( and are visible throughout the world, making this constellation globally recognized. In the northern hemisphere Orion is visible in the evening from November to April.
According to the most common contemporary imagery:
Orion is standing next to the ''river''
Eridanus with his two ''hunting dogs''
Canis Major and
Canis Minor , fighting
Taurus ''the bull''. Other prey of his, such as
Lepus ''the
Hare '', can be found nearby.
There are other contemporary names for Orion. In "Shepherd of
Anu ", corresponding to an apparent representation of the constellation
Auriga or an element of it, as a ''shepherd's crook''.
The constellation is extremely rich in bright
Star s and in
Deep-sky Object s. Here are some of its stars.
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- λ Ori (Meissa) is Orion's head.
- α Ori ( Betelgeuse ), at its right shoulder, is a Red Star with a diameter larger than the orbit of Mars . Although it is the α-star, it is somewhat fainter than Rigel.
- γ Ori (Bellatrix), is at Orion's left shoulder.
- ζ Ori (Alnitak), ε Ori (Alnilam) and δ Ori (Mintaka) make up the Asterism known as Orion's Belt: three bright stars in a row; from these alone one can recognize Orion.
- η Ori (Eta Orionis), between Delta Orionis and Rigel .
- κ Ori (Saiph) is at Orion's right knee.
- β Ori ( Rigel ), at the constellation's left knee, is a large blue-white star, among the brightest in the sky. It has three companions, invisible to the naked eye.
- ι Ori (Hatsya) is at the tip of Orion's sword.
Orion is very useful in locating other stars. By extending the line of the Belt southeastward,
Sirius (α CMa) can be found; northwestward,
Aldebaran (α Tau). A line eastward across the two shoulders indicates the direction of
Procyon (α CMi). A line from Rigel through Betelgeuse points to
Castor and
Pollux (α Gem and β Gem). Additionally, Rigel is part of the
Winter Circle . Sirius and Procyon, which may be located from Orion by tracing lines, also are points in both the
Winter Triangle and the Circle.
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See also the
List Of Stars In Orion .
Hanging from Orion's belt is his sword, consisting of the multiple stars θ1 and θ2 Orionis, called
Trapezium and the
Orion Nebula (M42). This is a spectacular object which can be clearly identified with the naked eye as something other than a star; using binoculars, its swirling clouds of nascent stars, luminous gas, and dust can be observed.
Another famous nebula is
IC 434, the
Horsehead Nebula , near ζ Orionis. It contains a dark dust cloud whose shape gives the nebula its name.
Besides these nebulae, surveying Orion with a small
Telescope will reveal a wealth of interesting deep sky objects, including
Barnard's Loop ,
M43 ,
M78 and the
Flame Nebula (NGC 2024).
All of these nebulae are part of the larger
Orion Molecular Cloud Complex which is located approximately 1,500 light-years away and is hundreds of light-years across. It is one of the most intense regions of stellar formation visible in our galaxy.
Alnitak (Alnilam),
δ Ori (Mintaka)]'', which form a straight line, commonly known as the Orion Belt. The word Alnitak originates from the Arabs.
The
Qibla , direction of
Kaaba , where Muslims pray towards to can be determined by using the Orion. Unfortunately, this can only be applied in
Singapore .
To determine, draw an imaginary straight line, joining all the 3 stars (Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka) and draw the line (towards Aldebaran) all the way until it touches the horizon. From the picture on the left, the line drawn is towards Aldebaran (dark blue) not towards Sirius. From there, we could find the Qibla direction.
The configurations of the constellation Orion roughly formed about 1.5 million years ago, because of relative slow movements of stars within the constellation from earth's perspective (especially the belt of Orion), constellation Orion will remain visible in the night sky for the next 1 to 2 million years, making the constellation one of the longest observable constellation parallel to the rise of human civilization.
