<P> The second method uses Canopus (the second - brightest star in the sky) and Achernar . Make a large equilateral triangle using these stars for two of the corners . The third imaginary corner will be the south celestial pole . If Canopus has not yet risen, the second - magnitude Alpha Pavonis can also be used to form the triangle with Achernar and the pole . </P> <P> The third method is best for a moonless and cloudless night as it uses two faint' clouds' in the southern sky . These are marked in astronomy books as Large and Small Magellanic Clouds . These' clouds' are actually galaxies close to our own Milky Way . Make an equilateral triangle, the third point of which is the south celestial pole . </P> <P> A line from Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, through Canopus, the second - brightest, continued for the same distance lands within a couple of degrees of the pole . In other words, Canopus is halfway between Sirius and the pole . </P>

Where does the north celestial pole appear in your sky