Orion Constellation: Facts About the Hunter While the Orion constellation is named after the hunter in Greek mythology, it is anything but stealthy. Orion, which is located on the celestial equator, is one of the most prominent and recognizable constellations in the sky and can be seen throughout the world. Orion is the brightest and most beautiful of the winter constellations. Some of its stars, including Betelgeuse and Rigel, are among the brightest stars. Locating Orion the Hunter Orion is clearly visible in the night sky from November to February. Orion is in the southwest sky if you are in the Northern Hemisphere or the northwestern sky if you are in the Southern Hemisphere. It is best seen between latitudes 85 and -75 degrees. Its right ascension is 5 hours, and its declination is 5 degrees. Alnilam, Mintaka and Alnitak, which form Orion’s belt, are the most prominent stars in the Orion constellation. Betelgeuse, the second brightest star in Orion, establishes the right shoulder of the hunter. Bellatrix serves as Orions left shoulder. The Orion Nebula—a formation of dust, hydrogen, helium and other ionized gases rather than a star—is the middle star in Orion’s sword, which hangs off of Orions Belt. The Horsehead Nebula is also nearby. Other stars in the constellation include Hatsya, which establishes the tip of Orions sword that hangs off the belt, and Meissa, which forms Orions head. Saiph serves as Orions right knee. Rigel forms the hunters left knee. With one exception, all of the main stars in Orion are bright young blue giants or supergiants, ranging in distance from Bellatrix (243 light-years) to Alnilam (1,359 light-years). The Orion Nebula is farther away than any of the naked eye stars at a distance of about 1,600 light-years. One light-year is the distance light travels in a single year, about 6 trillion miles (10 trillion kilometers). The exception is the star Betelgeuse, which is a red giant and one of the largest stars known. It is also the only star in the sky large enough and close enough to have been imaged as a disk in the Hubble Space Telescope. Observers with a keen eye should be able to see the difference in color between Betelgeuse and all the other stars in Orion. [Space Photos: Orion Nebula & Other Stunning Views]
Posted on: Tue, 22 Jul 2014 10:36:23 +0000
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