What is it?
- The stars forming a group that has a recognisable shape is called a constellation.
Types of Constellations
- Ursa Major
- It is also known as the Great Bear or Saptarishi.
- It consists of seven bright stars, which appear in the shape of a bear.
- It is visible during the summer season in the early part of the night and can be seen clearly during the month of April in the northern part of the sky.
- It also helps us to locate the position of the pole star in the sky.
- At night it appears to move from east to west as the pole star remains fixed in its position.
- Orion
- This constellation is also known as hunter.
- The Indian name is Mriga.
- It consists of seven or eight bright stars.
- The orientation of stars in Orion is similar to the figure of hunter.
- This constellation is visible in the sky during the winter season in the late evening.
- One of the brightest stars in the sky at night is the Sinus, which is very close to the Orion constellation.
- Leo Major
- This constellation mainly consists of 9 or 10 stars.
- Its orientation is similar to that of a lion, hence its name is Leo.
- It is visible during the summer in the early part of night.
- Cassiopeia
- It mainly consists of five stars, which are arranged in the form of the letter W or M depending on its position in the sky.
- It is supposed to represent an ancient queen named Cassiopeia.
- It is visible during the winter in the early part of the night.
