Eyeball Astronomy - Orion Constellation

Looking up in the sky it is very easy to identify the moon. Outside of the moon, most can pick out the Big Dipper, Little Dipper, and Orion. All of these are visible without the aid of a telescope or binoculars. The easiest constellation to find is the Orion constellation. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, Orion is visible just after sunset in the southern sky during the winter. It is easily identified by the 3 stars in a row that make up the belt. The two feet are below the belt, and the two shoulders are up high in the southern sky. This paper describes all the elements of Orion that are visible with the naked eye. Remember the details of this and impress all your friends on the next clear night.

Look for three stars in a row, they make up the belt of Orion. The three stars from left to right are, Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka. Mintaka actually has a very close neighbor star, and with a telescope of moderate size they are both visible, however to the naked eye they appear as one large star. The stars in the belt are roughly 900 light years away.

Looking up from Alnitak is a very bright star, Betelgeuse. It is one of the largest known stars in the universe. In fact, if Betelgeuse was the center of our solar system instead of our sun, the Earth, Mars, and Jupiter would be located within the star. Betelgeuse is currently in a Red Super Giant phase and is estimated to be a little over 400 light years away.

Underneath Alnitak is the great Orion Nebula, also known as M42. The location of the nebula can easily be seen with the naked eye, however with a small telescope the cloud of the nebula can be easily seen. This nebula is one of the most photographed nebulas in existence and it is estimated to be roughly 1500 light years away.

Straight under Mintaka and at least 700 light years away from Earth is the bright star Rigel. It is also known as the left foot of Orion. Rigel is the brightest star in the Orion constellation and one of the brightest stars in the night sky.

The right foot of Orion is known as Saiph. It is located directly under M42 and Alnitak. The star is assumed to be a single star and is about 11 times the size and 15 times the mass of our sun. It has been calculated that Saiph is about 720 light years away from Earth.

Orion is one of the most fascinating and easily identifiable objects in the winter sky. From the obvious yellow color of Betelgeuse to the bright purples and blues of the Orion Nebula, Orion will be the favorite target of naked eye observers for generations to come.