Mizar: how to find it and when to see it
Mizar ranks 66th of the 74 bright stars on our list, at magnitude 2.23, in the constellation Ursa Major.
You can see it from anywhere north of 35° S, and it's highest in the evening sky in May.
Mizar at a glance
- Constellation
- Ursa Major
- Magnitude
- 2.23
- Rank on our list
- 66 of 74
- Hemisphere
- Northern
- Right ascension
- 13 h 24 min
- Declination
- 54.9° north
- Visible from
- north of 35° S
- Never sets
- north of 35° N
- Best evening
- 28 May
- Name from
- Arabic
Where Mizar is in the sky
Mizar sits 54.9° north of the celestial equator, the line in the sky directly above Earth's equator, so it's in the northern half of the sky. Its right ascension is 13 h 24 min.
Right ascension works like longitude on the sky. It's counted in hours, and about one hour of it turns past you each hour of the night.
When and where to see Mizar
From the northern hemisphere
From 40° N, the latitude of New York, Madrid and Beijing, Mizar never sets: it circles the pole all night and climbs to 75° above the horizon in the north.
It's in the evening sky from January to October, and it's highest in the evening around 28 May, in spring.
From the southern hemisphere
From 34° S, the latitude of Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires, Mizar rises a little east of due north, climbs to 1° above the horizon in the north and sets a little west of due north.
It never climbs more than 1° above the horizon, so you need a clear, low view to the north to spot it.
How high Mizar climbs from each latitude
The evening is about 9 pm local time, or 10 pm in summer time, and later when the sky is still too bright. A star counts as in the evening sky when it's at least 10° above the horizon.
| Latitude | Visibility | Highest point | Evening sky |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60° N | Never sets | 85° in the south | All year |
| 50° N | Never sets | 85° in the north | All year |
| 40° N | Never sets | 75° in the north | Jan to Oct |
| 30° N | Rises and sets | 65° in the north | Feb to Sept |
| 20° N | Rises and sets | 55° in the north | Feb to Aug |
| Equator | Rises and sets | 35° in the north | Apr to Jul |
| 20° S | Rises and sets | 15° in the north | May to Jun |
| 34° S | Rises and sets | 1° in the north | None |
| 45° S | Never rises | Below the horizon | None |
What the name Mizar means
Mizar comes from the Arabic miʾzar, a wrap or girdle.
Keep the sky of a night that matters
Our star maps show the stars above any place, at the minute you choose, with the constellation lines drawn in. If Mizar was above the horizon that night, it's on your map, and we print it on museum-grade paper.
Questions about Mizar
Mizar is in Ursa Major. It sits 54.9° north of the celestial equator, at a right ascension of 13 h 24 min.
Mizar is highest in the evening sky around 28 May. That's spring in the northern hemisphere and autumn in the southern hemisphere.
Yes, from anywhere north of 35° S. From 34° S, it climbs to 1° above the horizon in the north.
Mizar has a magnitude of 2.23, which ranks it 66th of the 74 bright stars on our list. Sirius looks about 29 times brighter.
Mizar comes from the Arabic miʾzar, a wrap or girdle.