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What are dragons? |
Dragons are animals that you’ll only find in stories, TV shows, movies, games, and in people’s imaginations. That’s because they aren’t real. They are myths, which means they are parts of stories and legends that are very old and get passed down through generations of people!
Usually dragons look like big lizards or snakes. They often fly with bat-like wings and can even breathe fire! In European legends, dragons are usually monsters. They attack villages, kidnap princesses, and knights usually have to fight them with swords! Dragons make up some of the oldest action stories!
Not all dragons are monsters though. The Chinese dragon and other dragons from Eastern Asia are actually signs of good luck! So, it all depends where the dragon legend comes from. Since a dragon is imaginary, it can be anything in a person’s imagination!
The original stories about dragons may have come from ancient people discovering dinosaur bones or fossils of other large prehistoric animals. Imagine what stories you might come up with if you found some giant animal bones but you didn’t know about dinosaurs!
Finding a Dragon!
Dragons may be hard to find on Earth, but there’s one you have a good chance of finding in the stars! There is a constellation, a shape made from connecting stars, called Draco. The name means “dragon.” Most constellations take the shape of animals or people. The big dipper and little dipper are actually bears! Draco is a dragon, and you can find it pretty easily if you live north of the equator.
The North Star is part of the little dipper. See if you can find that first. Draco is a constellation that twists and wraps around the little dipper. It’s visible in the night sky pretty much all year! See if you can find it. The “Draco the Dragon” link below will help get you started.
