The location of Ursa Minor in the starry sky. Constellation Ursa Major and Ursa Minor in the sky: list of stars, how to find, legends and description Location of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor in the sky

There are quite a lot of different constellations. Some of them are known to everyone. Only a small part of people know about others. But there is a cluster of night luminaries that is known to absolutely everyone. This article will look at how Ursa Major and Ursa Minor are located. Constellations are characterized by a large number of legends. And some of them will also be told. We should also talk about the most famous and brightest luminaries that can be seen in this fairly popular cluster.

The night sky always attracts attention

Starry sky, Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Andromeda, Southern Cross... What could be more beautiful and majestic? Millions of stars shine and sparkle, luring inquisitive minds. Man has always sought his place in the Universe, wondering how the world works, where his place is in it, whether he was created by the gods or whether he himself is a divine essence. Sitting by the fire at night and looking into the distant sky, people learned one simple truth - the stars are not ugly scattered across the sky. They have their legal place.

Every night the stars remained the same, in the same place. Today, any adult knows that the stars are located at different distances from the earth. But, looking at the sky, we cannot say which luminaries are further away and which are closer. Our ancestors could distinguish them only by the brightness of their glow. They singled out a small fraction of the brightest luminaries, formed a group of stars into characteristic figures, calling them constellations. In modern astrology, 88 constellations are distinguished in the starry sky. Our ancestors knew no more than 50.

The constellations were called differently, associating them with the names of objects (Libra, Southern Cross, Triangle). The luminaries were given the names of heroes of Greek myths (Andromeda, Perseus Cassiopeia), the Stars bore the names of real or non-existent animals (Lion, Dragon, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor). In ancient times, people fully demonstrated their imagination, approaching the issue of naming celestial bodies thoroughly. And there is nothing strange in the fact that the names have not changed to this day.

Stars in the Bucket Cluster

The constellation Ursa Major and Ursa Minor in the starry sky are rightfully considered the most famous and recognizable of the cluster of stars. As we know from childhood, the stars of Ursa Major form a bucket in the sky - luminaries of a recognizable shape and with an established name. This cluster of nocturnal and celestial bodies rightfully ranks third in size. In the first positions are constellations such as Virgo and Hydra. There are 125 stars in Ursa Major. All of them can be distinguished with the naked eye. The bucket forms seven brightest stars. Each of them has its own name.

Let's turn our attention to the constellation Ursa Major. It is no longer possible to imagine the world of space without it. Among the stars in this cluster are:

1. Dubhe means “bear”. This is the brightest star in Ursa Major.
2. Merak is the second brightest star. It is translated as “lower back”.
3. Fekda - translated means “thigh”.
4. Megrets - translated as “beginning of the tail.”
5. Aliot - translated means “fat tail”.
6. Mizar - translated as “loincloth”.
7. Benetnash - literally translated as “leader of the mourners.”

This is only part of the stars that make up the famous cluster.

Movement of the constellation across the sky

Finding the constellation Ursa Major and Ursa Minor in the sky is quite easy. It is best seen in March and April. On crisp spring nights, we may spot the Big Dipper directly overhead. The luminaries are high in the sky. However, after the first half of April, the cluster of celestial bodies moves to the west. During the summer months, the constellation slowly moves northwest. And at the end of August you can see the bucket very low in the north. There he will remain until winter. During the winter period, the Big Dipper will again rise above the horizon, starting anew its movement from north to northeast.

Change depending on time of day

Focus on how the location of the constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor changes throughout the day. For example, in February, at night, we see a bucket with its handle down, located in the northeast, and the next morning the constellation will move to the northwest. The handle will turn upward.

Interestingly, the five stars inside the bucket form one group and move separately from the other two stars. Dubhe and Benetnash slowly move away in the opposite direction from the other five luminaries. It follows that in the near future the bucket will take on a completely different look. But we will not be destined to see this, since a significant change will become noticeable in about a hundred thousand years.

