Photo By NASA & H. Richer (University of British Columbia)


The stars above you are more than just mood lighting for that late-night make out session. Those twinkling dots form constellations—shapes that tell the ancient myths of Greece and Rome. For women living above the equator looking for a cheap and romantic date, read on for an easy guide to spotting the summer stars from a blanket for two.

When and where to see the stars.
Just like the sun and moon, stars rise and set. So whenever you step outside, the stars will be in a different position in the sky. The best time to view the summer stars in this guide is at 10 or 11 p.m. And while city dwellers may be able to make out the Big Dipper and a couple of constellations, says Wendy Bauer, Professor of Astronomy at Wellesley College, “the best spot to go stargazing is as far away from city lights as you can get!”

Polaris/North Star.
The key to finding any constellation is knowing how to locate Polaris—the North Star— because it stays in the same spot in the sky and the stars all appear to turn around it, says Bauer. To find the North Star, follow the tail of the Little Dipper to the bright star at it’s ending, sitting in the center of the sky. Or, says Bauer, “use the ‘pointer stars’ of the Big Dipper: The two stars at the end of the bowl point to [the North Star].”

The Little Dipper and the Big Dipper.
The Little Dipper and the Big Dipper are two sets of stars always visible in the Northern Hemisphere sky. The two are nearly mirror images of each other, the Little Dipper to the north and the Big Dipper to the south, each with a square “bowl” with a curved handle of stars. And while the Little Dipper includes the North Star as the tip of its handle, the Big Dipper is set to the southwest and is part of a larger constellation called Ursa Major, or the Great Bear.