Auriga (constellation) horizon. A large constellation, with an area of 657 square degrees, it is half the size of the largest constellation, Hydra. Its brightest star, Capella, is an unusual multiple star system among the brightest stars in the night sky. Beta Aurigae is an interesting variable star in the constellation; Epsilon Aurigae, a nearby eclipsing binary with an unusually long period, has been studied intensively. Because of its position near the winter Milky Way, Auriga has many bright open clusters in its borders, including M36, M37, and M38, popular targets for amateur astronomers. In addition, it has one prominent nebula, the
Draco (constellation) dwarf stars are 170 light-years from Earth and are of magnitude 5.7 and 6.1. R Draconis is a red Mira-type variable star with a period of about 8 months. Its average minimum magnitude is approximately 12.4, and its average maximum magnitude is approximately 7.6. It was discovered to be a variable star by Hans Geelmuyden in 1876. The constellation contains the star recently named Kepler-10, which has been confirmed to be orbited by Kepler-10b, the smallest rocky Earth-sized planet yet detected outside of the Solar System. One of deep-sky objects in Draco is the Cat's Eye Nebula (NGC 6543), a