The secret of the stars Mizar and Alcor

There is a fascinating star pair in the Ursa Major cluster - Mizar and Alcor. Why is she interesting? In ancient times, these two stars were used to check the acuity of human vision. Mizar is a medium-sized star in the bowl of Ursa Major. Next to it is the barely visible Alcor star. A person with good eyesight will see these two stars without any problems, and vice versa, a person with poor eyesight will not be able to distinguish between two luminaries in the sky. They will seem to him like one bright point in the sky. But these two stars are fraught with a couple more amazing mysteries.

The naked eye does not see the features inherent in them. If you point a telescope at Mizar, you can see two stars instead of one. They were conventionally designated Mizar A and Mizar B. But that’s not all. It turned out that Mizar A consists of two stars, and Mizar B - of three. Unfortunately, these night luminaries are so far from the earth that no optical devices can reach them so that the secret can be fully revealed.

Stars from the Ursa Minor cluster

The two stars in the wall of the bucket are also called Pointers. Merak and Dubhe received this name because, having drawn a straight line through them, we abut the polar star from the constellation Ursa Minor. This cluster of night luminaries is also called circumpolar. The list of stars in the Ursa Minor constellation includes 25 names. They can be seen with the naked eye. It is worth highlighting those that are popular. Plus they are the brightest.

Star Kohab. In the period from 3000 BC to 600 AD, this luminary, which includes the constellation Ursa Minor, acted as a landmark for sailors. The North Star points in the direction of the North Pole. Also known luminaries of the cluster are Ferkad and Yildun.

For a very long time there was no generally accepted name

The constellation Ursa Minor is shaped like a ladle - almost like the Big Dipper. The Phoenicians, one of the best navigators of ancient times, used such a cluster of luminaries for navigational purposes. But the Greek sailors were more guided by the Big Dipper. The Arabs saw the Little Dipper as a horseman, the Indians saw a monkey that clings to the center of the world with its tail and spins around it. As we see, there was no generally accepted meaning and name for a long time, and each nationality saw something of its own in the starry sky, close and easily explained. What else can the constellation Ursa Major tell you about itself?

Legends about the constellation. Star of Dubhe

There are a huge number of legends and tales about the cluster of luminaries Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.

There is the following belief about the brightest star Dubha from the constellation Ursa Major. The daughter of King Lycaon, the beautiful Callisto was one of the hunters of the goddess Artemis. Almighty Zeus fell in love with Callisto, and she gave birth to a boy, Arcas. For this, Zeus' jealous wife Hera turned Callisto into a bear. When Arkas grew up and became a hunter, he attacked and was already preparing to hit the beast with an arrow. Zeus, seeing what was happening, did not allow the murder. It was he who turned Arkas into a smaller bear. The Lord of Heaven placed them in the firmament so that mother and son would always remain together.

The Legend of the Small Cluster of Stars

There is a legend about the constellation Ursa Minor. It looks like this. While rescuing his son Zeus from his father, the Greek god Kronos, who was famous for devouring his children, his wife Rhea stole the small child and took him to the caves. In addition to the goat, the baby was fed by two nymphs - Melissa and Helis. For this they were awarded. Zeus, when he became the ruler of the heavens, turned them into bears and placed them in the sky.

The legend about the appearance of the constellation according to storytellers from Greenland

In distant Greenland there is also a legend in which the constellation Ursa Major appears. The mythology and history of this cluster are quite popular. But one story that has gained the greatest popularity among Eskimos is one that absolutely everyone talks about. It was even suggested that this legend is not fiction, but the pure truth. In a snowy house, on the very edge of Greenland, lived the great hunter Eriulok. He lived alone in a hut because he was arrogant, considering himself the best in his field. That's why he didn't want to communicate with his other tribesmen. For many years in a row he went to sea and always returned with rich booty. There was always a lot of food in his house, and the walls of his home were decorated with the best skins of walruses, seals and seals. Eriulok was rich, well-fed, but lonely. And loneliness over time began to weigh on the great hunter. He tried to make friends with his fellow Eskimos, but they did not want to have anything to do with their arrogant relative. Apparently, he offended them greatly at one time.

