Legend

Cancer represents a crab that played a small role in the story of Hercules whose stepmother, the goddess Hera, was his mortal enemy. Hera sent the crab to try to distract Hercules who was battling the dread Hydra. The crab grabbed on to Hercules' toe with its claws, but Hercules just shook him off and crushed him underfoot. To thank the crab for its brave attempt, Hera placed it in the sky.

If you're lucky enough to live in a place with dark skies, try looking at the middle star of Cancer on a really dark night. You might start to notice a haze of light nearby. This is an open cluster of stars known as Praesepe, or the Beehive Cluster. It will look even better with binoculars or a small telescope.

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