The
constellation Perseus is named after the
Greek hero who cut off the head of the monster
Medusa. The
Arabs followed this legend, naming the constellation the
Bearer of the Demon's Head. The star within the constellation,
Algol, was named their
Demon Star in this fashion. It has also been referred to as the
Blinking Demon because of the way it
dims and brightens periodically, being a
variable star. Algol does this over a period of about three days during which it dims
sharply for a few hours.
Perseus is located in the
Northern Hemisphere between
Auriga and
Cassiopeia and crossed by the
Milky Way.