In desperation, Eriulok went to the Arctic Ocean and called the mistress of the sea depths, the goddess Arnarkuachssak. He told her about himself and his trouble. The goddess promised to help, but in return Eriulok had to bring her a ladle with magic berries that would restore the goddess’s youth. The hunter agreed and went to a distant island and found a cave guarded by a bear. After much torment, he put the forest animal to sleep and stole a ladle of berries. The goddess did not deceive the hunter and gave him a wife, and in return received magic berries. After all the adventures, Eriulok married and became the father of a large family, to the envy of all the neighbors in the area. As for the goddess, she ate all the berries, became a couple of hundred centuries younger and, in joy, threw the empty ladle into the sky, where it, caught on something, remained hanging.

A touching legend of good and evil

There is another unusually touching legend, which concerns the constellation Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. In distant, distant times, among the hills and ravines, there stood an ordinary village. A large family lived in this settlement, and their daughter Aina grew up in it. There was no one kinder than this girl in the area. One morning, a dark cart appeared on the road leading to the village. There were black horses in harness. There was a man sitting on the cart, and his clothes were dark in color. He smiled widely, had fun and sometimes laughed. On the cart there was a dark cage in which a polar bear cub was chained. Huge tears rolled from the animal's eyes. Many villagers began to be indignant: isn’t it a shame for such a big dark man to hold a small white bear cub on a chain, torture and mock him. Although people were indignant, things did not go beyond words.

And only when the cart reached the house where Aina lived, the kind girl stopped it. Aina asked to release the bear cub. The stranger laughed and said that he would let him go if someone gave the bear his eyes. None of the residents even thought of doing this, except Aina. The black man agreed to release the bear cub in exchange for the girl's eyes. And Aina lost her sight. The polar bear cub came out of the cage and the tears stopped flowing from his eyes. The cart, along with the horses and the black man, melted into the air, and the white bear cub remained in its place. He approached Aina, who was crying, gave her a rope tied to his collar, and led the girl through the fields and meadows. The villagers watching them saw how the polar bear cub turned into the Big Dipper, and Aina turned into a small white bear cub, and together they went into the sky. Since then, people have seen them walking together across the sky. They are always in the sky and remind people of good and evil. This instructive legend is famous for the constellation Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.

Because of progress, the aura of mystery has disappeared

Both in ancient times and in modern times, constellations help us navigate space. Travelers and sailors can tell the time by the brightness and location of the constellations, find the direction of movement, etc. Now we sit less often by the fire, less often look into the mysterious sky strewn with stars, and we no longer create legends about Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, Cassiopeia, and Canes Hounds. Few people can immediately show the constellation Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. We know from astronomy lessons that stars are very far away, and these are mostly planets similar to our Sun.

The development of optical telescopes led to a number of discoveries that our ancestors knew nothing about. What can I say, a person was even able to visit the Moon, take samples and successfully return back. Science has blown away the shroud of uncertainty and mystery that covered the heavenly bodies for many centuries. And yet we secretly look into the sky, looking for this or that constellation, and we see in them not cold stars, but a white Bear or a formidable Leo, or Cancer crawling across the heavenly surface. Therefore, many people like to admire the night sky clear of clouds, on which a variety of luminaries, their combinations with each other and clusters are clearly visible.

Conclusion

This review examined the constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. They are not difficult to find in the sky. And, most likely, everyone has tried to do this at one time or another. And some even now, looking into the sky at night, try to determine the location of the bucket.

We hope that this review has told you a lot about this well-known cluster: what the constellation Ursa Major and Ursa Minor looks like, what stars are included in it, what legends it is characterized by, etc.

For the stars to be clearly visible, you need a clear, cloudless and fairly dark night. These happen in the second half of summer. It’s really better to watch the stars outside the city, where there are no reflections of city lighting. Then millions of stars will immediately become visible in the velvet black sky. To find the most famous constellations of the northern hemisphere, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, you need to face north.

Step 2

Ursa Major is a very prominent constellation. It is shaped like a ladle with a long handle; these are the brightest and most clearly visible stars of the constellation. Their names: Dubhe, Fekda, Merak, Megrets, Aliot, Mizar, Benetnash. The Big Dipper is clearly visible in the sky precisely because of these bright stars.

