The Real Reason The North Star Is So Important

Since Polaris stays in the same place, it's been used as a fixed point for wayfinding for centuries. The American Practical Navigator, published in 1802, lists Polaris as a navigational star and advised that locating it makes it easier to figure out the surrounding stars.

Sailors, Newsday reports, can use Polaris to figure out where they are. Sailors and pilots use a tool called a sextant to find their location in relation to Polaris, so if they're about 41 degrees from Polaris, they could be in New York City which is exactly 41 degrees north of the equator. Had Amelia Earhart studied celestial navigation, she may never have gotten lost in the first place.

Pilots are still encouraged to still learn how to navigate using the stars, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association says. While modern technology makes navigation easier, knowing how to navigate using the stars is a good emergency skill to have.

Though it has remained constant, the North Star might not stay at true north forever. The Earth's axis occasionally wobbles. Scientists estimate that in 13,000 years, per The Sun, the axis will wobble enough that north will point directly to another star, Vega, and Polaris will no longer hold the title of North Star.

While Polaris may not be our forever North, in a universe of unknowns, the idea of a star that remains constant In our sky is both useful and reassuring.

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