In the Orion Correlation Theory Extended, author Larry Pahl chases down on Egyptian soil the places represented by the other stars in the constellation Orion. We determined the Sphinx and Leo are counterparts, witness marks, as above so below. However, space telescopes with special instruments can help find black holes. A mammoth ivory carving depicting Orion was discovered in a cave in West Germany in 1979. The proponents of the Orion correlation theory have also suggested that Orions orientation to the Milky Way matches the pyramids orientation to the river Nile, but this has been a matter of debate. Image: ESO and Digitized Sky Survey 2 (CC BY 4.0). The ecliptic, the circle in green is over-laid with the Template at 7/13 concentrically within the Template circle. Leo is Latin for "Lion" and is represented by a lion in many myths, including the Greek myth of the Nemean Lion that was killed by the hero Heracles. The Wall of the Crow points to 23.5 axial tilt of the Earth relating it to the spiral. A portion of the open cluster NGC 6530 appears as a roiling wall of smoke studded with stars in this Hubble image. All three stars are exceptionally fast spinners, with projected rotational velocities of 130 km/s (Mintaka), 150 km/s (Delta Ori Aa2), and 220 km/s (Delta Ori Ab). Alnitak is a hot blue supergiant of the spectral type O9.5Iab. The Nemean lion was so feared because while its golden mane protected it from any assault, its claws were sharper than any weapon forged by humanity. Leo can be seen from pretty much anywhere on Earth except for Antarctica. Aligning the star Regulus in Leo with the Sphinx, index the lion on the ground and lion in the sky using these two witness marks. As result constellations like Leo are visible from most locations on Earth, but only at specific times of the year. If you want to skip the hard work of tracing imaginary lines in the sky in order to find a constellation, you can always get a GoTo mount. They have a combined apparent magnitude of 1.77. When the primary component eclipses the secondary, the brightness drops from magnitude 2.23 to 2.29, and when the primary star is eclipsed by the secondary, the brightness decreases to magnitude 2.35. In astrology, during this period it is said that the Sun is in the house of Aries. Leo is one of the most prominent constellations in the night sky. The brightest star in the curve of the sickle is Al Geiba, which means "the lion's mane." Mintaka and Delta Ori Aa2 orbit each other with a period of 5.732436 days. It is not hard to find as long as the sky is clear but if you need some extra help, try finding the North Star (Polaris), a.k.a the brightest star in the sky. It can only be detected interferometrically and spectroscopically. The constellation Orion is depicted as the human figure of a hunter chasing a hare (Lepus) with his two dogs (Canis Major and Canis Minor) or, alternatively, facing the charge of the Bull (Taurus). A Hubble Space Telescope image of the Orion nebula, or M42. Celestial Wonders in Leo, Night Sky Network, NASA, [Accessed 12/13/22], [https://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/news-display.cfm?News_ID=948 (opens in new tab)], Leo Constellation, Constellation Guide, [Accessed 12/13/22], [https://www.constellation-guide.com/constellation-list/leo-constellation/ (opens in new tab)], Leo, Britannica, [Accessed 12/13/22], [ https://www.britannica.com/place/Leo-constellation (opens in new tab)], A 40-year-long mystery: heavy elements unveil the origin of the giant Leo Ring, ESO, [2021], [https://www.eso.org/public/blog/heavy-elements-unveil-origin-of-leo-ring/ (opens in new tab)], Nile River, National Geographic, [https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/nile-river (opens in new tab)]. The luminary of Cygnus lies 2,615 light-years away. Dr. Mark Clampin The stars formed in the same molecular cloud and are roughly the same age. It comprises three stars (42 Orionis, Theta Orionis, and Iota Orionis) and M42, the Orion Nebula. The three stars that traditionally make up the belt are, from west to east: Mintaka, Alnilam and Alnitak. The job of the Sphinx is to record the range of the ecliptic from winter solstice though the spring equinox, summer solstice, fall equinox returning yearly to the winter solstice. The star Sirius is on the horizon, The Great Orion Nebula, M42 in Orions Sword is 21 degrees above the horizon and directly above Sirius. The three stars of Orions Belt are members of the Orion OB1b group, a subgroup of the larger Orion OB1 association. Aldebaran appears as a member of the V-shaped Hyades cluster, which outlines the head of the Bull, but is much closer to us than the cluster. Orions Sword is a compact asterism in the constellation Orion. By early October, it rises around midnight and is fully visible above the eastern horizon around 1 am. Orions Belt has historically carried a lot of significance both in eastern and western cultures. It is supposed to look like the warrior Orion from Greek mythology.The constellation has other names in different cultures: it is mentioned under a Hebrew name in the Book of Job.. Even though it is a young star, Alnilam is already approaching the end of its life. The two stars periodically eclipse each other as they orbit, causing the systems brightness to decrease. