Finding & Observing Pisces

Pisces, the Fishes, is one of the oldest recognized constellations — two fish bound together by a cord, swimming in opposite directions. While often overshadowed by more famous neighbours, Pisces contains some remarkable deep-sky targets, most notably the challenging Phantom Galaxy (M74) and the intriguing Alrescha binary star system. More significantly, this constellation marks the location of the vernal equinox — the point where the Sun crosses the celestial equator in March, the moment of spring's arrival in the northern hemisphere.

Abbreviation

Psc

Area (sq degrees)

889

Brightest Star

Eta Piscium (3.62)

Visibility (UK)

Sep – Nov

Best Month

October

Zodiacal

Yes (Mar 12–Apr 18)

Neighbours

Aries, Andromeda, Pegasus, Aquarius, Cetus

Special Feature

The Vernal Equinox point is now here

How to Find Pisces

Finding Steps

Step 1: Locate the Great Square

The Great Square of Pegasus (a large empty square) is the key landmark. In October evenings, look for this prominent four-star asterism in the eastern sky. Pisces lies immediately south of the Square's lower edge.

Step 2: Find the Circlet

South of the Great Square's western edge, look for the Circlet — a faint pentagon of five 4th/5th magnitude stars. In dark skies it's visible to the naked eye as a subtle loop. This is the western fish of the pair.

Step 3: Trace the Cord

From the Circlet, trace a line of faint stars northward and then eastward — this is the cord binding the two fish. It leads toward Alrescha (Alpha Piscium), which marks the knot where the two cord strands meet.

Step 4: Locate the Eastern Fish

From Alrescha, trace the eastern fish downward and to the left — a second stream of fainter stars flowing in the opposite direction. Eta Piscium marks the body of this fish.

Seasonal Visibility

Month	Direction	Altitude at 10 PM	Observability
August	East-southeast, very late	~5°	Very low, late night only
September	East, rising at midnight	~15°	Becoming visible mid-evening
October	East-southeast, 50°+ altitude	~50°	BEST MONTH — excellent height and darkness
November	Due south, still high	~45°	Still very good, starting to set
December	Southwest, fading	~25°	Setting earlier each night

Key Stars of Pisces

Eta Piscium (η Psc)

Magnitude 3.62

Distance 294 ly

Type G7 III yellow giant

Colour Yellow

Brightest star in Pisces despite no special designation. Located in the western fish/body region. A moderately distant yellow giant, and a useful reference point for locating other fainter stars in the constellation.

Alrescha (α Piscium / Kaitain)

Magnitude 3.82 combined

Distance 151 ly

Type A0 V + A3 V binary

Separation 1.8 arcseconds

The "cord knot" — marks the point where the cords binding the two fish are joined. A tight binary pair of A-type stars. Currently separable in 15cm+ telescopes; will become easier to split in coming decades as the pair widens.

Gamma Piscium (γ Psc)

Magnitude 3.69

Distance 138 ly

Type G9 III giant

Colour Orange

One of the stars of the Circlet (western fish) asterism. An orange giant; part of the small pentagon-shaped asterism south of the Great Square. Named as part of the "lucky stars" group in ancient traditions.

Omega Piscium (ω Psc)

Magnitude 4.01

Distance 104 ly

Type F4 IV subgiant

Colour White

Part of the cord connecting the two fish — the upper part near the Circlet. A near subgiant showing slight variability over weeks. Marks a key waypoint along the cord between the two fishes.

TX Piscium (19 Psc) — Carbon Star

Magnitude 4.8–5.2 (variable)

Distance 900 ly

Type C5 III carbon star

Colour Deep ruby-red

One of the reddest stars visible to the naked eye — a carbon star with deep ruby-red colour caused by carbon molecules absorbing blue light. Compare it through binoculars against nearby white stars for a striking colour contrast. Subtle magnitude variations occur over weeks.