Being so bright and distinctive, the pattern of stars that forms Orion was recognized as a coherent constellation by many ancient civilizations, though with different representations and mythologies.
The ancient
Sumer ians saw this star pattern as forming part of an image of a shepherd (sometimes in a chariot) with his sheep and in some versions a shepherd's crook, while in
Ancient China , Orion was one of the 28
Zodiac signs ''Xiu'' (宿). Known as ''Shen'' (參), literally meaning "three", it is believed to be named so for the three stars located in Orion's belt. (See
Chinese Constellation )
The stars were associated with
Osiris , the god of death and underworld, by the
Ancient Egyptian s. The
Giza Pyramid Complex , which consists of the
Great Pyramid Of Giza , the
Pyramid Of Khafre and the
Pyramid Of Menkaure , is said to be a sky-map of the Belt of Orion, that is, of Osiris.
References in ancient Middle Eastern and Mediterranean literature to the "belt and sword" imagery of Orion are those most often echoed in modern western literature and for this reason this imagery has found its way into popular western culture, for example in the form of the shoulder
Insignia of the
27th Infantry Division of the
United States Army during both World Wars, probably owing to a pun on the name of the division's first commander, Major General
John F. ''O'Ryan'' .
Around October 21 each year the famous
Orionid Meteor Shower reaches its peak. Coming from the border to the constellation Gemini as much as 20 meteors per hour can be seen. More information about this meteor shower and the
Chi Orionids , which are active around the beginning of December can be found in the meteor shower calendar by
Gary Kronk .
's
Uranometria , courtesy of the
US Naval Observatory Library]]
See Also: Orion (mythology)
/
Scorpius . Yet other stories say Orion was chasing the
Pleiades .
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The nearby constellations of
Canis Major and
Canis Minor are visualized in some myths as Orion's hunting dogs.
It may be that the naming of the constellation precedes the mythology in this case. It has been suggested that Orion is named from the
Akkadia n
Uru-anna , the light of heaven, the name then passing into Greek mythology. As such, the myth surrounding Orion may derive simply from the relative positions of the constellations around it in the sky.
In some depictions, Orion appears to be composed of three bodies, having three arms
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Zodiac sign of
Gemini (i.e. the
Milky Way , the deserted area now considered as the constellations
Camelopardalis and
Lynx , and the constellations
Gemini ,
Auriga , and
Canis Major ), this may be the origin of the myth of the cattle of
Geryon , which forms one of
The Twelve Labours of
Herakles .
In pre-Christian
Scandinavia , the "Orion's belt" portion of the constellation was known as
Frigg 's
Distaff (''Friggerock'') or
Freyja 's distaffSchön, Ebbe. (2004). ''Asa-Tors hammare, Gudar och jättar i tro och tradition''. Fält & Hässler, Värnamo. p. 228..
In
Finnish Mythology the constellation of Orion is called the scythe of
Väinämöinen . The term most likely comes from the fact it can be seen in the sky in early autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, the time of haymaking.
In ancient
Aram , the constellation was known as ''Nephila'', Orion's ''descendants'' were known as ''
Nephilim ''''Peake's commentary on the Bible''.
The constellation is mentioned in
Horace 's ''
Ode s'',
Homer 's ''
Odyssey '' and ''
Iliad '', and
Virgil 's ''
Aeneid ''.
The 5:8.
The .
1
Orion is also important in
Australian Aboriginal Astronomy . For example, the
Yolngu people of
Arnhem Land say that the constellation of Orion, which they call Julpan, is a canoe. They tell the story of two brothers who went fishing, and caught and ate a fish that was forbidden under their law. Seeing this, the
Sun sent a waterspout that carried the two brothers and their canoe up into the sky where they became the Orion constellation.
In Indian Mythology, the constellation is known as 'Vyadh', which also means The Hunter.
- Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion (2007). ''Collins Stars and Planets Guide'', HarperCollins, London. ISBN 978-0007251209.
