Editing Altair (section)

==Etymology, mythology and culture==
[[Image:Altair.jpg|Altair|thumb|left]]
The term ''Al Nesr Al Tair'' appeared in [[Al Achsasi al Mouakket]]'s catalogue, which was translated into [[Latin]] as ''Vultur Volans''.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Knobel|first= E. B.|title=Al Achsasi Al Mouakket, on a catalogue of stars in the Calendarium of Mohammad Al Achsasi Al Mouakket|journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society|volume=55|issue= 8|pages=429–438|date=June 1895|bibcode=1895MNRAS..55..429K|doi=10.1093/mnras/55.8.429|doi-access=free}}</ref> This name was applied by the Arabs to the [[asterism (astronomy)|asterism]] of Altair, [[β Aquilae]] and [[γ Aquilae]] and probably goes back to the ancient Babylonians and Sumerians, who called Altair "the eagle star".<ref name="Kunitzsch" />{{Citation page|pages=17-18}} The spelling ''Atair'' has also been used.<ref name="allen">{{Cite book |last=Allen |first=Richard Hinckley |url=http://archive.org/details/bub_gb_5xQuAAAAIAAJ |title=Star-names and their meanings |publisher=New York, Leipzig [etc.] G.E. Stechert |others=unknown library |year=1899 |pages=59–60}}</ref> Medieval [[astrolabe]]s of England and Western Europe depicted Altair and Vega as birds.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Gingerich | first1 = O.| doi = 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1987.tb37197.x | title = Zoomorphic Astrolabes and the Introduction of Arabic Star Names into Europe | journal = Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences | volume = 500 | pages = 89–104 | year = 1987 | issue = 1|bibcode = 1987NYASA.500...89G | s2cid = 84102853}}</ref>

The [[Koori]] people of [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]] also knew Altair as ''Bunjil'', the [[wedge-tailed eagle]], and β and γ Aquilae are his two wives the [[black swan]]s. The people of the [[Murray River]] knew the star as ''Totyerguil''.<ref name="mudrooroo1994">''Aboriginal mythology: an A-Z spanning the history of aboriginal mythology from the earliest legends to the present day'', Mudrooroo, London: HarperCollins, 1994, {{ISBN|1-85538-306-3}}.</ref>{{Citation page|page=4}} The Murray River was formed when ''Totyerguil'' the hunter speared ''Otjout'', a giant [[Murray cod]], who, when wounded, churned a channel across southern Australia before entering the sky as the constellation [[Delphinus]].<ref name="mudrooroo1994" />{{Citation page|page=115}}

In Chinese belief, the asterism consisting of Altair, β Aquilae and γ Aquilae is known as ''Hé Gǔ'' ({{lang|zh|河鼓}}; lit. "river drum").<ref name=allen/> The [[Chinese star names|Chinese name]] for Altair is thus ''Hé Gǔ èr'' ({{lang|zh|河鼓二}}; lit. "river drum two", meaning the "second star of the drum at the river").<ref>{{in lang|zh}} [http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Space/Research/StarName/c_research_chinengstars_ala_alz.htm 香港太空館 - 研究資源 - 亮星中英對照表] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081025110153/http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Space/Research/StarName/c_research_chinengstars_ala_alz.htm |date=2008-10-25 }}, Hong Kong Space Museum. Accessed on line November 26, 2008.</ref> However, Altair is better known by its other names: ''Qiān Niú Xīng'' ({{lang|zh-hans|牵牛星}} / {{lang|zh-hant|牽牛星}}) or ''Niú Láng Xīng'' ({{lang|zh|牛郎星}}), translated as the ''cowherd star''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mayers |first=William Frederick |url=http://archive.org/details/chinesereadersm01mayegoog |title=The Chinese reader's manual: A handbook of biographical, historical ... |publisher=American Presbyterian Mission Press |others=Harvard University |year=1874 |pages=97–98, 161 |author-link=William Frederick Mayers}}</ref><ref name=brown>p. 72, ''China, Japan, Korea Culture and Customs: Culture and Customs'', Ju Brown and John Brown, 2006, {{ISBN|978-1-4196-4893-9}}.</ref> These names are an allusion to a love story, ''[[The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl]]'', in which Niulang (represented by Altair) and his two children (represented by [[β Aquilae]] and [[γ Aquilae]]) are separated from respectively their wife and mother Zhinu (represented by Vega) by the [[Milky Way]]. They are only permitted to meet once a year, when magpies form a bridge to allow them to cross the Milky Way.<ref name=brown/><ref>pp. 105–107, ''Magic Lotus Lantern and Other Tales from the Han Chinese'', Haiwang Yuan and Michael Ann Williams, Libraries Unlimited, 2006, {{ISBN|978-1-59158-294-6}}.</ref>

The people of [[Micronesia]] called Altair ''Mai-lapa'', meaning "big/old breadfruit", while the [[Māori people]] called this star ''Poutu-te-rangi'', meaning "pillar of heaven".<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ross |first1=Malcolm |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bJFfm59fVr4C |title=The Lexicon of Proto-Oceanic: The Culture and Environment of Ancestral Oceanic Society. The physical environment. Volume 2 |last2=Pawley |first2=Andrew |last3=Osmond |first3=Meredith |date=2007-03-01 |publisher=ANU E Press |isbn=978-1-921313-19-6 |page=175 |language=en}}</ref>

In Western [[astrology]], the star was ill-omened, portending danger from [[reptile]]s.<ref name=allen/>

This star is one of the asterisms used by [[Bugis]] sailors for navigation, called ''bintoéng timoro'', meaning "eastern star".<ref name="kelley11">{{cite book|author1=Kelley, David H. |author2=Milone, Eugene F. |author3=Aveni, A.F. |title=Exploring Ancient Skies: A Survey of Ancient and Cultural Astronomy|publisher=Springer|location=New York, New York|year=2011|page=344|isbn=978-1-4419-7623-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ILBuYcGASxcC&pg=PA307}}</ref>

A group of [[Japan]]ese scientists sent a radio signal to Altair in 1983 with the hopes of contacting extraterrestrial life.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14985246 |title='Anybody there?' Astronomers waiting for a reply from Altair |date=August 20, 2023 |website= |access-date=2023-08-25 }}</ref>

NASA announced ''Altair'' as the name of the [[Lunar Surface Access Module]] (LSAM) on December 13, 2007.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-121307a.html |title=NASA names next-gen lunar lander Altair |date=December 13, 2007 |website=.collectSPACE |access-date=2022-08-03 }}</ref> The Russian-made [[Beriev Be-200]] Altair seaplane is also named after the star.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.beriev.com/eng/Pr_rel_e/pr_58e.html |title=Results of the competition for the best personal names for the Be-103 and the Be-200 amphibious aircraft |publisher=[[Beriev Aircraft Company]] |date=February 12, 2003 |access-date=2022-08-03 |archive-date=2021-11-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105063444/http://www.beriev.com/eng/Pr_rel_e/pr_58e.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
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