10Canis Major, The Larger Dog
NAME: Canis Major (CAWN-is MAY-jur)
SEASON: Winter
CULMINATION: midnight, 1 January
ABBREVIATION: CMa
GENITIVE: Canis Majoris (CAWN-is muh-JOR-is)
NEIGHBORS: Col, Lep, Mon, Pup
BINOCULAR OBJECTS: NGC 2287 (M41), NGC 2360
URBAN OBJECTS: none
Canis Major is a mid-size constellation, ranking 43rd in size among the 88 constellations. It covers 380 square degrees of the celestial sphere, or about 0.9%. In mythology, Canis Major is the larger of Orion’s two hunting dogs. Canis Major rests at the feet of Orion, waiting to pounce on Lepus, The Hare.
The eye of Canis Major is Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, also known as the Dog Star. (The name Sirius comes from the Greek for “searing” or “shining.”) Sirius ...
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