charbonnel | first3=C. | last4=Wade | first4=G. A.
 | last5=Tsvetkova | first5=S. | last6=Petit | first6=P.
 | last7=Dintrans | first7=B. | last8=Drake | first8=N. A.
 | last9=Decressin | first9=T. | last10=Lagarde | first10=N.
 | last11=Donati | first11=J. F. | last12=Roudier | first12=T.
 | last13=Lignières | first13=F. | last14=Schröder | first14=K. P.
 | last15=Landstreet | first15=J. D. | last16=Lèbre | first16=A.
 | last17=Weiss | first17=W. W. | last18=Zahn | first18=J. P.
 | journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics | arxiv=1411.6230
 | volume=574 | id=A90 | pages=30 | date=February 2015 | postscript=.
 | doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201424579 | bibcode=2015A&A...574A..90A | s2cid=118504829 }}</ref>
* Torcular ("thread"),<ref name="IAU-LSN"/> otherwise [[Omicron Piscium]] (ο Psc), 258 lightyears, class K0III, magnitude 4.2. It is an evolved red giant star on the [[horizontal branch]].<ref name=Reffert2015>{{citation
 | title=Precise radial velocities of giant stars. VII. Occurrence rate of giant extrasolar planets as a function of mass and metallicity
 | display-authors=1 | last1=Reffert | first1=Sabine
 | last2=Bergmann | first2=Christoph | last3=Quirrenbach | first3=Andreas
 | last4=Trifonov | first4=Trifon | last5=Künstler | first5=Andreas
 | journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics
 | volume=574A | issue=2 | pages=116–129 | date=2015
 | bibcode=2015A&A...574A.116R | doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201322360
 | arxiv=1412.4634 | s2cid=59334290 | postscript=. }}</ref>
* [[Omega Piscium]] (ω Psc), 106 lightyears, class F4IV, magnitude 4.03. It is an [[F-type star]] that is either a [[subgiant]] or on the main sequence.<ref name=abt2009>{{citation
 | last1=Abt | first1=Helmut A. | postscript=.
 | title=MK Classifications of Spectroscopic Binaries
 | journal=The Astrophysical Journal Supplement
 | volume=180 | issue=1 | pages=117–18 | date=2009
 | doi=10.1088/0067-0049/180/1/117 | bibcode=2009ApJS..180..117A| s2cid=122811461 }}</ref><ref name=Griffin1960>{{citation
 | title=Photoelectric measurements of the λ4200 A CN band and the G band in G8-K5 spectra
 | last1=Griffin | first1=R. F. | last2=Redman | first2=R. O.
 | journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
 | volume=120 | pages=287–316 | year=1960 | issue=4 | postscript=.
 | doi=10.1093/mnras/120.4.287 | bibcode=1960MNRAS.120..287G | doi-access=free }}</ref>
* [[Gamma Piscium]] (γ Psc), 138 lightyears, magnitude 3.70. The star hosts an [[exoplanet]] which was discovered in 2021.<ref name=Teng2021>{{citation|arxiv=2112.07169|year=2022|title=Regular radial velocity variations in nine G- and K-type giant stars: Eight planets and one planet candidate|doi=10.1093/pasj/psab112 |last1=Teng |first1=Huan-Yu |last2=Sato |first2=Bun'ei |last3=Takarada |first3=Takuya |last4=Omiya |first4=Masashi |last5=Harakawa |first5=Hiroki |last6=Izumiura |first6=Hideyuki |last7=Kambe |first7=Eiji |last8=Takeda |first8=Yoichi |last9=Yoshida |first9=Michitoshi |last10=Itoh |first10=Yoichi |last11=Ando |first11=Hiroyasu |last12=Kokubo |first12=Eiichiro |journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan |volume=74 |pages=92–127 }}</ref> It has a spectral type of G8 III.<ref name="Baines2018">{{cite journal | title=Fundamental Parameters of 87 Stars from the Navy Precision Optical Interferometer | last1=Baines | first1=Ellyn K. | last2=Armstrong | first2=J. Thomas | last3=Schmitt | first3=Henrique R. | last4=Zavala | first4=R. T. | last5=Benson | first5=James A. | last6=Hutter | first6=Donald J. | last7=Tycner | first7=Christopher | last8=Belle | first8=Gerard T. van | display-authors=1 | journal=The Astronomical Journal | volume=155 | at=30 | year=2018 | issue=1 | arxiv=1712.08109 | bibcode=2018AJ....155...30B | doi=10.3847/1538-3881/aa9d8b | s2cid=119427037 | doi-access=free }}</ref>
