Where is Orion?

Orion, one of the zodiac signs. Located between Gemini, Unicorn, Canis Canis, Taurus, Rabbit, Bojiang and Canis Canis, its northern part is immersed in the Milky Way. The main body of the constellation consists of four bright stars, Betelgeuse and Betelgeuse, forming a quadrilateral. It covers an area of 594 square degrees and ranks 26th. Latitude changes are located at +85 and? 75, and the best observation month is 1. 20 10 In March, Herschel Space Observatory discovered the chemical fingerprints of potential life in Orion Nebula.

Chinese name: Orion

Area: 594 square degrees

Regional ranking: 26th.

Number of bright stars: apparent magnitude 0. 12, etc.

Meteor shower: every June 10 to1October 25th 17.

Adjacent constellations: Gemini, Unicorn, Canis major, Taurus, Scorpio, Bojiang, and Canis minor.

Optimal observation time:1from early February to early April.

Mbth: Orion

catalogue

Constellation introduction basic information

Observation azimuth

Study history

Deep space object Orion nebula

ic 434

Important main star

Constellation myth

meteor shower

Related information, signs of life

Orion and the pyramids

Constellation introduction basic information

Observation azimuth

Study history

Deep space object Orion nebula

ic 434

Important main star

Constellation myth

meteor shower

Related information, signs of life

Orion and the pyramids

Expand and edit the introduction of this constellation.

Basic information

Orion is the most magnificent constellation in the whole day and one of the zodiac constellations. orion

Located at the equator of the celestial sphere, it can be seen in most parts of the earth, specifically between Gemini, Unicorn, Canis Major, Taurus, Rabbit, Bojiang and Canis Minor, and its northern part is submerged in the Milky Way. The main body of the constellation consists of four bright stars, Betelgeuse and Betelgeuse, forming a quadrilateral. In the center of the quadrangle, there are three bright stars in a straight line, which should be a belt tied around the hunter's waist. In addition, under these three stars, there are three little stars, which are swords hanging on the belt. The whole image is like a brave hunter, with his head held high, which is very spectacular and has been noticed by people since ancient times. The constellation represents the hunter, and there are two dogs (Canis major and Canis minor) at its feet. As the earth rotates, Orion chases the Pleiades in the sky. There are many bright stars in Orion, but the most famous feature is the giant nebula M42 on Orion's sword, which is located in the south of Orion's belt and is lined with three stars. Under the hunter's sword, the naked eye can see a blue and white hazy nebula, which is the famous Orion nebula. At the left end of the hunter belt, there is a dark nebula shaped like a horse's head, which is the famous horse's head nebula (invisible to the naked eye). Besides these famous nebulae, Orion has many gas nebulae. The four stars α, γ, β and κ in Orion form a quadrilateral, and in its center, the three stars δ, ε and ζ are arranged in a straight line. These are the seven brightest stars in Orion, among which α and β are first-class stars and the rest are second-class. There are so many bright stars in a constellation, and the arrangement is so regular and magnificent. No wonder, all over the world, it is a symbol of strength, tenacity and success, and people always compare it to gods, warriors, superman and heroes. orion

Among the 28 hotels in Sanyuan, China, Orion is equivalent to Betelgeuse, Jing Daole, Shenqi and Shuifu. The brightest star in Orion is beta star, with an apparent magnitude of 0. 12, ranking seventh among all bright stars in the whole day, with an absolute magnitude of -7. 1 and a surface temperature of 12000. Alpha Orion, the ninth brightest star in the whole day, Latin for Betelgeuse, with a brightness of 0.06-0.75 and a period of 5.5 years, is an irregular variable star. Every year 1 the end of February, at 8: 00 pm, the three stars of Orion are high in the southern sky, so there is a folk saying that "the three stars are shining high and the New Year is coming".