Step 3

Ursa Minor is in an inverted mirror image relative to Ursa Major. Ursa Minor also looks like a somewhat smaller bucket. If you mentally draw a line formed by the wall of the bucket opposite the handle with the stars Dubhe and Merak, then on the path of this line there will be one of the brightest stars in the northern hemisphere, Polaris. It is located at the tip of the Ursa Minor's tail.

There are constellations in the sky that almost everyone knows about. These include the constellation Ursa Minor.

The constellation Ursa Minor is located in the subpolar region of the sky and contains 25 stars. But for most people, only seven of them are known, forming an asterism called the Little Dipper. The most popular star of the constellation is, whose location almost coincides with the North Pole of the world. In addition to fairly bright luminaries, the constellation contains a small elliptical galaxy, nicknamed the Ursa Minor Dwarf for its size.

Location

Constellation Ursa Minor, view in the Stellarium planetarium program

Finding a constellation in the sky is quite simple. Its neighbors are the Giraffe, the Dragon and the Cepheus. But it usually serves as a guide for searching. By drawing a line with your gaze through the two outer luminaries of its bucket, and measuring up five distances between them, you can find the North Star, which serves as the beginning of the “handle” of another, smaller “scoop”. This will be Ursa Minor. It is less bright than the Big One, but is still clearly visible in the sky and is easily distinguishable from other constellations. In the Northern Hemisphere, this constellation is available for observation all year round.

North celestial pole

A pole is a point on the celestial sphere that appears stationary to an observer on Earth, while all other objects rotate around it. If there is a bright star nearby, it can serve as a guide, since its location does not depend on the time of day. Due to the peculiarities of the Earth's movement, this point moves, but on a scale of centuries it can be considered unchanged. Currently, the North Star is closest to the pole. It is only 40 arc minutes away from it in angular terms.

polar Star

Alpha Ursa Minor is located 434 light years from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 1.97. But in fact, this is not one luminary, but three, united into a system. The largest of them is 4.5 times more massive than the Sun and two thousand times brighter. The second largest star is located at a fairly decent distance from the main one; it can even be viewed with a small telescope. The mass of the star is approximately 1.39 solar. The third star is so close to the first that they could be visually separated only with the help of the telescope, and even then, this was done with great difficulty. It is 1.25 times heavier than the Sun.

The second brightest luminary of Ursa Minor is its beta, which has an apparent magnitude of 2.08. The star is approximately 126 light years away from Earth. Its name translated from Arabic means “Star of the North”, since for a certain period of time BC (approximately from 2000 to 500) Kohab was located closest to the pole and served as a navigational landmark for the people living at that time. In 2014, Korean astronomers discovered a planet around this double star whose mass exceeds Jupiter’s by 6.1 times. The orbital period of this gas giant is 522.3 days.

Gamma Ursa Minor is located at a distance of about 480 light years from Earth and has an apparent magnitude varying in the range of 3.04-3.09. The period of change in the brightness of the star is 3.43 hours. This third brightest object in the constellation is a hot giant with a temperature of about 8600 K. Its luminosity exceeds that of the Sun by 1.1 thousand times, and its dimensions are 15 times larger than our yellow dwarf. According to the classification, it belongs to the variable luminaries of the T Shield type.

Asterisms

The constellation contains two asterisms: the Little Dipper and the Guardians of the Pole. The first is well known to modern observers. It is very similar to the Big Dipper located nearby, but is only less bright. It is formed by the most visible luminaries of the celestial formation. Quite a lot of people believe that Ursa Minor is limited to these seven objects, although in fact it contains 18 more stars.

The second asterism is much less known and its name goes back to ancient times, when the two luminaries that formed it, called Ferkad and Kohab, were located closer to the pole than the North Star.

