text: The stars of the night sky cannot be counted unaided because they are so numerous and there is no way to track which have been counted and which have not. Further complicating the count, fainter stars may appear and disappear depending on exactly where the observer is looking. The result is an impression of an extraordinarily vast star field.
  Because stargazing is best done from a dark place away from city lights, dark adaptation is important to achieve and maintain. It takes several minutes for eyes to adjust to the darkness necessary for seeing the most stars, and surroundings on the ground are hard to discern. A red flashlight can be used to illuminate star charts and telescope parts without undoing the dark adaptation.
  Constellations
  Star charts are produced to aid stargazers in identifying constellations and other celestial objects. Constellations are prominent because their stars tend to be brighter than other nearby stars in the sky. Different cultures have created different groupings of constellations based on differing interpretations of the more-or-less random patterns of dots in the sky. Constellations were identified without regard to distance to each star, but instead as if they were all dots on a dome.
  Orion is among the most prominent and recognizable constellations. The Big Dipper (which has a wide variety of other names) is helpful for navigation in the northern hemisphere because it points to Polaris, the north star.