Auriga: the five corners of a pentagonDot the five corners and join them in a ring. Capella is the brightest star of the constellation.
Boötes: seven main stars called the KiteSeven main stars in a pattern likened to a kite or an ice cream cone. Arcturus is the brightest: dot it largest.
Cancer: four stars for the crab's shellGamma, Delta, Eta and Theta Cancri make a four-sided shell. Tarf, the brightest star, is not one of them.
Canis Minor: two stars and a single lineThe plainest of all: two main stars joined by one line. Procyon is the brighter of the two.
Cassiopeia: a five-star zigzag shaped like a WDot five stars in a wide zigzag and join them in order, end to end. Schedar is the brightest.
Corona Borealis: seven stars for a crownSeven main stars. The brightest form a semicircular arc: dot them in a half ring. Alphecca is the brightest.
Cygnus: nine main stars around a crossStart with the Northern Cross, its five brightest stars. A chart gives the other four. Deneb is the brightest.
Show all 57 constellations (50 more)
Northern sky, continued
Delphinus: a small diamond and one more starFive main stars. The four brightest make a diamond nicknamed Job's Coffin. Rotanev is the brightest.
Draco: seventeen main stars, head firstStart at the head with Eltanin, the brightest, Grumium and Rastaban. Follow a star chart for the body.
Gemini: two lines down from Castor and PolluxEight main stars. Two lines of stars run side by side from the two bright ones. Pollux is the brighter.
Hercules: fourteen main stars around the KeystoneStart with the Keystone, the four central stars, then copy the limbs from a chart. Kornephoros is brightest.
Leo: the Sickle and a triangleNine stars. Six make the Sickle, like a backwards question mark, and three make a triangle. Regulus is brightest.
Orion: four corner stars and three across the middleRigel, Betelgeuse, Bellatrix and Saiph are the corners and three belt stars cross the middle. Rigel is brightest.
Pegasus: nine main stars, the Great Square firstStart with the Great Square, the body of the winged horse. A chart gives the rest. Enif is the brightest.
Pisces: start with the CircletEighteen main stars. Start with the Circlet, a ring of stars in the western fish. Alpherg is the brightest.
Sagitta: four stars in the shape of an arrowThe four brightest stars make an arrow shape, due north of Altair. Telum, the brightest, marks the arrowhead.
Taurus: a V for the Bull's FaceNineteen main stars. Start with the V of the Bull's Face. Aldebaran, the brightest, is the bull's red eye.
Triangulum: a triangle of three main starsThree dots and three lines. The name means the triangle. Alaybasan is the brightest.
Ursa Major: the Big Dipper and the rest of the bearTwenty main stars in the full figure. Three pairs of stars mark three of the bear's paws. Alioth is brightest.
Ursa Minor, the Little Dipper: seven starsSeven main stars in the shape of a ladle. Polaris, the North Star, is the brightest and ends the handle.
Southern sky 15
Aquarius: ten main stars and a small YFour of the ten make a Y called the Water Jar. Sadalsuud is the brightest.
Capricornus: a triangle of brighter starsNine main stars. The brighter ones lie on a triangle, with Deneb Algedi, the brightest, at one corner.
Centaurus: eleven main starsStart with its two bright stars Rigil Kentaurus and Hadar, the Southern Pointers. A chart gives the other nine.
Corona Australis: six stars in a horseshoeSix main stars in a pattern described as horseshoe-shaped or oval. Meridiana and Alqubba are its two brightest.
Corvus: four stars known as the SailFour main stars joined into a four-sided shape. Two of them, Gamma and Delta, point toward Spica. Gienah is brightest.
Crux, the Southern Cross: four bright starsDot the four ends of a cross and join the opposite pairs with two lines. Acrux is the brightest.
Hydra: seventeen main stars, head firstStart with the Snake Head, six stars at the western end, then follow a chart. Alphard is the brightest.
Hydrus: three main starsThree dots make a triangle whichever way they are joined. The name means the lesser water snake.
Lepus: eight main stars, a four-sided shape firstAlpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta Leporis make a four-sided shape. A chart gives the other four. Arneb is the brightest.
Libra: four stars in a four-sided shapeThe brightest stars make a four-sided shape: two for the balance beam, two for the pans. Zubeneschamali is brightest.
Musca: six main stars, a bowl with a handleThe brightest stars make a bowl with a handle, as in Ursa Minor. The name means the fly. Alpha Muscae is brightest.
Sagittarius: start with the TeapotTwelve main stars by one count. Five of the Teapot's stars make a ladle, the Milk Dipper. Kaus Australis is brightest.
Scorpius: a great hook with AntaresEighteen main stars in a pattern like a big hook or a capped J. Antares is the brightest.
Triangulum Australe: three stars in a triangleThree main stars and three lines. The name means the southern triangle. Atria is the brightest.
Virgo: a Y that ends at SpicaNine main stars. Five of them make a bowl, and with Spica, the brightest, they form a Y.
Star patterns, not constellations 22
The Big Dipper: a bowl of four and a handle of threeSeven bright stars of Ursa Major. Dot the bowl as a box of four, then add the handle of three.
The Coathanger: ten stars, six of them in a rowTen stars in Vulpecula. Six make a straight row and the other four give the pattern its nickname.
The Diamond Cross: four stars of CarinaFour stars that form a diamond. Dot the four points and join them around the outside.
The False Cross: a diamond of fourAlsephina, Markeb, Avior and Aspidiske: two stars from Vela and two from Carina, in a diamond.
The Great Diamond: four stars and two trianglesArcturus, Spica, Denebola and Cor Caroli. A line from Arcturus to Denebola splits it into two triangles.
The Great Square of Pegasus: four named starsMarkab, Scheat, Algenib and Alpheratz. Four dots joined into one big four-sided shape, the horse's body.
