How To Find The North Star' Polaris In The Night Sky

Find out where to spot The North Star aka Polaris in the night sky.   Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Transcript

00:00The North Star isn't the brightest star in the sky, but it can help you find your way and orient yourself nonetheless.

00:07Polaris, known as the North Star, sits more or less directly above Earth's North Pole along its rotational axis.

00:15This means Polaris doesn't move very far over the course of the night,

00:19while the rest of the stars sweep out big circles as they rotate around the sky.

00:24Finding Polaris is easy on any clear night. Just find the Big Dipper.

00:29The two stars on the end of the Dipper's cup point the way to Polaris,

00:33which is the tip of the handle of the Little Dipper, or the tail on the Little Bear of the constellation Ursa Minor.

00:39Once you're facing toward Polaris, you know you're facing north,

00:43which can help you orient yourself any evening you're out stargazing.