What do we know about orion

One of those planets is a giant gas world three times more massive than Jupiter. Just think of all the worlds you may be seeing when you look up at the night sky! Though we may never detect it, because no light can escape black holes, making them invisible.

However, space telescopes with special instruments can help find black holes. They can observe the behavior of material and stars that are very close to black holes, helping scientists find clues that can lead them closer to discovering some of these most bizarre and fascinating objects in the cosmos.

Let them guide you to some of the most incredible and mysterious objects of the cosmos — young stars, brilliant nebulae, new worlds, star systems, and even galaxies! Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space! If we could zoom waaaay out, we would see that galaxies and galaxy clusters make up large, fuzzy threads, like the strands of a giant cobweb.

But our solar system is more than just planets; it also has a lot of smaller objects. An asteroid belt circles the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. Beyond Neptune is a doughnut-shaped region of icy objects called the Kuiper Belt. Scientists think that even farther out lies the Oort Cloud , also a likely source of comets.

This most distant region of our solar system is a giant spherical shell storing additional icy space debris the size of mountains, or larger! The outer edge of the Oort Cloud extends to about 1.

There are even interstellar objects that have entered the inner solar system from even farther than the Oort Cloud, perhaps coming all the way from another star! The brightest and most massive stars are found in the spiral arms, close to their birth places. Dimmer, less massive stars can be found sprinkled throughout the disk. Also found throughout the spiral arms are dense clouds of gas and dust called nebulae. The Sun lies in a small spiral arm called the Orion Spur. The halo is dotted with globular clusters of old stars and filled with dark matter.

Our galaxy also has several orbiting companion galaxies ranging from about 25, to 1. The Milky Way and Andromeda , our nearest neighboring spiral galaxy, are just two members of a small group of galaxies called the Local Group. They and the other members of the group, 50 to 80 smaller galaxies, spread across about 10 million light-years.

The Local Group lies at the outskirts of an even larger structure. It is just one of at least groups and clusters of galaxies that make up the Virgo Supercluster. This cluster of clusters spans about million light-years! We also find hot gas, as shown above in the bright X-ray light in pink that surrounds the galaxies in optical light of cluster Abell , which is a picturesque member of a different supercluster.

Plus, there is dark matter throughout the cluster that is only detectable through its gravitational interactions with other objects. The Virgo Supercluster is just one of many, many other groups of galaxies. For more than two decades, astronomers have been mapping out the locations of galaxies, revealing a filamentary, web-like structure. This large-scale backbone of the cosmos consists of dark matter laced with gas. Galaxies and clusters form along this structure, and there are large voids in between.

Our tiny planet is a small speck on a crumb of that giant cosmic web! Want to learn even more about the structures in the universe? Check out our Cosmic Distance Scale! Alnilam is an Alpha Cygni variable star, its brightness varies from magnitude 1. Alnilam is around , times brighter than our Sun, being more than 30 times bigger, and having around 4.

Alnilam is located at around 1, light-years away from us. It illuminates a molecular cloud that surrounds it, NGC Alnitak , designated as Zeta Orionis, is a triple star system. The primary star, Alnitak, is the 5 th brightest star in Orion, and the 31 st brightest star in the night sky. It is located at around 1, light-years away from us. Alnitak is a blue supergiant star with an apparent magnitude of 2.

Alnitak is , times brighter than our Sun, having around 33 solar masses, and a radius of around 20 times that of the Sun.

Saiph is a supergiant star slightly variable star of magnitude 2. It is a supernova candidate that will explode in the near future. Saiph has around Saiph is hotter than Rigel, having average surface temperatures of around 26, K. Meissa, designated as Lambda Orionis, is the eight-brightest star in Orion, having an apparent magnitude of 3.

Meissa is a multiple star system located at around 1, light-years away from us. The primary star, Meissa, is a giant star which is , times brighter than our Sun. It has around This star is the dominant member of a 5-million-year-old-star forming region known as the Collinder 69 cluster. The ultraviolet energy radiating from Meissa is creating the Sh H II region in the neighboring volume of space.

Mu Orionis marks the elbow, Nu and Xi mark the handle of the club, and Chi 1 and Chi 2 mark the end of the club. East of Chi 1 is the Mira-type variable red giant star — U Orionis.

