Why does the north pole and north star always point north?
ANSWER from Roger Herzler on 14 April 2006: The “North Pole” is a human creation to describe one of the points on the Earth where the Earth’s rotational spin on its axis is centered. The other point is the “South Pole”. It is more a philosophical idea that it’s “north” vs. “south” or any other name. However, the Earth rotates on its axis and it has to be called by some name. The “North Star” or “Polaris” is coincidentially located in the sky where the Earth’s rotational center is projected into the sky. It wasn’t located by the North Pole a few thousand years ago. In the future Polaris won’t be the “North Star” in a few hundred years because it is moving through the galaxy just like we are. It won’t be located in the proper place to be called the “North Star” and won’t be used as a good reference to the north pole as it is today. Return to list of questions QUESTION: What seasons can the constellation Ursa Major be viewed in from Denver? ANSWER from Roger Herzler on 18 March 2006: Ursa
