In 2022 Polaris' mean
declination was 89.35 degrees North; (at
epoch J2000 it was 89.26 degrees N). So it appears due north in the sky to a precision better than one degree, and the angle it makes with respect to the true horizon (after correcting for refraction and other factors) is within a degree of the latitude of the observer. The celestial pole will be nearest Polaris in 2100. However, at magnitude 3.67 (fourth magnitude) it is only one-fifth as bright as Polaris, and today it is invisible in
light-polluted urban skies. During the 1st millennium BC,
Beta Ursae Minoris (Kochab) was the bright star closest to the celestial pole, but it was never close enough to be taken as marking the pole, and the Greek navigator
Pytheas in ca. 320 BC described the celestial pole as devoid of stars. In the
Roman era, the celestial pole was about equally distant between Polaris and Kochab. The precession of the equinoxes takes about 25,770 years to complete a cycle. Polaris' mean position (taking account of
precession and
proper motion) will reach a maximum
declination of +89°32'23", which translates to 1657" (or 0.4603°) from the celestial north pole, in February 2102. Its maximum apparent declination (taking account of
nutation and
aberration) will be +89°32'50.62", which is 1629" (or 0.4526°) from the celestial north pole, on 24 March 2100. Precession will next point the north celestial pole at stars in the northern constellation
Cepheus. The pole will drift to space equidistant between Polaris and
Gamma Cephei ("Errai") by 3000 AD, with Errai reaching its closest alignment with the northern celestial pole around 4200 AD.
Iota Cephei and
Beta Cephei will stand on either side of the northern celestial pole some time around 5200 AD, before moving to closer alignment with the brighter star
Alpha Cephei ("Alderamin") around 7500 AD. Precession will then point the north celestial pole at stars in the northern constellation
Cygnus. Like Beta Ursae Minoris during the 1st millennium BC, the bright star closest to the celestial pole in the 10th millennium AD, first-magnitude
Deneb, will be a distant 7° from the pole, never close enough to be taken as marking the pole, The celestial pole will then return to the stars in constellation Draco (Thuban, mentioned above) before returning to the current constellation, Ursa Minor. When Polaris becomes the North Star again around 27,800 AD, due to its
proper motion it then will be farther away from the pole than it is now, while in 23,600 BC it was closer to the pole. Over the course of Earth's 26,000-year
axial precession cycle, a series of bright
naked eye stars (an
apparent magnitude up to +6; a
full moon is −12.9) in the
Northern Hemisphere will hold the transitory title of North Star. While other stars might line up with the north
celestial pole during the 26,000 year cycle, they do not necessarily meet the naked eye limit needed to serve as a useful indicator of north to an Earth-based observer, resulting in periods of time during the cycle when there is no clearly defined North Star. There will also be periods during the cycle when bright stars give only an approximate guide to "north", as they may be greater than 5° of
angular diameter removed from direct alignment with the north celestial pole. The 26,000 year cycle of North Stars, starting with the current star, with stars that will be "near-north" indicators when no North Star exists during the cycle, including each star's average brightness and closest alignment to the north celestial pole during the cycle: and
apsidal precession with four of the nearest northern pole stars over the course of millenia ==Southern pole star (South Star)==