Van Maanen's Star (White Dwarf)

Magnitude 12.4

Distance 14.1 ly

Type White dwarf

Significance Nearest isolated WD

The nearest isolated white dwarf to Earth — just 14.1 light-years away. Completely invisible to the naked eye at magnitude 12.4, but observable in a 30cm telescope. The cooling ember of a dead star system, slowly fading over billions of years.

Mythology & History

Greek & Roman Mythology

Aphrodite (Venus) and Eros (Cupid) transformed themselves into fish and tied themselves together with a cord to escape the monster Typhon's attack (the same event where Pan leapt into the Nile — many gods fled into the Euphrates as animals that night). Athena later placed them in the sky. The cord ensures they never become separated in their flight through the cosmos.

Mesopotamian Tradition

Babylonian texts from around 1200 BCE describe this region as "tails" (ZIBB.AN.NA) — the tails of two fish that swam in the heavenly sea. The region between the fish was called "the great swallow" or was associated with the god Ea's domain (Ea being the god of waters and wisdom).

Egyptian Lore

Two sacred fish in the Nile — the Nile carp (Oxyrhynchus) and the Nile perch (Phagrus). These two fish swam before Horus and Isis's boat, guiding them on their cosmic voyage. In some traditions the fish ate the phallus of Osiris which was thrown into the Nile, making them both sacred and taboo.

Hindu & Vedic Tradition

Pisces contains the nakshatras Uttara Bhadrapada (associated with the sea serpent Ahir Budhnya) and Revati (associated with Pushan, god of journeys and paths). Revati marks the beginning/end of the zodiac and is linked to nourishment and safe journeys. The vernal equinox was historically near Revati and marked the start of the Hindu year.

Chinese Astronomy

The area near the western fish and cord region contains parts of several Chinese lunar mansions. The bonds/cord area falls near the lunar mansion Kuí (奎, Legs/Stride) — associated with literature, culture, and the preservation of texts and knowledge through time.

Deep-Sky Objects

M74 — Phantom Galaxy

Challenging

Type Spiral galaxy

Magnitude 9.4

Distance 32 million ly

Surface Brightness 14.2 mag/arcmin²

One of the most challenging Messier objects — a nearly face-on spiral with very low surface brightness. Requires dark skies and at least a 20cm telescope for a satisfying view, though 10cm shows a faint haze. Deep photographs reveal beautiful grand design spiral arms. Classic "challenging Messier" — test your observing skills on this one. Observers call it the "Phantom" because it disappears into the background light from most locations.

TX Piscium — Carbon Star

Easy

Type Variable carbon star

Magnitude ~4.9

Distance 900 ly

Colour Deep ruby-red

One of the reddest stars in the sky — a carbon star that absorbs blue and green light, leaving only deep red. Visible to the naked eye and striking in binoculars against nearby white stars. Its colour is unlike normal stars and makes for an excellent colour-contrast observing exercise.

Alrescha — Double Star

Medium

Type Binary star pair

Magnitudes 4.13 + 5.31

Separation 1.8" (closing)

Orbital Period 660 years

A tight binary of two A-type white stars. Requires 15cm+ telescope to cleanly split at present; will become easier as they widen over the coming decades. A 660-year orbit means the pair's motion is measurable — your observations now will contribute to refining the orbital parameters decades hence.

The Circlet Asterism

Easy (dark sky)

Type Asterism (5 stars)

Magnitudes 3.7–5.0

Size ~10° diameter

Pattern Pentagon

The five-star Circlet forms a faint but recognisable pentagon shape visible to the naked eye south of the Great Square of Pegasus — a satisfying constellation figure. In dark skies it appears as a subtle but distinct loop. Each star of the Circlet has a name and history in ancient astronomical traditions.

