Step 6: Mapping The Night Sky Using Ursa Major

Using Ursa Major (a.k.a; the big dipper, plough or saucepan) as a reference point we are able to build up a map of its surrounding constellations:Ursa Major: This translates as 'The Big Bear' and the 7 brightest stars in this constellation form the part known as the plough or big dipper, although the whole constellation spreads over a greater area of the sky. It is the most famous of all Northern constellations and is circumpolar in England and the Northern United States. A line through the last two stars on the map, also known as 'the pointers', leads to the star 'Polaris' or 'The North Star' which has been used as a direction helper for thousands of years.Ursa Minor: This translates as 'The Little Bear' and the 7 main stars of this constellation form a shape similar to Canis Major, but with the tail of the bear pointing in the opposite direction. The two pointer stars in Ursa Major indicate the position of Polaris, the North Star, and in all ages of the world, Ursa Minor has been more universally observed and more carefully noticed than any other constellation, on account of the importance of the North Star.Polaris is a little more than 1¼° from the true pole. Its light takes fifty years to reach us. Polaris revolves around the true pole once in twenty-four hours in a little circle 2½° in diameter. Within this circle two hundred stars have been photographed.The North Star is always elevated as many degrees above the horizon as the observer is north of the equator.Cassiopeia: A line through the last star at the handle end of the big dipper and through Polaris will lead onto a conspicuous W shaped group of stars called Cassiopeia. It depicts a Queen sat on her throne and The Milky Way runs through this constellation.Bootes: Following the tail of the Plough down for 30 degrees leads onto Bootes, which is Greek for 'The Ploughman'. It contains the beautiful bright orange star Arcturus.Leo: This can be found by following the line on the map through Ursa Major. Leo is one of the most beautiful constellations in the zodiac. It lies south of the Great Bear, and its principal stars are arranged in the form of a sickle which nearly outlines the Lion's head. This group is so striking as to be unmistakable. Regulus is in the handle of the sickle. It is a white star, one of the stars from which longitude is reckoned and lies almost exactly on the ecliptic (The ecliptic is the plane the Earth and most of the other planets orbit about the Sun. The constellations of the Zodiac also lie along the ecliptic).Gemini: Following the line shown on the map we come to the Zodiacal constellation Gemini, the twins. Gemini is characterized by two nearly parallel rows of stars. The northern row if extended would reach Taurus, the southern one Orion. The two brightest stars in this constellation are Pollux and Castor. Castor is a fine double for a telescope, and Pollux has three little attendant stars.