Bob Drieslein

Of the 88 constellations established by the International Astronomer’s Union(IAU), nine are named in Latin after birds. Five of these constellations are located in the southern sky and are not visible from our northern locations. The ancient Greeks couldn’t see them either.

In previous articles, we’ve talked about planets orbiting stars outside our Solar System that scientists call “exoplanets.” To date, NASA says there are about 6,300 that have been identified, but that number is about to change! Thanks to some new technology and a new telescope, we may very soon learn of the existence of as many as 100,000 new worlds within our Milky Way galaxy.

If you think the scientists and engineers named a $16 billion telescope after someone whose accomplishments were really, really important to the science of astronomy, you’d be right!

Wrapped around Polaris and the Little Dipper in our northern sky is a group of 17 or so so stars that make up the constellation Draco, Latin for “dragon.”
Being so close to Polaris and the north celestial pole, Draco is one of the circumpolar constellations meaning that it never sets below the horizon and can be seen all year long.

As of March 25, 2025, NASA reported that there are 421 officially recognized moons orbiting planets in our Solar System, including the dwarf planet Pluto.

Not one of the more well-known of the 48 constellations listed by Ptolemy in the 2nd Century, none of its stars are brighter than fourth magnitude making it a challenge to see except in a really clear, dark sky. A good pair of binoculars might come in handy here.