Canis Major constellation
Latin Canis Major, genitive Canis Majoris, abbreviation CMa
North up, east to the left, as you see the sky. The lines are a common figure; the stars are from the catalogue.
The myth
The dog of the hunter Orion, following him across the sky. Its eye is Sirius, the brightest star of the night sky, only 8.6 light years away. Because Sirius reappeared in the Greek morning sky in high summer, the hottest weeks are still called the dog days. Low on the horizon it twinkles in every colour.
When can Canis Major be seen?
It stands highest around 10 pm in February. It can be seen from everywhere south of 58°N, and it never sets south of 78°S.
The brightest stars
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Colour |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sirius | α CMa | −1.46 | white |
| Adhara | ε CMa | 1.50 | bluish |
| Wezen | δ CMa | 1.84 | yellow |
| Mirzam | β CMa | 1.98 | bluish |
| Aludra | η CMa | 2.45 | bluish |
| Furud | ζ CMa | 3.02 | bluish |
| Al Zara | ο2 CMa | 3.02 | bluish |
| Unurgunite | σ CMa | 3.47 | reddish |
The smaller the number, the brighter: below 1 are the brightest stars of the sky, 4 is hard to see under a city sky. Greek letters after Johann Bayer (1603).