Orion is often used to locate other stars. Northwestward, the star Aldebaran can be found, which is the brightest star in the constellation of Taurus. A line eastward across the two shoulders of Orion, marked by Bellatrix and Betelgeuse, indicates the direction of Procyon , the brightest star in the constellation of Canis Minor.

A line extended from Rigel through Betelgeuse points towards Castor and Pollux , the brightest stars of the Gemini constellation. Rigel, Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, and Alnilam are the navigational stars of the Orion constellations, selected due to their brightness and since they are easily recognizable. Among the most common deep-sky objects in the constellation of Orion, are the nebulae. Apart from the aforementioned Messier nebulae, here are some other deep-sky objects located in Orion.

However, there are other amazing nebulae in Orion. The Horsehead Nebula, also known as Barnard 33, is a dark nebula located south of Alnitak, in the bright emission nebula IC The Horsehead Nebula is around 1, light-years away from us. This nebula was discovered in by Williamina Fleming. The nebula got its name due to the shape of its dark dust clouds and gases, resembling the head of a horse.

It is part of the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex. It has an apparent magnitude of 5, and it is around 1, light-years away from us. Some theorize that the nebula formed in a supernova explosion around 2 million years ago. It is named after E. Barnard, the astrophotographer who photographed the nebula and published a description in It appears as a large arc centered on Messier The loop is believed to be ionized by the stars located in the Orion Nebula.

The Flame Nebula is an emission nebula located at around 1, light-years away from us. The other two stars forming the Winter Triangle , also known as the Great Southern Triangle, are Sirius and Procyon , the brightest stars in the constellations Canis Major and Canis Minor respectively.

Bellatrix , sometimes also known as the Amazon Star, is the third brightest star in Orion and the 27th brightest star in the sky, only slightly dimmer than Castor in Gemini. Bellatrix is a hot, luminous blue-white giant star, classified as an eruptive variable. Its magnitude varies between 1. The star belongs to the spectral class B2 III.

It is one of the hotter stars visible to the unaided eye. It emits about 6, times more light than the Sun and has eight or nine solar masses. Within a few million years, Bellatrix will become an orange giant and eventually a massive white dwarf. Before its own variability was confirmed, Gamma Orionis was used as a standard for stellar luminosity, one against which other stars were compared and checked for variability.

Otherwise known as the Belt of Orion, these three blue supergiant stars are hotter and much more massive than the Sun. They lie about 1, light-years away. Mintaka, Delta Orionis, is the westernmost of the three stars in the Belt of Orion.

It is the right-most star when observed from the Northern Hemisphere, facing south. Mintaka is a multiple star, classified as an eclipsing binary variable.

The primary component is a double star consisting of a class B giant and a hot class O star which orbit each other every 5. Mintaka is approximately light years distant. Its brightest components are both roughly 90, times as luminous as our Sun and have more than 20 solar masses. They will both end their lives as supernovae. In the order of brightness, the apparent magnitudes of the components are 2. It is the closest bright star to the celestial equator: it rises and sets almost exactly east and west.

Alnilam, Epsilon Orionis, is a hot, bright blue supergiant. It has an apparent magnitude of 1. It belongs to the spectral class B0. It is the fourth brightest star in the Orion constellation and the 30th brightest star in the night sky. It radiates about , solar luminosities.

Alnilam is surrounded by the reflection nebula NGC , a molecular cloud illuminated by the light emitted by the star. It is losing mass and its internal hydrogen fusion is shutting down. Alnilam will soon evolve into a red supergiant, one much brighter than Betelgeuse , and eventually go out as a supernova.

Alnitak, Zeta Orionis, is a multiple star system in Orion, approximately light years distant. The brightest component in the system, Alnitak A, is yet another hot, blue supergiant, one with an absolute magnitude of The star has a visual magnitude of 2.

It is the brightest O class star known. It is in fact a close binary star, composed of the O9. The dwarf was first discovered in The nebula was first discovered by William Herschel on February 1, The dark Horsehead Nebula lies in the same area of the sky. It is the sixth brightest star in the constellation, with an apparent magnitude of 2. The star is approximately light years distant. Saiph is a blue supergiant, belonging to the spectral class B0.

