Inroduction
Constellations
Using Star Charts
 
 

Introduction
When the day's activities subside, and the sun recedes beneath the horizon, take the time to marvel at what has fascinated mankind for thousands of years, the brilliant and breathtaking sight of the night sky.  humans have been trying to make sense of the night sky to fit the starts into patterns and to understand their nature, since the earliest civilizations.  Hundreds of prehistoric structures still stand, built using astronomical principles, constructed to conjure up the sacred animals and gods believed to be revealed in the stars.  The stars are not only a sight at which we may marvel, they stand at the conrnerstone of the modern world.  Mythologies that originated thousands of years ago still flourish today, and have developed into sophisticated and strongly held beliefs.  Mankind has become so fixated by the stars and the worlds beyond, that we have defied the boundaries of space in attempts to reach the stars and the secrets they hold.

Of course, one may enjoy the stars, for the mere beauty they offer us, without knowing them.  But if you know at least a little about the stars, the pleasure is infinitely greater.  It is amazing to watch them announce the seasons, to see them rise at the expected times and places, and to follow their paths through the year, often more reliable than anything humans have constructed.  The stars are beyond us, although sometimes on a very dark night, it feels as if you can reach up and touch them.  But the reality of the distances involved defies the imagination.  Amazingly enough, the closest star of the Big Dipper is 60 light years away; the light we see shining today left the star 60 years ago.
 

Constellations
Andomeda
Aquarius
Aries
Auriga
Cancer
Canis Major
Canis Minor
Capricornus
Casseopeia
Cygnus
Draco
Gemini
Hercules
Leo
Libra
Lyra
Orion
Pegasus
Pisces
Sagittarius
Scorpius
Taurus
Ursa Major  (Big Dipper)
Ursa Minor
Virgo

Andomeda
Andromeda, the daughter of Casseopeia and Cepheus, was chained to a rock near the sea as a sacrifice to apppease the wrath of Neptune and the sea nymphs over Casseopeia's vanity.  Perseus saved Andromed from her untimely end by pointing the head of Medusa at the sea monster which threatened Andromeda, thus turning the beast into stone.  Andromeda is easily located using th eso-called Great Square of Pegasus.  Without question, the most interesting object in this constellation is M-#!, the great nebula, now know as the Andromeda galaxy.
 

Aquarius
The water bearer is a constellation of the zodiac.  It symbolized the rainy season of the Egyptian nile region.  Aquarius is also siad to represent Ganymede, a favorite son of Jupiter, and cupbearer to the gods.  The water jar arrangement of four stars is  perhaps the best recognized feature of the constellation.
 

Aries
Aries is the ram into which Zeus changed himself to escape the giants.  Another story has Aries as a ram with the golden fleece sent by Mercury to help the children Phrixus and Helle escape from their harsh stepmother.  Helle fell from the ram at Hellespont (now iknown as the Dardanelles).  The constellation is small and inconspicuous with only three stars easily seen with the naked eye.  The constellation is one of twelve of the zodiaz.
 

Auriga
The charioteer is a constellation shaped like an irregular pentagon.  The origin of the constellation has evidently been lost to history, but for many years it was represented as a man seated on the Milky way carryin a goat over his shoulder and a pair of kids in his hand.  The kids are represented by a small arrrangemnet of three starts in an isosceles triangle which points to the vicinity of Capella the brightest star in the constellation.  First magnitude Capella is the hear of th egoat on the man's houlder.  The constellation is also represented by a chariot with Capella being the charioteer.  Capella means "little she'goat" and is the goat whose mile nourished the infant Jupiter.  Jupiter was horsing around with the goat and broke off one of its horns which was then given the power of being filled with whatever one wished- and is not the cornucopia, or horn of plenty.  This legend also applied to the zodiacal constellation Capricorn- the sea goat.
 

Cancer
Cancer, the crab, is one of the most inconspicuous of the zodiacal constellations but lies between the mroe observed Gemini and Leo.  The inconspicuousness of Cancer led to its being called "the dark sign".  Caner in mythology is the crab which seized the foot of Hercules when he was fighting the Lenearn hydra.  Cancer was crushed by hercules, but Juno who had bid the crab to attack, immortalized the crab in the heavens at some distance from the constellation hercules.  Interesting objects in the constellation are: the beehive cluster- a striking naked eye cluster which was allegedly the manage in which Christ was born.
 

