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The North Star — how to find it and which constellation does it belong to?
The North Star is one of the most distinctive objects in the night sky that can be observed with the naked eye. Because it appears to remain stationary, it serves as a reliable guide for determining geographic north. What is the North Star? How can you find it in the night sky, and why does it seem like the other stars revolve around it? I will answer these and other questions below.
There are many objects in the night sky that are far more interesting to observe than the North Star. For instance, you can point out the Pleiades — a bright open star cluster surrounded by a characteristic blue glow. So why is the North Star the most well-known and easily recognizable of them all? Because it is the only celestial object that doesn’t change its position in the night sky, making it a dependable tool for determining geographic north.
What is the North Star?
The North Star, also known as the pole star, is simply a celestial object visible to the naked eye that is located closest to the celestial north pole. Currently, this term is used in reference to the brightest star in the Little Dipper (Ursa Minor). I’m talking about Polaris, or Alpha Ursae Minoris.
This object has an apparent visual magnitude of 2.02, which makes it fairly…
