Star: A star is a ball of hydrogen and helium that has enough mass to maintain nuclear fusion at its core. It’s the nuclear fusion that makes the star luminous in our night sky.
Since the beginning of recorded time, stars have played a large role in religion and even navigation. In ancient civilizations, they noticed that the stars in our sky form patterns. These were called constellations. In 1929, the International Astronomical Union officially recognized 88 constellations. To date, these are the only “official” constellations.  The Big Dipper is known as an asterism (a constellation within another constellation), because it is found within Ursa Major, an official constellation

The following is a list of all 88 official constellations, with their proper and more common names:

* Andromeda (“The Chained Woman”)
* Antlia (“The Airpump”)
* Apus (“The Bird of Paradise”)
* Aquarius (“The Water Bearer”)
* Aquila (“The Eagle”)
* Ara (“The Altar”)
* Aries (“The Ram”)
* Auriga (“The Charioteer”)
* Boötes (“The Herdsmen”)
* Caelum (“The Sculptor’s Tool”)
* Camelopardalis (“The Giraffe”)
* Cancer (“The Crab”)
* Canes Venatici (“The Hunting Dogs”)
* Canis Major (“The Great Dog”)
* Canis Minor (“The Little Dog”)
* Capricornus (“The Goat”)
* Carina (“The Keel of the Argo”)
* Cassiopeia (“The Seated Queen”)
* Centaurus (“The Centaur”)
* Cepheus (“The King”)
* Cetus (“The Whale”)
* Chameleon
* Circinus (“The Compasses”)
* Columba (“The Dove”)
* Coma Berenices (“Berenice’s Hair”)
* Corona Australis (“The Southern Crown”)
* Corona Borealis (“The Northern Crown”)
* Corvus (“The Crow” or “The Raven”)
* Crater (“The Cup”)
* Crux (“The Southern Cross”)
* Cygnus (“The Swan”)
* Delphinus (“The Dolphin”)
* Dorado (“The Swordfish” or “The Goldfish”)
* Draco (“The Dragon”)
* Equuleus (“The Filly”)
* Eridanus (“The Eridanus River”)
* Fornax (“The Furnace”)
* Gemini (“The Twins”)
* Grus (“The Crane”)
* Hercules (“The Hero”)
* Horologium (“The Clock”)
* Hydra (“The Sea Serpent”)
* Hydrus (“The Water Snake”)
* Indus (“The Indian”)
* Lacerta (“The Lizard”)
* Leo (“The Lion”)
* Leo Minor (“The Little Lion”)
* Lepus (“The Hare”)
* Libra (“The Scales”)
* Lupus (“The Wolf”)
* Lynx (“The Lynx”)
* Lyra (“The Harp”)
* Mensa (“The Table” or “The Mountain”)
* Microscopium (“The Microscope”)
* Monoceros (“The Unicorn”)
* Musca (“The Southern Fly”)
* Norma (“The Rule”)
* Octans (“The Octant”)
* Ophiuchus (“The Serpent-Bearer”)
* Orion (“The Hunter”)
* Pavo (“The Peacock”)
* Pegasus
* Perseus
* Phoenix
* Pictor (“The Painter” or “The Painter’s Easel”)
* Pisces (“The Fish”)
* Piscis Austrinus (“The Southern Fish”)
* Puppis (“The Poop Deck of the Argo”)
* Pyxis (“The Mariner’s Compass”)
* Reticulum (“The Net”)
* Sagitta (“The Arrow”)
* Sagittarius (“The Archer”)
* Scorpius (“The Scorpion”)
* Sculptor (“The Sculptor”)
* Scutum (“The Shield”)
* Serpens (“The Serpent”)
* Sextans (“The Sextant”)
* Taurus (“The Bull”)
* Telescopium (“The Telescope”)
* Triangulum (“The Triangle”)
* Triangulum Australe (“The Southern Triangle”)
* Tucana (“The Toucan”)
* Ursa Major (“The Great Bear”)
* Ursa Minor (“The Little Bear”)
* Vela (“The Sail of the Argo”)
* Virgo (“The Virgin”)
* Volans (“The Flying Fish”)
* Vulpecula (“The Fox”)

Twelve of these constellations are, more or less, in a line along the equator, and because of their position, were picked out from all the other constellations to make up the Zodiac. These twelve signs are: Aries, Aquarius, Cancer, Capricorn, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Pisces, Sagittarius, Scorpio (Scorpius), Taurus, and Virgo. It is important to note that the study of these signs in relation to determining one’s fortune or characteristic is astrology or astromancy, and is completely unrelated to astronomy -except, of course, for the fact that they both look at constellations.