Some time ago I posted an article of locating Orion Nebula M42. That article helps also in finding Orion constellation. Very close to Orion is Canis Minoris, an interesting constellation with one bright star, Procyon. I assume you can now find Orion. If you cannot locate it yet, please read my Orion article first.

There are only few stars in Canis Minoris. There are few binary and variable stars, but no galaxies or nebulae that would be brighter than 13 magnitudes. The main star of Canis Minoris is Procyon, the eight brightest star in the sky. Bright Procyon makes it easy to find the constellation that is located to east from Orion and to south from Gemini.

As said, procyon is the eight brightest star in the sky and it is the other star of a binary star system. Procyon is located in 11.4 light years away from the Sun, which makes Procyon one of the nearest stars of the Sun. Procyons accompanying star circulates Procyon in about 40 years. The accompanying star (10.8 magnitudes) is very difficult to see with amateur equipments, because Procyon is very bright. and therefore a high magnification telescope is needed.

Canis Minoris and Procyon can be seen without a telescope or binoculars. In order to locate Canis Minoris, start by finding Orion. Canis Minoris is located to east from Orion, as shown in the figure. Look for the constellation as shown in the figure. Procyon is the alpha star in the constellation. You should easily find it. If you have troubles in finding it, please leave comments here and I will help.