A prominent constellation in the northern sky, named after a legendary king in Greek mythology, containing the notable variable star Delta Cephei.
From Greek mythology, the name of King Cepheus of Ethiopia, husband of Cassiopeia. The constellation was named after this mythological figure and is one of the 88 modern constellations.
Cepheus is one of the most important constellations for astronomers because it contains Delta Cephei, the 'Rosetta Stone' star that revealed the universe's true scale—without Cepheid variables in this constellation, we'd still think the Milky Way was the entire universe.
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