Microscopium is a small
constellation located in the Southern Hemisphere, named in honor of the
microscope by the French astronomer
Abbe Nicolas Louis de Lacaille. It is a very faint constellation, the brightest star of only about 4th magnitude, and is almost invisible to the naked eye.
Abbe Nicolas Louis de Lacaille mapped the stars of the
southern hemisphere from the
Cape of Good Hope in South Africa in 1750 or so. He named many other constellations after several instruments and inventions, such as
Antlia (The Air pump),
Circinus (the Compasses),
Horologium (The Clock),
Telescopium (The Telescope) and several others.
The constellation itself is located south of
Capricornus and east of
Sagittarius, best viewed in September, although it is of little interest to most astronomers.