Canis Major is a star located in the southern sky. The name means the greater dog. In Latin the Canis Major represents the bigger dog following Orion the mythical hunter. Canis Major was catalogued by Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd Century. The constellation is home to Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. The constellation represents one of the two dogs the other is the Canis Minor. The constellation Canis Major occupies an area of 380 square degrees and contains three stars with known planets. The star is quite significant in many different cultures. The Romans used to sacrifice a brown dog at the beginning of the “Dog Days,” when the Dog Star rose just before or simultaneously with the Sun. In ancient Egypt, the star was used as a flood warning because it appeared just before the season of the Nile’s flooding. The name Sirius itself derives from the Greek word “seirios,” meaning glowing, searing or scorching.

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