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. In this article, I would like to share a small preview of The Giza Template as it continues with the measure of the heavens as viewed through the eyes of the Great Sphinx. In local lore, the mule deer (Hap) is in the centre and has been shot by the hunter. Ancient Indians saw the figure as a king who had been shot by an arrow (represented by the stars in Orion's belt). An asterism is a group of stars that form a certain shape but arent recognized officially as constellations. She has been looking at the sky for years and hopes to introduce more people to the wonderful hobby that is astronomy. In addition to newborn stars, Orion also has some other awesome cosmic objects hanging around. Alnitak is the brightest O-type star in the sky. It is Orion who leads the constellations as they speed over the full circuit of heaven. This image captured by the Hubble Space Telescope shows the open star cluster NGC 2002 in all its sparkling glory. Alnitak, the easternmost star of Orions Belt, ionizes the Flame Nebula (NGC 2024), an emission nebula located approximately 1,350 light-years away. In ancient Egypt, the stars of Orions Belt were the symbol of Osiris, but the extent of their importance has only been speculated about. From the moment you saw Orion's belt, you are going to receive divine direction. Aries Taurus Gemini Cancer Leo Virgo Libra Scorpius Saggitarius Capricornus Aquarius Pisces. A big chunk of the Milky Way lies between Orion and the Southern Cross. The ancient Egyptians called her Osiris. The Giza/Orion Link The Giza Plateau in the year 10,450 BC. Saturn is the brightish yellow object below Venus and the bright red star Antares. Alnilam was reported to be surrounded by a reflection nebula catalogued as NGC 1990 by William Herschel in 1786. Ancient Egyptians believed that the gods descended from Sirius and the Belt of Orion and instigated the human race. Open cluster KMHK 1231 is a group of stars loosely bound by gravity, as seen in the upper right of this Hubble Space Telescope image. The star-forming nebula Messier 43 (De Mairans Nebula) lies next to the Orion Nebula. Its one of the most recognizable constellations in the night sky and can be seen from around the world. The Belt stars are not perfectly aligned, and their alignment matches that of the three pyramids. Though over a dozen stars make up Orion, two take center stage. It's one of the most recognizable constellations in the night sky and can be seen from around the world. To make accurate measurements of the celestial motions it is necessary to create one point on Earth from which the sky will be viewed and measured, this point is the Sphinx. Image credit: Giuseppe Donatiello (CC0 1.0). The bisons ribs are outlined by the rectangle of Orion and its head is marked by the Pleiades, while Sirius marks its tail. Alnitak and Mintaka, the leftmost and rightmost stars of Orions Belt, lie at a similar distance, about 1,200 light-years from the Sun, while Alnilam, the central star of the Belt, is much more distant. Orion constellation map by IAU and Sky&Telescope magazine. With an effective temperature of about 29,500 K, it shines with 250,000 solar luminosities. And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com. In this video, we explore a very familiar sight in our skies - The constellation Orion. The body lengths of 9 and 11 are encoding two prominent divisions of the circle demonstrated in The Giza Template: Earth Measure. Orions Belt as it appears from the southern hemisphere in August and October, image: Stellarium. In Australia and New Zealand, the constellation figure of Orion appears upside down, and Orions Belt and Sword are sometimes called the Saucepan or the Pot. Sah was mentioned in the Pyramid Texts from the 24th and 23rd centuries BCE as one of the gods whose form pharaohs take after passing. This is the only time of year during which it is invisible. In Scandinavian lore, Orions Belt is known as Friggs Distaff (Friggerock) or Freyas Distaff. There is a 9th magnitude star, sometimes called Alnitak C, that appears in the same line of sight. All this means that the display in the sky bears no relation to the pyramids alignment: it varies from minute to minute. In this image we see a photo of Orion overlaid on the Template and the spiral we created from it, precisely marks the spiral path of Barnards Loop back to the M42 Nebula. The neighboring constellations are Eridanus, Gemini, Lepus, Monoceros and Taurus. The supergiants Rigel and Betelgeuse are the seventh and tenth brightest stars in the sky. You can