Astronomy

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CAMELOPARDALIS

URSA

MINOR

CASSIOPEIA

PERSEUS

A

URSA MAJOR

CEPHEUS

O

AQ

PISCES

TRIANGULUM

ARIES

ORION

MONOCEROS

CANIS MINOR

LEPUS

TAURUS

ERIDANUS

ANDROMEDA

LYNX

AURIGA

GEMINI

SCULP

T

PHOENIX

CETUS

FORNAX

Polaris

NCP

M82

M81

M33

M31

M37

M1

M35

M42

M36

M38

Aldebaran

Pleiades

Rigel

Betelgeuse

Hyades

Mira

Pollux Castor

Algol

SGP

Capella

NGC 253

NGC 869

NGC 884

Uranus

38 ASTRONOMY • DECEMBER 2015

STAR

DOME

Sirius

0.0

1.0

2.0

E

N

S

NE

SE

3.0

4.0

5.0

STAR

MAGNITUDES

STAR COLORS
A star’s color depends
on its surface temperature.

• The hottest stars shine blue


• Slightly cooler stars appear white


• Intermediate stars (like the Sun) glow yellow


• Lower-temperature stars appear orange


• The coolest stars glow red


• Fainter stars can’t excite our eyes’ color
  receptors, so they appear white unless you
  use optical aid to gather more light

How to use this map: This map portrays the

sky as seen near 35° north latitude. Located

inside the border are the cardinal directions

and their intermediate points. To find

stars, hold the map overhead and

orient it so one of the labels matches

the direction you’re facing. The

stars above the map’s horizon

now match what’s in the sky.

The all-sky map shows

how the sky looks at:

9 P.M. December 1

8 P.M. December 15

7 P.M. December 31

Planets are shown

at midmonth