Hydra, the Water Serpent, begins its winding way from upper right toward
lower left. The longest of constellations, Hydra wraps around a
quarter of the sky. Here we see the western two-thirds, the
remainder diving
south of Virgo.
The head of the Serpent is a small circlet of stars near the
upper right corner. Alphard, the "solitary one" at Hydra's heart,
is the bright star just to the right of center. Epsilon Hydrae
is at the far right of the Serpent's head.
The bright star near the top to the right is Regulus in
Leo (the Lion).
Cancer
(the Crab) is at the upper right corner, while down
along the Serpent's back lie
Sextans (the Sextant),
Crater (the Cup), and at the far left edge part of
Corvus (the Crow).
The open cluster M 48 is faintly visible near the right hand edge just
below center. Hydra continues to the lower left
and ends west of Libra.
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