free printable constellation star charts

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When getting your bearings under the stars, it’s often easiest to spot an asterism and use it as a guide to finding the parent constellation. These are distinctive star patterns that lie within constellations. The items labeled in green on the sky map are known as asterisms. If you are substantially south of these areas, everything on our map will appear higher in your sky. If you are located substantially north of these areas, objects on our map will appear lower in your sky, and some objects near the horizon will not be visible. states, southern Canada, central and southern Europe, central Asia, and Japan. The map is accurate for any location at a so-called “mid-northern” latitude. For example, if the map legend says “Looking Southeast,” you should face southeast when using the map. The legend on the map always tells you which direction you should facing, based on midnight viewing.

Instead, the map focuses on a particular region of the sky each month where something interesting is happening. Our monthly sky map does not show the entire sky, which would be almost impossible.

#FREE PRINTABLE CONSTELLATION STAR CHARTS HOW TO#

Sky map produced using Chris Marriott’s Skymap Pro Note: How to Read the Sky Map This figure is home to the aforementioned Sirius, which just happens to be the brightest star in the night sky-almost twice as bright as any other! Sirius appears so bright to us because it is both extremely luminous and relatively nearby.Įnjoy the January sky-the brightest of the year!Ĭlick here or on map below to enlarge ( PDF). We’ll skip over the dim constellation Monoceros to reach Canis Major, the Greater Dog.I’ts only bright star is Procyon, a name meaning “before the dog.” This refers to the fact that on any given night, Procyon rises above the horizon a few minutes before the bright star Sirius, whose nickname is “the Dog Star.” Thus, Procyon rises “before the dog.” Continuing counterclockwise around the sky, we reach Canis Minor, the Lesser Dog.They lie holding hands, their legs and feet stretched out toward Orion. Their names are Castor and Pollux, with stars of those names representing the heads of the reclining twins. Swinging downward, we find Gemini, the Twins.The star Elnath is shared between Auriga and Taurus, making it one of the few stars that belongs to two constellations. Off to the left is the five-sided figure of Auriga, the Charioteer.If you do, you have “the eyes of a warrior,” as ancient lore decreed. However, if your eyesight is especially acute and the sky is wonderfully clear, you may see seven or even more. Most people with good vision can spot five stars when they gaze at the Pleiades. This cluster is so distinctive and its location so prominent that dozens of ancient cultures found a place in their mythologies for the Pleiades. Above the Hyades are the Pleiades, the Seven Sisters, which are among the most famous of star clusters.

This is one of countless examples where celestial objects appear near one another from our point of view, but vast differences in distance mean that they are actually far apart. It is much closer to us than the Hyades (one reason that it appears brighter) and just happens to lie along the same line of sight. The members of the Hyades lie fairly close together in space, but despite its apparent proximity, Aldebaran is not a part of the cluster.

Nearby lies a group of stars that make up the Hyades star cluster.

Above Orion stands Taurus, the Bull, his long horns jutting to the left and one baleful eye represented by the reddish star Aldebaran.

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Saiph, at his right knee, would be a noteworthy star in any other celestial neighborhood, but it doesn’t even crack the Top 5 in mighty Orion. Somewhat less luminous are Bellatrix at the Hunter’s left shoulder and Mintaka, Alnilam, and Alnitak, which comprise Orion’s Belt. Star colors are notoriously difficult to discern, but on a clear night, the differing hues of Betelgeuse and Rigel are plain to see at Orion’s right shoulder and left knee, respectively. It’s home to a pair of the sky’s Top 10 brightest stars, ruddy Betelgeuse and blue-white Rigel. Orion, the Hunter, is not the largest constellation, but it is unquestionably the brightest.Orion the Hunter Reigns in the Winter Sky

Free printable constellation star charts