Janeway3, you wanted to know some constellations. I thought I might post a few pictures of constellations here.
You live in Great Britain, don't you? That means you live so far north that there is one very easy constellation that you can always see, on any clear night, all year round. That is the Big Dipper.
Okay... the Big Dipper isn't technically a constellation, because it is just part of a large constellation called Ursa Major, the Great Bear. But seriously, Janeway3, you're a beginner. Forget about Ursa Major. Most of Ursa Major is faint, but the Big Dipper is bright and very noticeable.
By the way, I wonder if you have another name for the Big Dipper, seeing that you live in Great Britain. Starstruck, do you know if you have another name for this iconic star pattern in the northern sky? (In Sweden, where I live, we call it "Karlavagnen" - Charles' Wagon.)
If you have found the Big Dipper, and that is easy, you can always find Polaris, the North star, too. Just follow the "pointers" of the Big Dipper until you come to Polaris.
As you can see from the two pictures here, the "orientation" of the Big Dipper in the sky is not always the same. You should try to learn the overall shape of it and be prepared for it to be "upside down", "right side up", "pointing to the left" or "pointing to the right".
But whatever the "orientation of the Big Dipper", the two pointer stars always point straight at Polaris.
The second most noticeable constellation in the sky, at least if you live in Great Britain, is Orion. Take a look at the three stars that line up diagonally in the middle of the picture. These stars are the so called Orion's Belt, and they are very hard to miss. The bright yellowish star at upper left is called Betelgeuse, and the bright white or blue-white star at lower right is called Rigel.
But while you can see the Big Dipper on any clear night all year round, you can't always see Orion. In fact, you can only see it in the winter months, and now in December is an excellent time to see it in the evening at eight or nine o'clock. It will actually rise the highest in the evening sky in mid-February.
Let's return to the picture of Orion. Below Orion's Belt you can see another grouping of what looks like three stars, hanging "down" and pointing slightly "to the left". These three "stars" are called Orion's Sword. The middle of the three "stars" looks pink in the picture.
But the pink "star" is not a star at all, but a huge glowing cloud of hydrogen gas. The reason why the gas shines is because some very hot stars have just been born inside it, and their extremely brilliant ultraviolet light makes the gas glow red. However, this red color is invisible to human eyes.
If you go out at night you can easily see the Orion Nebula as a fuzzy spot in Orion's Sword, but the spot will never look red or pink to you.
Now I'm going to show you a picture of a very large part of the sky. You can see many constellations in this picture.
Let's try to find Orion first! Can you see three white or blue-white stars in a row? Look at center right of the picture. Can you see that there are three stars in a row there? They seem to be lined up vertically in this picture, but the orientation isn't so important. These three stars are Orion's Belt.
Now that you have found Orion's Belt, let's try to find Orion's Sword! Can you see that it is pointing "down and to the right" from Orion's Belt? And can you see that the middle part of Orion's Sword looks pink? That is the Orion Nebula.
Can you see a strikingly yellow-orange star close to the center of the picture, to the left of Orion's Belt? That is Betelgeuse, which also belongs to Orion. And can you see the bright white or blue-white star to the right of Orion's Belt in this picture? That is Rigel, the brightest star in Orion.
Speaking of bright, however, the brightest star in the picture is Sirius. Follow Orion's Belt "straight down", and there it is. Sirius is the brightest-looking of all distant stars in the sky. There are four brighter lights in the sky, the Sun, the Moon, Venus and Jupiter, but no brighter distant star. But there is one brighter star than Sirius in the sky, and that is the Sun, of course. Because all stars are suns, so both the Sun and Sirius are stars.
Now locate yellow-orange Betelgeuse again and note that Sirius is to the lower right of it. But there is also a star to the lower left of Betelgeuse, and that star is Procyon. Betelgeuse, Sirius and Procyon are three bright and noticeable stars which form the shape of a triangle, and these three stars are sometimes called the Winter Triangle.
At center left in the image you can see two stars, one yellow-white and one blue-white. These stars are Pollux (the yellow-white one) and Castor (the blue-white one). These are the two brightest stars in the constellation Gemini, the Twins.
Pollux and Castor are near the center in the picture at left. At lower right you can see a blue star, Alhena, which is the third brightest star in the constellation Gemini. (Please note that practically all blue stars will look white to the naked eye.)
Note the very bright yellow-orange light in the lower right corner. That is Betelgeuse in Orion. Pollux, Alhena and Betelgeuse form a more or less straight line.
Look at the bright white star at upper right in the picture. That is Capella. Capella is sufficiently far to the north to be visible from Great Britain on every night of the year. Capella is the alpha star, the brightest star, of the handsome constellation Auriga. In the Akira Fuji picture above this one, you can see Capella and Auriga at upper left.
At upper right in the Akira Fuji picture, you can see two remarkable constellations, the Hyades and the Pleiades. They deserve a picture of their own.
In this picture, the bright yellow star is Aldebaran. The group of stars to the right of Aldebaran is the Hyades.
To the upper right you can see a small, tight group of bluish stars. These are the Pleiades. The Pleiades can't be seen from Great Britain all year round, but now is a great time to see them. If you go out tonight at eight o'clock, the Pleiades will be high in the sky in the southeast. (If you have trouble finding them, remember that they should be to the right or upper right of Orion.)
The Pleiades look lovely indeed. Bring your binoculars, and they will look even better. Just look at all the little stars that will just pop out when you look at the Pleiades through a pair of binoculars!
The Pleiades may be the most famous stars in the heavens. They can be seen at some time of the year from practically all parts of the Earth. Many, many peoples and cultures have their own stories about the lovely Pleiades.
Finally, please check out
this link. When you click on it, you will find an annotated image showing many of the constellations I have talked to you about, and you will see the names of the brightest stars written on the image. (Praesepe, which I haven't talked to you about, is a somewhat faint star cluster in the somewhat faint constellation of Cancer, the Crab.)
So, Janeway3, have a good time looking at the stars! Remember that December, January and Feburary are the best months of them all if you want to look at stars in Great Britain!
Ann
Janeway3, you wanted to know some constellations. I thought I might post a few pictures of constellations here.
[float=left][img]http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_dKy0uZxRVD4/TMMQcFakE9I/AAAAAAAABDY/DfrFU9j3rHY/s400/Big_Dipper_m.jpg[/img][/float] You live in Great Britain, don't you? That means you live so far north that there is one very easy constellation that you can always see, on any clear night, all year round. That is the Big Dipper.
Okay... the Big Dipper isn't technically a constellation, because it is just part of a large constellation called Ursa Major, the Great Bear. But seriously, Janeway3, you're a beginner. Forget about Ursa Major. Most of Ursa Major is faint, but the Big Dipper is bright and very noticeable.
By the way, I wonder if you have another name for the Big Dipper, seeing that you live in Great Britain. Starstruck, do you know if you have another name for this iconic star pattern in the northern sky? (In Sweden, where I live, we call it "Karlavagnen" - Charles' Wagon.)
[float=left][img]http://foros.pesca.org.mx/uploads/ursas2.jpg[/img][/float]If you have found the Big Dipper, and that is easy, you can always find Polaris, the North star, too. Just follow the "pointers" of the Big Dipper until you come to Polaris.
As you can see from the two pictures here, the "orientation" of the Big Dipper in the sky is not always the same. You should try to learn the overall shape of it and be prepared for it to be "upside down", "right side up", "pointing to the left" or "pointing to the right".
But whatever the "orientation of the Big Dipper", the two pointer stars always point straight at Polaris.
[float=left][img]http://school-for-champions.com/astronomy/images/constellations-orion.jpg[/img][/float] The second most noticeable constellation in the sky, at least if you live in Great Britain, is Orion. Take a look at the three stars that line up diagonally in the middle of the picture. These stars are the so called Orion's Belt, and they are very hard to miss. The bright yellowish star at upper left is called Betelgeuse, and the bright white or blue-white star at lower right is called Rigel.
But while you can see the Big Dipper on any clear night all year round, you can't always see Orion. In fact, you can only see it in the winter months, and now in December is an excellent time to see it in the evening at eight or nine o'clock. It will actually rise the highest in the evening sky in mid-February.
Let's return to the picture of Orion. Below Orion's Belt you can see another grouping of what looks like three stars, hanging "down" and pointing slightly "to the left". These three "stars" are called Orion's Sword. The middle of the three "stars" looks pink in the picture.
[float=left][img2]http://images.cdn.fotopedia.com/flickr-3189531858-image.jpg[/img2][/float] But the pink "star" is not a star at all, but a huge glowing cloud of hydrogen gas. The reason why the gas shines is because some very hot stars have just been born inside it, and their extremely brilliant ultraviolet light makes the gas glow red. However, this red color is invisible to human eyes.
