The North Star is the brightest star closest to the geographical and celestial North Pole. The North Star, sometimes also called the Lodestar or Guiding Star, belongs to the constellation Ursa Minor. ![]() ![]() Because of this, constellations and stars close to the celestial poles, such as the Big Dipper, can be used to estimate time during the night. In addition, the Earth’s daily rotation around its axis makes it seem like that the stars close to the celestial poles revolve around the pole once each day. These poles correspond to the North and the South Pole and therefore are inclined at an angle – around 23.4 degrees.īecause neither the celestial poles nor the direction of the Earth’s rotation axis change, any stars and constellations close to one of the celestial poles will be observable from some latitudes throughout the year all day long. The Earth has 2 celestial poles – the Northern Celestial Pole and the Southern Celestial Pole. The celestial poles are imaginary lines that trace the Earth’s rotation axis in space. Circumpolar objects are celestial objects that are always visible throughout the day and the year as seen from a specific latitude because they are close to the celestial pole of the observer’s hemisphere. This line will pass through the North Star. To find it, draw an imaginary line connecting the 2 stars, which are also known as Pointer Stars or Pointers, and extend it into the sky. The 2 outer stars of the Big Dipper – Dubhe and Merak – point towards the North Star.
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