How to Find Your Way Around the Summer Night Sky
The chart below represents a typical summer night (in this case July 14th at 9pm local/10pm local DST) at roughly 35° north (close to the latitude for the cities of Memphis, Tennessee (USA), Tokyo (Japan) and Tehran (Iran))., Now that we've found...
Step-by-Step Guide
-
Step 1: The chart below represents a typical summer night (in this case July 14th at 9pm local/10pm local DST) at roughly 35° north (close to the latitude for the cities of Memphis
Looking straight up, facing south, you'll notice three bright stars to your left (the east).
These stars are Vega, Altair and Deneb.
They form a large asterism known as the Summer Triangle. -
Step 2: Tennessee (USA)
, Follow the curve of the handle south towards a very bright star; "arc to Arcturus"
the brilliant orange star that marks the constellation Boötes the Herdsman. , This one is perhaps the best looking summer constellation, Scorpius the Scorpion, which lies due south.
The brightest star in Scorpius is Antares, a red giant. , Draw an invisible line from Deneb through Vega and a little further west.
This will lead you to the constellation Hercules the Hero. , Since we've already followed the "arc to Arcturus"
we can now "spike to Spica"
which is the brightest star in the constellation Virgo the Maiden. ,, Earlier, we referred to the Big Dipper (the Plough) as an asterism.
It is actually part of a large constellation known as Ursa Major, the Big Bear.
If you follow an invisible line from the two stars opposite the handle (the "pointers"), you'll find that they point almost directly towards Polaris, the North Star, which is at the end of the handle of the Little Dipper, another asterism.
This is actually Ursa Minor, the Little Bear. , This is Cassiopeia the Queen, one of the major autumn constellations. , This is Delphinus the Dolphin (which truly looks like its namesake). -
Step 3: Tokyo (Japan) and Tehran (Iran)).
-
Step 4: Now that we've found the Summer Triangle
-
Step 5: we can identify the three constellations associated with those stars: Lyra the Harp
-
Step 6: Aquila the Eagle and Cygnus the Swan.
-
Step 7: To our right (the west)
-
Step 8: and a little further north
-
Step 9: you will find the Big Dipper (also known as the Plough)
-
Step 10: which is actually another asterism (more on that later).
-
Step 11: Let's locate another bright constellation.
-
Step 12: Now that we've located some of the brighter constellations
-
Step 13: let's use them to locate some of the fainter constellations.
-
Step 14: Let's move west and back to the bright star Arcturus.
-
Step 15: Moving back to the south and Scorpius
-
Step 16: we can locate the "Teapot" asterism
-
Step 17: which is made up of the brightest members of the constellation Sagittarius the Archer (an interesting fact; the area just above the "spout" and between Scorpius marks the direction of the center of the Milky Way
-
Step 18: our galactic home).
-
Step 19: Moving back north now.
-
Step 20: If you continue to follow our line through Polaris
-
Step 21: you will come to a constellation that lies almost directly opposite the sky of Ursa Major.
-
Step 22: Finally
-
Step 23: we'll locate one of the smallest of the 88 official constellations
-
Step 24: just to the east of the Summer Triangle.
Detailed Guide
Looking straight up, facing south, you'll notice three bright stars to your left (the east).
These stars are Vega, Altair and Deneb.
They form a large asterism known as the Summer Triangle.
, Follow the curve of the handle south towards a very bright star; "arc to Arcturus"
the brilliant orange star that marks the constellation Boötes the Herdsman. , This one is perhaps the best looking summer constellation, Scorpius the Scorpion, which lies due south.
The brightest star in Scorpius is Antares, a red giant. , Draw an invisible line from Deneb through Vega and a little further west.
This will lead you to the constellation Hercules the Hero. , Since we've already followed the "arc to Arcturus"
we can now "spike to Spica"
which is the brightest star in the constellation Virgo the Maiden. ,, Earlier, we referred to the Big Dipper (the Plough) as an asterism.
It is actually part of a large constellation known as Ursa Major, the Big Bear.
If you follow an invisible line from the two stars opposite the handle (the "pointers"), you'll find that they point almost directly towards Polaris, the North Star, which is at the end of the handle of the Little Dipper, another asterism.
This is actually Ursa Minor, the Little Bear. , This is Cassiopeia the Queen, one of the major autumn constellations. , This is Delphinus the Dolphin (which truly looks like its namesake).
About the Author
Jessica Adams
Creates helpful guides on hobbies to inspire and educate readers.
Rate This Guide
How helpful was this guide? Click to rate: