Pictor

"The Painter's Easel"

By IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine (Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg) [CC-BY-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Abbreviation: Pic
Genitive: Pictoris
Constellation family: Lacaille
Nearest constellations: Caelum, Carina, Columba, Dorado, Puppis, and Volans
Right ascension: 5.41h
Declination: -50.30°
Visible between latitudes: +25° and -90°
Square degrees: 246
Luminary: Alpha Pictoris
Notable deep sky objects: NGC 1705

About

Pictor is a small constellation in the Southern Hemisphere. It is best viewed in February.

Pictor was first introduced by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in the mid-1700s after he visited the Cape of Good Hope in Africa. His original name for Pictor was "Le Chevalet et la Palette" or "The Painter's Easel and Palette."

Mythology

There is no mythology associated with this constellation.

Gallery of objects in Pictor

Beta Pictoris:

By ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2 [CC-BY-4.0], via Wikimedia Commons

ESO 121-6 (spiral galaxy):

By ESA/Hubble & NASA [CC-BY-3.0], via ESA/Hubble

NGC 1705 (dwarf irregular galaxy):

By NASA, ESA, and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons