Connect The Stars In The Night Sky "The total number of stars in the universe is greater than all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the planet earth," Carl Sagan, Professor of Astronomy and Space Sciences, wrote in his book Cosmos. "There are billions and billions of stars in one galaxy and there are over 130 billion galaxies in the universe." Stargazing is an activity the whole family can enjoy together. On a clear dark night a stargazer with good vision can see about two thousand stars with the unaided eye. Some of these stars are millions and even trillions of miles from earth. Their light traveled through space for hundreds and thousands of years to reach us. Light travels six trillion miles through space in one year and the distance is called a light year. Stargazers who live in the city see fewer of the visible stars because the bright city lights blot out most of the overhead night sky. Some stars are very bright, however, and can still be seen. The ideal place for viewing the heavens is from a wide open field in the country, away from all lights. As the saying goes, "The stars look so bright, you can reach right up and touch one." The ancient Greek and Roman stargazers connected stars with imaginary lines to create images. The images are called constellations. Then they applied legends and myths to the images. Kings, queens, bears, hunters, dragons, and heroes are in the night sky and each has a story. The stories help remember and identify the constellations among the many other stars. If the sky is clear prepare to stargaze. The brightest stars appear first and the constellations are easier to identify without the dim stars. If the night sky has clouds, moon glow, haze, or smog, wait for the next clear night. Go out of doors after sunset and pick a comfortable vantage point. Then close your eyes and keep them shut while you slowly count to one hundred. Your eyes will adjust to the darkness by the time you finish counting. When you open your eyes you will be amazed at how many more stars you can see. Each constellation usually has at least one bright star that makes it stand out. While most constellations resemble who or what they are named after, some constellations do not look like anyone or anything in particular. They were named in honor of someone. The constellation Perseus, the Greek Hero, does not look like a brave, young warrior or anything else much, but merely honors the memory and legend of Perseus. The North Star, the Big Dipper, and the Little Dipper are the stargazer�s best friends. They are easy to find and they help us find other stars and constellations. The North Star, also called Polaris, leads the stargazer to the north. It is the extension of the North Pole in the sky. The North Star never moves from its place and many stars and constellations revolve around it. They are called pole-circling stars and constellations and most can be seen any clear night of the year. The Big Dipper is made up of seven stars that look like a cup with a bent handle. It is part of the constellation called Ursa Major, or the Big Bear. The Little Dipper, Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, also has seven stars. The last star on the end of its handle is the North Star. The Romans created a story about the Big Bear and the Little Bear. As the story goes, Jupiter was the king of the gods and he liked to make love to all beautiful women. Even though he was married to Juno, the queen of the gods, he married some of the beautiful women with whom he made love. Juno, of course, disapproved and sometimes tried to harm Jupiter�s other wives. One of the wives, Callisto, gave birth to a son, Arcas, and this made Juno very anger. She turned Callisto into a bear and commanded her to live in the forest for eternity. The son Arcas became a hunter and one day while hunting he tracked the bear Callisto had become. He was about to kill the bear when his father, Jupiter, saw what was happening. Jupiter turned Arcas into a small bear and then placed Callisto and Arcas in the night sky to roam together. If the Little Dipper is not in sight, the stargazer can use the Big Dipper to locate the North Star. An imaginary line drawn from the two end stars of the cup points directly at the North Star. The North Star has guided explorers and mariners over land and sea through the ages. It also guides stargazers to other stars and constellations. By drawing an imaginary line from the star closest to the bowl of the Big Dipper to the North Star and approximately the same distance beyond, the line points to a group of stars shaped like a "W". The "W" is the constellation called Cassiopeia and represents the crown of Queen Cassiopeia of Ethiopia. Between the Big and Little Dipper is the tail of the Draco or Dragon constellation. The stars of its tail lead around the Little Dipper�s bowl to the Dragon�s head, a triangle of stars. Between the Dragon and the "W" is the constellation Cepheus, the King of Ethiopia. The King�s head is square with a crown that looks like a dunce cap. Two other pole-circling constellations, Andromeda, Princess of Ethiopia, and Perseus, a Greek hero, are part of a Greek legend. Queen Cassiopeia boasted of her beauty, saying she was even more beautiful than the sea nymphs. Poseidon, the god of the sea, became angry when he heard this and sent huge waves of water to flood Ethiopia along with a ferocious sea monster to devour the people. King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia tried to calm the angry Poseidon by chaining