If you go out at night you can easily see the Orion Nebula as a fuzzy spot in Orion's Sword, but the spot will never look red or pink to you.
[float=left][img2]http://www.davidmalin.com/fujii/image/af3-03_72.jpg[/img2][/float] Now I'm going to show you a picture of a very large part of the sky. You can see many constellations in this picture.
Let's try to find Orion first! Can you see three white or blue-white stars in a row? Look at center right of the picture. Can you see that there are three stars in a row there? They seem to be lined up vertically in this picture, but the orientation isn't so important. These three stars are Orion's Belt.
Now that you have found Orion's Belt, let's try to find Orion's Sword! Can you see that it is pointing "down and to the right" from Orion's Belt? And can you see that the middle part of Orion's Sword looks pink? That is the Orion Nebula.
Can you see a strikingly yellow-orange star close to the center of the picture, to the left of Orion's Belt? That is Betelgeuse, which also belongs to Orion. And can you see the bright white or blue-white star to the right of Orion's Belt in this picture? That is Rigel, the brightest star in Orion.
Speaking of bright, however, the brightest star in the picture is Sirius. Follow Orion's Belt "straight down", and there it is. Sirius is the brightest-looking of all distant stars in the sky. There are four brighter lights in the sky, the Sun, the Moon, Venus and Jupiter, but no brighter distant star. But there is one brighter star than Sirius in the sky, and that is the Sun, of course. Because all stars are suns, so both the Sun and Sirius are stars.
Now locate yellow-orange Betelgeuse again and note that Sirius is to the lower right of it. But there is also a star to the lower left of Betelgeuse, and that star is Procyon. Betelgeuse, Sirius and Procyon are three bright and noticeable stars which form the shape of a triangle, and these three stars are sometimes called the Winter Triangle.
At center left in the image you can see two stars, one yellow-white and one blue-white. These stars are Pollux (the yellow-white one) and Castor (the blue-white one). These are the two brightest stars in the constellation Gemini, the Twins.
[float=left][img2]http://www.sciencephoto.com/image/329511/530wm/R5500416-Gemini_constellation-SPL.jpg[/img2][/float] Pollux and Castor are near the center in the picture at left. At lower right you can see a blue star, Alhena, which is the third brightest star in the constellation Gemini. (Please note that practically all blue stars will look white to the naked eye.)
Note the very bright yellow-orange light in the lower right corner. That is Betelgeuse in Orion. Pollux, Alhena and Betelgeuse form a more or less straight line.
Look at the bright white star at upper right in the picture. That is Capella. Capella is sufficiently far to the north to be visible from Great Britain on every night of the year. Capella is the alpha star, the brightest star, of the handsome constellation Auriga. In the Akira Fuji picture above this one, you can see Capella and Auriga at upper left.
At upper right in the Akira Fuji picture, you can see two remarkable constellations, the Hyades and the Pleiades. They deserve a picture of their own.
[float=left][img]http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1226/1349408711_58549e6295_o.jpg[/img][/float] In this picture, the bright yellow star is Aldebaran. The group of stars to the right of Aldebaran is the Hyades.
To the upper right you can see a small, tight group of bluish stars. These are the Pleiades. The Pleiades can't be seen from Great Britain all year round, but now is a great time to see them. If you go out tonight at eight o'clock, the Pleiades will be high in the sky in the southeast. (If you have trouble finding them, remember that they should be to the right or upper right of Orion.)
The Pleiades look lovely indeed. Bring your binoculars, and they will look even better. Just look at all the little stars that will just pop out when you look at the Pleiades through a pair of binoculars!
The Pleiades may be the most famous stars in the heavens. They can be seen at some time of the year from practically all parts of the Earth. Many, many peoples and cultures have their own stories about the lovely Pleiades.
Finally, please check out [url=http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1101/winterhexagon_westlake_annotated.jpg]this link[/url]. When you click on it, you will find an annotated image showing many of the constellations I have talked to you about, and you will see the names of the brightest stars written on the image. (Praesepe, which I haven't talked to you about, is a somewhat faint star cluster in the somewhat faint constellation of Cancer, the Crab.)
So, Janeway3, have a good time looking at the stars! Remember that December, January and Feburary are the best months of them all if you want to look at stars in Great Britain!
Ann