* [[Van Maanen's Star]] is the closest-known solitary white dwarf to us, with a dim apparent magnitude. It is located about 2° to the south of the star [[Delta Piscium]],<ref name=burham1978>{{citation | first=Robert | last=Burnham | year=1978 | title=Burnham's celestial handbook: an observer's guide to the universe beyond the solar system | volume=3 | series=Dover books explaining science | edition=2nd | publisher=Courier Dover Publications | isbn=0-486-23673-0 | pages=1474–1477 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PJzIt3SIlkUC&pg=PA1474 | postscript=. }}</ref> with a relatively high [[proper motion]] of 2.978″ annually along a [[position angle]] of 155.538°.<ref name=aj147_6_129>{{citation
 | display-authors=1
 | last1=Sion | first1=Edward M. | last2=Holberg | first2=J. B.
 | last3=Oswalt | first3=Terry D. | last4=McCook | first4=George P.
 | last5=Wasatonic | first5=Richard | last6=Myszka | first6=Janine
 | title=The White Dwarfs within 25 pc of the Sun: Kinematics and Spectroscopic Subtypes
 | journal=The Astronomical Journal | date=June 2014
 | volume=147 | issue=6 | id=129 | pages=11
 | doi=10.1088/0004-6256/147/6/129 | bibcode=2014AJ....147..129S
 | arxiv=1401.4989 | s2cid=119184859 | postscript=. }}</ref> It is closer to the Sun than any other solitary white dwarf. It is too faint to be seen with the [[naked eye]].<ref name=burham1978/> Like other white dwarfs, it is a very dense star: its mass has been estimated to be about 67% of the [[solar mass|Sun's]],<ref name=Limoges2015>{{citation
 | title=Physical Properties of the Current Census of Northern White Dwarfs within 40 pc of the Sun
 | display-authors=1 | last1=Limoges | first1=M. -M.
 | last2=Bergeron | first2=P. | last3=Lépine | first3=S.
 | journal=The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
 | volume=219 | issue=2 | id=19 | pages=35 | date=August 2015
 | doi=10.1088/0067-0049/219/2/19 | arxiv=1505.02297
 | bibcode=2015ApJS..219...19L | s2cid=118494290 | postscript=. }}</ref> yet it has only 1% of the [[solar radius|Sun's radius]].<ref name="ApJS199_2_29">{{citation
 | display-authors=1
 | last1     = Giammichele
 | first1    = N.
 | last2     = Bergeron
 | first2    = P.
 | last3     = Dufour
 | first3    = P.
 | title     = Know Your Neighborhood: A Detailed Model Atmosphere Analysis of Nearby White Dwarfs
 | journal   = The Astrophysical Journal Supplement
 | volume    = 199
 | issue     = 2
 | page      = 29
 |date=April 2012
 | arxiv     = 1202.5581
 | doi       = 10.1088/0067-0049/199/2/29
 | bibcode   = 2012ApJS..199...29G
 | s2cid = 118304737
 | postscript = .
}} Based on log&nbsp;''L''/{{Solar luminosity}}&nbsp;=&nbsp;−3.77.</ref> The [[stellar atmosphere|outer atmosphere]] has a temperature of approximately 6,110&nbsp;[[Kelvin|K]],<ref name=Limoges2015/> which is relatively cool for a white dwarf. As all [[white dwarf]]s steadily radiate away their heat over time, this temperature can be used to estimate its age, thought to be around 3&nbsp;billion years.<ref name=aj138_6_1681>{{citation | title=The White Dwarfs Within 20 Parsecs of the Sun: Kinematics and Statistics | display-authors=1 | last1=Sion | first1=Edward M. | last2=Holberg | first2=J. B. | last3=Oswalt | first3=Terry D. | last4=McCook | first4=George P. | last5=Wasatonic | first5=Richard | journal=The Astronomical Journal | volume=138 | issue=6 | pages=1681–1689 | date=December 2009 | doi=10.1088/0004-6256/138/6/1681 | bibcode=2009AJ....138.1681S | arxiv=0910.1288 | s2cid=119284418 | postscript=. }}</ref> It was originally thought to be an [[F-type star]] before the properties of white dwarfs were known.<ref name=Holberg2009>{{citation
 | title=The Discovery of the Existence of White Dwarf Stars: 1862 to 1930
 | last=Holberg | first=J. B. | postscript=.
 | journal=Journal for the History of Astronomy
 | volume=40 | issue=2 | pages=137–154 | date=May 2009
 | doi=10.1177/002182860904000201 | bibcode=2009JHA....40..137H | s2cid=117939625 }}</ref><ref name="van_maanen">{{citation | last=van Maanen | first=A. | title=Two Faint Stars with Large Proper Motion | journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific |date=December 1917 | volume=29 | issue=172 | pages=258–259 | bibcode=1917PASP...29..258V | doi=10.1086/122654 | doi-access=free | postscript=. }}</ref>

