Most people have never seen the Little Dipper, because most of its stars are too dim to be seen through light-polluted skies.

View of Ursa Major and the Big Dipper from Zabriskie Point, Death Valley National Park, California, U.S. (Image credit: darekm101 via Getty Images) Jump to: Ursa Major FAQs ...

Stargazers in many Western lands have always seen the Big Dipper as part of the Great Bear, Ursa Major. The Dipper’s curved handle represents the bear’s tail, which is rather odd because real ...

The Big Dipper is an asterism in the constellation Ursa Major (the Great Bear). One of the most familiar star shapes in the northern sky, it is a useful navigation tool. Asterisms are prominent ...

The seven brightest stars of the constellation Ursa Major, the Great Bear, form this well-known asterism which is known as the Big Dipper. Photograph by Jamie Cooper.

The best way to look at the stars is to lie flat on your back. If you do that in April and May you'll stare straight up at the Big Dipper. Even if you live in a light-polluted location, the Dipper ...

So next time you point out the Big Dipper/Plough to someone, be sure to tell them that there’s a huge “ghostly circle” around the handle—the “Ursa Major Arc”—that could be the ...

Five of the Big Dipper’s stars are part of the “Ursa Major Moving Group,” a nearby stellar association traveling space together. They are believed to have arisen from a common nebula where ...

Last week in Starwatch I attempted to explain the tricks for finding Ursa Major, the Big Bear and Ursa Minor, the Little Bear in local skies. The Little Bear and the famous Little Dipper are one ...

It’s technically not a constellation, but part of a large constellation known as Ursa Major the Big Bear. The Dipper’s stars are the Bear’s brightest and best seen.

Five of the Big Dipper’s stars are part of the “Ursa Major Moving Group,” a nearby stellar association traveling space together. They are believed to have arisen from a common nebula where ...

It’s technically not a constellation, but part of a large constellation known as Ursa Major the Big Bear. The Dipper’s stars are the Bear’s brightest and best seen.