Constellation, Hunting Dogs
Canes Venatici
The hunting dogs held on a leash by Boötes. The idea of dogs here seems to go back to a translation mistake, and the figure holds the Whirlpool Galaxy, the first galaxy seen to have spiral arms.
From New York on October 13, 2026, the centre of Canes Venatici rises at 3:21 AM, is highest at 12:43 PM (90° above the horizon in the N) and sets at 10:02 PM.
In the 3D sky
The sky over New York turned towards Canes Venatici. Drag to look around.
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Evening visibility over the year
Height of the constellation’s centre above the horizon at 10 pm local time on the 15th of each month, from New York. Above about 30° it is well placed.
Name and history
The dogs seem to have begun as an error. Ptolemy left these faint stars unformed, below the Great Bear, and said Boötes held a club or staff. The Arabic word for this crook, al-kullab, was misread in a Latin translation of the 12th century as al-kilab, dogs. Artists began to give Boötes dogs, as Peter Apian did in 1533, and in 1602 Willem Blaeu drew two dogs following the Great Bear. Johannes Hevelius made them a constellation of their own in 1687 and named the dogs Asterion and Chara.
The brightest star is Cor Caroli, the heart of Charles, named in memory of King Charles I of England by Sir Charles Scarborough, physician to his son Charles II. In 1845 Lord Rosse, using his giant telescope in Ireland, saw that the Whirlpool Galaxy, M51, has a spiral shape. It was the first galaxy in which a spiral form was noticed.
Brightest stars
| Star | Designation | Magnitude | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cor Caroli | α2 CVn | 2.89 | 115 light-years |
| Chara | β CVn | 4.24 | 28 light-years |
| 24 CVn | 24 CVn | 4.68 | 180 light-years |
| 20 CVn | 20 CVn | 4.72 | 264 light-years |
| 5 CVn | 5 CVn | 4.76 | 386 light-years |
| HIP 67665 | HIP 67665 | 4.76 | 601 light-years |
| 25 CVn | 25 CVn | 4.82 | 199 light-years |
| HIP 66257 | HIP 66257 | 4.91 | 149 light-years |
| HIP 64540 | HIP 64540 | 4.94 | 459 light-years |
Facts
| Area | about 465 square degrees (38 of 88) |
|---|---|
| IAU abbreviation | CVn |
| Sky | Northern sky |
| Origin | Introduced by Hevelius in his star catalogue of 1687 and shown in his atlas, published after his death in 1690 |
| Stars brighter than magnitude 5 | 9 |
| Centre (J2000) | 13.3 h, 41° |
Deep-sky objects
Galaxies, clusters and nebulae brighter than magnitude 9, from the OpenNGC catalogue. Most need binoculars or a telescope and a dark sky.
Boundaries: International Astronomical Union, via Astronomy Engine. Areas are computed from the boundaries by sampling (within about one percent). Names and lines: Stellarium. Stars: HYG Database. Deep-sky objects: OpenNGC. Calculated with Astronomy Engine, an open-source library verified against the US Naval Observatory and NASA JPL. Data sources
How to use this page
Choose your place and a night at the top. The answer and the 3D view show where the constellation is, when it is highest and whether it rises at all from where you are. The chart shows its stars and lines, and the tables list its brightest stars and the deep-sky objects inside it.
Frequently asked questions
When is a constellation best seen?
When it is highest in a dark sky, which the page gives for the night you pick. Each constellation is best placed in a particular season, because the stars rise about four minutes earlier every night.
Why can I not see a constellation from my place?
Constellations far south of the celestial equator never rise from northern places, and those far north never rise from southern ones. The page says when this is the case.
What are the constellation boundaries?
The International Astronomical Union divides the sky into 88 areas with official boundaries. The stick figures are only a drawing aid, the boundaries say which constellation a point in the sky belongs to.
Related guides
- How to learn the constellationsStart with one bright pattern you cannot miss, use it as a signpost to its neighbours, and come back a month later: the sky will have turned, and you will know a little more of it.
- Altitude and azimuth: finding things in the skyTwo angles tell you exactly where to look: which direction, and how high.
- Light pollution and dark skies: the Bortle scaleFrom a city centre you can count a few dozen stars. From a truly dark site you can count a few thousand, with the Milky Way bright enough to cast a shadow. The Bortle scale puts a number on the difference.
- Binoculars for stargazing: what to buy and what to look atA pair of 7x50 or 10x50 binoculars shows the craters of the Moon, the moons of Jupiter, dozens of star clusters and the Andromeda Galaxy, for a fraction of the cost of a telescope.