Hobbies And Interests
Instructions
Face east and find Orion; if you can’t find this constellation then give it up and head back inside where it’s warm. Orion is the hunter of the skies and it is one of the few constellations that actually looks like what it is supposed to. The distinguishing feature is his belt of three diagonal stars, but Orion contains a pair of bright stars. Rigel is in the right foot of the hunter and Betelgeuse in his opposite shoulder. There is even a group of stars that looks like a bow in front of Orion. The Great Nebula is in the middle of Orion's "sword," hanging from his belt. It is visible to the naked eye and shows up even better in binoculars.
If you follow an imaginary line downward through Orion's belt you will come to Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. Sirius is in the constellation Canis Major, which is one of Orion's hunting dogs. Sirius is called the Dog Star and has been prominent in various cultures since the dawn of civilization. Canis Minor, the other hunting dog, is above Canis Major and has the bright star Procyon as its main component. While someone with a good imagination will see the outline of a dog in the stars of Canis Major, nobody could construe Canis Minor as a dog; it is made up of just three stars.
Taurus the Bull is charging Orion in the winter sky, a target he will never hit. You can envision the head and horns of a bull from the stars in Taurus, as they form a "V." Most of the "V" is formed by what is known as an open cluster, in this case the Hyades, while the bright red star Aldebaren forms the eye of the bull. The Pleiades, or the Seven Sisters, is to the northeast of Taurus and included in the constellation. The naked eye sees seven closely grouped stars; binoculars and telescopes reveal many, many more. The Pleiades are often mistaken for the Little Dipper by novices.
Gemini the Twins is west of Taurus, a constellation that resembles a couple of parallel lines. At the top of these lines are Castor and Pollux, two bright stars that are the heads of the twins. These two stars have been called the Twins since times long past. The star cluster known as M35 is at the right foot of the Twins and can be seen quite easily with binoculars.
Lepus the Hare and Columba the Dove are underneath Orion and can only be seen where the horizon is cleanly visible and not obscured by trees. Neither of these winter constellations is significant but it is nice to have a night clear enough to see and identify them. Lepus is being pursued by Canis Major, as this region's constellations mostly tie in with Orion and his hunting companions.