big dipper | EarthSky

Closeup of up 2 stars. Alcor, on the left, is smaller and yellowish, Mizar, on the right, is bigger and blue-white.

Mizar and Alcor in the bend of the Big Dipper

Mizar and Alcor are a famous pair of stars located at the bend of the handle of the Big Dipper. But what we see as 2 stars are really 6 stars!

Sky chart linking 2 stars in the Big Dipper to Polaris with an arrow, with 5 stars labeled.

Use the Big Dipper to find Polaris, the North Star

Do you know how to find the North Star? The 2 outer stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper point to Polaris, the North Star. It's quick and easy!

Sky chart: 2 labeled constellations with a purple line from each leading to Polaris in the middle.

Cassiopeia and the Big Dipper in January skies

Watch the celestial clock and its 2 great big hour hands - Cassiopeia and the Big Dipper - as they swing around the North Star each and every night!

The Big Dipper, the Pointers and Polaris

Want to find Polaris, the North Star? The entire northern sky turns around it. If you can find the Big Dipper, you can always find Polaris.

Chart of Big Dipper with stars labeled, including Mizar in handle with a tiny dot next to it.

The Big Dipper: Why can’t you see it now?

The Big Dipper is easy to recognize at most times of the year. But the Big Dipper in autumn rides low in the northern sky in the evening hours.

Star chart showing Big Dipper, Little Dipper and Polaris with stars labeled.

Why can’t I find the Big Dipper in September?

On northern autumn evenings, the famous Big Dipper lies low on - or even below - the northern horizon. You can use it to find Polaris, the North Star.

A red arrow from 2 stars in the Big Dipper to the star Polaris, in the Little Dipper.

Use the Big Dipper to find the Little Dipper

Polaris marks the end of the handle of the Little Dipper. The 2 outer stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper point to Polaris and help you find the Little Dipper.

Big Dipper (Sky Bear) comes to Earth in November

Every year, the Big Dipper (Great Bear) descends to its lowest point in the sky on November evenings. This makes it difficult, or impossible, to see.

Dots and lines making the shape of the Big Dipper plus the longer form including the head and legs of Ursa Major.

Ursa Major the Great Bear, home to the Big Dipper

Ursa Major the Great Bear is in Northern Hemisphere skies and is home to the asterism of the Big Dipper, which you can use to find other constellations.

Use Big Dipper to locate Hunting Dogs

Find out how to use the Big Dipper to find the constellation Canes Venatici, also known as the Hunting Dogs, which contains the stars Chara and Asterion.

Star chart showing Big and Little Dippers, and constellation Draco.

Polaris and Thuban via the Big Dipper in July

Polaris and Thuban have this in common: both reside, or have resided, at the apex of Earth's sky. That is, both are famous pole stars.

Star chart with arrow from Big Dipper to North Star Polaris

Big Dipper stars point to North Star

The 2 outermost stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper always point to the North Star, aka Polaris. That's why astronomers call these stars The Pointers.

Use the Big Dipper to find the Goat Star

You've heard of the "pointer" stars of the Big Dipper? They point to the North Star. You can also use bowl stars to find the star Capella, aka the Goat Star.

Desert scene with bright stars above and reflected in a pool among rocks and mesas.

Big Dipper over Grand Gulch, Utah

The Big Dipper over a pool in the Utah desert, caught from a canyon littered with the rock art and ruins of Ancestral Puebloans.

Find Vincent van Gogh’s Big Dipper

Here's an easy astronomy lesson, from a master in the art of loving nature.

Use Big Dipper to find Little Dipper

The Big Dipper is easy to recognize, but the Little Dipper ... not so much. Here's a tip that can help.

Big Dipper over Murrieta, California

The Big Dipper is low in the sky in the evening hours at this time of year. But you can see it after midnight. Janet Aviles caught it earlier this week, ascending in the northeast.

Big Dipper over Horseshoe Spring, Utah

The famous Big Dipper asterism, caught mirrored in Horseshoe Spring, one of many natural hot springs in Utah’s West Desert.

Sky chart of Big and Little Dippers with line from pointer stars to Polaris.

Can you find the Big Dipper?

From 41 degrees N. - and farther north - the Big Dipper is circumpolar, meaning it never sets. But from more southerly latitudes, the Dipper is below your horizon each evening now. Want to see it? Here's how.

Big Dipper to Polaris, Mizar, Alcor

Use the Big Dipper to find Polaris, the North Star. Then notice the two stars Mizar and Alcor in the Big Dipper’s handle.

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Mizar and Alcor in the bend of the Big Dipper

Use the Big Dipper to find Polaris, the North Star

Cassiopeia and the Big Dipper in January skies

The Big Dipper, the Pointers and Polaris

The Big Dipper: Why can’t you see it now?

Why can’t I find the Big Dipper in September?

Use the Big Dipper to find the Little Dipper

Big Dipper (Sky Bear) comes to Earth in November

Ursa Major the Great Bear, home to the Big Dipper

Use Big Dipper to locate Hunting Dogs

Polaris and Thuban via the Big Dipper in July

Big Dipper stars point to North Star

Use the Big Dipper to find the Goat Star

Big Dipper over Grand Gulch, Utah

Find Vincent van Gogh’s Big Dipper

Use Big Dipper to find Little Dipper

Big Dipper over Murrieta, California

Big Dipper over Horseshoe Spring, Utah

Can you find the Big Dipper?

Big Dipper to Polaris, Mizar, Alcor