Step 7: Ursa Major And Ursa Minor

Ursa Major (The Big Bear) is one of the most noted and conspicuous constellations in the northern hemisphere, and is readily and unmistakably distinguished from all others by means of a remarkable cluster of seven bright stars in the northern heavens, forming what is familiarly termed "The Dipper."* In the Northern hemisphere Ursa Major never sets below the horizon, and is circumpolar in England and the Northern United States.* The stars Merak and Dubhe are called the pointers, because they always point toward the Pole Star, Polaris.* Note little Alcor close to Mizar. These stars appear close together and were used by the Arabs as a test of good eyesight by being able to distinguish one from the other.Ursa Minor (The Lesser Bear) has been more universally observed and more carefully noticed than any other constellation, on account of the importance of the North Star, Polaris.*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.The MythOne version of the legend goes that Callisto's beauty surpassed that of Hera/Juno, which so infuriated the goddess that she turned her into a bear.Years later, Arcas, Callisto's son, was out hunting and was about to kill the bear unwittingly when Zeus/Jupiter intervened and swung both Callisto and Arcas, now transformed into a bear, up into the sky as Ursa Major and Ursa Minor respectively.Hera/Juno was annoyed the pair were given so much honour and so convinced Poseidon/Neptune to forbid them from bathing. It is for this reason That these constellations are circumpolar and never dip below the horizon when viewed from Northern latitudes.