Polaris is commonly used as a reference to indicate which directional heading?

Polaris is commonly used as a reference to indicate which directional heading?

• A. North
• B. East
• C. South
• D. West

Answer: (A)

Polaris marks north because it sits nearly directly above the Earth's north pole. From the Northern Hemisphere, it appears almost fixed in the sky as the other stars circle around it, so you can use it to align yourself with true north. The other directions aren’t indicated by Polaris—east, south, and west require other reference points or viewpoints. Note that Polaris isn’t visible in much of the southern hemisphere, where different stars are used for direction.

Polaris marks north because it sits nearly directly above the Earth's north pole. From the Northern Hemisphere, it appears almost fixed in the sky as the other stars circle around it, so you can use it to align yourself with true north. The other directions aren’t indicated by Polaris—east, south, and west require other reference points or viewpoints. Note that Polaris isn’t visible in much of the southern hemisphere, where different stars are used for direction.