Cygnus, the swan, looks like a big cross.  The tail of the swan is
marked by the bright star *Deneb*.  The head of the swan is a star
called Albireo, a star with a surprise!  Three fainter stars cross the
line between *Deneb* and Albireo, making a "t" shape.

Both the tail and bill of the swan are special stars.  *Deneb* is a
bright, blue star, and is only a few million years old - very young
for a star! What is Albireo's surprise?  Albireo is actually two
stars, one yellow and one blue!  Although with just your eyes you only
see one star, you can see that there are really two if you look
through a small telescope.  Cygnus also has a neat *nebula* which
looks like the continent of North America.  You can see it through
binoculars.

The ancient greeks may have called these stars a swan to honor the
great musician Orpheus.  Opheus loved his harp, *Lyra*, very much so
he was transformed and set in the sky to be near it.


Cygnus, the swan, is also known as the Northern Cross because of it's
distinctive shape.  The tail of the swan is marked by the bright star
*Deneb*, Arabic for "tail".  Three fainter stars cross the line
between *Deneb* and the head of the swan, Albireo.  Cygnus flies
southward along the summer *Milky Way*, and into the *Summer
Triangle*.

The tail and bill of the swan are both magnificent stellar sights.
*Deneb* is a bright, blue supergiant star, very young as stars go.
Albireo, the bill of the swan, is actually two stars which exhibit a
spectacular amber and blue contrast.  Cygnus is also sprinkled with a
variety of nebulae.  The North American Nebula is located just a few
degrees east of *Deneb*, and is named for it's resemblance to the
North American continent.  The Veil Nebula can also be found in
Cygnus, several degrees south of the eastern wing.  It's delicate
filaments, the remnant of an ancient supernova explosion, have a
structure which is too faint for binoculars.

The identity of Cygnus is uncertain.  He could be Zeus in the guise in
which he seduced Leda, the mother of Helen of Troy. Possibly the swan
is Orpheus, transformed and set in the sky to be near his harp.  In
one myth, Cygnus is a friend of Phaethon, the son of Apollo, the sun
god.  Once Phaethon asked to drive the Sun's chariot across the sky,
but lost control of it, endangering the world.  Zeus struck the boy
down, so that he fell into the river Eriadnus.  Cygnus, devestated,
dove repeatedly into the water to search for Phaethon.  Out of pity,
Zeus turned the boy into a swan.


Cygnus, the swan, is also known as the Northern Cross because of it's
distinctive shape.  The tail of the swan is marked by the bright star
*Deneb*, Arabic for "tail".  Three fainter stars cross the line
between *Deneb* and the head of the swan, Albireo.  Cygnus flies
southward along the summer *Milky Way*, and into the *Summer
Triangle*.

The tail and bill of the swan are both magnificent stellar sights.
*Deneb* is a bright, blue supergiant star, very young as stars go.
Albireo, the bill of the swan, is actually two stars which exhibit a
spectacular amber and blue (one might even say "maize and blue")
contrast.  Cygnus is also sprinkled with a variety of nebulae,
planetary, diffuse and dark.  The North American Nebula is located
just a few degrees east of *Deneb*, and is named for it's resemblance
to the North American continent.  The Veil Nebula can also be found in
Cygnus, several degrees south of the eastern wing.  It's delicate
filaments, the remnant of an ancient supernova explosion, have a
structure which is too faint for binoculars.

The identity of Cygnus is uncertain.  He could be Zeus in the guise in
which he seduced Leda, leading to the birth of the twins, Castor and
Pollux, and Helen of Troy. Possibly the swan is Orpheus, transformed
and set in the sky to be near his harp.  In one myth, Cygnus is a
riend of Phaethon, the son of Apollo, the sun god.
Once Phaethon asked to drive the Sun's chariot across the sky, but
lost control of it, endangering the world.  Zeus struck the boy down,
so that he fell into the river Eriadnus.  Cygnus, devestated, dove
repeatedly into the water to search for Phaethon.  Out of pity, Zeus
turned the boy into a swan.