Ursa Minor

Ursa Minor

Constellation
List of stars in Ursa Minor
Abbreviation	UMi[1]
Genitive	Ursae Minoris[1]
Pronunciation	/ˌɜːrsə ˈmaɪnər/ Genitive: /ˌɜːrsiː mɪˈnɒrɪs/
Symbolism	the Little Bear[1]
Right ascension	00h 00m to 24h 00m [1]
Declination	65.40° to 90°[1]
Quadrant	NQ3
Area	256 sq. deg. (56th)
Main stars	7
Bayer/Flamsteed stars	23
Stars with planets	4
Stars brighter than 3.00m	3
Stars within 10.00 pc (32.62 ly)	0
Brightest star	Polaris[2] (1.97m)
Messier objects	0
Meteor showers	Ursids
Bordering constellations	Draco Camelopardalis Cepheus
Visible at latitudes between +90° and −10°. Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of June[2].

Ursa Minor (Latin: 'Lesser Bear', contrasting with Ursa Major), also known as the Little Bear, is a constellation located in the far northern sky. As with the Great Bear, the tail of the Little Bear may also be seen as the handle of a ladle, hence the North American name, Little Dipper: seven stars with four in its bowl like its partner the Big Dipper. Ursa Minor was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy, and remains one of the 88 modern constellations. Ursa Minor has traditionally been important for navigation, particularly by mariners, because of Polaris being the north pole star.

Polaris, the brightest star in the constellation, is a yellow-white supergiant and the brightest Cepheid variable star in the night sky, ranging in apparent magnitude from 1.97 to 2.00. Beta Ursae Minoris, also known as Kochab, is an aging star that has swollen and cooled to become an orange giant with an apparent magnitude of 2.08, only slightly fainter than Polaris. Kochab and 3rd-magnitude Gamma Ursae Minoris have been called the "guardians of the pole star" or "Guardians of The Pole".^[3] Planets have been detected orbiting four of the stars, including Kochab. The constellation also contains an isolated neutron star—Calvera—and H1504+65, the hottest white dwarf yet discovered, with a surface temperature of 200,000 K.