Canis Major
The great dog is considered to be one of the dogs Orion used while hunting.  The importance of the constellation has been far overshadowed by the brightest star in the constellation in it- Siris which is also the brightest star  in the sky.  Sirius is derived from the Greek work for brightness and heat.  The so-called "dog days" of summer are associated with Sirius for the hottest days of the summer, [at] the dog star (sirius) and the sun beat down on the earth together.  The star was an important facor in Egyptian architecture, for many temples and tombs were constructed so that the light from the rising star Sirius would pass down the axis of the temple of tomb.
 

Canis Minor
The little dog is also one of the dogs used by Orion while hunting. There is little to say about the constellation for it contains only two stars readily visible to the naked eye.  It is difficult to imagine how any figure could be constructed out of only two stars, but the ancients found this no obstacle.

Pyocyon 'forerunner of the dog' is the brightest star in the constellation and is easily located for it forms a large conspicuous triangle with Sirius (in Canis Major) and Betegeuse (in Orion), all bright stars.  Procyon rises slightly ahead of Sirius ( the dog Star) and hence the name the "forerunner of the dog".  Procyon is a cosmic neighbor of the sun, lying only 10 light years away.
 

Capricornus
Another constellation alon gthe zodiac, it represents a sea goat.  Thousands of years ago,k the sun was in Capricorn during the onset of winter.  The symbol for the winter solstice is that of Capricorn.  The association of a oat witht his constellation stemmed from the climbin abilities of a goat- after passing Capricorn, the sun also climbed highter int eh sky.  The fish tail attached to the goat was to symbolize the rainy season of winter.
 

Casseopeia
The northern constellation is easily identified by its characteristic shape:  depending upon the season, the constellation appears as a "W",  "M", .  Casseopeia was the wife of Cepheus, the king of Ethiopiea.  Cepheus is also located in this region of the sky.  Casseopeaia was prone to boast of her beauty, greatly offending the sea nymphs.  To appease the  agitated nymphs, Neptune demanded the sacrifice of Andromeda, Casseopia's daughter.  Andromeda was saved from an untimely end by Perseus, but Casseopeia was made into a circumpolar constellation which periodically subjects her to the punichment of standing on her head (not exactly a position associated with royalty).  Casseopia and Ursa Major are on opposite sides of Polaris in the sky.
 

Cygnus
Cygnus (the swan) is also known as the Northern Cross. Various mythological legends surround Cygnus.  Orpheus was changed into a swan upon his death and placed near he Lyre (Lyra) in the sky.  Also, Jupiter changed himself into a swan when he visited Leda, wife of the Kings of Sparta.

The long axis of Cygnus is parallel to the plane of the milky Way, which can be seen easily on a clear moonless night.
 

Draco
The dragon is a very old constellation thought by some to represent the serpent of Job XXVI:13.  In another legend, Draco is the serpent slain by Hercules and the constellation  Hercules is usually represented withthe head of Draco beneath his foot.  Still another legend depicts Draco as the dragon slain by Cadmus.  Cadmus sowed the dragon's teeth and reaped a crop of soldiers.

Gemini
The third of the zodiacal constellation is named for the Gemini twins Castor and Pollux, now the names of the two brightest stars of the constellation.  Mythologically, Castor and Pollux were posessed of an "immortality of existence so divided amoung them that as one dies, te other recicies"- symbolic of day and night.  They were sons of Jupiter and Leda and participated in the contest for the Golden Fleece on which occasion they behaved with inparalleled courage.  Pollux distinguished himself in arms and personal prowess, Castor at equestian exercises.  Imprtant stars in this constellation are:  Castor:  the first double star discovered as such, 47 light years away.  Pollux 31 light years away.
 

Hercules
Hercules is the ancient hero known for his heroism and the prodigious twelve labors.  The best known freature of this onstellation is the Globular CLusser M-31, a dense colleciton of perhaps 10^6 very old stars in orbit about the core of our galaxy.  The cluster looks like a fuzz-ball in binoculars and modest telescopes.  A 16" telescope will reveal individual stars.
 

Leo
The zodiacal constellation just east of Cancer is Leo, the lion.  Leo is a beautiful and easily biewed constellation which, without too much imagination, does seem to lok like the animal it represents.

Many years ago, the location of the Summer Solstice was in Leo and there appears to be a connection between the lion and the return of the sun to its highest position in the skies (on jen 22).   To escape the heat of the summer, the desert lions of Egypt retreated to the cooler calley of the Nile.  the river atttained its crest in July when the sun was in Leo, and this may account for the name of the constellationn.

