Ursa Major constellation
Ursa Major (the Great Bear) is a constellation in the northern sky, best seen in the evening in April. Its brightest star is Alioth (magnitude 1.77). It contains the Big Dipper. Ursa Major covers 1,280 square degrees and is the 3rd-largest of the 88 constellations.
Free to use with credit: Atlas of the Sky (constellationmap.org), CC BY 4.0 · More
Embed this image on your website
How to find Ursa Major, step by step
The Big Dipper is the back and tail of the Great Bear.
- Find the Big Dipper: seven bright stars forming a pan with a bent handle, high in the north on spring evenings and low in the north in autumn.
- The handle (Alkaid, Mizar, Alioth) is the bear's tail; the bowl (Megrez, Dubhe, Merak, Phecda) is its back.
- From Dubhe go west to the fainter stars around Muscida, the bear's nose.
- The three pairs of stars below the bowl, Alula, Tania and Talitha, are the bear's paws.
Big Dipper or Ursa Major?
The Big Dipper is an asterism of seven stars, not a constellation. It forms only the back and tail of Ursa Major, the Great Bear, which is the third-largest constellation and also includes the head, the legs and the paws drawn on this map.
Detailed star map of Ursa Major
Facts
| Latin name | Ursa Major (genitive: Ursae Majoris) |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | UMa |
| Meaning | the Great Bear |
| Area | 1,280 square degrees (3rd of 88) |
| Location | right ascension 11.3 h, declination +54° |
| Visible from | latitudes 90° N to 17° S (whole constellation) |
| Best month | April (at about 9 pm) |
| Brightest star | Alioth |
| Stars brighter than magnitude 6 | 126 |
| Named stars (IAU) | 18 |
| Messier objects | M40, M81, M82, M97, M101, M108, M109 |
| Neighbors | Boötes, Canes Venatici, Camelopardalis, Coma Berenices, Draco, Leo Minor, Leo, Lynx |
How to find Ursa Major
From 40° N (the USA, southern Europe, Japan) Ursa Major is circumpolar: it never sets and is visible all night, all year, highest in the north about 76° above the horizon in April evenings. From 35° S (Australia, South Africa, Argentina) it is highest in the north, about 1° above the horizon. The months before and after (March and May) are also good: then it is up a couple of hours earlier or later.
Ursa Major borders Boötes, Canes Venatici, Camelopardalis, Coma Berenices, Draco, Leo Minor, Leo and Lynx.
Asterisms with stars in Ursa Major: Big Dipper.
Stars of Ursa Major
Ursa Major has 126 stars brighter than magnitude 6, the limit of the naked eye under a dark sky. These are the brightest:
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Type | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alioth | ε Ursae Majoris | 1.77 | A0pCr | 79 ly |
| Dubhe | α Ursae Majoris | 1.79 | K0IIIa | 123 ly |
| Alkaid | η Ursae Majoris | 1.86 | B3V | 100 ly |
| Mizar | ζ Ursae Majoris | 2.27 | A1VpSrSi | 83 ly |
| Merak | β Ursae Majoris | 2.37 | A1V | 97 ly |
| Phecda | γ Ursae Majoris | 2.44 | A0Ve | 111 ly |
| — | ψ Ursae Majoris | 3.01 | K1III | — |
| Tania Australis | μ Ursae Majoris | 3.05 | M0III | 183 ly |
| Talitha | ι Ursae Majoris | 3.14 | A7IV | — |
| — | θ Ursae Majoris | 3.17 | F6IV | — |
| Megrez | δ Ursae Majoris | 3.31 | A3V | 81 ly |
| Muscida | ο Ursae Majoris | 3.36 | G5III | 184 ly |
Deep-sky objects in Ursa Major
Ursa Major contains 7 objects from Charles Messier's catalog:
- Messier 40 (M40): double star, 8.4 mag
- Bode's Galaxy (M81): spiral galaxy, 6.9 mag
- Cigar Galaxy (M82): starburst galaxy, 8.4 mag
- Owl Nebula (M97): planetary nebula, 9.9 mag
- Pinwheel Galaxy (M101): spiral galaxy, 7.9 mag
- Messier 108 (M108): spiral galaxy, 10.0 mag
- Messier 109 (M109): spiral galaxy, 9.8 mag
Printable Ursa Major map and outline
A black and white version for printing and a plain outline of the Ursa Major figure, useful for school projects, worksheets and learning to recognize the shape.
History
Ursa Major is one of the 48 constellations listed by Ptolemy in the Almagest (2nd century AD). Its official boundary was drawn by Eugène Delporte for the International Astronomical Union in 1930.
Questions about Ursa Major
What is the brightest star in Ursa Major?
Alioth, at magnitude 1.77, about 79 light-years away.
When can you see Ursa Major?
Ursa Major is best seen in the evening in April. The whole constellation is visible from latitudes between 90° N and 17° S.
How many stars are in Ursa Major?
126 stars in Ursa Major are brighter than magnitude 6 and can be seen with the naked eye under a dark sky; 18 of them have official IAU names.
What does Ursa Major mean?
Ursa Major means “the Great Bear” in Latin. Its abbreviation is UMa and the genitive, used in star names such as ε Ursae Majoris, is Ursae Majoris.