form his body by finding the famous three stars that make up his belt. Orion's belt also appears in Egyptian mythology. This knowledge was encoded using number and proportion into the architectural structures that make up the Giza complex. Using Stellarium software to view the sky on this binary date and time from the coordinates of the Sphinx demonstrates without doubt the reality and precision of this design. The seven brightest stars in Orion outline the Hunters hourglass-shaped figure. This is not by chance, but by intentional design of the architects, astronomers and scientists who created the Giza repository. Director, NASA Astrophysics Division: Video From The New Yorker Holy Holocaust: Family History Stands Between Two Friends After Professor Szczepaski's graceful acceptance speech, a vote is about to. My personal favorite app for this is SkyMap because it is so simple and lightweight. It is the 5th brightest star in the constellation Orion. While there are 12 astrological constellations of the zodiac, there are 13 astronomical zodiac constellations: Capricornus, Aquarius, Pisces, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpius, Sagittarius, and Ophiuchus. They are believed to be there to project the pharaohs soul toward Orion. And Mintaka, the star at the right side of the belt, is about 900 light-years away. (Image credit: ESO/INAF-VST/OmegaCAM. In Finland, the asterism and the stars appearing below it are known as Vinmisen viikate (Vinminens scythe) or Vinmisen vy (Vinminens Belt). According to this theory, the sphinx represents the constellation Leo, and the Nile is the milky way. Leo Leo was one of the earliest constellations to be recognized and recorded, evidence suggests as early as 4000 BCE. The stellar nursery appears as the middle of the three points of light that form the Sword. The constellation can be found by looking for the head of the lion, or the "sickle," starting at the Regulus (Alpha Leonis) star. Stars aren't the only astronomical body comprising Leo, the constellation is also made up of several bright galaxies. Alnilam ( Orionis) is a supergiant, approximately 2,000 light-years away from Earth and magnitude 1.70. Constellations near Orions Belt, image: Stellarium. The name Mintaka is derived from the Arabic manaqa, meaning belt.. Alnitak was known as (Shn Xi y), the First Star of Three Stars, Alnilam as (Shn S r), the Second Star of Three Stars, and Mintaka as (Shn S sn), the Third Star of Three Stars. The constellation looks like two stick figure twins touching with outstretched arms. Delta Orionis is a complex star system that contains five stars in total. Orion will fashion alert minds and agile bodies, souls prompt to respond to duty's call, and hearts which press on with unflagging energy in spite of every trial. The star is so huge that if it replaced the Sun at the center of our solar system, it would extend past the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter! The trick to finding a constellation is usually to find its brightest star as it will be easier to do. The region around Orions Belt is home to several bright and well-known deep sky objects. In geometry one point can be seen as a center point or axis. Photograph of Orions Belt with the stars Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka. The easiest way to find Orion is to go outside on a clear night and look for three bright stars close together in an almost-straight line. The constellation of Orion is known as one of the brightest and most accredited constellations in the night sky, it is positioned right on the celestial equator. Constellation . You can see Betelgeuse's reddish color without a telescope. Image: Rogelio Bernal Andreo (CC BY-SA 3.0). It can be identified above a side of the raised arm of the hunter. The most famous and easily found constellation is Orion the Hunter. Orions Sword lies in the region between the Belt and the feet. It can be seen soon after sunset and for most of the night. AstroBackyard explains (opens in new tab) how to get a stunning image of this triad of galaxies. This collection of stars, an open star cluster called NGC 1858, was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope. Orion's Belt Spiritual Meaning. They culminate highest when seen from locations near the equator. Related: Meteor showers 2023: Where, when and how to see them. As the seasons change it will also move up and down in the sky. The mass loss is caused by the strong stellar winds that may reach up to 2,000 km/s. Not all constellations in the sky are visible all year long. This makes it recognized worldwide. Afrikaans speakers in South Africa know Orions Belt as Drie Konings (Three Kings) or the Drie Susters (Three Sisters). These 13 Constellations move counterclockwise at a rate of approximately 1 every 72 years, 360 in approximately 25,920 years, this movement is called precession. All registered. The Horsehead Nebula (Barnard 33), one of the best-known