Excelsis Ratings/Reviews: "The best way to orient yourself is to start memorizing constellations. Constellations are your landmarks of the sky and will allow you to readily find things. Start with easily recognizable ones like the Big Dipper and move outward from there. In the northern hemisphere, one of the most useful constellations to know is the Little Dipper, located right next to the Big Dipper, because it contains the north star (aka. Polaris). Unforunately, the southern hemisphere doesn't have a 'south star' convenient. The location of these 'celestial poles' is important, not only to get your bearings straight, but it is also a very common process to point your telescope at them in a process called 'polar alignment'. Once you get your bearings straight (which ways are North, South, East and West), you're ready to begin using your star map."