<p>The group of stars circled at the top of the photo is a star cluster named Pleiades. The Pleiades are in the constellation of Taurus.</p>
<p>The group of stars circled at the bottom of the photo is part of the constellation of Orion. The three vertical stars on the left side of the circle are the belt stars of Orion. His upper body is to the upper left, and one leg ending at the bright star Rigel is just to the right of the circle.</p>
<p>As you indicated, Ursa Minor is located at the celestial north pole with Polaris (the North Star) being at the end of the handle of the little dipper. The Big Dipper is part of the constellation of Ursa Major which is not too far from Polaris. Orion's belt is on the celestial equator or 90 degrees away from Polaris.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T00:56:38.590Z
2020-12-17T00:56:38.590Z
JohnHoltz
<p>The top circled stars are the Pleiades Cluster, aka the Seven Sisters. The other forms part of Orion and you can actually see towards the bottom where the Great Nebula at Orion is located. Hope this helps.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-18T13:05:09.040Z
Welcome to the site! We work a little bit differently than a forum here, and each answer is expected to stand on its own. It looks like the only new information you add is the brief bit about the Great Nebula. If so, it would help if you expanded this and added some references. Short unreferenced answers attract downvotes. Good luck and I hope you enjoy the community!
called2voyage
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-18T11:01:03.770Z
2020-12-18T11:01:03.770Z
Captain Sixties
<p>As mentioned, these are the Pleiades, and the belt of Orion.  These are visible in the South at this time of year. The Big and Little Dippers are in the North, so turn around.  The best way to find them is a map:</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/qZPe6.png" rel="noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/qZPe6.png" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>
<p>I've marked the approximate edge of your photo, with Orion, the V of the Hyades and the small cluster called the Pleiades.  The big dipper is much bigger. It is usually quite easy to find, in the North East,  In this map it is labeled &quot;Ursa Major&quot; which means &quot;great bear&quot;.</p>
<p>The little dipper is a rather faint constellation. Even its brightest star, Polaris, is only second magnitude.  You can find it by tracing from the pointers in Ursa Major (I've coloured them green). It is the only moderately bright star in that region of the sky. Once you have found the Pole star, it is possible to make out the faint stars that make up the rest of the Ursa Minor, the little dipper.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T22:11:34.613Z
thanks, so if I pretty much look directly to the left of where I took the photo, I should be able to see the big dipper and little dipper.
Cave Johnson
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T22:18:59.817Z
From Orion's shoulder (betelgeuse), move to Gemini the twins. and from there arc to the big dipper.  Note it is much larger than either of the groups of stars that you have circled. The best thing would be to print out a map like this for your region, date and time and try to find as many of the constellations as possible.  Orion, Sirus, Taurus and the V of the Hyades, the Pleiades, the W of Cassiopia, Auriga overhead, Leo rising in the East,  and the Big Dipper are usually good to find at this time of year.  It is actually easier to find more constellations than only one or two.
James K
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T01:21:48.920Z
2020-12-17T01:21:48.920Z
James K
<p>There are two clusters of stars that I always thought were the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Dipper" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Big Dipper</a> and Little Dipper. But after looking at images of the Little Dipper and Big Dipper online, I am not too sure if that's what they are. Also, I found out that the front edge of the Big Dipper is supposed to be aligned with Polaris (or the North Star), which is part of the Little Dipper, but that's not the case with these clusters of stars that I see.</p>
<p>So last night I took this photo:</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/zWbBv.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/zWbBv.png" alt="Two clusters of stars circled" /></a></p>
<p>I circled the clusters of stars that I thought were the Little Dipper and Big Dipper. I would like to know if either of these clusters are indeed the Little Dipper or Big Dipper. If either of them are not the Little Dipper or Big Dipper, what are they? And where should I look in <strong>relation</strong> to these two clusters to find the Little Dipper and Big Dipper?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T14:16:56.600Z
I have a rather dinky app on my tablet. if you hold it up it has a picture of the stars you are looking at, labelled with their names. As a plus, if you hold it pointing down it shows you the stars over Australia, which is rather cool. There are many apps to choose from, so I won't advertise.
RedSonja
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T16:05:15.903Z
There's a very relevant XKCD comic, but it's also very rude.
Eric Duminil
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T16:24:54.050Z
Pleiades does in fact look like a very little dipper.
Joshua
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T16:43:45.177Z
For the curious ones, the comic mentioned by @EricDuminil is https://xkcd.com/66/
D-Brc
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T21:34:17.433Z
If you make a fist and hold it at arms length, the big dipper will be a bit larger than that by your view.
J.Hirsch
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-17T22:10:39.113Z
@RedSonja thanks that pretty cool, didn't know about those apps.
Cave Johnson
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-12-29T00:51:55.240Z
You can also upload a photo to [astrometry.net](http://nova.astrometry.net/upload) and it'll identify the stars in it for you.
Aaron F
<identify-this-object><constellations>
Does this photo show the "Little Dipper" and "Big Dipper"?
Cave Johnson
# Does this photo show the "Little Dipper" and "Big Dipper"?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-12-17)

There are two clusters of stars that I always thought were the [Big Dipper](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Dipper) and Little Dipper. But after looking at images of the Little Dipper and Big Dipper online, I am not too sure if that's what they are. Also, I found out that the front edge of the Big Dipper is supposed to be aligned with Polaris (or the North Star), which is part of the Little Dipper, but that's not the case with these clusters of stars that I see.

