Of all the fantastical beasts, perhaps the most famous and fearsome is the dragon. Therefore, you might expect that the constellation Draco, the Dragon, would be bright and prominent. Instead, its stars shine meekly, and the figure's complicated curves are hard to follow. There is, however, one section that is conspicuous: the Dragon's head. This part of Draco stands out because it's a compact, geometric asterism and located near Vega, the summer sky's brightest star. The head of the Dragon forms a large right triangle with Vega and Deneb, two of the three stars (along with Altair) comprising the Summer Triangle. Draco's head is also the northern point of a nearly equilateral triangle that includes Vega and another, less obvious summer asterism, the Keystone of Hercules.
展开▼