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Constellations

All 88 official constellations: their stories, their brightest stars, and real star maps for every one.

Best placed this month (October): Piscis AustrinusGrusPegasusCepheusAquariusOctans
All skies Northern Southern
Best month: Any Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

7 constellations shown. “Best month” = when it sits highest around 9 pm; zodiac constellations are marked ☉ (and see the note below on astronomy vs astrology).

Star map of Canes Venatici
Canes Venatici The Hunting Dogs Northern · best May · Cor Caroli
The sky around Centaurus
Centaurus The Centaur Southern · best May · Alpha Centauri
Star map of Coma Berenices
Coma Berenices Berenice's Hair Northern · best May · Beta Comae Berenices
Star map of Corvus
Corvus The Crow Southern · best May · Gienah
The sky around Crux
Crux The Southern Cross Southern · best May · Acrux
The sky around Musca
Musca The Fly Southern · best May · Alpha Muscae
Star map of Virgo
Virgo ☉ The Maiden Both · best May · Spica

Photographs show each constellation’s own patch of sky. Where no free photograph exists, the map is drawn from real star positions and magnitudes.

Photo credits

Centaurus, Crux, Musca: Till Credner (CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons).

☉ Astronomy vs astrology: constellations are real regions of sky, mapped and measured. Astrology (predicting personality or events from them) is a belief system, not a science; the Atlas covers the zodiac constellations as astronomy and history only.