Maybe someone likes to look at the starry sky? Indeed there are a lot of such lovers, especially in the evening, after a hard day’s work. This is an excellent opportunity to be alone and see the beauty of the heavens.  Somehow extraordinarily, it influences a person as hypnosis. It is tough to break away from this because the starry sky is fascinating. It would help if you looked at the sky without any glowing devices nearby, only in complete darkness to see each star better.

It may seem impossible for someone to remember the location of the constellations, what they look like, but let’s look at it from the other side. When you first arrive at a new area, you will not immediately remember everything that was near you, on which side of the house there was a tree, in which direction the road leads. Typically, in the first days, you can get lost or confused in the neighborhood. But after a couple of weeks, you will already perfectly understand the area and be able to move around the city safely. Now let’s look at the situation with the stars. It can be called similar because if you look at the starry sky once a month for sure, you will not remember any constellations, so if you have a goal to study the stars carefully, you should look as much as possible and visually remember the location of each of them. This is not fiction; it is all. However, that can be studied, having a great desire.

Such knowledge will become useful during a hike or a night walk. For example, let’s take a very banal situation when tourists, returning home in the evening, get lost in the sides and hope only for moss that can help them. But if a tourist reads the stars perfectly, then he will have a chance for salvation. It can be compared to how well you know your geography. So if you start regularly looking into the night sky, you’ll begin to recognize the location of the stars and constellations, which will allow you to navigate pretty well.

Reading the Stars

We will analyze some of the most popular stars and constellations, which easily recognize the cardinal points. Let’s consider the most famous constellation – Ursa Major. It consists of 7 bright stars that can be easily seen at any time of the year. Someone can see a bear in it, and for someone, it looks like a bucket with a handle. Its location is in the northern hemisphere, but it should be noted that it is lower above the horizon at certain times of the year than usual. It depends on the rotation of the Earth around its axis and other bodies. For example, in autumn, it is in the north, and the bucket’s handle is directed to the west. Before dawn, the handle leans towards the horizon, and the constellation seems to be on it. In winter, the bucket is in the east, the handle points north, and it’s the opposite in spring. In summer, the direction of the bucket’s handle points to the north, and in August, the constellation becomes in its former position. The last star on hold of the constellation is Polar. It is pretty essential in navigation for tourists.

There are a lot of bright and beautiful stars in the sky, but one of the most promising is Arcturus. It is a part of the constellation Vespas and is the most important of all 90 stars. Interestingly, this star’s incredible glow is in its 4th place in the list of the brightest stars in the sky. If we compare it with the light of our luminaries – the Sun and the star Arcturus, Arcturus shines more luminous than the Sun 180 times. It is straightforward to find it through the arc of the last three stars of the handle of the Ursa Major bucket. It’s hard not to notice because of its powerful glow.

Continuing going along the winding arc, passing the star Arcturus, you will find yourself on the next star – Spica, which differs from all in its unusual flashing colors. Perhaps to someone, it may seem like a UFO. That’s because the star burns red and blue but, it can be explained. That’s because it’s not one star at all, but two that are pretty close to each other (red and blue), so there is such a reflection of colors between them. It can be seen in almost any part of the Earth except the North Pole.

Imagine that water pours out of the edge of the bucket, then below, you will find yourself on the mane of a lion. Next, you can find the constellation Leo no. For this, you should return to the Ursa Major. This constellation is located in the Northern Hemisphere and the best time of year when it can be well seen in spring. The arrangement of the stars of the neck of Leo resembles a question mark reflected in a mirror.

Now you need to find the south side. It’s easy to find by the sun, remember which way it was at noon. When you’ve found the south, raise your head to the night sky, and behind you will be three pretty bright stars: Vega, Deneb, and Altair. Connect them, and you will see a large summer triangle that looks down at the top. It was evident in August and September evenings. Reading the stars may initially seem complicated, but if you regularly watch the starry sky, you can easily navigate the stars in your area. We have considered some of the most basic and main stars and constellations to understand the cardinal directions. Even if you get lost in the woods, you can always trust the stars that show you the right way. True, cloudy skies can become an obstacle for you to do this.