Āpa ()

The stars identified by Shylaja and Pai (2019), their Table 2, are marked with red circles on the map of Virgo. The two arrows correspond to Apamvatsa and Apa. The original chart by IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine (Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg) is from Creative Commons.

Āpa, always named along with Apavatsa, is an Indian star name in Early Modern times. The only indication of the position is Āpaṃvatsa () is 5° to the north of Chitra (Spica) and Apa is further 6° to the north, so Apa is 11° north of Spica. No information on magnitudes is preserved. The coordinates agree fairly well with Zeta Virginis.

Concordance, Etymology, History

Āpa means water. It is always listed with the other star Apamvatsa, meaning the 'offspring of Apa', as seen in many texts , the earliest being Suryasiddhanata. Candraśekhara (19th century) lists these two terms a single phrase, confusing that Apa is identified with its offspring.

Origin of Constellation

The text Sūryasiddhānta is considered as an authority from the 8th to the 19th century CE, but the author(s) remain unknown. Its date is estimated to the 4th or 5th century. It contains a chapter with lists of coordinates and names of stars, which allows for identifications.

Religion/ Tales/ Mythology

mnemonic tales and cultural significance: No mythological stories are associated with this star

References

• References (general)