Due to the dimness of these stars, the constellation is essentially invisible in or near any major city due to [[light pollution]].

=== Deep-sky objects ===

[[Messier 74|M74]] is a loosely wound (type Sc) [[spiral galaxy]] in Pisces, found at a distance of 30 million light years ([[redshift]] 0.0022). It has many clusters of young stars and the associated [[nebula]]e, showing extensive regions of [[star formation]]. It was discovered by [[Pierre Méchain]], a French astronomer, in 1780. A [[type II-P supernova]] was discovered in the outer regions of M74 by [[Robert Evans (astronomer)|Robert Evans]] in June 2003; the star that underwent the supernova was later identified as a [[red supergiant]] with a mass of 8 [[solar mass]]es.<ref name="Wilkins Dunn 2006" /> It is the brightest member of the [[M74 Group]].<ref>
{{cite book
 | author=R. B. Tully
 | date=1988
 | title=Nearby Galaxies Catalog
 | publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]
 | isbn=978-0-521-35299-4
}}</ref><ref name="garcia1993">
{{cite journal
 | author=A. Garcia
 | date=1993
 | title=General study of group membership. II – Determination of nearby groups
 | journal=[[Astronomy and Astrophysics Supplement]]
 | volume=100 | pages=47–90
 | bibcode=1993A&AS..100...47G
}}</ref><ref name="giuricinetal2002">
{{cite journal
 | author=G. Giuricin | author2=C. Marinoni | author3=L. Ceriani | author4=A. Pisani
 | date=2000
 | title=Nearby Optical Galaxies: Selection of the Sample and Identification of Groups
 | journal=[[Astrophysical Journal]]
 | volume=543
 | issue=1 | pages=178–194
 | bibcode=2000ApJ...543..178G
 | doi=10.1086/317070
|arxiv = astro-ph/0001140 | s2cid=9618325 }}</ref>

[[NGC 488]] is an isolated face-on prototypical spiral galaxy.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Sil'chenko, O. K.|title=Chemically decoupled nucleus and the structure of the nuclear region in the spiral galaxy NGC 488|journal=Astronomy Letters|date=March 1999|volume=25|issue=3|pages=140–8|url=http://cdsads.u-strasbg.fr/abs/1999AstL...25..140S|access-date=29 December 2015|bibcode = 1999AstL...25..140S }}</ref> Two supernovae have been observed in the galaxy.<ref>[http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/lists/Supernovae.html List of Supernovae] ''[[IAU]] Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams''. Retrieved 29 December 2015.</ref>

[[NGC 520]] is a pair of colliding galaxies located 105 million light-years away.<ref name=NGC520dist>{{cite journal
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 | last3=Krajnović | first3=Davor | last4=McDermid | first4=Richard M.
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 | last19=Kuntschner | first19=Harald | last20=Lablanche | first20=Pierre-Yves
 | last21=Morganti | first21=Raffaella | last22=Naab | first22=Thorsten
 | last23=Oosterloo | first23=Tom | last24=Sarzi | first24=Marc
 | last25=Serra | first25=Paolo | last26=Weijmans | first26=Anne-Marie
 | title=The ATLAS<sup>3D</sup> project - I. A volume-limited sample of 260 nearby early-type galaxies: science goals and selection criteria
 | display-authors=1 | journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
 | volume=413 | issue=2 | pages=813–836 | date=May 2011
 | arxiv=1012.1551 | bibcode=2011MNRAS.413..813C
 | doi=10.1111/j.1365-2966.2010.18174.x | doi-access=free | s2cid=15391206 }}</ref>

CL 0024+1654 is a massive [[galaxy cluster]] that [[gravitational lensing|lenses]] the galaxy behind it, creating arc-shaped images of the background galaxy. The cluster is primarily made up of yellow [[elliptical galaxy|elliptical]] and spiral galaxies, at a distance of 3.6 billion light-years from Earth (redshift 0.4), half as far away as the background galaxy, which is at a distance of 5.7 billion light-years (redshift 1.67).<ref name="Wilkins Dunn 2006" />
<ref>{{cite book|last1 = Wilkins |first1 = Jamie |last2 = Dunn |first2 = Robert |date = 2006 |title = 300 Astronomical Objects: A Visual Reference to the Universe
 |edition = 1st |publisher = Firefly Books |location = Buffalo, New York |isbn = 978-1-55407-175-3}}</ref>

[[3C 31]] is an [[active galaxy]] and [[Astronomical radio source|radio source]] in Perseus 237 million light-years from Earth (redshift 0.0173). Its jets, caused by the [[supermassive black hole]] at its center, extend several million light-years in opposing directions, making them some of the largest objects in the universe.