Pegasus the Flying Horse

One of the great fall constellations is Pegasus the Flying horse. He's easy to find in the sky if you're prepared to imagine him flying upside-down. Look for a big square or diamond shape of dim stars almost straight overhead. As an added clue there are very few stars within the square. This is Pegasus' body. His head and mane are to the right from the square.

Pegasus has one of the grossest origin stories I've ever read. He was born during the epic battle between Perseus the Hero and the dreaded Sea Monster. Remember the Sea Monster had just risen from the briny deep to devour poor, helpless Princess Andromeda - when Perseus flew up. And luckily Perseus had just the weapon to fight the horrible beast. Earlier in the day Perseus decapitated Medusa - the snaky-haired gorgon whose look turned all living souls to stone. Perseus closed his eyes and took Medusa's bloody head out of a bag and showed it to the Sea Monster. At first glance the monster turned to stone, cracked of its own weight and fell to the bottom of the sea.

But where did Pegasus come from? I'm getting to it.

During the battle, Medusa's head was still a little juicy. I mean Perseus just killed her that morning after all. When Perseus held out Medusa's head to the Sea Monster some blood dripped out of her neck. When the blood hit the sea water below a magical thing happened. Through some sort of foamy, jello process the Gorgon's blood mixed with the water to form into... Pegasus the Flying Horse. This was a common theme in Greek mythology - when a monster or god bled, something always sprang from it. But it's hard to imagine a lovely winged horse coming from such a gruesome beginning. Those Greeks sure had imaginations!

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Cetus the Sea Monster

Our hero Perseus (remember him), was flying through the air, borne on his winged sandals. He was feeling quite proud of himself since he just killed Medusa earlier in the day. Suddenly he hears a scream and looks down to see a young maiden chained to a rock about to be devoured by a sea monster. Perseus thinks, "Man, does it get any better than this?" Not only did he kill Medusa, but now he can save a maiden in distress.

Perseus yells down to Andromeda to close her eyes and he pulls out Medusa's bloody head. He shows the head to the sea monster who instantly turns to stone, cracks of his own monstrous weight, and falls to the bottom of the ocean never to be seen again. Perseus swoops down to unchain Andromeda, and they fly away to live happily ever after.

The constellation Cetus the sea monster can be found basking on the shores of Eridanus, the river constellation. Look for a group of stars that look like a recliner chair to the right of Perseus and below Pegasus. What about Pegasus? Tune in next week...

Perseus the Prince

Let's begin the mighty fall saga with our hero, Perseus.

As the adopted son of a king, Perseus lived the pampered life of a prince. When he turned 18, his father told him, "Okay son, you need to go out and find a job." Well, Perseus thought about this - maybe he could be a banker or insurance salesman - and then it hit him. He wanted the best job in the ancient world... Professional Monster Hunter.

As a son of Zeus, Perseus was buds with the gods they gave him some gifts to help with his new career. From Hephaestus he got a sword that would cut through anything; from Athena, a shield tahat was shinier than any mirror; and from Hermes, winged sandals so he could fly through the air with the greatest of ease. (I think I'll put those on my birthday list this year!)

Anyway for his first monster hunting job he wanted a challenge. Instead of hunting a sassy scorpion or crabby crab, he went after the dreaded Medusa. She was the gorgon-woman who had snakes for hair and if you looked at her you would turn to stone. Whew! She was one tough monster.

Perseus had a plan. He would go to Medusa's cave and set up his shield in the sand. Medusa's reflection, although still ugly, wouldn't turn you to stone. When Medusa came looking for Perseus he watched her in the shield until she got closer... and closer... until she was right next to him. Perseus pulled out his sword and "THWACK!" chopped her head right off! He closed his eyes, picked up the head, and put it in a bag. You never know when it might come in handy. Then he put on his winged sandals and flew back home. But this is not even close to the end of the story.

You can find the constellation Perseus in the northeast sky after 9pm. He is shaped like a letter "K" and if you have a really good imagination you can still see the bloody, severed head of Medusa in his left hand.