Yesterday I wrote about locating Big Dipper and North Star. Today I am writing about locating Sirius, the brightest star on nightsky. This article belongs to the category of Astronomy Tips & Tricks. By clicking that category you can read more about locating objects, such Orion Nebula M42.

As said above, Sirius (Canis Majoris) is the brightest star when looking from Earth. It belongs to Canis Major constellation and it is located 8.7 million light years away from Earth. Sirius is the third nearest star we can see with plain eyes with its high luminosity (23 times the luminosity of the Sun). Only the Sun and Rigil Centaurus are closer to us than Sirius. Sirius, also known “the dog star” is known from its binary star system with a tiny and high-density white dwarf.

As many stars, also Sirius has been very important star in many cultures. For example, in the ancient Egypt seeing Sirius in July-August was a sign of upcoming floods. The ancient Romans believed that Sirius was the dog of hunter Orion.

In Finland Sirius can be seen in south in Canis Major constellation. Because the star can be seen almost in the horizon, an observer can detect high scintillation and color changes. When watching Sirius with a telescope, observer can see the white dwarf. Interesting this is that many U.F.O. reports have been made due to the brightness and scintillation of Sirius.

How could you find Sirius? What are the best tips for locating Sirius? First of all, Sirius can be seen on winter time in northern hemisphere. If you already know how to locate Orion or Orion nebula, you can use it as a guide for locating Sirius. If you do not know how to locate Orion, read first my article on Finding Orion Nebula M42, and after that locate Orion in your nightsky. In order to find the Dog Star, start moving your eyes to the left from Orion, as shown in the figure left. Follow the three belt stars of Orion 20 degrees southeast towards the brightest star you can see. 20 degrees is about two times your fist at arm’s length. One fist at arm’s length covers about 10 degrees of sky.

Was it easy? Yes, it is not difficult to locate Sirius if you already know how to locate Orion. Sirius is an interesting object to observe and photograph because of its brightness and white dwarf. I hope this article helped you in finding Sirius, the Dog Star. If you liked this article, I recommend you to subscribe to my email newsletter or RSS feed on top right bar.

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