GUIDE TO THE CONSTELLATIONS. 3 



always above our horizon, we will next proceed to those, tions visible in 



3. winter's 

 which are visible in a winter's evening. evening. 



About 7 or 8 o'clock P. M. in the months of January Orion, 

 and February, Orion is visible in the south. It consists of 

 seven stars, four of which are at considerable distances from 

 each other, and in the ceptre of them are three others of 

 the 2d magnitude, which are much closer and in a straight 

 line. This is a very remarkable constellation and may be 

 easily recognised if compared with Fig. 3. 



The three bright stars in the belt of Orion point on one Pleiades and 

 side to the Pleiades and on the other to Sirius. Sirius is the Sirius « 

 brightest of all the fixed stars, and is remarkable for its ra- 

 diancy and brilliance: it lies on the south-east of Orion. 

 The Pleiades are on the north-west of Orion, and form a 

 group of small stars, which may be easily distinguished, as 

 they lie a little above the line drawn through the three stars 

 of the belt of Orion. 



Aldebaran, or the Bull's eye, is a star of the first magni- Aldc&aran. 

 tude very near the Pleiades, and situated between them and 

 y the star in the western shoulder of Orion. 



Procyon or Canis Minor is a star of the first magnitude, Procyon. 

 situated to the north of Sirius and the east of Orion : it 

 makes nearly an equilateral triangle with Sirius and the belt 

 of Orion. 



The Twins are two stars of the second magnitude, situ- Gemini, 

 ated about midway between Orion and the great Bear. 

 They may also be distinguished by drawing a line from Ri- Rigel. 

 gel (which is 3 or that of the four outermost stars in Orion, 

 which lies in the south-west) through £ the eastern star in 

 the belt; since this will direct us to the heads of the Twins: 

 and again if we draw a line from f or s of Orion to eP and 

 £ of the great Bear, it will pass over one of the paws of the 

 Bear, and also by the heads of the Twins. This same line 

 will cross the feet of the Twins, and will pass very near a, 

 the star in the eastern shoulder of Orion. The feet of the 

 Twins are marked by four stars in a straight line perpendi- 

 cular to the direction here given. 



The line drawn from Rigel through y in the western Taurus. 

 shoulder of Orion, will pass on the north through f a star 

 C£f the third magnitude, on the southern horn of Taurus : it 



B 2 is 



