- Abbreviation: Ori
- Engilish Meaning: the Great Hunter
- Right ascension: 5°
- Declination: +5°
- Area: 594 sq. deg.
- Visble Latitudes: between +85° and −75°.
- Best Viewing: During January at 21:00 (9 p.m.)
Stars:
- Stars in the system: 81
- Number of bright stars: 8
- Brightest star: Rigel (β Orionis) (0.12m)
- Nearest star: GJ 3379 (17.1 light years)
- Messier objects: 3
Meteor showers
- Orionids - This is a meteor shower that occurs when Earth passes through the dust from Halley's comet. It appears within the constellation Orion. The best viewing time is betwen October 15 and October 29. But maximum visibility occurs during the morning hours of October 20-22.
Bordering constellations
- Gemini
- Taurus
- Eridanus
- Lepus
- Monoceros
NOTE: The above photo of the constellation Orion shows, enlarged in their true color, the main "naked eye" stars that make up the shape of the constellation.
Here is a list of some of the best known stars in the Orion constellation
- Betelgeuse (Alpha Ori) It is located at its left shoulder and it is a giant red star. The star is larger than the orbit of Mars and is the second brightest star in Orion.
- Rigel (Beta Ori) located at the constellation's right knee, it is a large blue supergiant star and one of the brightest stars in the sky and the brightest star in Orion.
- Bellatrix (Gamma Ori) "warrior woman," is located at Orion's left shoulder.
- Mintaka (Delta Ori) one of the three stars that make up Orion's belt.
- Alnilam (Epsilon Ori) the second of three stars that make up Orion's belt
- Alnitak (Zeta Ori) the third of three stars that make up Orion's Belt.
- Saiph (Kappa Ori) located is at Orion's right knee.
- Hetsya is at the tip of Orion's sword.
Image Credit: Torsten Bronger.
Here is a list of the known Messier Objects in Orion:
- M42: The Great Orion Nebula (diffuse nebula)
- M43: Part of the Orion Nebula, de Mairan's Nebula (diffuse nebula)
- M78: A diffuse reflection nebula
Halley's Comet leaves plenty of dust behind as it travels through the solar system. As a result two meteor showers are the result of the Earth's passage through the dust trail. The first is the Eta Aqarids, and the second is the Orionid meteor shower. The point of origin for the Orionid meteors is located within the constellation Orion.
The Orionids are barely detectable on the beginning and ending dates Oct 15 through Oct 22. In the Northern Hemisphere will see around 20 meteors per hour at maximum, while observers in the Southern Hemisphere will see around 40 meteors per hour.
Image credit: http://meteorshowersonline.com/orionids.html