The star, Dubhe (Alpha Ursae Majoris), one of the seven bright stars composing the Big Dipper of the constellation Ursa Major (Great Bear), is designated as the state centennial star (Utah Code). Dubhe differs from other stars in the Big Dipper by having an orange hue. The bill was sponsored by Representative Marda Dillree (R-Farmington). It was signed into law by Governor Mike Leavitt.

According to an article in the Salt Lake Tribune, January 22,1996, the star Dubhe (pronounced dŭb’ē, rhymes with tubby) in the Big Dipper was named the state centennial star because the light emitted from the star takes 100 years to reach us and, of course, 1996 was Utah’s Centennial. Dubhe’s 100 year light distance means it is 588 trillion miles from Earth. Another interesting note: Polaris, the brightest star in Ursa Minor (Little Dipper) can be easiest found by using Merak and Dubhe in Ursa Major as pointers. A fact sheet about the bill from the Hansen Planetarium (now the Clarke Planetarium), Looking Around: Utah’s Centennial Stars, gave the following reasoning for this designation. 

“Consider the light that currently comes to us from this star! Since it started traveling toward us from Dubhe when Utah became a state, the steadily arriving beam that we see from night to night, month to month and year to year, can be thought of as unveiling our state’s history. The flow of light will not end, so we can let the star be a symbol of the future as well as the past: for the next hundred years, the beam from Dubhe can symbolize our first century of statehood, but the beam that leaves the star now symbolizes our continuing, never-ending development. From this year on, Utah’s centennial star can help us remember who we are and what we want to become.“

When asked if the state really needed a state star and astronomical symbol, Representative Marda Dillree (R-Farmington), sponsor of the bill, suggested that perhaps not, but Utah has a diverse population with a multitude of interests.

The Beehive Cluster is the official state centennial astrological symbol.