Introduction to ConstellationsBackyard Astronomy

The Night Sky

People have watched the night skies for millions of years. Some just out of curiosity. Some out of boredom. Some looking for omens, either good or bad.

However, the one thing that they all saw was that there was a pattern in the way the stars revolved around the heavens.

The Night Sky

You need only to look up for a few hours to begin to see these same patterns yourself. Like the Sun, stars rise in the east and set later in the west.

What You Need for Stargazing

You don’t really need anything, but some things are handy, like…

Complete darkness-Don’t laugh, it’s not that easy to find. Rural area are slowly being urbanized, bringing their lights with them. Light pollution is a real problem.

What You Need: Darkness

Darkness means keeping up with the phases of the moon, too. When the moon is waxing past half full, it’s quite hard to see.

What You Need: Star Map/ Planesphere

It is handy to have a star map to help get you oriented.

Star Maps are also called planespheres.

You can find them in hobby stores for a couple of bucks.

Finding Polaris and Why

Polaris (or the North Star) is where you want to start. Because Polaris is aligned with the Earth’s axis of rotation, it remains fixed, with all the other planets and stars appearing to move around it. It is the one star that remains fixed at all times.

A Way to Find Polaris

Find the Big Dipper. Most people recognize this constellation. The two stars that form the front of the cup of the dipper define a line pointing to Polaris.

The Big Dipper

The Stars Circling Polaris

Now That You’re Oriented, It’s Time to Explore.

You’re pointed in the right direction, but what now. Stars and constellations move constantly and seasonally. What am I looking for? What

you need is a star map.

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A Few Constellations...

Ursa Minor

Once you’ve located Polaris, you’re ready to identify your first constellation. Polaris is the last star located in the handle of the Little Dipper. The name of the constellation that contains the Little Dipper is Ursa Minor or Little Bear.

Ursa Minor Ursa Minor, also called the Little Dipper, is

a circumpolar constellation. This means it never sets in the northern sky. The true figure represented by the stars is the Little Bear.

There are several mythological stories behind these famous constellations. In Greek myth, Zeus was having an affair with the lovely Callisto. When his wife, Hera, found out she changed Callisto into a bear. Zeus put the bear in the sky along with the Little Bear, which is Callisto's son, Arcas.

Ursa Minor

Ursa MajorUrsa Major is probably the most famous constellation, with the exception of Orion. Also known as the Great Bear, it has a companion called Ursa Minor, or Little Bear. Everyone living in the Northern Hemisphere has probably spotted the easily recognized portion of this huge constellation. The body and tail of the bear make up what is known as the Big Dipper.

Several different cultures saw a big bear in the sky. The ancient Greeks had a few different stories to explain how the animal ended up there. In one story, Hera discovered Zeus was having an affair with Callisto and turned her into a bear. Zeus put her in the sky along with her son, Arcas, who became the Little Bear.

Ursa Major

Draco Draco the dragon, is only present in the Northern

Hemisphere, so those living in the Southern Hemisphere will never see this long constellation.

The easiest way to spot Draco is by finding his head. It consists of four stars in a trapezoid, burning brightly just north of Hercules. From there, the tail slithers through the sky, eventually ending between the Big and Little Dippers. It can be difficult to trace Draco in the night sky. From the head, follow the body north towards Cepheus. It suddenly shifts south and west, ending up between the two dippers. The end of the constellation is held by Thuban, which was the pole star over 4,000 years ago.

Draco

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Orion’s Belt

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Cassiopeia Cassiopeia was the beautiful wife of Cepheus, king of

Ethiopia, and the mother of Andromeda. She is most famous in connection with the myth of her daughter, Andromeda. The queen made the mistake of bragging she was more lovely than the Nereids, or even than Juno herself. The goddesses were, needless to say, rather insulted, and went to Neptune, god of the sea, to complain. Neptune promptly sent a sea monster (possibly Cetus?) to ravage the coast. The king and queen were ordered to sacrifice their daughter to appease Neptune's wrath, and would have done so had Perseus not arrived to kill the monster in the nick of time. As a reward, the hero was wedded to the lovely Andromeda.

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Cassiopeia

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Cygnus is a constellation in the northern sky. Its name means “the swan” in Latin, and it is most frequently associated with the myth of Zeus and Leda. The Swan constellation is easy to find in the sky as it features a well-known asterism known as the Northern Cross.

Cygnus constellation is associated with several myths, most frequently the one of the Spartan Queen Leda, who gave birth to two sets of twins, the immortal Pollux and Helen and mortal Castor and Clytemnestra, after being seduced by the god Zeus, who had transformed himself into a swan. The immortal children were fathered by the god and the mortal ones by Leda’s husband, King Tyndareus. Castor and Pollux are represented by the zodiac constellation Gemini.

Cygnus

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Cygnus

Scorpius: The ScorpionAs mentioned regarding Orion, Gaia may have sent the scorpion to kill the mighty hunter, as he had vowed to rid the earth of all wild animals. Or Apollo might have told Gaia of Orion's boast, fearful that Orion had designs on Apollo's sister Artemis. In any case it was Gaia who sent the scorpion to kill Orion. Later the animal would chase Orion across the heavens, but it could never catch him, for the scorpion was so placed that it would rise in the east only after Orion had safely disappeared over the western horizon.

Scorpius