Meteor showers

Ursa Minor serves as the radiant of the last “starburst” of the year, which has been studied rather poorly. Its radiant lies near the Little Dipper, the meteor shower occurs from December 17 to 25 and is extremely unpredictable. Usually, on the most active days, from 10 to 20 meteors are visible in it per hour, which is of little interest to the average observer. But there are unpredictable bursts of activity when their number exceeds a hundred. Such “fruitful” years for meteors were 1988, 1994, 2000, 2006, and especially 1945 and 1986. This is the northernmost of these showers - it owes its birth to the short-period comet Tuttle.

In addition to the main stars, the galaxies located in Ursa Minor are of interest. The already mentioned Dwarf, which is a satellite of the Milky Way, was discovered in 1954. This is a fairly old galaxy, at least ten billion years old. It is too small to see if it contains gas, dust or any star formation. Sometimes, due to its location close to the Earth's rotation axis, it is called Polarissima.

In addition, the constellation contains the galaxies NGC 6217 and NGC 5832. All of these objects are very small on a cosmic scale, and therefore it is impossible to observe them without good optical equipment.

History of the constellation

The starry sky in childhood is simply amazing, it seems impossibly huge and infinitely beautiful. Gradually the child learns to delimit it into separate areas. The first constellation that kids remember is, as a rule, the Big Dipper. And her mysterious companion remains difficult to detect for a long time. Indeed, Ursa Minor is not the brightest constellation. In a city with its ubiquitous electric light, not all of its components are visible.

How to find the constellation Ursa Minor?

Meanwhile, in the presence of such an impressive landmark as Ursa Major, finding the constellation is quite simple. The main thing is to move at least some distance from city lighting, for example, into the depths of the park. First you need to find the Big Dipper asterism and its two outermost stars - Dubhe and Meraka. They need to be connected by a line and continued beyond Dubhe. When the length of the imaginary straight line becomes equal to five distances between Dubhe and Merak, the line will rest against the North Star, located at the very tip of the tail of the Little Dipper. The remaining luminaries rush downwards from it in an arc and reach the Small Bucket asterism.

Brightness

Ursa Minor is a small and inconspicuous constellation. It contains only a few stars that can be distinguished in urban lighting conditions: Polaris (alpha), Kohab (beta) and Ferkad (gamma). The rest are either visible only through binoculars, or can be seen in the complete absence of artificial lighting. Kokhab and Ferkad are located at the base of the Small Bucket.

Small, but smart

It would seem that Ursa Minor is an insignificant constellation, but at the same time it is constantly mentioned in scientific and fiction literature. It occupies a relatively small area, only 256 square degrees, and according to this parameter it ranks in fifty-sixth place among all eighty-eight constellations. And the fact that Ursa Minor belongs to the oldest celestial drawings, described by Ptolemy in his Almagest, is not enough for such popularity.

What's the matter? The answer lies in the main luminary, which adorns the constellation Ursa Minor. The North Star has been distinguished by people from others for many centuries. It was she, despite her dimness in comparison with such bright giants as Sirius or Vega, that ensured the glory of Ursa Minor.

Location

Polar owes its popularity to its proximity to the North Pole. This star in the constellation Ursa Minor is located at a distance of one degree from it, and in 2100, as a result of the precession of the earth's axis, it will come another half a degree closer. It seems to hover over the North Pole. Travelers of the past determined the cardinal directions by its location, and the height of the North Star above the horizon allowed travelers to understand at what geographic latitude they were located.

The North Pole is the point at which an imaginary line extending the earth's axis rests. The stars located here appear motionless to an observer from the surface of our planet. Since about 1100, the star around which the others circle has been Polaris. After 3200 it will be replaced by a new one.

physical characteristics

The North Star is of interest to scientists for other reasons. It is a triple system. Polaris A is a supergiant, two thousand times brighter than the Sun. Polar Ab is its closest companion. It is located at a distance of only eighteen and a half astronomical units from the supergiant and therefore went unnoticed for a long time. Polar B is the third companion, located at a fairly large distance from the binary system and rotating around it at a speed of one revolution every thirty years.

