Constellations

Constellations

There are 88 constellations that we can see in the night sky around the globe. A few can only be seen in the northern hemisphere, and a few only in the southern hemisphere. Most, however, can be seen around the world with the selection changing from season to season. The constellations can be divided into groups of 4 seasons, plus 2 groups that are only visible from one hemisphere each. Below you will find links to 6 pages of constellations, one page for each of these groups.

The most familiar constellations to anyone are Ursa Major (the Big Dipper) and Orion. For the new amateur astronomer learning the other ones might seem a bit overwhelming at first. Don't try to learn them all at once. Just pick a few at a time, and explore each with the naked eye and binoculars. The constellations will be your guideposts for finding your way around the night sky to find many interesting objects. On the following pages I have listed some of the Messier and NGC objects that can be found in each constellation. When you are new to observing with a telescope a good way to really learn the sky is pick a constellation or two, and spend an evening exploring just this area. A good set of star charts will help you find where objects are located in the constellation. The charts in the book "Nightwatch" are perfect for this for someone new in the hobby

Constellation Main Menu

This page includes constellations only found in the sky in the Northern Hemisphere. There are 6 constellations in this group.

This page includes constellations only found in the sky in the Spring in the Northern Hemisphere (Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere). There are 16 constellations in this group.

This page includes constellations only found in the sky in the Summer in the Northern Hemisphere (Winter in the Southern Hemisphere). There are 21 constellations in this group.

This page includes constellations only found in the sky in the Autumn in the Northern Hemisphere (Spring in the Southern Hemisphere). There are 13 constellations in this group.

This page includes constellations only found in the sky in the Winter in the Northern Hemisphere (Summer in the Southern Hemisphere). There are 18 constellations in this group.

This page includes constellations only found in the sky in the Southern Hemisphere. There are 14 constellations in this group.