Cancer (constellation)
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In astronomy and astrology, Cancer (♋), Latin for crab, is one of the twelve constellations of the zodiac. Cancer is small and dim, and to many it does not resemble a crab. It lies between Gemini to the west and Leo to the east, Lynx to the north and Canis Minor and Hydra to the south.
Notable deep sky objects
Cancer is best noted among stargazers as the home of Praesepe (M44), an open cluster also called the Beehive Cluster or the Gate of Men, which contains the star ε Cancri.
Mythology
As the constellation vaguely resembles a crab, it may, together with the Hydra constellation, form the basis of the myth of the Lernaean Hydra, one of The Twelve Labours of Herakles, with which it is associated.
Astrology
The Western astrological sign Cancer of the tropical zodiac (June 21 - July 22) differs from the astronomical constellation and the Hindu astrological sign of the sidereal zodiac (July 21 - August 9).
In some cosmologies, Cancer is associated with the classical element Water, and thus called a Water Sign (with Scorpio and Pisces). It is also one of the four cardinal signs (along with Aries, Libra, and Capricorn). It is the domicile of the Moon and the exaltation of Jupiter. Its polar opposite is Capricorn. Each astrological sign is assigned a part of the body, viewed as the seat of its power. Cancer rules the breasts and belly. The symbol for Cancer is the crab.
In the 1970s there was a proposal to rename the zodiac sign, as some astrologers felt that an imagined association with the disease Cancer was off-putting. Some people with the sun sign of Cancer refer to themselves as moon children instead (the sign is associated with the Moon in astrology).
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Astronomy | Constellations of the Zodiac | Astrology edit (https://academickids.com:443/encyclopedia/index.php?title=Template:Zodiac&action=edit) |
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Aries (♈) | Taurus (♉) | Gemini (♊) | Cancer (♋) | Leo (♌) | Virgo (♍) | Libra (♎) | Scorpius/Scorpio (♏) | Ophiuchus | Sagittarius (♐) | Capricornus/Capricorn (♑) | Aquarius (♒) | Pisces (♓) |