In addition, Polaris, or rather the main component of the system, belongs to the class of Cepheids, variable stars whose size and brightness change with a certain period. For Alpha Ursa Minor this is 3.97 days. A feature of this Cepheid is the attenuation of pulsations, as well as an increase in brightness: it increased by fifteen percent.

Guardians of the Pole

Ursa Minor is a constellation that has several other interesting objects in its composition, in addition to the North Star. For example, the so-called guardians of the pole are an asterism of two luminaries: Kohab and Ferkada. The first is an orange giant, one hundred and twenty-six light years away from our planet. It is the second largest star in the entire celestial pattern and from about 2000 BC to 500 AD it occupied the place of the North Star.

Kohab also has a small companion belonging to the star class K5. And in 2014, a planet was discovered near the star guard, supposedly 6.1 times more massive than Jupiter.

Ferkad is a white giant. It can be called a relative of the North Star, since it also belongs to the Cepheid class. The pulsation period of Ferkada is 3.43 hours. The name of the star is of Arabic origin and is derived from the designation of gamma and beta of Ursa Minor - “al-farkadan”, which exists in this language and is translated as “two calves”.

Planetary systems

Ursa Minor is a constellation in the sky rich in luminaries in which exoplanets have been discovered. In addition to the named Kohab, they include several more dimmer stars. The 11th planet Ursa Minor is located at a distance of 390 light years from Earth. This is an orange giant, living one of the last stages of its evolution. Its radius is equal to 24 solar, and its mass is only 1.8 of that of our star. In 2009, a planet was discovered circling in orbit around this star at a speed of 1 revolution every 516 days. Its mass is estimated at 10.5 Jupiterian.

Another star with a planet is designated in astronomy as HD 150706. It is separated from Earth by 100 light years. According to scientists, the planet makes one revolution around the star in almost six thousand days.

Eighth

An isolated neutron star was also discovered in the “territory” of Ursa Minor. This is the eighth such object discovered by scientists. The star has no companions, and there is no evidence of an explosion that could lead to its appearance. The seven isolated neutron stars discovered earlier are also referred to in the scientific world as the “Magnificent Seven,” so the eighth was named “Culvera” after the hero of the film “The Magnificent Seven.”

In a word, the constellation Ursa Minor, the photo of which is in the article, is not as insignificant as it seems at first glance. Its dim stars hold a lot of interesting things for the understanding mind. However, one Polar Star is enough to consider this small celestial pattern one of the most important for science.

"The constellation Ursa Minor is the second constellation with which we continue to study the starry sky, after we have learned to find the Big Dipper and the North Star, the sky will always help you navigate terrain."
“Astronomy is currently not a compulsory subject in school and is taught as an elective..."

Sergey Ov

Rice. 1 Constellation Ursa Minor, diagram

The constellation Ursa Minor (Ursa Minor), although it ranks 27th among the constellations of the Northern Hemisphere and only 56th in terms of angular area among all the constellations of the celestial sphere (nebosphere), is in fact one of the most important constellations in navigation terms, due to the fact that Ursa Minor is now the location of the world's north pole.
It is also worth adding that Ursa Minor is part of a group of constellations, the ancestor of which is its older sister Ursa Major.
Only three constellations directly border Ursa Minor - the Dragon, the Giraffe and Cepheus.
Ursa Minor, being the northernmost constellation, never sets beyond the horizon not only throughout Russia, but also in all countries located north of the Tropic of Cancer.

Stars and contour diagram of the constellation Ursa Minor

The constellation Ursa Minor cannot boast of an abundance of bright stars. The bright “bouquet” includes only three stars - the brightest Alpha Ursa Minor, Polaris (α UMi), 1.97), the second brightest star is Kohab (β UMi, 2.07), and the third is Ferkad (γ UMi, 3.00) - all other stars of fifth and sixth magnitude visible to the naked eye. The peculiarity of Ursa Minor is that all, even the dim stars that form the Little Dipper asterism, have their own name (Fig. 2).