dark nebulae in the sky, appears just south of Alnitak. The asterism designed within the constellation of Monoceros points to the center of the spiral and the alignment of the center of the galaxy on the ecliptic, behind the Sun and Earth as viewed from the Sphinx on 12/21/2012 at 16:00 hrs after sunrise. With a mass 14 times that of the Sun, it is also a supernova candidate. In Egyptology, the Orion correlation theory posits that the layout of the three pyramids on the Giza Plateau simulates the alignment of the three Orions Belt stars, and that the air shafts inside the pyramids point directly toward the Orion constellation. It is 1,344 light yearsdistant and at the center of the nebula are four stars, known as "The Trapezium" which help to light up much of the nebula. They won't be closer until 2032! The constellation is visible between the latitudes of +90 to -60. The orange giant marks the Bulls eye. Thus, the constellation Leo. It has a mass 33 times that of the Sun and a radius 20 times solar. Although Rigel is farther from Earth than Betelgeuse (Rigel is about 860 light-years away), it is intrinsically brighter than its companion, making it the brightest star in Orion and one of the brightest stars in the night sky. . Delve into the life history, types, and arrangements of stars, as well as how they come to host planetary systems. There are multiple star chart apps that will use your GPS location and show you a map of the stars above you with labels and illustration to help you understand what you are looking at. The red supergiant Betelgeuse (Orion's right shoulder) and blue supergiant Rigel (Orion's left foot) stand out as the brightest members in the constellation. The 10 brightest stars in Orion are Rigel ( Orionis), Betelgeuse ( Orionis), Bellatrix ( Orionis), Alnilam ( Orionis), Alnitak ( Orionis), Saiph ( Orionis), Mintaka ( Orionis), Hatysa ( Orionis), Tabit (3 Orionis), and Eta Orionis. Orions Belt can be used to identify the brightest stars of Taurus and Canis Major. The constellation, Orion, rises in the east and sets in the west. Lines have been drawn. In the Chinese Classic of Poetry (Book of Songs), the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry, the Three Stars asterism (Shen) was paired with Sheng (Antares). Categories Guide to Space Tags Constellation, orion's belt, stars. Spiral motion and growth are seen throughout the natural world and should not be dismissed when considering an explanation for precession. Orion is home to 2 meteor showers It is very straightforward and works during all the seasons when Leo is visible in the sky so you should have no trouble learning it. The name Driekoningen was often used in Dutch charts in the 17th and 18th centuries. It is one of the most easily noticed and recognizable constellations in the night sky. These star systems are moving away from the M42 Nebula in a spiral motion with our ecliptic rolling along like a wheel on a spiral path. The easiest way to find Orion is to go outside on a clear night and look for three bright stars close together in an almost-straight line. They are separated by only 35.9 milliarcseconds, corresponding to a physical distance of only 11 astronomical units (Earth-Sun distances). Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! The word Monoceros is a two part word, Mono, meaning one, and ceros meaning plural. Orions Belt is a prominent asterism formed by three stars in the constellation Orion. The combined apparent magnitude of its components is 1.77. Scientists studying the Carina Nebula discovered jets and outflows from young stars previously hidden by dust. SMITH: OK. It is one of the most famous asterisms used by amateur astronomers. Even though Alnilam is the most distant of the three stars, it appears the brightest because it is the most massive and therefore the most intrinsically luminous of the Belt stars. Sirius and the Belt of Orion, image credit: Boris Stromar (CC BY-SA 4.0). The field of view is approximately three degrees. Alnitak is a triple star system that is located in the easternmost part of Orion's Belt. In fact, the same line that you will use to find Regulus, also points to Polaris when extended in the opposite direction. In the northern hemisphere, the constellation of Leo is easily seen during spring, particularly around the spring equinox during the months of March, April, and May. Press Esc to cancel. Here are the Councils of Light. We can see that the Lion asterism is created geometrically as all the constellations are, Regulus is intersecting the circle and the spiral, the Lions front and rear mark the spiral, its head aligned to the centerline or axis. The Horsehead Nebula (also known as Barnard 33) is located just to the south of Alnitak. The constellation of Orion, as it can be seen by the naked eye. The stars in constellations may look close to each other from our point of view here on Earth, but in space they might be really far apart. Orion