The most well-known constellation in the night sky. Ursa Major is better known to residents of the United States as the Big Dipper. The Big Dipper is simply a pattern (or asterism) found within the constellation of Ursa Major. According to legend, Ursa Major was once the beautiful maiden Callisto, whom the god Zeus had an affair with. In order to protect her and their son, Arcas, from his jealous wife Hera, Zeus turned Callisto and Arcas into bears. He then picked up the bears by their short, stubby tails and threw them into the sky. While doing this the tails of the bears stretched out. Arcas can be seen in the night sky as the constellation of Ursa Minor. The constellation of Ursa Major is visible all year round for observers in the Northern Hemipshere. The constellation never sets below the horizon, although it does become very low in the sky during the winter months. Ursa Major can easily be spotted in the northern sky.