Fancy spotting a constellation other than The Plough? As the nights draw in, it’s the perfect time to partake in one of the

most underrated hobbies: stargazing Words: Lizzie Pook Illustration: Claire Westwood Astronomy: Elizabeth Roche

Twinkle Twinkle

S t a r g a z i n g

P o l A r i s other Names: North Star, Pole Star how to fiNd it: Polaris has been used for

navigation for centuries and always appears

directly north. Locate The Plough (or saucepan)

in the Ursa Major constellation a little above the

horizon at 9pm. Find the two stars on the right

hand vertical side of the ‘pan’, draw a line

directly upwards with your eye and you’ll reach

Polaris, the brightest star in the Little Dipper,

part of the Ursa Minor constellation. equipmeNt Needed: None.

C A s s i o P e i A other Names: Cassiopeia’s Chair how to fiNd it: This constellation is named

after a queen in Greek mythology who boasted

of her unrivalled beauty. At this time of year, it

appears as an M shape (it’s a W at other times).

To find it, look for The Plough, find the final

star in its handle and draw a straight line

towards Polaris. Continue the line for the

same distance again, and you should find

the middle of Cassiopeia. equipmeNt Needed: None.

s e A o F T r A n q u i l i T y other Names: Mare Tranquillitatis how to fiNd it: On a clear night when there is

a full moon (17 November), this is a dramatic

and beautiful sight. Binoculars will bring out

the details of the craters that pepper the

moon’s surface. The sea is actually a plain

on the moon, formed from ancient volcanic

eruptions. They appear as a large shadow

towards the top right hand side of the moon. equipmeNt Needed: Basic telescope or

strong binoculars.

T h e G A l i l e A n M o o n s other Names: Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto how to fiNd it: Jupiter has 67 moons, four of

which – the Galilean moons – can be spotted

orbiting the planet in November. Jupiter can

be tricky to spot as it looks like a star but

doesn’t twinkle. It rises around 9pm in early

November and ‘transits’ at 5am when it will be

about three hand spans (60°) above the

horizon in the south, shining bright. equipmeNt Needed: Binoculars (minimum

7x50) resting on a wall.

Co M e T i s o n other Names: C/2012 S1 how to fiNd it: Comet ISON (or the “comet of

the century”) should appear in late November,

as it swings around the sun and crosses the

Virgo constellation. Use the handle stars of

The Plough to project an arc in a southward

direction until you reach an orange-coloured

star called Arcturus, then continue the arc

onto Spica, the brightest star in Virgo. equipmeNt Needed: Currently the comet is

burning brightly so the naked eye should be OK.

The suMMer TriAnGle other Names: Deneb, Vega, Altair how to fiNd it: Even in the late autumn you

can still see this pattern of incredibly bright

stars, made up from Deneb (in Cygnus the

Swan), Vega (in Lyra the Harp) and Altair (In

Aquila the Eagle), sitting in the south

relatively high up in the sky. Draw a line south

west from the end of the handle of The

Plough (imagine moving towards the seven on

a clock) and you should reach Vega. equipmeNt Needed: None. W

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