radius from pole to equator. The polar axis is inclined by about 60° to the line of sight from the Earth. Etymology, mythology and culture The term Al Nesr Al Tair appeared in Al Achsasi al Mouakket's catalogue, which was translated into Latin as Vultur Volans. This name was applied by the Arabs to the asterism of Altair, β Aquilae and γ Aquilae and probably goes back to the ancient Babylonians and Sumerians, who called Altair "the eagle star". The spelling Atair has also been used. Medieval astrolabes of England and Western Europe depicted Altair and Vega as birds. The Koori people of Victoria also knew Altair as Bunjil, the wedge-tailed eagle, and β and γ Aquilae are his two wives the black swans. The people of the Murray River knew the star as Totyerguil. The Murray River was formed when Totyerguil the hunter speared Otjout, a giant Murray cod, who, when wounded, churned a channel across southern Australia before entering the sky as the constellation Delphinus. In Chinese belief, the asterism consisting of Altair, β Aquilae and γ Aquilae is known as Hé Gǔ (; lit. "river drum"). The Chinese name for Altair is thus Hé Gǔ èr (; lit. "river drum two", meaning the "second star of the drum at the river"). However, Altair is better known by its other names: Qiān Niú Xīng ( / ) or Niú Láng Xīng (), translated as the cowherd star. These names are an allusion to a love story, The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, in which Niulang (represented by Altair) and his two children (represented by β Aquilae and γ Aquilae) are separated from respectively their wife and mother Zhinu (represented by Vega) by the Milky Way. They are only permitted to meet once a year, when magpies form a bridge to allow them to cross the Milky Way. The people of Micronesia called Altair Mai-lapa, meaning "big/old breadfruit", while the Māori people called this star Poutu-te-rangi, meaning "pillar of heaven". In Western astrology, the star was ill-omened, portending danger from reptiles. This star is one of the asterisms used by Bugis sailors for navigation, called bintoéng timoro, meaning "eastern star". NASA announced Altair as the name of the Lunar Surface Access Module (LSAM) on December 13, 2007. The Russian-made Beriev Be-200 Altair seaplane is also named after the star. Visual companions The bright primary star has the multiple star