Hobbies And Interests
Instructions
Go to a site well away from any lights, where no trees or houses obstruct your view of the horizon, and stand facing south on a clear January evening at about 9 p.m. Eridanus contains four stars that you can observe easily, only one of which is very bright. Fortunately, Eridanus is on the right side of Orion, which is one of the most recognizable constellations in the heavens.
Locate Orion the Hunter, which is a highly visible constellation containing many bright stars. Orion is in the shape of an upright rectangle, defined by the bright stars Betelgeuse at the upper left corner and Rigel -- Orion's brightest star -- at the lower right corner. In the middle of Orion, at his waist, are three stars aligned diagonally.
Look just to the lower right of Rigel for the star called Cursa. This star is the beginning of the meandering Eridanus constellation, which is the second longest constellation after Hydra. Cursa is not a part of Orion, as many people believe, but the start of the northern end of Eridanus. In Arabic, "Cursa" translates roughly as "footstool of the giant," according to the "National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Night Sky."
Look upward and slightly to the right to see the second star in Eridanus. The constellation swings from this star to the right, and then begins to form a downward arc. Subsequent stars are dim and hard to spot. When viewed from most locations in North America, Eridanus forms what looks like a huge backward number 2 in the sky before dipping below the horizon.
Observe the bright star Achernar, if you live in the southern locales where it is visible. Located at the lower right corner of the constellation, it is by far the brightest star in Eridanus, and marks the end of this celestial river.