Constellation Ursa Major, stars of the constellation Ursa Major
Sergey Ov

Rice. 2 Constellation Ursa Minor. Names of the brightest stars. Lilac line - asterism "Small Dipper" as a symbol of Ursa Minor

As can be seen, in Figure 2, 4 more stars of 5th magnitude were given names: Urodelus (ε UMi), Alifa Al Farkadin (ζ UMi), Yildun (δ UMi) and Alasso (η UMi).

To construct our proposed version of a schematic drawing of the Ursa Minor constellation, we use both the brightest stars and fifth- and sixth-magnitude stars that are rarely used for constructing any diagrams. According to the contour we have presented, one can clearly imagine a predatory animal following the trail (Fig. 3).
(To see the Little Dipper asterism, move the cursor to the picture with JavaScript enabled, but do not move any further; after the cursor is moved outside the picture, the dipper will disappear, and the bear will “dig the ground”).

Sergey Ov

Rice. 3 Diagram of the constellation Ursa Minor. Diagram by stars (contour image) of an animal following the trail.
Chart outline by stars:
Polaris (α UMi) - Yildun (δ UMi) - Urodelus (ε UMi) - Alasso (η UMi) - RR Ursa Minor (RR UMi) - Alasso (η UMi) - Ferkad (γ UMi) - HD 124730 (HIP 69373 ) - Kohab (β UMi) - Ferkad (γ UMi) - Kohab (β UMi) - Alifa Al Farkadin (ζ UMi) - 5 Ursa Minor (5 UMi) - HD 118904 or as a running option 4 Ursa Minor (4 UMi) - 5 Ursa Minor (5 UMi) - Alifa Al Farqadin (ζ UMi) - Yildun (δ UMi) - HD 133002(HIP 72573)

In the constellation Ursa Minor, only two are used as navigation stars: Kohab and the North Star. The list of 47 stars of Ursa Minor can be found by calling up the list:.

Hand on heart, we can admit that when looking at the new diagram of the constellation, it is easier to imagine a dog than a bear... Probably, the ancient Greeks also reproduced a similar drawing for themselves, because it is no coincidence that in ancient times they called the North Star Cynosura (Greek word κυνόσουρα translates as "dog's tail").
Perhaps, when turning the ladle vertically, it will be easier to mentally construct a bear-like figure of an animal climbing a tree (Fig. 4).

Rice. 4 Constellation Ursa Minor. Contour diagram 2. Looking at this contour, with a certain imagination, you can imagine a young, thin bear trying to climb a tree.

Polaris - a star on a temporary pedestal

In the 21st century, the North Star simply basks in its glory, like the Northern Guiding Star, pointing to the North Pole of the World, moving closer and closer to it.
On April 23, 2102, the North Star will seem to pass very close to the Celestial Pole(the minimum angular distance will be 27′34″) and will begin to move away from it.
In fact, it is not the star that moves, but the Celestial Pole - this occurs due to the precession of the earth's axis - its slow rotation relative to the ecliptic pole in a circle with an angular span of radius of about 23° (Fig. 5). The Earth's axis and, accordingly, the North Pole of the World moves counterclockwise. A complete revolution along this circle takes 25,776 years!

Rice. 5 Precessional circle outlined by the earth's axis in the starry sky.

Using a drawing of the precession circle of the earth's axis, we can reproduce the history of the polar glory of constellations and stars, as well as make a forecast for thousands of years to come!
In Sumerian times and the first pharaohs - the circumpolar star was Iota Draconis (ι Dra, 5500-3500 BC e.).
Approximately from 3500 to 1500 BC e. the polar star is Thuban, Alpha Draconis (α Dra), then until the very beginning of our era, with some stretch, it can be considered the polar star - Kohab, Beta Ursa Minor (β UMi). Throughout the first millennium AD, there was no star that could be called polar. Alpha Ursa Minor (α UMi) is called Kinosura.
It is believed that Since 1100, the North Star has been Alpha Ursa Minor- she must carry this honorary title until the end of the 32nd century...
Walk of Fame forecast for future centuries:
From 3200 to 5000 - the polar star will be Alrai, Gamma Cephei (γ Cep);
5000-6500 - the circumpolar star will be Alfirk, Beta Cephei (β Cep);
6500-8500 - polar Star - Alderamin, Alpha Cephei (α Cep);
8500-9500 there is no clearly defined polar star;
9500-11000 - Deneb, Alpha Cygni (α Cyg), will become a circumpolar star;
11000-12500 - polar star - Rukh, Delta Cygni (δ Cyg);
12500-15500- will be polar Vega, Alpha Lyrae (α Lyr).
around the 16th millennium - the polar star Iota Hercules (ι Her);
around the 19th millennium - the polar star - Tau Hercules (τ Her)
- then the circle closes on Iota Dragon!

