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Pyxis
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Ursa major constellation illustration art. (Big Dipper) stars, space, night sky)
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Latin:
“Compass”
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Pyxis

astronomy
Written by
Erik Gregersen
Erik Gregersen is a senior editor at Encyclopaedia Britannica, specializing in the physical sciences and technology. Before joining Britannica in 2007, he worked at the University of Chicago Press on the...
Erik Gregersen
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Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
History

Pyxis, constellation in the southern sky at about 9 hours right ascension and 30° south in declination. Its brightest star is Alpha Pyxidis, with a magnitude of 3.7. The French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille formed this constellation in 1754 from stars near what was considered the mast of Argo Navis, the constellation that represented the ship that carried Jason and the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece. Pyxis represents a ship’s compass.

Erik Gregersen