Ursa Major
Seven bright stars form the Big Dipper, the key to finding your way around the northern sky.
The Big Dipper (the Plough in the UK) is part of the Great Bear. In the northern hemisphere it never sets from mid-latitudes; it just circles the North Star.
Its two end stars point to Polaris; its curved handle arcs to Arcturus.
Facts
- Also called
- The Great Bear (home of the Big Dipper)
- How to find it
- A big saucepan shape in the north
- Best seen
- All year from mid-northern latitudes; highest in spring