virgo

name

1. A constellation in the zodiac, traditionally figured in the shape of a maiden holding an ear of wheat (represented by the bright binary star Spica).

   “Now, masters, draw. [They shoot.] O, well said, Lucius! Good boy, in Virgo’s lap.”

   “The constellation Virgo is a Y-shaped group, of which α, the star at the foot, is the well-known Spica, a star of the first magnitude. [...] The whole resembles more a cup than the human figure; but when we remember the symbolic meaning of the cup, that seems to be an obvious explanation of the name Virgo, which the constellation has borne since the earliest times.”

2. The zodiac sign for the virgin, ruled by Mercury, that covers August 23 – September 23 (tropical astrology) or September 16 – October 15 (sidereal astrology).
3. A large-scale gravitational wave detector located in Pisa, Italy.

   “In February 2016, scientists announced that the first direct observation of gravitational waves had been made using just the two LIGO detectors. That was followed by a second announcement in June 2016. Because Virgo was undergoing an extensive upgrade, it was not operating during these first observations.”

4. A surname.

noun

1. Someone with a Virgo star sign