Ursa Minor Constellation: The Ultimate Guide

The ancient Egyptians placed Ursa Minor's constellation in the famous "Zodiac of Dendera," where some of today's constellations appear but are represented with different figures.

It has also been seen that the arrangement of some Egyptian pyramids, such as the Great Pyramid of Giza, correlates with the sunrises of the solstice and the constellations of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.

In ancient Greece, there was a myth in which Zeus' mother, Rhea, hid Zeus on Crete Island when he was a baby to protect him from his father, Cronus. Cronus wanted to devour him so that the prophecy in which one of his sons would overthrow him would not be fulfilled.

During his childhood, the nymphs Ida and Adrasteia cared for Zeus on the island until he grew up and managed to defeat Cronus, saving his brothers and becoming the god of Olympus.

In compensation for having protected, the nymphs were captured in the sky, Ida the "Ursa Major" and Adrasteia the "Ursa minor."

During the centuries after Greek civilization, the constellation Ursa minor was used to locate the north celestial pole by navigators of both the seas and those who crossed the deserts.

Later the star Polaris was considered the closest to the north pole, being cataloged as the "North Polar Star." It was the most crucial star for travelers, not so much for its brightness but its position in the sky.

After the twentieth century, the constellation Ursa Minor was becoming less and less relevant for travelers because they already had compasses and other instruments that helped them locate the north pole without having to look at the stars.

However, today, Ursa Minor's constellation remains important for observational astronomers who use it to locate nearby fabrics.

In the field of astronomical research, Ursa Minor contains stars and deep-sky bodies significant for studying the evolution of the galaxy.

Ursa Minor's constellation resides in the third quadrant of the Northern Hemisphere (NQ3), at latitudes between 10° S and 90° N, being the most boreal constellation of all.

Due to its location, one can see the constellation in the night sky in all northern hemisphere countries.

Ursa Minor is not visible in countries below the planet's equator, such as Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Tanzania, Madagascar, and Antarctica.

Ursa Minor is visible year-round in the Northern Hemisphere. In some southern hemisphere countries near the equator, it is possible to see the constellation of Ursa Minor, such as northern Peru, northern Brazil, northern Congo, or northern Singapore.

The best month to see the constellation Ursa Minor is in June.

Ursa Minor is located right at the north celestial pole; finding it is relatively easy since it is enough to see the star Polaris, which is the closest to the north pole and rises above the horizon.

Suppose you do not know how to locate the north pole. In that case, you can support yourself using the constellations near Ursa Minor as Ursa Major, which is larger and more prominent.

Ursa Minor has a shape similar to Ursa Major, but smaller and is surrounded by the constellation Draco.

The bordering constellations of Ursa Minor are Draco, Camelopardalis, Cepheus, and Ursa Major.

Ursa Minor also belongs to the family of constellations of the Ursa Major alongside Coma Berenices, Boötes, Camelopardalis, Canes Venatici, Corona Borealis, Draco, Leo Minor, Lynx, and Ursa Major.

Ursa Minor contains 39 official stars. Seven form the central figure of the constellation; these are Polaris, Kocab, Pherkad, Epsilon Ursae Minoris, Akhfa al, Farkadain, Yildun, and Anwar al Farkadain.

Ursa Minor's brightest star has an apparent magnitude of 1.98 and is located 433 light-years from the solar system.

Polaris is a star system made up of three stars. The main component is a yellow supergiant of spectral type F7Ib with 5.4 solar masses.

Located 131 light-years from Earth, Kochab is Ursa Minor's second brightest star with an apparent magnitude of 2.08.

It is an orange giant star that has exhausted the hydrogen of its core; it is also a variable star with a period of 4.6 days.

With a magnitude of 3.05, Pherkad is a bright white giant of spectral type A3II-III located approximately487 light-years from the solar system.

Visible to the naked eye, Yildun is a white main sequence dwarf of the spectral type A1V, located 183 light-years from the solar system. It has an apparent magnitude of 4.35.

Zeta Ursae Minoris is 200 times brighter than the sun and 3.4 times larger.

It has a temperature of 8,700 K, a visual magnitude of 4.32, and is 380 light-years away.

Located 97.3 light-years from Earth, Eta Ursae Minoris is a yellow-white main sequence dwarf star with a visual magnitude of 4.95. It belongs to the spectral class F5V.

Epsilon Ursa Minor is a variable star with a magnitude ranging from 4.19 to 4.23. It is located approximately 347 light-years from our solar system.

Ursa Minor is also home to several deep-sky objects. Deep-sky objects are celestial bodies different from stars, such as nebulae (interstellar cloud bodies) or galaxies.

In the case of Ursa Minor, being a small constellation that does not have many deep-sky bodies, having only galaxies, these are:

• NGC 6217, spiral galaxy.
• NGC 5832, barred spiral galaxy.
• Dwarf Galaxy of Ursa Minor, belonging to the Local Group and is a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way.

A meteor shower is associated with Ursa Minor's " Ursids " constellation."

This meteor shower takes place on December 17 and 25, reaching its peak on December 22.

The body that originates this meteor shower is 8P / Tuttle.

• In the past, Ursa Minor was always depicted together with Ursa Major or as part of the Constellation Draco because it is tiny.
• During ancient Egyptian times, the closest star to the north pole was not Polaris but α Draconis, better known as Thuban; this changed due to the nutation movement of the Earth.
• Ursa Minor was the constellation most used by travelers to locate the north pole. Currently, it is no longer necessary because we have GPS.

• Ursa Minor is the most boreal constellation of all. It is used as a reference to locate the north celestial pole.
• In Greek mythology, the constellation's name arises from the myth that the nymphs Ida and Adrasteia cared for Zeus on the island until he grew up and managed to defeat Cronus.
• Ursa Minor is a constellation located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere, so it is visible to all countries of the Northern Hemisphere and only some regions of the Southern Hemisphere.
• Ursa Minor's constellation is one of the smallest. It does not have such bright stars, but it is of great historical importance due to its position in the sky near the celestial north.
• The best way to locate the constellation is by finding the celestial pole or relying on Ursa Major's constellation.
• The brightest star, Ursa Minor, is Polaris, with an apparent magnitude of 1.98.
• The most crucial galaxy within the borders of Ursa Minor is the Dwarf Galaxy of Ursa Minor, belonging to the Local Group and is a satellite of the Milky Way.
• The strongest meteor shower in Ursa Minor is the Ursids.

1. https://www.constellation-guide.com/constellation-list/ursa-minor-constellation/
2. https://stellarium-web.org/
3. http://www.seasky.org/constellations/constellation-ursa-minor.html
4. http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/constellations/Ursa_Minor.html