Andromeda, their only daughter, to a rock by the sea as a sacrifice. The hero, Perseus, had just slain Medusa by cutting off her head. Medusa had snakes for hair and anyone who looked at her turned to stone. Perseus showed Medusa to the sea monster who immediately turned to stone. Of course Andromeda married her hero Pereus, and they all lived happily ever after. Two bright stars are among the pole-circling constellations. An imaginary line through the two top stars of the Big Dipper�s cup points to the seventh brightest star, Capella. Another imaginary line from the bottom star of the cup through the first star of the handle leads to the fifth brightest star, Vega. The Giraffe constellation, Camelopardalis, is a pole-circling constellation but its stars are very dim, making it difficult to find with the unaided eye. The handle of the Little Dipper points at the Giraffe. Other constellations, slightly below the pole-circling constellations, are visible only part of the night and most of the year. The constellations most distant from the North Star can be seen only during certain months and seasons. These include the Zodiac Constellations. Stars and constellations look like they�re moving but actually it�s the earth that is moving. The earth rotates on its axis every twenty-four hours and revolves around the sun every three hundred and sixty-five days. The stars and constellations seem to rise in the east and set in the west. Each month of the year the sky has a different show of stars and constellations. Each season has its famous constellations. The popular Winter constellations are Orion, the Great Hunter; Canis Major, the Great Dog; Canis Minor, the Little Dog; the second zodiac constellation Taurus, the Bull; Auriga, the Charioteer; and the third zodiac constellation Gemini, the Twins. The winter sky is very beautiful because of the many bright stars and constellations at this time. In early winter evenings Orion, the Great Hunter, can be found by facing the south-south-east horizon and looking for three bright stars near each other, in a row. They are the Hunter�s belt. Two bright stars, Betelgeuse and Rigel, represent his right shoulder and left leg. Orion has a raised club in his right hand and a curved shield in his left hand. The Great Hunter has two faithful dogs, Canis Major and Canis Minor, the Great and the Little Dogs. To find the Great Dog, draw an imaginary line to the left through the three stars of the Hunter�s belt. This will bring you to Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. Sirius is in the head of the Big Dog. Next draw an imaginary line to the left from Betelgeuse and you will come to another bright star, Procyon, the eighth brightest star. It is part of the Little Dog. In Greek mythology, Orion, the Great Hunter, was killed because he boasted that he could kill every animal on earth. The gods feared his threat and had a giant scorpion kill him. Orion�s lover, Artemis, placed Orion in the heavens and the gods thanked Scorpius by placing him in the sky. However, Orion and Scorpius are never seen in the sky at the same time. Taurus the Bull, the second zodiac constellation, can be found by looking at Orion the Hunter. Orion seems to be looking over his curved shield at the charging Taurus. The stargazer sees the horns, head, shoulders, and forelegs of the mighty constellation Taurus. Greek legend tells that Taurus was really Zeus in disguise. Zeus loved Europa, whose father forbade her to see Zeus. Zeus knew Europa loved animals so he turned himself into a bull. Europa liked the bull so much that she climbed onto its back. The bull swam to Crete, changed back to Zeus, and married Europa. The star, Aldebaran, is the brightest star of Taurus and it is the Bull�s right eye. The seven star cluster called the Pleiades, or seven sisters, forms Taurus� shoulder. The Pleiades were Atlas� seven daughters and were being chased by Orion. To protect them, Zeus changed them into doves and then into stars. Auriga, the Charioteer, is shaped like a pentagon. Look above Taurus and to the east for this five-sided constellation. Auriga, the lame son of Minerva and Vulcan, was awarded a place in the heavens by Zeus for inventing the four-horse chariot to travel about. Capella is the brightest star of Auriga. Gemini, The Twins, is the third Zodiac Constellation. It is between Orion and Canis Minor, The Little Dog. Two bright stars, Castor and Pollux, are the heads of the Twins. Other stars outline their bodies. Pollux was the immortal son of Zeus. Castor was a mere mortal. When Castor died Pollux longed to be with his brother. Zeus placed the Twins in the heavens, each with a bright star in his forehead. The pole-circling constellations are always present and easy to find on any clear night of the year. The other stars and constellations mentioned are the most popular of the winter months because of their brightness and natural beauty. Each season is different but always beautiful. Approximately forty-three constellations appear in the Northern Hemisphere, each uniquely beautiful and with its own magical legend. Being able to recognize a few constellations leads the stargazer to finding others. You can find any constellation any time of the year with a star map. The planetarium will further your night watch of the stars and constellations. Months and seasons change like scenes in a play. The magnificent stars and constellations appear and the stargazer recalls the stories for which they are famous. The celestial play never ends.
Copyright © 2000 Frank Dunsmore |