Antlia is a scientific term used in astronomy to refer to a faint constellation located in the southern hemisphere. The spelling of antlia uses the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) to represent the pronunciation of the word as æntlɪə. The "a" sound is pronounced as the short "a" in "cat." The "ntl" sound is pronounced together as a cluster. The "i" is pronounced with a short "i" sound as in "tip," and the "a" at the end is pronounced with the unstressed "schwa" sound.
Antlia is a noun that refers to a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere. It was introduced by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in the 18th century. The name Antlia is derived from the Latin word "antlia," which means "pump" or "air pump." This constellation portrays an air pump, which is a device used for creating a partial vacuum or compressing airflow.
Antlia occupies an area of approximately 239 square degrees and is located between the constellations Hydra, Vela, Centaurus, Pyxis, and Puppis. Despite its relatively large size, it is not particularly bright, as it contains only a few stars above magnitude 4.
The most prominent star in Antlia is Alpha Antliae, which is a yellow-white subgiant located approximately 378 light-years away from Earth. Other notable stars within the constellation include Zeta, Epsilon, and Delta Antliae. Antlia does not contain any deep-sky objects of significant interest, such as galaxies or nebulas.
Due to its location in the southern hemisphere, Antlia is mostly visible from the Southern Hemisphere, although its northernmost parts can be seen from certain latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere during certain times of the year. It can be observed in the southern sky during autumn in the Northern Hemisphere or in early spring for observers in the Southern Hemisphere.
The word "antlia" has its etymology rooted in Greek. It derives from the Greek word "āntlía" (ἄντλια), which means "pump" or "water vessel". The term was first used in ancient Greece to refer to a device used for drawing water from wells or other sources. In modern times, "antlia" particularly pertains to the constellation Antlia, which was named after the air pump invented by physicist and astronomer Giovanni Cassini in the 17th century.