1. The Spring Sky By Ms. Pacheco
Stargazing:
The Spring Sky By
Ms. Pacheco

2. Ursa Major: a.k.a. Big Dipper
Almost directly overhead
Easy to find
Helps you find other constellations and stars
The second to last star in the handle is actually a visual double star, Alcor and Mizar. You can almost see them with your eyes, definitely with binoculars.
81 and 78 ly respectively.

3. Alcor and Mizar
This is the Big Dipper over 500 year old Hohenzoller Castle in Germany.

4. Ursa Minor: a.k.a. Little Dipper
Follow the first two stars of the cup of the Big Dipper to Polaris, The North Star, which makes up the end of the handle of the Little Dipper.
Polaris is a supergiant, 2000 times brighter than our sun. It is only the 49th brightest star in the sky!
Polaris actually has a small, blue companion star. You need a large scope to see it.
The Big Dipper is emptying into the Little Dipper

5. In addition to the Northern Lights here, you can see the Big and Little Dippers here. See If you can find Polaris.

6. These are star trails made by the Earth’s rotation, making these stars appear to rotate around Polaris. Really, the Earth is rotating around the North Pole.

7. Gemini: The Twins
To find Gemini, follow a line from the top left star to the bottom right star of the B.D.’s cup.
Pollux is the left twin, Castor is the right one.
Imagine Castor kicking a soccer ball. This soccer ball is actually M35, an open cluster visible with binoculars. You can barely see it with the naked eye.

8. These are open star clusters located toward Gemini.

9. This is the Eskimo Nebula, found in Gemini. It is 5000 ly away.

10. Leo: The Lion
Use a line from the two left stars of the B.D.’s cup to point down to Leo
The bright star at the “heart” of the lion is Regulus. It is a blue giant, 78 ly away.
The star at the tail of the lion is Denebola.

11. In May of 1993, the gibbous moon occulted Regulus.

12. The Beehive Cluster (M44)
If you really want to challenge yourself, use binoculars and go straight out from the nose of the lion. You should run into the “Beehive Cluster”.

13. This is an April 2003 picture of Jupiter near the Beehive Cluster
This is an April 2003 picture of Jupiter near the Beehive Cluster. At that time, Jupiter was 30 light minutes away, while the Beehive is 600 ly away.

14. Bootes: The Shepherd
Follow the arc of the B.D.’s handle, to a bright star. This is Arcturus. The saying is “Arc to Arcturus”.
Arcturus is the 2nd brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere. It is 25 times larger than our sun.
In a few hundred thousand years it will shed off a planetary nebula.

15. Virgo, the ummm, Maiden
Continue following the arc from the Big Dipper to Acturus to Spica, another bright star. This one is found in Virgo.
Spica is a blue giant, 270 ly away.

16. This is M 104, the Sombrero Galaxy. It is found near Virgo.

17. These are all galaxies found near Virgo.

18. Auriga, the Charioteer
Follow a line from the top two stars of the B.D’s cup to Capella. This star will help form a pentagon shape. This is Auriga, the Charioteer. Capella is 42 ly away and is 130 times brighter than our sun.
Just beneath Capella is Epsilon Aurigau. It is one of the brightest known stars in the galaxy. It 20,000 times brighter than our sun, but is 2,000 ly away.
Epsilon Aurigau has a companion star, which eclipses it every 27 years, making it noticeably dimmer. This happens in

19. Epsilon Aurigae