Orion (pronounced /ɒˈraɪən/), a constellation often referred to as The Hunter, is a prominent constellation, one of the largest and perhaps the best-known and most conspicuous in the sky[1]. Its brilliant stars are found on the celestial equator and are visible throughout the world. Its three prominent "belt" stars - three stars of medium brightness in the mid-section of this constellation - make this constellation easy to spot and globally recognized. From mid-northern latitudes, Orion is visible in the evening from October to early January and in the morning from late July to November.[2][3]
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 Australia, the belt and sword of Orion are sometimes called the Saucepan, because the stars of Orion's belt and sword resemble this kitchen utensil as seen from the Southern Hemisphere. Orion's Belt is called Drie Konings (Three Kings) by Afrikaans speakers in South Africa [4], and French les Trois Rois (the Three Kings) in Daudet's Lettres de Mon Moulin (1866). The appellation Driekoningen (the Three Kings) is also often found in 17th- and 18th-century Dutch star charts and seaman's guides.
Historically it has had other names, perhaps the earliest known is the Babylonian "Shepherd of Anu", corresponding to an apparent representation of the constellation Auriga or an element of it, as a shepherd's crook.
HISTORY
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). Orion will remain visible in the night sky for the next 1 to 2 million years, making it one of the longest observable constellations, 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 Sumerians 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 China, Orion was one of the 28 lunar mansions Sieu (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 Egyptians. 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. In archeoastronomy, Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval describe this arrangement as central to the Orion Correlation Theory or OCT.
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.
Stars in the Constellation
The constellation is extremely rich in bright stars and in deep-sky objects. Here are some of its stars. [5]
| Star | Magnitude | Open Clusters | Nebulae |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rigel | 0.12 | NGC 1981 | NGC 1976 |
| Betelgeuse | 0.5 | NGC 2175 | NGC 1982 |
| Bellatrix | 1.64 | Nil | NGC 2068 |
| Alnilam | 1.70 | Nil | IC 434 |
| Alnitak | 1.77 | Nil | Nil |
- 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.
In common with many other bright stars, the names Betelgeuse, Rigel, Saiph, Alnitak, Mintaka, Alnilam, Hatsya and Meissa originate from the Arabic language.
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