As the Northern Hemisphere approaches the midpoint of fall and the trees finally drop their leaves, one of the most famous star clusters appears in the night sky. Known as the Pleiades or the “Seven Sisters,” this glittering group of stars rises in the east just after sunset, signalling the seasonal transition toward the sparkling winter constellations. Here’s how to find the Pleiades, how to observe it properly and why it’s such a favorite among seasoned stargazers.
What Are The Pleiades?
The Pleiades — called M45 by astronomers — is undoubtedly one of the brightest and most recognizable features of the night sky. About 440 light-years from the solar system, this cluster contains more than 1,000 stars, though to the naked eye only six or seven of its brightest members are visible — hence its Seven Sisters nickname.
Found in the constellation Taurus, the Pleiades are a group of stars born together from the same cloud of gas and dust. About 100 million years old may sound ancient, but relative to the billion-year-old stars that abound in the night sky, they’re some of the youngest known. Their young age is why they shine with a distinctive bluish hue — in astronomy, red is cool and blue is hot.
What’s also special about the Pleiades is their nebulosity. If you look at them with your peripheral vision, you’ll notice they shine even more brightly. That’s because the Pleiades is a reflection nebula, where the intense starlight reflects off an interstellar cloud of gas and dust.
The Pleiades: When, Where And How To Look
In late October, the Pleiades rise due east and climb higher, becoming a brilliant cluster overhead around midnight. They’re in the constellation Taurus, above the red supergiant star Aldebaran. Both can be seen even from areas with moderate light pollution.
To the naked eye, the Pleiades appear as a small, hazy grouping of six or seven bright stars packed tightly together. On a clear night, they’re hard to ignore. In a telescope, they dissipate into a path of sky busy with stars. It’s in binoculars that they truly impress, with not only dozens of stars twinkling like diamonds, but a bluish color and hints of nebulosity.
The Pleiades In Human Culture
They may be some of the youngest stars in the night sky, but their sparkling nature has made them a favorite among humans since ancient times. In Greek mythology, the Pleiades were the seven daughters (sisters) of the Titan Atlas and the sea nymph Pleione, pursued through the heavens by Orion the Hunter. In many Aboriginal Australian traditions, the Pleiades are a group of seven young women or ancestral spirits who are chased across the sky by a man associated with the constellation Orion.
Native American traditions — certainly Lakota and Kiowa — describe the Pleiades as a group of children or siblings placed in the sky. The Anishinaabe peoples, including the Ojibwe, refer to the Pleiades as Bagone-giizhig, meaning “Hole in the Sky”. For the Cree people, the Pleiades is called the Pakone Kisik — also the “Hole in the Sky,” where humans are said to have originally come from.
What’s Next In The Night Sky
See the Pleiades and you know what’s coming soon — Orion the Hunter, perhaps the most iconic constellation of all. November begins with the Beaver Moon supermoon on Nov. 5, the year’s biggest and brightest full moon since 2019. Mid-month brings the Northern Taurids and the Leonid meteor shower peaking overnight on Nov. 16–17, producing around 15 meteors per hour in dark skies.
Uranus comes to its bright opposition on Nov. 20. However, despite it being very close to the Pleiades, it requires a telescope to see. A much easier planet to see will be Mercury, whose best morning apparition of the year will come before sunrise on Nov. 30.
The times and dates given apply to mid-northern latitudes. For the most accurate location-specific information, consult online planetariums like Stellarium.
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
