Ursa Minor Ursa Minor Ursa Minor (Latin: "Lesser Bear", contrasting with Ursa Major), also known as the Little Bear, is a constellation in the Northern Sky. Like the Great Bear, the tail of the Little Bear may also be seen as the handle of a ladle, hence the North American name, Little Dipper: seven stars with four in its bowl like its partner the Big Dipper. It was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy, and remains one of the 88 modern constellations. Ursa Minor has traditionally been important for navigation, particularly by mariners, because of Polaris being
Ursa, Illinois Ursa, Illinois Ursa is a village in Adams County, Illinois, United States. The population was 626 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Quincy, IL–MO Micropolitan Statistical Area. Ursa is located at (40.074653, -91.370776). According to the 2010 census, Ursa has a total area of , all land. The first settlers came to Ursa in 1823. As of the census of 2000, there were 595 people, 252 households, and 167 families residing in the village. The population density was 872.9 people per square mile (337.8/km²). There were 261 housing units at an average density of 382.9 per square