1 00:00:36,102 --> 00:00:39,406 JAMES: WELCOME TO STAR GAZERS. 2 00:00:39,506 --> 00:00:43,143 I'M JAMES ALBURY, DIRECTOR OF THE KIKA SILVA PLA PLANETARIUM IN GAINESVILLE FLORIDA. 3 00:00:43,243 --> 00:00:46,312 DEAN: AND I'M DEAN REGAS, ASTRONOMER FROM THE CINCINNATI OBSERVATORY. 4 00:00:46,413 --> 00:00:50,750 JAMES: IF YOU'VE WATCHED OUR SHOW OVER THE YEARS, YOU KNOW THAT ONE OF OUR MOST FREQUENTLY 5 00:00:50,850 --> 00:00:52,752 REFERENCED STAR PATTERNS IS THE BIG DIPPER. 6 00:00:52,852 --> 00:00:54,621 DEAN: THAT'S RIGHT, JAMES. 7 00:00:54,721 --> 00:00:57,924 BUT DID YOU KNOW THAT THIS ONE STAR PATTERN HAS BEEN CALLED DIFFERENT THINGS, DEPENDING 8 00:00:58,024 --> 00:01:00,060 ON WHERE AND WHEN IT WAS OBSERVED? 9 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:02,095 JAMES: WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT? 10 00:01:02,195 --> 00:01:03,797 LET'S SHOW YOU! 11 00:01:03,897 --> 00:01:07,434 JAMES: OK, WE HAVE OUR SKIES SET FOR ABOUT AN HOUR AFTER SUNSET, FACING NORTH. 12 00:01:07,534 --> 00:01:11,538 HIGH IN THE SKY YOU'LL SEE SEVEN BRIGHT STARS THAT FORM THE FAMILIAR PATTERN OF THE BIG 13 00:01:11,638 --> 00:01:12,939 DIPPER. 14 00:01:13,039 --> 00:01:17,310 THE FOUR STARS, DUBHE, MERAK, PHECDA AND MEGREZ MAKE THE BOWL. 15 00:01:17,410 --> 00:01:22,348 DEAN: RIGHT NEXT TO THEM ARE THE THREE STARS ALIOTH, MIZAR AND ALKAID. 16 00:01:22,449 --> 00:01:23,616 THEY MARK THE HANDLE. 17 00:01:23,716 --> 00:01:26,719 THE BIG DIPPER HOWEVER IS NOT A CONSTELLATION. 18 00:01:26,820 --> 00:01:32,258 ASTRONOMERS REFER TO IT AS AN ASTERISM; WHICH IS A PATTERN OF BRIGHT STARS IN A MUCH LARGER 19 00:01:32,358 --> 00:01:33,693 CONSTELLATION. 20 00:01:33,793 --> 00:01:36,996 JAMES: THE BIG DIPPER HAS HAD MANY ALIASES THROUGHOUT HISTORY. 21 00:01:37,097 --> 00:01:42,735 FOR EXAMPLE, THE ANCIENT MAYA SAW IT AS THE GIANT MACAW AND CELESTIAL TROUBLE MAKER, VUCUB-CAQUIX. 22 00:01:42,836 --> 00:01:48,775 ACCORDING TO LEGEND, HE WAS PLACED IN THE SKY BY THE HERO TWINS HUNAHPU AND XBALANQUE 23 00:01:48,875 --> 00:01:52,212 AFTER THE MACAW ARROGANTLY CLAIMED THAT HE WAS THE SUN AND THE MOON. 24 00:01:52,312 --> 00:01:57,317 DEAN: IN CHINA, THE SEVEN STARS OF THE BIG DIPPER FORM THE RIGHT WALL OF THE PURPLE FORBIDDEN 25 00:01:57,417 --> 00:02:01,588 ENCLOSURE, A CELESTIAL BARRIER THAT SURROUNDS THE NORTH CELSTIAL POLE. 26 00:02:01,688 --> 00:02:06,659 JAMES: IN GERMANY, IT'S CALLED GROSER WAGEN (GRO ER WAGEN) OR THE GREAT WAGON, IN FINLAND 27 00:02:06,759 --> 00:02:09,429 ITS CALLED THE OTAVA OR SALMON NET. 28 00:02:09,529 --> 00:02:14,067 DEAN: IN IRELAND, IT'S A FARMERS PLOW, IN NORTHERN ENGLAND, IT'S SOMETIMES CALLED THE 29 00:02:14,167 --> 00:02:15,502 BUTCHER'S CLEAVER. 30 00:02:15,602 --> 00:02:19,072 IN FRANCE, IT'S A CASSEROLE AND IN HOLLAND, IT'S A SAUCE PAN. 31 00:02:19,172 --> 00:02:23,343 JAMES: MY FAVORITE REFERENCE TO THE BIG DIPPER COMES FROM AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY. 32 00:02:23,443 --> 00:02:27,580 WHEN HARRIET TUBMAN WAS HELPING SLAVES TO ESCAPE, SHE USED A TECHNIQUE CALLED THE UNDERGROUND 33 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:29,415 RAILROAD. 34 00:02:29,516 --> 00:02:32,485 FAMILIES WOULD ESCAPE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT AND TRAVEL TO SAFE HOUSES ON THEIR WAY 35 00:02:32,585 --> 00:02:36,623 NORTH; THEIR ULTIMATE DESTINATION BEING SOUTHERN CANADA, WHERE THERE WAS NO SLAVERY. 