Behold, directly overhead, a certain strange star was suddenly seen...
Amazed, and as if astonished and stupefied, I stood still.

— Tycho Brahe

Ceres

Asteroid Ceres - for you folks with computer operated Scopes!

This may be of some help in sighting the asteroid Ceres

On the page is a link to daily
ephemerides. You need a star chart
with fainter stars in the vicinity
to be really sure that you have
found it. Then if you look again
on a succeeding night, it will have
moved relative to the stars, another
confirmation.