The letter “C” is the one with the most constellation names. There are currently 22 constellations in the catalog of the International Astronomical Union whose names begin with the letter “C”.
The following table lists them all. Here’s what each of the columns mean:
Name: The proper or colloquial name for the constellation.
Abbreviation: A reduced version of the constellation name used generally to refer to the stars it contains.
Genitive: The ‘scientific’ name for the constellation in the IAU catalog. This is the name used to give stars their scientific name, or “designation”.
Meaning: Meaning or English translation for the name of the star.
Brightest Star: Name of the star with the biggest magnitude in the constellation
| Name | Abbreviation | Genitive | Meaning | Brightest Star |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caelum | Cae | Caeli | Chisel | Alpha Caeli |
| Camelopardalis | Cam | Camelopardalis | Giraffe | Beta Camelopardalis |
| Cancer | Cnc | Cancri | Crab | Tarf |
| Canes Venatici | CVn | Canum Venaticorum | The hunting dogs | Cor Caroli |
| Canis Major | CMa | Canis Majoris | Bigger dog | Sirius |
| Canis Minor | CMi | Canis Minoris | Smaller dog | Procyon |
| Capricornus | Cap | Capricorni | The sea goat | Deneb Algedi |
| Carina | Car | Carinae | Keel | Canopus |
| Cassiopeia | Cas | Cassiopeiae | Cassiopeia | Schedar |
| Centaurus | Cen | Centauri | The Centaur | Rigil Kentarus |
| Cepheus | Cep | Cephei | Cepheus | Alderamin |
| Cetus | Cet | Ceti | The whale | Diphda |
| Chamaeleon | Cha | Chamaeleontis | The chameleon | Alpha Chamaeleontis |
| Circinus | Cir | Circini | Compasses | Alpha Circini |
| Columba | Col | Columbae | The dove | Phact |
| Coma Berenices | Com | Comae Berenices | Berenice’s hair | Beta Comae Berenices |
| Corona Australis | CrA | Coronae Australis | Southern crown | Meridiana |
| Corona Borealis | CrB | Coronae Borealis | Northern crown | Alpheeca |
| Corvus | Crv | Corvi | The crow | Gienah |
| Crater | Crt | Crateris | Cup | Delta Crateris |
| Crux | Cru | Crucis | Southern cross | Acrux |
| Cygnus | Cyg | Cygni | The swan | Deneb |
This list does not include some of the proposed star names that are proposed every year, but still haven’t been fully approved and made official.
Find more constellation names that start with the letter: