To use this map, cut it out and attach it to a stiff backing. Hold it over your head and line up the compass points on the map's horizon to the actual direction you're facing. East and west on this map are not backwards. This is not a misprint. I guarantee that when you hold this map over your head, east and west will be in their proper positions. Also use a small flashlight and attach a red piece of cloth or red construction paper over the lens of the flashlight. You won't lose your night vision when you look at this map in red light.

You need to get your rest if you want to seriously stargaze this time of year. It's not truly dark enough until after 11 p.m. but a summer night under the stars is well worth missing a few winks, especially if you're out away from city lights, maybe out camping or at a cabin.

But even if you're not vacationing, you usually don't have to drive out all that far to escape urban light pollution.

Cut out this star map and take it with you. Have snacks and liquid refreshments of your choice available also. Having friends and family along is wonderful, but stargazing can also be a wonderful soulful solitary experience, one that'll stay with you. Unfortunately along with the stars, the mosquitoes want to be your friends too, so make sure you bring the bug juice. It's the summer stargazer's best friend!

The brightest star you'll see as you drive off from the fireworks is actually the planet Jupiter, hovering above the south-southwestern sky. It's now the only planet still visible in the evening sky after the barrage of planets we could see over the past few months. With even a pair of binoculars or a small telescope, you should be able see up to four of Jupiter's moon and some of the brighter horizontal cloud bands that stripe Jupiter, especially around the equator of the giant 88,000-mile diameter planet.

Our Earth is only 8,000 miles wide. Jupiter and the Earth are starting to put some distance between each other, but the Jovian giant is still relatively close at 457 million miles. Believe me, that's pretty close for Jupiter.

Over in the low western sky, look for the constellation Leo the Lion, a constellation that resembles a giant backward question mark leaning over to the right. The star at the bottom of the celestial query mark is Regulus, the brightest star in Leo. Regulus marks the heart of the lion and the rest of the question mark outlines the lion's beastly head.

Another bright shiner in the western half of the sky is Arcturus, the brightest star of the summer sky. At twilight's end it is perched high in the western sky at the tail of a giant kite. That kite is more formally known as the constellation Bootes, the hunting farmer. How the kite is supposed to be a hunting farmer is anyone's guess. Arcturus is a giant star, almost 60 million miles in diameter and more than 36 light-years distant, with one light-year equivalent to about 6 trillion miles.

In the eastern heavens, you'll see the prime stars of summer on the rise. As we move through July, they'll be a little higher at the start of each night as the Earth in its orbit passes in their direction. The best way for finding your way around the summer stars is to locate the "Summer Triangle" made up of a three bright stars, the brightest in each of their respective constellations. You can't miss them. They're the brightest stars in the east right now.

The highest and brightest star is Vega, the bright star in a small faint constellation called Lyra the harp. The second brightest star on the lower right is Altair, the brightest in Aquila the Eagle. Altair is one corner of a diamond that outlines the wingspan of the great bird. The third brightest at the left corner of the summer triangle is Deneb, a star more than 3,000 light-years away. It's also the bright star in at the tail of Cygnus the Swan. Cygnus is also known as the "Northern Cross" because that's what it really looks like. Deneb is at the head of the Northern Cross that is presently laying on its side as it rises in the east.

In the northern sky, look for the Big Dipper hanging from its handle in the northwestern sky with the fainter Little Dipper standing on its handle with Polaris, the North Star, at the end of the handle. Every single thing in the sky revolves around Polaris every 24 hours.

In the low southern sky there's a bright brick red star called Antares that marks the heart of Scorpio the Scorpion, one of those few constellation that actually resembles what it's supposed to be. More on the great beast Scorpio in a couple of weeks!

Mike Lynch is an amateur astronomer and professional broadcast meteorologist for WCCO Radio in Minneapolis and author of the book, "Pennsylvania Starwatch," available at bookstores and at his Web site www.lynchandthestars.com