So last night I took this photo:

[![Two clusters of stars circled](https://i.sstatic.net/zWbBv.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/zWbBv.png)

I circled the clusters of stars that I thought were the Little Dipper and Big Dipper. I would like to know if either of these clusters are indeed the Little Dipper or Big Dipper. If either of them are not the Little Dipper or Big Dipper, what are they? And where should I look in **relation** to these two clusters to find the Little Dipper and Big Dipper?

**Tags:** identify-this-object, constellations
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I have a rather dinky app on my tablet. if you hold it up it has a picture of the stars you are looking at, labelled with their names. As a plus, if you hold it pointing down it shows you the stars over Australia, which is rather cool. There are many apps to choose from, so I won't advertise.  
> **username_2**: There's a very relevant XKCD comic, but it's also very rude.  
> **username_3**: Pleiades does in fact look like a very little dipper.  
> **username_4**: For the curious ones, the comic mentioned by @EricDuminil is https://xkcd.com/66/  
> **username_5**: If you make a fist and hold it at arms length, the big dipper will be a bit larger than that by your view.  
> **username_0**: @RedSonja thanks that pretty cool, didn't know about those apps.  
> **username_6**: You can also upload a photo to [astrometry.net](http://nova.astrometry.net/upload) and it'll identify the stars in it for you.  

---

## 3 answers

### Answer by username_10 on 2020-12-17. Score: 35 | Accepted answer

As mentioned, these are the Pleiades, and the belt of Orion. These are visible in the South at this time of year. The Big and Little Dippers are in the North, so turn around. The best way to find them is a map:

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/qZPe6.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/qZPe6.png)

I've marked the approximate edge of your photo, with Orion, the V of the Hyades and the small cluster called the Pleiades. The big dipper is much bigger. It is usually quite easy to find, in the North East, In this map it is labeled "Ursa Major" which means "great bear".

The little dipper is a rather faint constellation. Even its brightest star, Polaris, is only second magnitude. You can find it by tracing from the pointers in Ursa Major (I've coloured them green). It is the only moderately bright star in that region of the sky. Once you have found the Pole star, it is possible to make out the faint stars that make up the rest of the Ursa Minor, the little dipper.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: thanks, so if I pretty much look directly to the left of where I took the photo, I should be able to see the big dipper and little dipper.  
> **username_10**: From Orion's shoulder (betelgeuse), move to Gemini the twins. and from there arc to the big dipper.  Note it is much larger than either of the groups of stars that you have circled. The best thing would be to print out a map like this for your region, date and time and try to find as many of the constellations as possible.  Orion, Sirus, Taurus and the V of the Hyades, the Pleiades, the W of Cassiopia, Auriga overhead, Leo rising in the East,  and the Big Dipper are usually good to find at this time of year.  It is actually easier to find more constellations than only one or two.  

---

### Answer by username_7 on 2020-12-17. Score: 13

The group of stars circled at the top of the photo is a star cluster named Pleiades. The Pleiades are in the constellation of Taurus.

The group of stars circled at the bottom of the photo is part of the constellation of Orion. The three vertical stars on the left side of the circle are the belt stars of Orion. His upper body is to the upper left, and one leg ending at the bright star Rigel is just to the right of the circle.

As you indicated, Ursa Minor is located at the celestial north pole with Polaris (the North Star) being at the end of the handle of the little dipper. The Big Dipper is part of the constellation of Ursa Major which is not too far from Polaris. Orion's belt is on the celestial equator or 90 degrees away from Polaris.


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### Answer by username_8 on 2020-12-18. Score: 1

The top circled stars are the Pleiades Cluster, aka the Seven Sisters. The other forms part of Orion and you can actually see towards the bottom where the Great Nebula at Orion is located. Hope this helps.

> **Comments:**
> **username_9**: Welcome to the site! We work a little bit differently than a forum here, and each answer is expected to stand on its own. It looks like the only new information you add is the brief bit about the Great Nebula. If so, it would help if you expanded this and added some references. Short unreferenced answers attract downvotes. Good luck and I hope you enjoy the community!  

---