Observation azimuth

The best observation date of Orion is1from early February to early April. It rises from the southeast when it appears, and falls from the southwest after crossing the zenith. Orion α and β are extremely bright and easy to see in a cloudless night sky. However, because there are many bright stars in the winter night sky, other stars are needed to identify Orion. Usually, three bands arranged in a straight line are used as its identification index. The brightness of these three stars is between 1.7-2.3, so they can be easily seen clearly in the sky with little light damage. α and β are located at the north and south ends with a vertical line in the middle. After finding out, find G and κ in the west of α and east of β, and the whole Orion outline will be vividly displayed! The following are the positions of Orion observed at 2 1 point in the evening at 30 degrees north latitude: 65438+February 1, 2 1: 00, 20-45, and 65438+ 10/0/2/kloc in the southeast. South March 1 2 1:00 40-65 Southwest West April 1 20:00 30-55 Southwest West

Edit this study history.

Orion has its place in different ancient civilizations, but its image is different. Whether in ancient or modern literature, Orion, Orion's belt.

And swords often appear. During the two world wars, it even became the emblem of the 27th Division of the US Army, probably because the division was under the command of General O 'Ryan. The ancient Sumerians regarded these stars as a sheep. Betelgeuse, the Latin name of Betelgeuse, means "armpit", but it is actually "armpit of sheep". In ancient China, Orion was one of the twenty-eight lodges, namely "Betelgeuse". "Shen" is the capital of "three", referring to the three stars on Orion's belt. The ancient Egyptians believed that these stars were a tribute to Osiris of god of light, and some scholars believed that Orion was closely related to the pyramids.

Edit this deep space object

Orion's sword hangs on his belt, which is composed of tetrads (Orion θ 1 and Orion θ2) and the Great Orion Nebula (M42). It is called the cutting star in China. Even with the naked eye, it can be clearly recognized that this magnificent celestial body is not a star; If we use binoculars, we can see its young star, glowing gas and dust. Another famous nebula is the Horsehead Nebula (IC 434) located in Orion ζ. Its name comes from a cloud of black dust that looks like a horsehead. If you observe Orion with a small telescope, you can see more interesting deep space objects.

Orion nebula

The Great Orion Nebula (M42) is located in Orion, a hunter named after the ancient Greek hunting myth. M42 is located on his sword. In the Orion nebula

On a dark and clear night, you can see M42 with the naked eye without the help of any telescope. It looks like a fuzzy celestial body. M42 is about 1500 light-years away, and it is located on the Orion arm, one of the spiral arms of the Milky Way. Our solar system is also part of the Orion arm, which revolves around the core of the Milky Way galaxy. The viewing area of M42 is about 5% of the moonlight area during the full moon. Orion nebula is a very famous nebula. Since ancient times, people have been watching this vague area. Only with the birth of astronomical telescope and the progress of astronomy today, people began to know more about this cosmic object. The four bright stars in the center of the image are called Orion quadrilateral poly stars, which are the hottest and most massive stars in the whole nebula. The light of these four stars illuminates the nebula, just like a flash lamp illuminates a cave, and the nebula shines through it, so it is called the emission nebula.

ic 434

Orion's Horsehead Nebula is one of the most recognizable nebulae in the night sky, and it is part of a large dark molecular cloud. This nebula has an unusual horsehead.

A celestial body with the shape of "X" was found at the bottom of a photo at the end of 18. The red light of the nebula is mainly hydrogen irradiated by the stars behind the nebula. The dark horse's head mainly comes from the dense dust blocking the light behind it, but the shadow on the left of the bottom of the horse's neck is caused by the horse's neck. The strong magnetic field running through the nebula is forcing a lot of gas to fly away from the nebula. The bright spot at the bottom of the Horsehead Nebula is a young star in infancy. It takes about 1500 years for light to reach us from the Horsehead Nebula.

Edit the main star of this paragraph.

