The Curiosity Crusade

  Given that you are living in the northern hemisphere of the planet like me, you have probably noticed one particular star, which happen to be pointing towards the north, always remaining stationary no matter the season or what time at night you look at it. This star is Polaris, the North Star. Why does this star always point towards north? Why does it appear to be fixed in the sky? The answer is fairly simple actually. Polaris is positioned in such a way that the line of Earth’s axis of rotation projected to the space is very close to it. As it is the only bright(ish) star in the vicinity of the line of rotation of earth, it appears to be fixed in the sky while the other stars appear to be moving in the opposite direction of rotation of the Earth. What Happens When You Go Towards The South? If you were to look up at the sky at the North Pole, you’ll see Polaris directly overhead while the other stars move around it throughout the night. As you start to move away from the Po...