#alnilam

[the-wolf-and-moon]

Alnitak, Alnilam, Mintaka, Orion's Belt

[quiltofstars]

The constellations of Orion, the Hunter, and Taurus, the Bull // Tryggve Dyrvik

Click below for an annotated image (that I painstakingly drew myself) and some etymology for the brightest stars in this image!

In the constellation of Orion, the Hunter:

Along Orion's Belt, we have:

Alnitak (ζ Orionis), a triple star system of blue giant stars. The system is about 1,260 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic word an-niṭāq meaning "the girdle."

Then we come to Alnilam (ε Orionis), a solitary blue supergiant star about 1,250 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic word al-niẓām meaning "arrangement."

Finally, we come to the quintuple star system Mintaka (δ Orionis), a series of blue giant stars about 1,246 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic word manṭaqa meaning "belt."

Forming the head and shoulders of Orion are three stars:

Betelgeuse (α Orionis), a red supergiant star about 500 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic phrase Yad al-Jawzā’ meaning "the hand of al-Jawzā".

Meissa (λ Orionis) is a binary star system consisting of a blue supergiant and a blue-white giant. The system is about 1,300 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic phrase Al-Maisan meaning "the shining one."

Bellatrix (γ Orionis) is a binary star system consisting of two blue supergiant stars. The system is about 250 light years from Earth. The name comes from the Latin word bellātrix meaning "female warrior."

In the constellation of Eridanus, the River:

Cursa (β Eridani) is a white-hued giant star about 90 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic phrase Al Kursiyy al Jauzah meaning "the chair of al-Jawzā".

In the constellation of Taurus, the Bull:

Prima Hyadum (γ Tauri) is a binary star system consisting of two yellow giant stars. The system is about 154 light years from Earth. The name is Latin for "first of the Hyades."

Secunda Hyadum (δ¹ Tauri) is a binary system consisting of two yellow giant stars. The system is about 156 light years from Earth. The name is Latin for "second of the Hyades."

Chamukuy (θ Tauri) is a quadruple star system consisting of a yellow supergiant and a white-hued giant star. The system is about 155 light years from Earth. The name refers to a small bird in the Maya language.

Ain (ε Tauri) is an orange giant star about 146 light years from Earth. The name comes from the Arabic word ain meaning "eye."

Aldebaran (α Tauri) is a binary system consisting of an orange giant star and a red dwarf. The system is about 67 light years from Earth. The name comes from the Arabic word al Dabarān meaning "the follower."

Tianguan (ζ Tauri) is a binary star system consisting of two blue giant stars. The system is about 440 light years from Earth. The name comes from the Chinese word meaning "celestial gate."

Elnath (β Tauri) is a solitary blue-white giant star about 134 light years from Earth. The name comes from the Arabic word an-naţħ meaning "the butting."

In the constellation of Auriga, the Charioteer:

Hassaleh (ι Aurigae) is an orange giant star that is about 450 light years from Earth. Its name was given to it by Czechoslovak astronomer Antonín Bečvář. We don't know what it means.

In the constellation of Gemini, the Twins:

Propus (η Geminorum) is a triple star system consisting of a red giant, a blue-white star, and a yellow giant. The system lies about 380 light years away. The name comes from the Greek word propus meaning "forward foot."

[aring-king-king]

[blasteffect]

Alnitak, Alnilam, Mintaka !

Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka are the bright bluish stars from east to west (upper right to lower left) along the diagonal in this cosmic vista. Otherwise known as the Belt of Orion, these three blue supergiant stars are hotter and much more massive than the Sun.

They lie from 700 to 2,000 light-years away, born of Orion's well-studied interstellar clouds. In fact, clouds of gas and dust adrift in this region have some surprisingly familiar shapes, including the dark Horsehead Nebula and Flame Nebula near Alnitak at the upper right.

The famous Orion Nebula itself is off the right edge of this colorful starfield. The telescopic frame spans almost 4 degrees on the sky.

Image Credit & Copyright: Aygen Erkaslan

[refuge-in-oblivion]

© NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

© Wikipedia, Pablo Carlos Budassi

© Aygen Erkaslan

© Alvaro Ibanez Perez

© Peter Bresseler

[fallengravityy]

The Stars of Orion

Had fun making them! Also mintaka my beloved, requested by a friend!

[writing-for-life]

My three sisters… 🥹 (iykyk)

[floraltelescopes]

Damn, forgot this blog existed… here’s what my new 70-200 Sony f/4 G OSS II lens can do in combination with my shitty Chinese star-tracker (it’s decent, just not made for 200mm), and an alyn Wallace msm V-wedge, followed by some hours in an image stacking software + lightroom. Pretty neat, actually. Mainly cause you can kinda see the horse head nebula!!

Almost worth the 7+ hours I spent in negative temperatures for three days in a row…