Why do the constellations have shapes?

The answer is always the same..... Although the constellations are not usually stars which are physically associated with each other, you have to go a very significant distance from Earth before you would be able to see them appear as different shapes. read more

The official constellations are in fact rectangular slices of the heavens holding the stars within it. Included are the individual groupings. For instance, the constellation of Ursa Major contains all of the stars around the shape known by the same name. read more

Stars have two names. Just like constellations, they have a Latin name and a record name. A star's Latin name comes from the constellation it's in and describes its brightness. The brightest star in a constellation is an alpha after the first letter of the Greek alphabet. The dimmest star is an omega after the last letter of the Greek alphabet. read more

The shapes of the constellations have changed over the centuries, but by very little. The reason is the stars in the constellations are all in our own galaxy (they are not involved in the expansion of the universe which affects distant galaxies. read more