Finding North

North. It's the "never" in the mneumonic device "never eat spider webs," which translates as North East South West, or the compass directions in a clockwise motion. But where is it?

North is north--yes, that's easy. It's where Canada is when you're stateside or the North Pole is when you're anywhere else. It's where birds migrate during the spring and summer and where chill winds from in the bleaker months.

During the day, you can find it by the sun's position. It rises in the east and sets in the west... Moss grows on the south side of trees, contrary to popular belief, so the clear side of the trunk must point north. And it's where the closest magnetic pole is located, so compass needles, or statically charged paperclips, will point there.

But let's suppose you're trapped in a harrowing novel. You're at sea. Darkness surrounds you, save what twinkles and glows in the sky. How do you orient yourself then? Where is north according to the sky?

Well, the North Star, Polaris, may be positioned in accordance with its eponymous namesake. And it is, of course. It's the brightest star in the sky some say, but this isn't the case, even though it is quite bright. And how do you know it's a star and not a planet?

Well, first off, planets do not twinkle. Pockets of air moving across our field of vision cause stars to twinkle (sorry, they're not really pulsating visibly). The air pockets are larger than the stars as they appear in our field of vision. The planets, however, appear larger than the air pockets, so their reflected light is not refracted by air molecules. Second, there are only five of them visible to the naked eye: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. So given the vastness of our sky, you have a small chance of mistaking one for Polaris.


Polaris is very easy to find, even if it weren't so bright. Take the most recognizable constellation: The Big Dipper (Ursa Major). If you imagine it as the ladel it represents, then take the lip of the concave and imagine the two stars that make it up point off into space. If you take the distance between these two stars and multiply it by 5 or 6, you'll hit Polaris.

More easily, though, is that Polaris is the end star of the handle on The Little Dipper (Ursa Minor).

Too many stars to concentrate on just one? Try using the moon...as long as it's not full. Whatever phase the moon is in--quarter, half, waxing, waning--if you draw a line from the tip of one bright point to the tip of the other, then it should point north.