Reticulum

Star References
1. Alpha Reticuli: The brightest star in the constellation at mag. 3.3.
2. Zeta Reticuli: A double divisible with the naked eye into two 5th-mag yellow stars similar to the sun. They lie 39 light-years away.

Deep-Sky Objects

There are no deep-sky objects of interest in this constellation.

Mythology

Reticulum depicts a reticle, or grid, formerly used in the eyepieces of telescopes to record the positions of stars. The literal translation of the word reticulum is small net.

Interesting Facts

1. The star Zeta Reticuli gained some popularity through a UFO report filed by New Hampshire couple Betty and Barney Hill. The couple claimed to have been abducted by aliens on 19 Sept. 1961. They claimed that the aliens showed Betty a star map revealing their origin, which was determined to be Zeta Reticuli.

Created by Dan Corbett, Kate Stafford, and Patrick Wright for ThinkQuest.