Circumpolar Cassiopeia (the Queen) and Cepheus (the King) lie in the dusty path of the Milky Way, offering not just a rich star field, but impressive deep-sky objects. The Owl Cluster (NGC 457) is easy to pick out with decent binoculars, its 75 to 100 bright stars forming the shape of an owl with spread wings, while bright double star Phi Cassiopeiae forms the eyes. Double star Alpha Cassiopeiae can easily be split into a stellar pair, resolving a bright, yellow primary and faint, blue secondary. Use the constellations of Pegasus, Aquarius and Pisces and you’ll be able to locate Cetus (the Sea Monster), which contains the remarkable variable star Mira, or Omicron Ceti, as well as a wide selection of galaxies.
Using the sky chart