How to find the constellation Ursa Minor and the North Star

When searching for the constellation Ursa Minor, everyone usually starts by searching for the Polar Star; the configuration of the constellation is so simple that if you find the Polar Star, then you have found Ursa Minor. The North Star can be found in two ways.

1. Most often, the North Star is found using the Big Dipper asterism in the constellation Ursa Major.
To find the North Star you need to mentally draw a line between the stars of the edge of the Bucket from Merak To Dubhe and continue to the first bright star - this will be the North Star, indicating the direction to the North!
You can test yourself by mentally constructing a Small Bucket from it, as if pouring water into the Big Bucket (Fig. 6).
Polar Star is the most important navigation star, and Merak And Dubhe, helping to find it, are also called Pointers.

Rice. 6 How to find the North Star? - Very simple! You need to mentally draw a line through the stars of the Big Dipper Merak And Dubhe.

2. Knowing that Polar Star is located exactly in the north, it can be found using a compass. Specify the latitude of the area in which you are located to the nearest degree (for example, the latitude of Moscow will be approximately 56°) - at this angle the Polar Star will rise.
On a starry night, turn the compass towards the north, using outstretched arms (Fig. 7) approximately measure the height (the angular distance between the thumb and index finger of an adult’s outstretched hand is 16-18°), slightly lowering the angle, the nearest brightest star above the hands will be the North Star (there are no bright stars within 15° around the North Star).

Rice. 7 Estimating the angular height of the North Star using outstretched arms - a view of the starry sky at the latitude of Moscow.

History and mythology of the constellation Ursa Minor

Among the many myths and legends, I most like only one myth, which is considered the most ancient, and also logically the most harmonious. The essence of this myth comes down to the fact that in his infancy Zeus was raised by the goat Amalthea and two she-bears, Big and Small. One day, when Zeus was already an adult, Amalthea rushed to him and reported that the bears, his nurses and protectors of childhood, were about to be driven into an ambush by hunters. Zeus barely arrived at the last moment, grabbed his benefactors by their tails from the carnage and carried them to heaven, while their tails stretched out. This is why celestial bears have such long tails.
Later, another legend appeared about the nymph Callisto and the dog Kinosura, who, as a result of the intrigues of the gods, were turned into bears ( probably in white) and exiled to the northernmost part of the sky (transforming into polar bears to make their life easier in the North could emphasize the wisdom of the gods...).

Claudius Ptolemy in his star catalog tries to follow tradition and refers to the constellation Ursa Minor the stars that create the image of the bear in the ideas of his time. Subsequently, Jan Hevelius, in his atlas “Uranography,” tries to follow Ptolemy’s descriptions as accurately as possible; unfortunately, the original atlas was created in the projection of a “divine gaze” - as if you were looking at the celestial sphere from the outside. In order for the picture to correspond to the “earthly” appearance of the constellation, as well as to highlight the stars, the collage offered to your attention was created:

Rice. 8. The constellation Ursa Minor - a collage based on a drawing in the atlas of John Hevelius (the stars that are included in the atlas by Hevelius himself and are located within the modern boundaries of the constellation Ursa Minor are highlighted)

Sergey Ov(Seosnews9)

List of notable and visible stars in the constellation
Ursa Minor

Notes:
1. To designate stars, Bayer's signs (ε Leo), as well as Flamsteed's numbering (54 Leo) and Draper's catalog (HD 94402) are used.
2. Remarkable stars include even those that are not visible without the help of optics, but in which planets or other features have been discovered.