2UrsaMajor

//Ursa Major// __Also Anown As__ //Big Dipper// media type="custom" key="3484814"media type="custom" key="3489464"

__Description:__ A group of stars in the sky, that are in the shape of a laddle.

The Ursa Major is made up of 17 stars, but has 7 main stars. It is next to the north star. The translation of Ursa Major, is "Great Bear." The Big Dipper is shaped like a pan, which in the past, was called a dipper. It is called the Big Dipper because it is bigger than the Little Dipper. That is how the Ursa Major got it's name. Quick Facts: 1. Ursa Major is made up of 17 stars. 2. It has 7 main stars, which are also the brightest. 3. The nams of the main stars are: Alkaid, Mizar, Alioth, Megrez, Dubine, Merak, and Pheceda. 4. There is a picture of the Big Dipper and the North Star on the Alaskan state flag. 5. The stars of the Big Dipper shine the brightest during the fall.

Firsts: In 1662, the star Mizar was the first double star to be discovered through a telescope. In 1857, Mizar was the first star to be photographed, and in 1889, it was the first star to be identified as a __spectroscopic binary__. Also, in 1828, the star Xi UMa was the first binary star to have its orbit calculated.

__Spectroscopic binary__: a binary star having components that are not sufficiently separated to be resolved by a telescope, known to be a binary only bythe variations in wavelength of emitted light that are detected by a spectroscope.




 * **Stars ** || **Distance Away From Earth ** ||
 * Alkaid || 123 lightyears ||
 * Mizar || 78 lightyears ||
 * Alioth || 80 lightyears ||
 * Mergez || 81 lightyears ||
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #0000ff; font-size: 170%;">Phecda || <span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #0000ff; font-size: 170%;">83 lightyears ||
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #0000ff; font-size: 170%;">Merak || <span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #0000ff; font-size: 170%;">79 lightyears ||
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #0000ff; font-size: 170%;">Duhbe || <span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #0000ff; font-size: 170%;">123 years ||

[|http://www.amnh.org] [|www.nasa.gov] www.astropix.com [] [] [] Big Dipper, The Columbian Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2008. Encyclopedia.com 12 March 2009.