36 00:02:36,723 --> 00:02:42,061 DEAN: SINCE PEOPLE OF THAT TIME DIDN'T HAVE GPS DEVICES LIKE WE DO TODAY, OR READILY AVAILABLE 37 00:02:42,162 --> 00:02:47,934 COMPASSES TO FIND GEO-MAGNETIC NORTH, THEY RELIED ON THE STARS TO HELP THEM NAVIGATE. 38 00:02:48,034 --> 00:02:52,272 BACK IN THE 19TH CENTURY, PEOPLE KNEW THE NIGHT SKY VERY WELL, BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE 39 00:02:52,372 --> 00:02:54,440 STREET LIGHTS TO WASH OUT THE STARS. 40 00:02:54,541 --> 00:02:58,778 JAMES: THEREFORE, TO MAINTAIN THEIR NORTHWARD BEARINGS, THEY TOLD EACH OTHER TO LOOK FOR 41 00:02:58,878 --> 00:03:01,714 THE DRINKING GOURD AND KEEP IT IN FRONT OF YOU. 42 00:03:01,814 --> 00:03:06,352 THAT PIECE OF ADVICE LED MANY PEOPLE TO FREEDOM, AND THEY EVEN MADE A TRAVELING SONG CALLED 43 00:03:06,452 --> 00:03:10,423 FOLLOW THE DRINKING GOURD, WHERE THE LYRICS OF THE SONG MENTIONED MANY OF THE LANDMARKS 44 00:03:10,523 --> 00:03:15,361 TRAVELERS WOULD ENCOUNTER ON THEIR WAY TO THE OHIO RIVER; THE DESIGNATED PICK-UP POINT. 45 00:03:15,461 --> 00:03:20,800 DEAN: THE STARS OF THE BIG DIPPER ARE BETWEEN 75 AND 100 LIGHT YEARS FROM US, AND IF YOU 46 00:03:20,900 --> 00:03:25,171 HAVE REALLY GOOD EYESIGHT, YOU CAN SEE ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS VISUAL BINARIES IN THE 47 00:03:25,271 --> 00:03:27,106 NIGHT SKY. 48 00:03:27,207 --> 00:03:30,610 JAMES: RIGHT NEXT TO THE STAR MIZAR, THE STAR WHICH MARKS THE BEND IN THE BIG DIPPER'S HANDLE, 49 00:03:30,710 --> 00:03:35,181 YOU WILL SEE A SMALL, FAINT COMPANION STAR NAMED ALCOR. 50 00:03:35,281 --> 00:03:39,786 THESE TWO STARS ARE COLLECTIVELY CALLED THE HORSE AND RIDER AND WERE OFTEN USED AS A TEST 51 00:03:39,886 --> 00:03:41,588 OF A PERSONS EYESIGHT. 52 00:03:41,688 --> 00:03:45,291 DEAN: SPEAKING OF EYESIGHT, IF YOU HAVE A TELESCOPE HANDY, THERE ARE TWO SPECTACULAR 53 00:03:45,391 --> 00:03:51,397 SPIRAL GALAXIES VISIBLE NEAR THE STAR ALKAID; WHICH IS AT THE END OF THE DIPPER'S HANDLE. 54 00:03:51,497 --> 00:03:56,469 M101, THE PINWHEEL GALAXY IS JUST TO THE NORTH OF ALKAID AND M51. 55 00:03:56,569 --> 00:03:59,839 THE WHIRLPOOL GALAXY IS JUST TO ITS SOUTH. 56 00:03:59,939 --> 00:04:03,376 JAMES: NO CONVERSATION ABOUT THE BIG DIPPER WOULD BE COMPLETE WITHOUT SHOWING HOW YOU 57 00:04:03,476 --> 00:04:06,679 CAN FIND ITS NEIGHBORING CONSTELLATIONS USING ITS STARS. 58 00:04:06,779 --> 00:04:11,117 FOR EXAMPLE, YOU CAN FIND POLARIS (THE NORTH STAR) BY DRAWING A STRAIGHT LINE FROM MERAK 59 00:04:11,217 --> 00:04:15,955 TO DUBHE AND CONTINUING THAT LINE APPROXIMATELY FIVE TIMES THE DISTANCE SPANNED BETWEEN MERAK 60 00:04:16,055 --> 00:04:17,824 AND DUBHE. 61 00:04:17,924 --> 00:04:21,527 DEAN: YOU CAN FIND BOOTES THE HERDSMAN BY DRAWING AN ARC FROM ALIOTH, TO MIZAR AND THEN 62 00:04:21,628 --> 00:04:23,096 ALKAID. 63 00:04:23,196 --> 00:04:25,331 EVENTUALLY YOU WILL ENCOUNTER ARCTURUS, THE BRIGHTEST STAR IN BOOTES. 64 00:04:25,431 --> 00:04:29,769 JAMES: YOU CAN FIND LEO THE LION DIRECTLY OVERHEAD THIS TIME OF YEAR BY DRAWING A LINE 65 00:04:29,869 --> 00:04:31,771 FROM PHECDA TO MEGREZ AND BEYOND. 66 00:04:31,871 --> 00:04:36,609 DEAN: AND YOU CAN FIND THE GEMINI TWINS BY DRAWING A LINE FROM MEGREZ TO MERAK AND BEYOND. 67 00:04:36,709 --> 00:04:38,378 JAMES: SO THERE YOU HAVE IT. 68 00:04:38,478 --> 00:04:42,015 THE DRINKING GOURD, CASSEROLE, WAGON, PLOW, CLEAVER, MACAW, DIPPER IN ALL ITS GLORY. 69 00:04:42,115 --> 00:04:44,450 DEAN: AND IT'S WAITING IN THE SKY JUST FOR YOU, WHEN YOU 70 00:04:44,550 --> 00:04:48,550 BOTH: KEEP LOOKING UP!