Sky Excitement for January 2024

Something to look forward to next week.

Orion’s Belt  (my personal favorite)

Orion’s Belt is one of the oldest constellations.  It consists of three stars: from east to west, they are Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka. Separately, these three supergiant stars are several times more massive than the sun, and thousands or tens of thousands of times brighter.  Orion’s two brightest stars, Rigel (β) and Betelgeuse (α), are both among the brightest stars in the night sky; both are supergiants and slightly variable.
The belt is significant in various cultures and has been used for navigation and timekeeping. In ancient Egyptian mythology, the belt was associated with the god Osiris, while in Greek mythology, it was linked to the figure of Orion the Hunter, son of Poseidon.

 

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