was unable to defeat the scorpion and met his end after being stung by it. Orions Belt and Sword are called Naagarda (a plough). An asterism is a figure drawn in the stars by connecting one star to another that is usually a human, animal, or an instrument and used to relate to stories that pass down information through the ages. It is the primary star in a triple star system located approximately 1,260 light-years away. It is sometimes depicted as chasing the Pleiades, the Seven Sisters, across the sky. The name Alnilam is derived from the Arabic al-nim, meaning the string (of pearls). It was historically also spelled Alnihan and Alnitam. The Greeks associated the stars with the mythical hunter Orion. Orion's Belt is an asterism of three stars that appear about midway in the constellation Orion the Hunter. Alnilam and Deneb (Alpha Cygni) belong to the same class of variable stars, the Alpha Cygni variables. All three are slanted in a Southwesterly direction. They know that the monsoon comes when Tipan appears at sunset. It is the faintest star of Orions Belt and the only one that is not a supergiant. M43 is considerably fainter than its larger neighbour. Betelgeuse is destined to end in a supernova blast. Email: info@quicksealers.com | Call: 0308 5050926 trypanosomiasis in cattle symptoms; forlornness is the recognition that; leo constellation in relation to orion's belt. It is a single star located approximately 2,000 light-years away. Composed of mostly molecular hydrogen, the Leo Ring is so vast it is six times wider than the Milky Way. (below image) The three Pyramids exactly simulate the stars Delta Orionis [ Mintaka ], Epsilon [ Alnilam ], and Zeta [ Alnitak] that comprise the Orion Belt. This is. We may never detect it, though, because no light can escape black holes, making them invisible. The Belt of Orion is make up of three stars, Mintaka (Delta . The stars estimated age is only 6.4 million years. The names include the Weighing Beam in Chinese and Al Nijd (the Belt), Al Nasak (the Line), Al Alkt (the Golden Grains/Nuts) and Al Mzn al aqq (the Accurate Scale Beam) in Arabic. As I mentioned, based on this design element of the repository, that our Sun was born and ejected out of M42 , this is also the case for the Sirius star system and the Pleiades star cluster. The annual cycle of the zodiac was used by ancient cultures to determine the time of year. Matariki is known as the Mori New Year, which is marked by the rising of the Pleiades between late May and early July. Unlike some of the other constellations, Leo is recognizable as it actually looks like its namesake composed of a "head" and "mane" shaped sickle, or backward question mark, of stars, and haunches composed of a triad of stars. The brightest of these objects, the Orion Nebula (Messier 42), lies below Orions Belt and is part of an asterism known as Orions Sword. The Orion's constellation is the brightest in the sky. Visible between latitudes: 90 and minus 65 degrees. Aerial photo of the Giza pyramid complex, image: Raimond Spekking / CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons). We may need to decide soon, Your monthly guide to stargazing & space science, Subscribe today and save an extra 5% with code 'LOVE5', Issues delivered straight to your door or device. Some nebulae, like Orion, are strongly illuminated by ultraviolet radiation from the many hot stars born within them, such that the gas is ionized and glows brightly. First, you should spot Orion's Belt, which is made of three bright stars in a straight line. Even so, theres a tiny chance Betelgeuse will go supernova in your lifetime. English folk names for the asterism include Jacobs Staff (or Jacobs Rod), the Yard-stick (or Yard-wand), the Golden Yard-arm, the Ellwand, the Ell and Yard, Peters Staff, Our Ladys Wand, the Three Stars, the Three Kings (the Magi), and the Three Marys. These three stars represent Orion's belt. A new studying using data from NASA's retired Spitzer Space Telescope has revealed new information about newborn stars. Orions Belt consists of three exceptionally hot and massive blue stars, Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka. In this case, we are going to locate Alpha Leonis, more commonly known as Regulus. The celestial equator is the projection of the Earths equator into space. The complex is believed to have been a part of a Neolithic and Bronze Age ritual site dating back to between 3500 BCE and 2500 BCE. Orions Belt is one of the asterisms that can be used to find the declination 0 (the equator), along with the Head of Cetus, the Head of Hydra, the Water Jar of Aquarius, and the Y of Virgo. The bright, bluish-white star Regulus (the lion's heart) should catch your eye first. That is in the little dipper which is neighbor to the big dipper so you just need to look in the vicinity. By October, it is visible above the eastern horizon by 2 am. It lies at a similar distance to M42 and M43. The constellation