Kemble's Cascade: a straight chain of more than 20More than 20 faint stars in a nearly straight line, in Camelopardalis. Dot them small, in one long row.
The Keystone: four stars in the middle of HerculesEpsilon, Zeta, Eta and Pi Herculis. Four dots joined into a single four-sided shape.
The Lozenge: a small diamond at Draco's headEltanin, Grumium and Rastaban in the head of Draco, with one star from the foot of Hercules.
The Northern Cross: five stars of CygnusDeneb is the head of the cross. Sadr, Aljanah, Delta Cygni and Albireo are the other four.
Orion's Belt: Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka in a rowThree bright stars in the middle of Orion. Three dots and one line make the whole pattern.
The Pleiades: a tight knot of six or sevenA star cluster in Taurus, also called the Seven Sisters. Its brightest six or seven are easy to see by eye.
The Pointers: two stars that aim at PolarisThe two stars at the end of the Big Dipper's bowl. A line through them leads on to Polaris.
The Saucepan: Orion's Belt with a hanging handleThe three Belt stars of Orion in a row, and the Sword hanging from them: a shorter line of three, the handle.
The Sickle: six stars like a backwards question markSix stars of Leo. Regulus, the brightest star of Leo, is one of the six.
The Snake Head: six stars at one end of HydraDelta, Epsilon, Zeta, Eta, Rho and Sigma Hydrae, at the western end. Join them in a ring for the head.
The Southern Pointers: two stars beside the CrossRigil Kentaurus and Hadar. They lead to the Southern Cross and tell it apart from the False Cross.
The Spring Triangle: Arcturus, Regulus and SpicaThree stars from three constellations. Dot them wide apart and join them.
The Summer Triangle: Vega, Deneb and AltairThree corners, each the brightest star of its own constellation: Lyra, Cygnus and Aquila.
Three Leaps of the Gazelle: three pairs in a rowSix stars of Ursa Major in three pairs, pictured as hoof prints. Dot the pairs along one line.
The Winter Hexagon: six bright stars in a ringRigel, Aldebaran, Capella, Pollux, Procyon and Sirius, joined in that order into an uneven hexagon.
The Winter Triangle: Betelgeuse, Sirius and ProcyonThree first-magnitude stars. Dot them large and join them with three lines.
How this list was compiled: Original list written for Draw This Next on 2026-10-02: 57 constellations and star patterns to draw as dots and lines, sorted by sky (the northern half, the southern half, and star patterns that are not constellations) and by how many stars they need. The wording and the drawing hints are our own. Every count, star name and shape was read on 2026-10-02 from the English Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org; text free to reuse under CC BY-SA 4.0): the number of main stars from each constellation's own article; each constellation's brightest star and the meaning of its name from the list IAU designated constellations and from the constellation's article (the spelling Zubeneschamali and the two brightest stars of Corona Australis follow the articles Libra and Corona Australis); the northern or southern half of the sky from the list IAU designated constellations by solid angle; the named patterns and the stars in them from Asterism (astronomy) and from the articles Big Dipper, Ursa Minor, Orion (constellation), Leo (constellation), Gemini (constellation), Capricornus, Scorpius, Sagittarius (constellation), Delphinus, Corvus (constellation), Corona Australis, Corona Borealis, Boötes, Sagitta, Musca, Lepus (constellation), Libra (constellation), Crux, Cygnus (constellation), Summer Triangle, Winter Hexagon, Northern Cross (asterism), Brocchi's Cluster, Kemble's Cascade and Pleiades. Easy means seven stars or fewer, Medium eight to ten, Hard eleven or more. Where an article gives two counts for a fuller figure, the one used is said in the hint. Every pattern here has a shape, or a part to start from, that those articles describe; where they describe only part of a figure the hint says that a star chart gives the rest. A constellation whose shape they do not describe is not on the list (Aries, Lyra and Andromeda among them), and the zodiac constellations stand under their half of the sky as star patterns only. The lines between stars are tradition; officially a constellation is a region of sky. Licence: own work
How it works
Fifty-seven constellations and star patterns to draw as dots and lines, each with the number of stars to dot and the shape they make. The page opens on the easy ones: seven stars or fewer.
Read the full guide
Dots first, then lines
Dot the stars before you join anything, and make the brightest one the biggest dot. Canis Minor is the least there is: two stars and one line. Orion's Belt is three dots in a row, and Crux is two crossing lines.
Star patterns that are not constellations
The Big Dipper, the Summer Triangle and the Great Square of Pegasus are star patterns inside or across constellations, and most are plainer to draw than the constellations themselves. Choose Any level under the button for all 57. Most of the 10 marked Hard have too many stars to place from words: the hint names where to start and a star chart gives the rest.
White gel pen or chalk on dark paper, or pencil dots on white.
Join the dots with a ruler, and write the name underneath.
Questions and answers
What is the easiest constellation to draw?
Canis Minor: two main stars and one line. Next come Triangulum, Triangulum Australe and Hydrus with three stars each, then Cassiopeia, five stars in a W, and Crux, four stars in a cross.
How many stars are in the Big Dipper?
Seven: four make the bowl and three make the handle. They are seven bright stars of Ursa Major, so the Big Dipper is a star pattern inside a constellation, not a constellation itself.
Are the lines part of a constellation?
No. Officially a constellation is a region of sky with boundaries, and the 88 of them cover the whole sky. The lines between the stars are tradition, and charts do not all join the stars the same way.
Which constellations can I draw from the southern sky?
Southern sky, under More filters, holds 15, among them Crux, Corvus, Triangulum Australe and Corona Australis, six stars in a horseshoe. The Southern Pointers and the False Cross are southern star patterns.