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."
Here we go with my beautiful boy Betelgeuse / Alpha Orionis! My man of honor and kindness <3 One of my favorite outcomes! Bellatrix should be the last of the 4 Orionis!
A new piece I did in a couple hours today.
I decided since it was nearly 3 years ago when I started this page, and one of the first things I posted was the star Betelgeuse, I would have to redraw it.
Anyhow, the Red Supergiant, Betelgeuse, Alpha Orionis, is a Ten Million year old Monster that takes the phrase "live fast, die young" pretty spectacularly literally, as giant stars do. The behemoth, the size of which means that if it were placed in our solar system, would extend out to the orbit of Jupiter, is at the end of it's life and is obviously barely held together. The surface resembles a walnut and appears almost to be boiling, many irregular bubbles forming and dissipating.
The fate of Betelgeuse and other stars of this enormous mass is it's explosive Death as a Type II Supernova, in which the star's core will experience a cataclysmic collapse into a Neutron Star or Black hole. This explosion will outshine all the stars in the galaxy briefly, and despite it's 640 lightyear distance from Earth, it will appear as though we have a second sun for a while.
PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE THE CAPTION. Thank you kindly.
Betelgeuse is the tenth-brightest star in the night sky, and the second brightest in Orion (after Rigel). This star is a massively large red supergiant, with a mass somewhere around 15 times that of our Sun, but a size around 700 times! Its name comes from the Arabic phrase Yad al-Jawzā’ meaning "the hand of al-Jawzā".
In the top left is Alpheratz (α Andromedae), the second-brightest star in Andromeda, the Chained Woman. It is a binary star system about 97 light years from Earth. The name comes from the Arabic phrase surrat al-faras meaning "navel of the horse."
In the top right is Betelgeuse (α Orionis), the second-brightest star in Orion, the Hunter. It is a solitary 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."
At the bottom left is Markab (α Pegasi), the third-brightest star in Pegasus, the Winged Horse. It is a solitary blue-white giant star about 133 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic word markab meaning "the saddle of the horse."
At the bottom right is Scheat (β Pegasi), the second-brightest star in Pegasus, the Winged Horse. It is a solitary red supergiant star about 196 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic phrase Al Sā'id meaning "the upper arm."
Read below the cut to learn more about the stars in this image!
Of course, the two brightest stars in Orion are Rigel (β Orionis) at the bottom right and Betelgeuse (α Orionis) at the top right.
Rigel is named after the Arabic word rijl, meaning "left leg". Indeed, it is the left leg of Orion. Rigel is a quadruple star system, with the primary being a blue supergiant star.
Betelgeuse is named after the Arabic phrase Yad al-Jawzā’, meaning "hand of Orion." Europeans misread the "y" sound as a "b" sound, leading to the modern name. Betelgeuse is a solitary red supergiant star.
In the middle of Orion is Orion's Belt, composed of three stars:
Alnilam (ε Orionis) is named after the Arabic phrase al-niẓām, meaning "string [of pearls]". It is a solitary blue supergiant star. It is the center star in the belt.
Alnitak (ζ Orionis) is named after the Arabic phrase an-niṭāq, meaning "the girdle." Alnitak is a triple star system, with the primary being a blue supergiant. It forms the left star in the belt.
Mintaka (δ Orionis) is named after the Arabic term manṭaqa, meaning "belt". Mintaka is a multiple star system with the primary being a blue supergiant. It forms the right star of the belt.
Other stars in Orion in this image include (from brightest to dimmest):
Bellatrix (γ Orionis), named after the Latin word bellātrix, meaning "female warrior." It is a solitary blue giant star.
Saiph (κ Orionis) comes from the Arabic phrase saif al jabbar, meaning "the saif [or sword] of the giant." Saiph is a solitary blue supergiant star.
η Orionis is a quadruple star system, with the all members being blue giant stars.
Meissa (λ Orionis) is named after the Arabic phrase Al-Maisan, meaning "the shining one." This is a multiple star system, with the primary being a blue giant star.
τ Orionis is a solitary blue giant star.
π5 Orionis is a binary star system, with the primary being a blue giant star.
Betelgeuse is a red supergiant star, about 15 times the mass and around 700 times the size of the Sun! This is large enough that Betelgeuse would swallow all of the inner planets of the solar system and much of the asteroid belt if placed where the Sun is! It is nearing the end of its lifetime, pushing out shells of its atmosphere, possibly as much as one Sun's-worth of mass every 10,000 years.
Its name comes from the Arabic phrase Yad al-Jawzā’ meaning "the hand of al-Jawzā' ", where al-Jawzā' was the name for what we know as Orion.
