The Pole Star (Polaris) is used to find the direction of:

The Pole Star, also called Polaris or Dhruva Tara, lies almost directly above the Earth's North Pole, in line with the Earth's axis. So it always indicates the direction of north.

Why the Pole Star seems fixed:

• As the Earth rotates, all the stars appear to move across the sky from east to west.
• But the Pole Star lies very close to the point in the sky directly above the North Pole, called the north celestial pole.
• So, it hardly moves, while all other stars appear to circle around it.

Position in the sky:

• Polaris is in the constellation Ursa Minor (Little Bear), at the end of the handle of the Little Dipper.
• It can be found by following the two "pointer" stars of the Big Dipper.

Using the Pole Star for latitude:

• The angle of the Pole Star above the northern horizon is roughly equal to the observer's latitude.
• At the North Pole (90 degrees North), it is almost directly overhead.
• At the Equator, it appears just on the horizon.
• For example, at a place at 28 degrees North, such as Delhi, it appears about 28 degrees above the horizon.
• This helped sailors and travellers find their latitude for centuries.

Southern Hemisphere:

• The Pole Star cannot be seen from the Southern Hemisphere.
• There is no bright star at the south celestial pole; navigators use the Southern Cross (Crux) constellation instead.

Pole Star changes over time:

The Earth's axis slowly wobbles, like a spinning top, completing one circle in about 26,000 years. This is called precession.

Because of this, the Pole Star changes over long periods; in about 12,000 years, the bright star Vega will be close to the pole.

In Indian tradition:

The Pole Star is called Dhruva Tara, after the devoted child Dhruva in Hindu mythology, who was given a fixed, eternal place in the sky.

Why not the other options?

• ✗The Pole Star does not indicate south, east or west.