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Abbreviation: CMa |
English Name: The Great Dogs |
Genitive: Sirius |
Hemisphere: Southern Hemisphere |
Location: Between the constellations of Aquarius and Sagittarius. |
Visible between latitudes: +60 and -90 degrees |
Best season: Winter |
Seen in three seasons: Autumn, Winter, and Spring |
Best seen in: January |
Seen between: October and March |
Right Ascension (RA): 07 hour |
Declination (DEC): -20 degrees |
Area (square degrees): 380 (43th) |
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Canis Major (The Great dog)
- This constellation is beautiful to look at the brightest of all stars – Sirius; the brightest star in the night sky!
- Sirius, often called the Dog Star.
- It lies between Monoceros (The Unicorn) and Canis Minor (The Lesser Dog).
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Messier Objects in Canis Major
M41 – There is one prominent Open Cluster, magnitude +5.0, south of Sirius. |
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Other objects in Canis Major
44x objects: New General Catalogue (NGC) |
29x objects: Index Catalogue (IC) |
3x objects: Collinder Catalog (Cr) |
Features of Interest
- NGC2362 – Open Cluster; small and condensed, requiring a small telescope to be seen properly.
NGC4244 – Large edge-on spiral, found eight degrees west of Cor Caroli. - NGC4485 and NGC4490 – Two splendid galaxies in the same field: NGC4485 is more compact (this one is sometimes called the Cocoon Galaxy), while NGC4490 is larger and brighter. Located less than one degree northwest of beta CVn.
- NGC4631 – Very large and bright, seen edge-on. Found in a rather barren field, six degrees south of Cor Caroli and two degrees west. In the same field are two more galaxies, NGC4656 and NGC4657, just southwest of NGC4631.
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Named Stars
- Sirius (Alpha CMa)
- Murzim (Beta CMa)
- Muliphen (Gamma CMa)
- Wezen (Delta CMa)
- Adara (Epsilon CMa)
- Furud (Zeta CMa)
- Aludra (Eta CMa)
IAU Sky Chart: Canis Major

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Go To
Andromeda | Aquarius | Aquila | Aries | Auriga | ||
Boötes | Camelopardalis | Cancer | Canes Venatici | Canis Major | ||
Capricornus | Cassiopeia | Cephus | Coma Berenices | Corona Borealis | ||
Cygnus | Delphinus | Draco | Equuleus | Gemini | ||
Hercules | Lacerta | Leo | Leo Minor | Lynx | ||
Lyra | Monoceros | Ophiuchus | Orion | Pegasus | ||
Perseus | Pisces | Sagitta | Serpens | Sextans | ||
Taurus | Triangulum | Ursa Major | Ursa Minor | Virgo | ||
Vulpecula |
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