188 NATURE-STUBY LESSONS. 



LVIII.-THE STAES. 



1. Do you know the group of stars, called "The Big 



Dipper"? 



Tennyson in "The May Queen" calls it " Charles' Wain "; in astrono- 

 mical maps it forms part of the constellation called " Ursa Major," two 

 Latin words meaning "the greater bear." 



2. (a) If you do not know this group get some one to 



show it to you. Observe the number and 

 arrangement of the stars. 

 (&) Make a diagram of them. 



3. (a) How many stars form the handle? 

 (i5) How many the bowl } 



(c) Is the bowl wider at the mouth than at the base? 



4. (a) The two stars of the bowl farthest from the 



handle are called " The Pointers." 



(d) Get some one to show you the North Star and 



then discover why those two stars in the 

 dipper are called the Pointers. 

 The North Star is often called the Poie Star. 

 S- Under what circumstances may it be useful to know 

 which is the North Star ? 



6. If one has lost his way on a clear night how may 

 he know which star is the North Star ? 



7. {a) On some clear evening, note the position of the 



Pointers as early as they become visible. An 

 hour or two afterwards, observe them again. 

 Have they changed their apparent position ? 



{b) If so, in which direction? 



(c) Similarly observe the North Star. Does it 

 appear to change its position? 



{d) Repeat these observations until you see that 

 the Big Dipper appears to move in a circle 

 around the North or Polar Star. 