NGC 488 — Spiral Galaxy

Photo

Type Spiral galaxy

Magnitude 10.3

Distance 90 million ly

Feature Grand-design spiral

A nearly perfect grand-design spiral with tightly wound arms — a classic photogenic target. 20cm shows the elongated disc; photographs reveal exceptional symmetry with elegant spiral structure. A test of your imaging system's ability to capture fine detail on distant galaxies.

Van Maanen's Star — White Dwarf

Photo (large scope)

Type White dwarf

Magnitude 12.4

Distance 14.1 ly

Status Cooling stellar remnant

Not visible without a large telescope, but conceptually fascinating — the cooling remnant of a star that died billions of years ago, now just 14.1 light-years away. Its position in Pisces can be found in star atlases near RA 0h, Dec -5°. A target for advanced imagers willing to hunt down one of our nearest stellar corpses.

Beginner Observing Guide

Locate the Great Square of Pegasus. This is your primary landmark — a large empty square of four bright stars. Once you've identified the Great Square, Pisces lies immediately south of its lower edge in the evening sky.

Identify the Circlet. South of the Great Square, look for the Circlet — a faint pentagon of five 4th/5th magnitude stars forming the western fish. In dark skies this asterism is visible to the naked eye as a subtle loop. Binoculars make it much easier to see.

Trace the cord upward and eastward. From the Circlet, follow a chain of fainter stars northward (the cord binding the fish). This leads toward Alrescha (Alpha Piscium), which marks the knot where the cord joins.

Find the eastern fish. From Alrescha, trace a second stream of stars flowing downward and to the left (the opposite direction from the Circlet). Eta Piscium marks the body of this eastern fish.

Hunt M74 with a telescope. This challenging galaxy requires dark skies and will test your averted vision technique. With a 20cm scope and wide-field eyepiece on a moonless night, you may glimpse the faint spiral structure. This is a genuinely rewarding achievement.

Observe Alrescha binary split. Use 150× magnification on a 15cm+ scope to cleanly separate the two A-type components of Alrescha (Alpha Piscium). Compare their colours — both should appear white-blue. Record the angular separation and orientation, contributing data for the 660-year orbital period.

Observing Kit

Naked Eye

Circlet, cord outline

Binoculars

TX Piscium red star

8cm Refractor

M74 attempt, Alrescha

20cm Dobsonian

M74 proper view, NGC 488

DSLR Camera

M74 spiral structure

Best Time

October, 10 PM local

Advanced Observing

Age of Aquarius Precession

The vernal equinox point (where the Sun crosses the celestial equator in March) has precessed from Aries into Pisces around 68 BCE and will enter Aquarius around 2597 CE. We're not yet in the "Age of Aquarius" — that won't occur for another 600 years! You're observing the constellation that currently hosts this critical astronomical reference point.

M74 Surface Brightness Challenge

M74's extreme low surface brightness (14.2 mag/arcmin²) makes it the classic "challenging Messier" object. Use averted vision (looking slightly to the side so light falls on the rod-rich periphery of your eye, more sensitive to faint light). Observe at highest magnification that still shows the full disc. Dark adaptation of 30+ minutes is essential.

TX Piscium Carbon Star Photometry

TX Piscium varies by approximately 0.4 magnitude over weeks to months. Using a DSLR and photometry software, monitor its brightness variation and compare it against nearby reference stars. This allows you to contribute amateur photometric data to ongoing stellar variability studies.

Alrescha Orbital Monitoring

Over the next decades, the separation between Alrescha's two components will widen measurably as they orbit. Your observations recorded today — position angle (PA) and separation (ρ) — become valuable data points for refining the 660-year orbital period. Use a micrometers eyepiece and record both parameters to highest precision.

Pro Tip: The Vernal Equinox

The vernal equinox point (☽) is currently located in Pisces, not Aries (due to precession). There's nothing to see — no object marks the location — but you can locate the reference point on a good star atlas near RA 0h, Dec 0°. It's conceptually fascinating: the moment the Sun crosses here (around March 20–21 in the northern hemisphere) marks the beginning of spring.