Bright stars by season

Bright Stars

From mid-northern latitudes, a small set of first-magnitude stars dominates the evening sky in each season. Knowing which star is which, and roughly when it is best placed, makes the rest of the sky much easier to anchor. The list below is calibrated for the Northern Hemisphere mid-latitudes (about 35 to 50 degrees north). At lower or higher latitudes the seasons remain the same but altitudes change. Magnitudes are apparent visual magnitudes; lower numbers are brighter.