Constellation, Stern
Puppis
The stern of Argo, the ship of Jason and the Argonauts. It became a constellation of its own when Nicolas Louis de Lacaille split the huge ancient ship into three parts.
From New York on October 13, 2026, the centre of Puppis rises at 3:32 AM, is highest at 7:07 AM (14° above the horizon in the S) and sets at 10:43 AM.
In the 3D sky
The sky over New York turned towards Puppis. Drag to look around.
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Evening visibility over the year
Height of the constellation’s centre above the horizon at 10 pm local time on the 15th of each month, from New York. Above about 30° it is well placed.
Name and history
Puppis means the stern, or poop deck, of a ship. The ship is Argo Navis, which carried Jason and the Argonauts in search of the golden fleece and was one of Ptolemy’s constellations. Argo was so large that the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille divided it into three in his catalogue of 1756. He called this part Pouppe du Navire. The other parts are Carina, the keel, and Vela, the sails. Lacaille wrote that the rudder separates the stern from the body of the ship. Puppis is the largest of the three pieces.
Lacaille kept a single set of Greek letters for the whole ship. The stars lettered Alpha and Beta ended up in Carina, so Puppis has neither. Its brightest star, Zeta Puppis, is called Naos, from the Greek word for ship. On Johann Bode’s chart of 1801, a mysterious scaly sea creature peeps out from behind Canis Major. Its identity is unknown, and Ian Ridpath wonders if Bode meant it as a hidden joke.
Sources: Ian Ridpath, Star Tales: Puppis
Brightest stars
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naos | ζ Pup | 2.21 | 1,084 light-years |
| π Pup | π Pup | 2.71 | 807 light-years |
| Tureis | ρ Pup | 2.83 | 64 light-years |
| τ Pup | τ Pup | 2.94 | 182 light-years |
| Pipit | ν Pup | 3.17 | 372 light-years |
| σ Pup | σ Pup | 3.25 | 194 light-years |
| Azmidi | ξ Pup | 3.34 | 1,199 light-years |
| HIP 37819 | HIP 37819 | 3.62 | 1,133 light-years |
| HIP 38414 | HIP 38414 | 3.71 | 353 light-years |
| HIP 37229 | HIP 37229 | 3.80 | 347 light-years |
Facts
| Area | about 674 square degrees (20 of 88) |
|---|---|
| IAU abbreviation | Pup |
| Sky | Southern sky |
| Origin | Argo Navis is one of the 48 constellations in Ptolemy’s Almagest. Lacaille made its stern a separate part, Pouppe du Navire, in his catalogue of 1756 |
| Stars brighter than magnitude 5 | 49 |
| Centre (J2000) | 7.7 h, -35° |
Deep-sky objects
Galaxies, clusters and nebulae brighter than magnitude 9, from the OpenNGC catalogue. Most need binoculars or a telescope and a dark sky.
Boundaries: International Astronomical Union, via Astronomy Engine. Areas are computed from the boundaries by sampling (within about one percent). Names and lines: Stellarium. Stars: HYG Database. Deep-sky objects: OpenNGC. Calculated with Astronomy Engine, an open-source library verified against the US Naval Observatory and NASA JPL. Data sources
How to use this page
Choose your place and a night at the top. The answer and the 3D view show where the constellation is, when it is highest and whether it rises at all from where you are. The chart shows its stars and lines, and the tables list its brightest stars and the deep-sky objects inside it.
Frequently asked questions
When is a constellation best seen?
When it is highest in a dark sky, which the page gives for the night you pick. Each constellation is best placed in a particular season, because the stars rise about four minutes earlier every night.
Why can I not see a constellation from my place?
Constellations far south of the celestial equator never rise from northern places, and those far north never rise from southern ones. The page says when this is the case.
What are the constellation boundaries?
The International Astronomical Union divides the sky into 88 areas with official boundaries. The stick figures are only a drawing aid, the boundaries say which constellation a point in the sky belongs to.
Related guides
- How to learn the constellationsStart with one bright pattern you cannot miss, use it as a signpost to its neighbours, and come back a month later: the sky will have turned, and you will know a little more of it.
- Altitude and azimuth: finding things in the skyTwo angles tell you exactly where to look: which direction, and how high.
- Light pollution and dark skies: the Bortle scaleFrom a city centre you can count a few dozen stars. From a truly dark site you can count a few thousand, with the Milky Way bright enough to cast a shadow. The Bortle scale puts a number on the difference.
- Binoculars for stargazing: what to buy and what to look atA pair of 7x50 or 10x50 binoculars shows the craters of the Moon, the moons of Jupiter, dozens of star clusters and the Andromeda Galaxy, for a fraction of the cost of a telescope.