Pisces
From Slackerpedia Galactica
Introduction
Originally called "The Water Bearer", "Pisces" was chosen by Johann Beyer to update and simplify the name. Unfortunately, the word means something entirely different in English, and Victorian astronomer Admiral Smyth proposed bowdlerizing it, substituting something more seemly for the morally conscious times. His replacement, utilized until 1941 when a campaign by Patrick Moore was successful in overturning it, was "Cholmondely" (pronounced "Featherstonehaugh".)
Although common antiquity would have you believe it's a fish due to its being a zodiacal constellation thanks to those darn astrologers, its resemblance was very much in debate during Ancient Grecian times, when many of those constellations were first "discovered" or more aptly put it, arranged.
Observation
Although scanning for the constellation's basic location isn't too hard since it rests on the celestial ecliptic between its zodiac constellation chums Aries (to its "left") and Aquarius (to its "right"), homing in on its individual stars is more tricky since the stars making it up aren't too bright, with only two at the dimmer end of the 3rd magnitude. In fact, its brightest member is so dim that it is more well known by its official name (η Psc) rather than its less than impressive vernacular nickname, Alpherg. (You'd be afraid of getting beat up too by Sirius and Capella if you had that name.)
This is not a constellation (or even an area of the sky) that you should be fishing in if you're looking for nicely photographable stars or galaxies (There is only one, the ancient but shadowy M 74). It is home however to van Maanen's star, a white dwarf just 14.4 light-years away from the Sun but Sirius B and Procyon B are much closer and brighter.
Decently Northern Hemisphere-friendly, Pisces is best seen from middle October to early February during most of the night in the colder months. It shows up in the Southern Hemisphere typically during their cold months too. Add that all up, and you've got one cold fish.
