Hydra, The Largest Constellation - 07FEB2009

February 7, 2009

Hydra, the sea serpent, is the largest of the 88 constellations, stretching a quarter of the way around the sky. Its head rises around dark, far to the lower right of the Moon. But it takes about six hours for the rest of its body to climb into view, so its tail doesn't rise until after midnight.

The Dragon, River & Sea Serpent - 02FEB2009

February 2, 2009

Three "squiggly" constellations wiggle across the sky on winter evenings. Draco, the dragon, is in the north, wrapping around the North Star. Eridanus, the river, trickles across the southwest. And Hydra, the sea serpent, slithers into view in the southeast.