In Greek mythology, the lion was slain by Hercules- the first of his famous labors.  to commemorate the event, Jupiter placed the lion in the sky.  The constellation hercules is usually represented witha lion skin- that of Leo.
 

Libra
Libra is an inconspicuous zodiacal constellation, the only one that in not an animal of some kind.  Libra represents the scales of justice.
 

Lyra
Lyra (the Lyre) is the stringed insturment created by Hermes and given to Orpheus (a musician on the ship Argo on its quest of the FOlden Fleece).  Lyra is a relatively small constellation, diestinguished by a small parellelogram and equilateral triangle formed from its principle stars
 

Orion
Certainly the most prominent of all the constellations, Orion contains two stars of the first magnitude (Betelgeuse and Rigel) and four of the second Magnitude (Bellatrix, Alnilam, Alnitak, and Mintaka).

The figure of Orion represents a "mightly giant" trampling on a timid hare (the constellation Lepus, directly below Orion's feet) and persuing a flock of doves (the Pleiades).  The hunter faces the advancing bull (Taurus) and has a club raised in his right hand to deal withthe advancing bull.  The figure of the hare beneath the hunter's foot is significant for the Hare in folk-lore has been associated with the moon; Orion as "the light of heave" is identified with sun and the pair is signify the perpetual strife between the powers of light and darkness.

In mythology, Orion is connected to the constellation Scorpius.  Orion is said to have boasted that there wes no animal on Earth which he could not subdue.  To humble the giant for his vanity, a scorpion spran from the earth and bit his foo thus slaying the giant.  The scorpion and orion were placed in the sky opposite one another so as one sets, the other rises.

There is much interest in the individual stars of the constellation:
Betelgeuse:  Arabic name meaning "armpit of the central one."  A Red Giant star of huge proportions (400 times the diameter of our own sun) lying 270 light years away.
Rigel:  Arabic for "left leg of the Giant."  Brilliant blue white inc olor, it lies 540 light years away and is 40 times the diameter of our sun.

The belt stars:
Mintake:  Arabic meaning "belt".  The star lies only 23 minutes south of the celestial equator.
Alnilam:  meaning "string of pearls"
Alnitak:  meaning "girdle"

A line drawn through the stars of the belt (downward) will pass Sirius, the brightest star in the sky.  Three faint stars in a small triangle form the head of Orion.  The birghtest stars is Orionis (a double star).  its Arabic name, meissa, means "head of the giant".
 

Pegasus
Jupiter used the wing horse to be the carrier of thunder and lightening.  The great Square of Pegasus dominates the constellation but the northeastern corner fo the square is actually the star Andromeda

Perseus was the son of Jupiter who slayed the "wretched creature" Medusa.  Medusa could turn all who gazed upon her into stone.  Perseus was also the hero who saved Andromeda froma  sea monster that threatened to slay the maiden as she lay chained to the rocks of the shore.  Perseus is thus located near Andromeda in the heavans.
 

Pisces
Another inconspicuous zodiacal constellation whicrepresents two fish.  The fish represent Benus and Cupid, who changed into fish to escapt the giant Typhon.  The constellation no contains the vernal equinox point thatnks to the procession fo the equinoxes.
 

Sagittarius
The zodiacal constellation Sagittarius represents the half-man, half-horse centaur Chiron. Many refer to the principal stars in the constellation as what looks like a "teapot".  The center of the Milky Way Galaxy is located in the direction of this constellation.  There are many star lusters in this constellation.
 

Scorpius
The Scorpion stung Orion and So Orion and Sorpius were placed in opposite parts int he sky.  Scorpios is another one of te zodiacal constellation.

The bright star Antares has a noticeable reddish cast and is an example of a lateevolutionary stage known as a Red Giant.  It placed in the center of our solar system, Antares would extend out beyond the orbit of Mars.  Antares ahas a green colored companion but it is only 3 are seconds away.
 

Taurus
Taurus (the Bull) is one of the oldest constellation of the zodiac.  The vernal equinox lay in this constellation some 5000 years ago;  records of Taurus heralding the beginning of spring have been found in amny early mideast cultures.

According to mythology, Taurus was the white bull that carried Europa over the seas to the coninent which now bears her name.  Europa was so beautiful that Jupiter fell in love with her; he assumed the form of a pure white bull to attract her attention.   Europa, fascinated by the creature, sat on it back whereupon Jupiter decide to take advantage of the situation and ran off with her.