is visible at latitudes between +90nd -6 according to the skywatching website "Constellation Guide". Its other non-zodiac constellation neighbors are Coma Berenices, Crater, Hydra, Leo Minor, Lynx, Sextans, and Ursa Major. Leo is the 12th largest of all the constellations and in terms of the night sky, taking up up an area of around 947 square degrees. But don't worry, Betelgeuse is about 550 light-years away, so this event wouldn't be dangerous to us but it would be a spectacular sight. The red crescent shape is Barnards Loop. It is believed to be between 32,000 and 38,000 years old. This event occurred during the hottest time of year, also when the sun entered Leo. Do you ever look up at the night sky and get lost in the stars? The nebula is only 1,300 light-years away, making it the closest large star-forming region to Earth. They were formed in the larger Orion Molecular Cloud Complex, the nearest massive star-forming region to Earth. One of the most exciting targets for astrophotographers in the constellation of Leo are the galaxies that make up the Leo triplet. Constellations are formed of bright stars which appear close to each other on the sky, but are really far apart in space. Explore what we know about black holes, the most mysterious objects in the universe, including their types and anatomy. Take time to examine how all the constellation asterisms align precisely with the geometry of the Template. Its constellation figure is formed by seven exceptionally bright stars: Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, Rigel, Saiph, and the three stars of Orion's Belt: Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka. But did you know theres more to constellations than meets the eye? Or, at least, no intentional connection to the stars. The Hunter is one of the most recognizable constellations in the sky. Pahl takes a journey to find all of Orion, not just . The three stars are part of the Orion OB1b subgroup of the Orion OB1 association. Two of the three stars are supergiants. Among the 30 brightest stars, only Deneb is more distant. The actual Orion's Belt in the sky will turn as the night progresses (like all stars it goes around the Pole Star once every 24 hours). The Orion belt also had symbolic meanings that we got to know over the millennia. It has an apparent magnitude of 9.0. If you join the dots stars, in this case and use your imagination, the picture would look like an object, animal, or person. Heres the direct link to Regulus page at in-the-sky.org which will give you all the information you need. Orion is divided into three zones. In India, Orions Belt is associated with Shravana Kumara, a character from the old Hindu text Ramayana. The Temple of Khentkawes encodes divisions of 9, 11, and 13 all pointing to a 13, 21 Fibonacci division of the main circle radius. It is through the central star in Orion's belt, the Eye of AN,, that we shall travel as we make our journey through the Doorway of the 11:11. If you are in the U.S., Canada or Europe, you should be ok and you will be able to use this. Carved out of the surrounding limestone bedrock, it is 57 metres (187 ft) long, 6 metres (20 ft) wide, and has a height of 20 metres (66 ft), making it the largest single-stone statue in the world. In addition, the other stars of Cygnus fell into key places at Giza unlike Orion. Alnitak Aa and Alnitak Ab orbit each other with a period of 2,687.3 days. Bright, blue-white stars of the open cluster BSDL 2757 pierce through the rusty-red tones of gas and dust clouds in this Hubble image. With an effective temperature of 27,500 K, it is 537,000 times more luminous than the Sun. It has a radius of 16.5 solar radii and a luminosity 190,000 times that of the Sun. This means they held Leo in high regard. Orion has been followed since ancient times, in turn known as Hunter, as it is related to one in Greek mythology, it personifies the mythical hunter Orion, who is often symbolized on . Catalogued as M45 by the French astronomer Charles Messier, the Pleiades cluster marks the Bulls shoulder. The shapes you see all depend on your point of view.Many societies saw patterns among the stars with gods and goddesses or stories from their culture. Orions Belt is the most conspicuous feature of the constellation Orion. The secondary component, Zeta Orionis Ab (Alnitak Ab), is not as evolved, but it has also come to the end of its main sequence lifetime. Orions Belt lies just below the celestial equator. It is formed by three points of light: the young star 42 Orionis and the Running Man Nebula (NGC 1977), the bright Orion Nebula (Messier 42) with the Trapezium Cluster, and the multiple star system Iota Orionis, which is part of the open cluster NGC 1980. It is not just a single star, but actually five stars in a complex star system. The center of the spiral locates The Great Orion Nebula, M42. Several smaller reflection nebulae appear near Alnilam and Mintaka. This was truly impressive.