1. Sky map Interactive Planetarium http://neave.com/planetarium/

2. constellations
Five major constellations are always visible above the horizon from our latitudes: Ursa Minor, Ursa Major, Cassiopeia, Cepheus and Draco.
They all revolve once in 24 hours around the North Star (Polaris)

3. Big dipper
The Big Dipper is a part of the constellation called Ursa Major (it resembles a bear in many civilizations.)
The handle of the Dipper is the tail of the bear curving away from the bowl

4. The story of Ursa major
The two stars on the end of the handle of the big dipper are robins. Sparrow and Crow are their names. The two birds were hungry and didn't save any food for the winter. Then Crow said to Sparrow, "we should go into a bear cave and kill a bear while it is hibernating." So Sparrow and Crow went off to find a bear. They found a bear cave and saw the bear Ursa Major. When they were about to kill it the bear woke up. Ursa Major was scared. Sparrow and Crow chased the bear for one year until they were tired of running. Then Crow threw an arrow and killed the bear. Blood splattered all over the bird's bodies and made their chests red. That is the myth of why robins have red chests.

5. Ursa minor – the lesser bear
Ursa Minor is the home of the North Star. Ursa  Minor is said to have been introduced by the Greek philosopher Thales around 600 BC. For as long as ships have sailed the seas Polaris has been an essential guiding star.

6. Orion – the hunter Story 1
Orion was born to sea-god Neptune and the great huntress Queen Euryale of the Amazons as his mother. Orion inherited her talent, and became the greatest hunter in the world. Unfortunately for him, with his immense strength came an immense ego, and he boasted that he could best any animal on earth. In response to his vanity, a single small scorpion stung him and killed him

7. Orion - story 2
Another version of the Orion myth states that Orion was able to walk on water and had greater strength and stature than any other mortal.
. Orion fell in love with Merope, daughter of Oenopion and princess of Chios. Her father the king, however, would not consent to give Orion his daughter's hand in marriage--even after the hunter rid their island of wild beasts. In anger,
Orion attempted to gain possession of the maiden by violence. Her father, incensed at this conduct, having made Orion drunk, deprived him of his sight and cast him out on the seashore. Orion proceeded to the east, and there meeting the sun-god, was restored to sight by his beam.
After this he dwelt as a hunter with Diana, with whom he was a favourite, and it is even said she was about to marry him. Her brother [Apollo] was highly displeased
One day, observing Orion wading through the ocean with his head just above the water, Apollo pointed it out to his sister and maintained that she could not hit that black thing on the sea. The archer-goddess discharged a shaft with fatal aim. The waves rolled the body of Orion to the land, and bewailing her fatal error with many tears, Diana placed him among the stars 

8. Cassiopeia

9. cassiopeia
Cassiopeia was the wife of Cepheus, the Ethiopian king of Joppa (now known as Jaffa, in Israel), and the mother of Andromeda. The queen was both beautiful and vain, and the story of how her vanity caused great distress is told in relation to the constellation Andromeda.
After promising her daughter in marriage to Perseus, Cassiopeia had second thoughts. She convinced one of Poseidon's sons, Agenor, to disrupt the ceremony by claiming Andromeda for himself. Agenor arrived with an entire army, and a fierce struggle ensued.
In the battle Cassiopeia is said to have cried "Perseus must die". At any rate it was Perseus who was victorious, with the help of the Gorgon's head.
Perseus had recently slain Medusa, the Gorgon, and had put its head in a bed of coral. He retrieved the head and waved it in midst of the warring wedding party, instantly turning them all to stone. In the group was both Cepheus and Cassiopeia.

10. cephus
Next to Cassiopeia is her husband the king Cepheus.

11. Draco the dragon
Another famous constellation near the North Pole is Draco meaning Dragon placed beneath the Ursa Minor.
It is the dragon that the giant Hercules faces up to.

12. Constellations & ancient civilizations

13. Astronomy vs. Astrology