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The Star That Points North

5 min · Eve · Quiet listening

Eve

The Star That Points North

Eve is reading this story.

Eve is ready

How to say it

Eve can say these names for you.

Tap a name. She will say it slowly.

Faint circular star trails around a still bright star over a cabin.
Illustration, Wonder Atlas

We call it Polaris. It sits nearly above Earth's north pole, so as the world spins, it stays in almost the same place. It is not the brightest star. It needs to be in the right place. If you live far south, Polaris is not in your sky at all.

Your sky first

What do you see?

Draw your own lines. After that, we will show one way humans have connected these stars. Not the only way.

Try it tonight

  1. If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, find the Big Dipper. Follow the two stars at the end of the bowl. They point toward Polaris.
  2. Once you have it, you have north.
  3. If you are in the south, look instead for the Southern Cross and the pointers your local sky watchers use. Wonder Atlas will not pretend Polaris is universal.
Put it in My Sky

If you wondered