It's now deep enough into summer to see the constellation Delphinus the dolphin, swimming in the night sky.

Every time I see the little dolphin, it reminds me of Flipper, the star of a 1960's TV show. In fact, the mythological story of Delphinus is very similar to that of his TV counterpart. Just like Flipper, Delphinus is considered a hero... but we'll get to his story a little later in this column. First, you'll have to find him.

Delphinus is a distinct constellation that actually looks like a dolphin and it's always a big hit with folks at my summer star parties.

You'll see the little dolphin in the low eastern sky by around 10:30 p.m. when it's finally dark enough. It's basically made up of four fairly dim stars forming a sideways diamond that make up the body of the dolphin and another equally dim star to the lower right of the diamond marking the tail. It's certainly not the brightest of constellations, but unless you're in an area of heavy light pollution, you should be able to see it without too much trouble.

A great way to find the little dolphin of the sky is to use the Summer Triangle. It is made up of the three brightest stars you can see in the eastern sky in the early evening, each in a separate constellation.

As you face east, the brightest and highest star is Vega, located in the constellation Lyra the Harp. To the lower left of Vega is Deneb in the constellation Cygnus the Swan. To the lower right of Vega is Altair in Aquila the Eagle.

It is from Altair that you start your quick search for Delphinus. Look about two fist-widths at arm's length to the left of Altair and you should see Delphinus leaping among the stars.

According to Greek mythology, our hero was placed in the heavens to commemorate the tale of Arion, the most

famous harp player in all Greece. Arion was on his yacht on his way back from a gig in Sicily. The crew couldn't help but notice all the treasure Arion was carrying, given to him by admiring Sicilian fans. The crew agreed to a mutiny where they would seize the ship, steal Arion's treasures and make him walk the plank. Their story, when they reached their homeport, was to claim that Arion accidentally fell overboard and drowned.

The sailors waited for just the right time to initiate their dastardly plan. On a quiet, starlit night, the mutiny broke out. Before he knew it, Arion was walking the plank on his own yacht. He begged his crew to allow him to play one more farewell tune on his harp.

The sailors decided to have mercy on Arion and let him play one last time. The great musician played and sang his heart out so beautifully that birds and dolphins gathered around the boat.

Arion extended his composition as long as he could but finally he came to the end of his song. As soon as he finished his last note he was kicked off the plank, harp and all. The admiring dolphins couldn't let him or his music die, so Delphinus, the biggest dolphin of the group, swam under Arion and lifted him out of the water. Arion then rode on the back of this dolphin all the way back to Greece with the other dolphins as escorts. They made it back to port before the ship of mutineers pulled in. When the boat of thugs arrived, Arion, the dolphins and the cops were waiting for them. The bad guys went to jail and the celestial music continues to this day.

The gods on Mount Olympus were so impressed with the heroic deeds of Delphinus that, after living a long life swimming the waters of the Mediterranean, they placed him in the celestial sea to be one of the wonderful summer constellations.

The little Dolphin is surely one of my stargazing heroes!

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