Interesting things in this constellation are:
Aldebaran:  Arabic for "leader"; also known as the "eye of the bull".  The star is quite red in jue, and is approximately 50 light years away and marks one arm of th cluster known as the Hyades.

Hyades Cluster:  The Hyades were supposed to be the five daughters of Atlas and half sisters of the Pleidades.  There were changes into stars because of their grief on the death of the brother Hyas who was killed by a wild obar.  The cluster is a large open arrangement of stars int he shape of a "V" marking the face of the bull.

The Pleiades: a spectacular open cluster of stars located somewhat northwest of Aldebaran.  The seven Pleiades in mythology were daughters of Atlas, placed in the heavens because of their compassion for th plight of Atlas holding the world on his shoulders.  Six starts are readily visible to the naked eye, arranged in the shape of a very small dipper (although this is NOT  the Little Dipper or Ursa Minor).  The Pleiades are known as the "Seven Sisters".
 

Ursa Major  (Big Dipper)
The Great Bear is among the most easily recognized northern constellations thatnks to the arrangemnt of its 7 brightest stars in the configuration of a Big dipper, which is the colloquial name for the constellation.  The native Americans of North America knew the constellation as the bear and hunters 9sensitive to the fact that bears have no long tails).   The three stars of the handle were hunters pursuing the bear; the first carried a bow, the second a kettle (represented by Alcor) to stew the bear, and the third carried a stick to fuel the fire for the feast.  To the Housatonic Indians (of northwestern Massachusetts) the chase continued from spring until fall, when the animal was finally felled, its blood to be seen on the autumn forest foliage.

In classical mythology, Juno was jeualous of Callisto, the beautiful daughter of the King of Arcadia (Lycaon).  To protect her, Jupiter transformed her into a bear.  However, her son Acras almost killed the animal since he was ignorant of the change which had taken place.  To precent a future occurrence of this potential tragedy, Jupiter placed Arcas in the sky as a little bear near his mother.  Arcas is now Ursa Minor.

Ursa Minor (Little Dipper)
The Little Bear is related mythologically to Ursa major and is easily located using the Pointers Of Ursa major.

Polaris, the Pole Star, is the best known star of this constellation. The North Celestail Ple (NCP) is located just over one degree from Polaris.  (The NCP is the point where the rotational axis of the Earth would "hit" the celestial sphere if extended into space).  The NCP will be approaching Polaris unitl 2095 A.D. when it will be only 26 minutes away.  The NCP will then move away from Polaris, returning in 26,000 years after making a huge (47 degrees in diameter) circle around the orthern sky.  This motion of the rotational axis of the earth is a processional effect (similar to the procession of a top)  caused by the sun's gravitational pull on the equatorial bulges of the earth.
Polaris itself is a triple star consisting of a spectorscopic binary with a faint visible companion.

The Bowl of the Little Dipper is an excellent standard for judging stellar magnitudes for it is comprised of stars of magnitude 2, 3, 4, and 5.
 

Virgo
Virgo is not one of the most prominent of the zodiacal constellations but it can easily be located by sighting along the handle of the Big Dipper (Ursa major) through Arcturus (inBootes) to the bright star Spica in Virgo.

Virgo is said to represent Astaea, the goddess of justice and daughter of Jupiter and Themis.
 
 

Star Charts
Finding Stars
Stars, as a rule, rise in the east and fall in the west.  Becasue the earth rotates once every twenty-four hours, and orbits the sun once a year, the constellations in view depend on the time of night and the time of year.  Those constellation visible in the evening are not the same as those that can be viewed near down.  An individual's view of the stars is also dependent on their longitude and latitude due to the nature of the earth's curve.  Most of the United States lies between latitudes 30 degrees north and 70 degrees north.

Perhaps the easiest way to locate the above reference constellation is to use three or four star patterns as markes.  In the star chars given below, the Big Dipper, or Ursa Major, Orion, and Cassiopeia are the easiest and best constellations to use as points of reference.

The Star Charts
The star charts below highlight the various constellations that can be seen during the Summer, Fall, iwnter and Spring, and their different locations through each of the fours seasons.  One side of each chart is the view you will find facing due north, whereas the other positions you facing the south.  The constellation to the north  will change from season to season due to the earth's orbit around the sun.  It is important to remember that the constellations move throughout the sky as the night progresses.