Hatysa, or Iota Orionis, is a quadruple star system in the constellation Orion. The primary component in the Iota Orionis system is a massive spectroscopic binary star that has an eccentric day orbit. The binary is a strong X-ray source as a result of the collision of the stellar winds coming from the pair. Iota Orionis has an apparent magnitude of 2. Lambda Orionis is blue giant belonging to the spectral type O8III, approximately 1, light years distant.

It has a visual magnitude of 3. Lambda Orionis is also sometimes called Heka, from the Arabic Al Hakah, or a white spot, referring to the Arabic lunar mansion that includes both Lambda and Phi Orionis. Meissa is really a double star. The companion, a hot blue-white dwarf belonging to the spectral class B0. Phi-1 Orionis is a double star approximately 1, light years distant. The main component is a main sequence star belonging to the spectral type B0, with an apparent magnitude of 4.

Phi-2 Orionis is a K0 class giant approximately light years distant. It has an apparent magnitude of 4. Unlike most binary and multiple stars that share the same Bayer designation, the stars in the Pi Orionis system are fairly wide apart. Pi-1 Orionis and Pi-6 Orionis are separated by almost nine degrees. Pi-1 Orionis 7 Orionis is the faintest star in the system. It is a white main sequence dwarf with an apparent magnitude of 4.

The star belongs to the spectral type A0. Pi-2 Orionis 2 Orionis is also a main sequence dwarf, belonging to the spectral class A1Vn. It is located light years from Earth and has a visual magnitude of 4. Pi-3 Orionis 1 Orionis , also known as Tabit, is the brightest of the six stars.

It is a white dwarf belonging to the spectral class F6V, only The star is very similar to the Sun, with 1. For this reason, Pi-3 Orionis is considered a possible location for Earth-size planets.

Pi-4 Orionis 3 Orionis has an apparent magnitude of 3. Last chance to join our Costa Rica Star Party! Learn about the Moon in a great new book New book chronicles the space program. Dave's Universe Year of Pluto. Groups Why Join? Astronomy Day. The Complete Star Atlas. M43 is part of the much larger Orion Nebula complex, and it lies roughly 10' north of M This section features a hot, bright star center that is ionizing the gas near it. The ionization creates a sphere of glowing hydrogen, which appears pink.

Three minute exposures through red, green, and blue filters were combined to produce the final image. The Orion Nebula M42 is so named because it lies within Orion the Hunter, a constellation that dominates the winter sky.

Your eyes alone will see the center star as fuzzy. Binoculars help, but also reveal more fuzz. For here lies one of the showpiece celestial objects — a stellar nursery that, after being observed for hundreds of years, still has a lot to reveal.

The bright plume of gas in the upper left in this picture results from the ejection of material by a recently formed star. The diagonal length of this image is 1. Red light shows emission from nitrogen atoms, green is from hydrogen, and blue originates from oxygen.

If we could view the Milky Way from above, it would appear as a pinwheel with four spiral arms. The galaxy contains hundreds of billions of stars and massive amounts of gas and dust. Our solar system resides in the Orion Spur, which sits between the Perseus and Sagittarius arms, about halfway out from the galactic center.

Our earthbound view is different. Toward Scorpius is the central part of the Milky Way. Rather than seeing a field of blazing stars, our view is obscured by huge clouds of dust and gas. The winter Milky Way is there, but you need a dark sky to see it with unaided eyes. The winter sky is the brightest of the seasonal skies — it contains the highest concentration of bright stars — and its most famous representative is Orion.

Two views of the Orion nebula show why astronomers image celestial objects in different wavelengths. The right image reveals the Orion Nebula as an active star-formation region where stars and dust glow yellow-orange and hydrogen clouds appear blue. The diagonal extent of each image spans about 0. Observing M42 Today, just as in the time of William Herschel — , getting a new telescope means taking a look at the Orion Nebula. It represents a benchmark to which we can compare other deep-sky objects.

Nineteenth-century astronomy popularizer Garrett P. Other early observers also noticed this aquatic similarity.