Scutum (constellation)

Located just south of the celestial equator, its four brightest stars form a narrow diamond shape.

[4] Coincidentally, the Chinese also associated these stars with battle armor, incorporating them into the larger asterism known as Tien Pien, i.e., the Heavenly Casque (or Helmet).

[7] Beta Scuti is a binary system,[8][9] with the primary with a spectral type similar to the Sun, although it is 1,270 times brighter.

Delta Scuti is a bluish white giant star, which is now coming at the direction of the Solar System.

The globular cluster NGC 6712 and the planetary nebula IC 1295 can be found in the eastern part of the constellation, only 24 arcminutes apart.

It will not near the closest star in this constellation for over a million years[21] at its present speed, by which time its batteries will be long dead.

Scutum Sobiescianum in Firmamentum Sobiescianum sive Uranographia 1690
The constellation Scutum as it can be seen by the naked eye
The constellation Scutum in the night sky, enhanced for color and contrast
M1-63, a bipolar planetary nebula located in the constellation of Scutum (the Shield)
Serpens held by Ophiuchus, as depicted in Urania's Mirror , a set of constellation cards published in London c. 1825. Above the tail of the serpent is the now-obsolete constellation Taurus Poniatovii while below it is Scutum.