Arcturus

stars · northern sky · red giants · super bright

Fourth brightest star. Arcturus is the fourth-brightest star visible from Earth, and it's the brightest one you can see in the entire northern half of the sky. That means it's brighter than almost every other star people can spot at night.

Orange-red giant. Arcturus is a red giant star, which means it's enormous and glowing with an orange-red color. Red giants are stars that have grown really big as they get older.

Lives in Boötes. You can find Arcturus in the constellation Boötes, which is shaped like a cowherd. It marks one corner of a famous pattern called the Spring Triangle that you can spot in spring skies.

Easy to find. Arcturus is so bright and easy to locate that people have known about it and watched it for thousands of years. You can actually see it with your own eyes on a clear night without any telescope.