Hecka (λ) is the head of Orion. Betelgeuse (α), the right shoulder of Orion, is a red giant-its diameter is larger than Jupiter's orbit. It actually has five other companion stars, but they are all too small to see. Betelgeuse, Nanhe III and Sirius form the winter triangle. Bellatrix is the left shoulder of Orion. orion

[1] Betelgeuse (ζ), Alnilam (ε) and Akisaka (δ) are the belts of Orion: three bright stars line up from east to west, making it easy to recognize Orion. Saiph (κ) is located in the right knee of Orion. Betelgeuse (β) is located in Orion's left ankle and is a huge white star. It is the seventh brightest star in the whole day. It has three invisible companion stars. Except Betelgeuse, all the major stars in Orion have similar ages and characteristics, indicating that they may have the same origin. We can easily find other stars through Orion. Extend Orion's belt to the southwest to find Sirius (dog α); To the northeast, you will meet Bi Suwu (Taurus α). Along Orion's shoulder to the east is Nanhesan (former Canis major, Alpha minor). Extending from Betelgeuse to Betelgeuse, you can see Beihe II (Gemini α) and Beihe III (Gemini β).

Edit this constellation myth

In Greek mythology, Poseidon had a son named Aolaiwen. Oliver was born like his father, strong and powerful, just like Orion Aolaiwen.

Strong. But he doesn't like living in the sea. Instead, he often comes to Shan Ye to climb mountains and hunt. However, he is Poseidon's son, so he can walk like a fly even at sea. Accompanied by him all day is a hound named Sirius, who is as brave as his master. He always rushes to the front when hunting and always stands in front of Aolaiwen when he meets wild animals. After a long time, Aolaiwen often met the moon god and hunting goddess themis when hunting. The two were quickly attracted by each other's elegance and superb hunting skills. Later, they often walked in the mountains together, climbed cliffs and climbed dangerous peaks, and talked about everything. All this made Apollo, the sun god, very angry. He was afraid that his sister Al themis would be like herself and Daphne. He knew Artemis was a stubborn girl, and persuasion would not impress her at all. Apollo was cruel and came up with a deadly trap. One day, as usual, Aolaiwen "flew" at sea, ready to go ashore to hunt. His whole body is submerged except his head. Apollo and themis happened to fly across the sea. "Sister, the somebody else say you wear Yang kung fu. How about we have a game today? " Artemis thinks that only Aolaiwen's archery can compare with her, so she doesn't care about her brother! "Well, what did you say?" "Look, that little black spot is a stone, just shoot it." Apollo knew that his sister's eyesight was not as good as his own, and he couldn't see clearly what the black spot was. "No problem!" His voice did not fall, but he heard a whoosh. A sharp arrow was neither biased nor inclined, and it was a small black spot. "Elder sister, you really live up to your reputation. Brother, I never dare to compare with you again. " Say that finish, Apollo quietly left. Themis was very proud. She landed at sea and wanted to see the shooting target. But what she saw was Aolaiwen, who was shot in the head, lying quietly on the water. Before she could say a word to his sweetheart, she was dead. My favorite person was shot dead by my own arrow, and Artemis fainted. Hearing the news of the tragic death of his master, Sirius cried bitterly all night. He didn't even look at other people's food, and a few days later he left with Aolaiwen. This tragedy made Zeus cry. He collected Aolaiwen's body, lifted him to the sky and turned him into Orion. We can't be together all the time before we die, and finally we will be together forever with Artemis, the goddess of the moon. Sirius also won the sympathy of Zeus with his loyalty, ascended to heaven and continued to accompany his master. This is a dog. In order not to make Sirius lonely, Zeus also specially found a partner for him-a puppy. Zeus knew that Aolaiwen liked hunting best before his death, so he put a small prey beside him-the sky map.

Edit this meteor shower

Orion also has a meteor shower, which is located at the point where the connecting line between ζ star and α star doubles northward. Its appearance date is from June 10 to June 17 to the Orion meteor shower every year.

The peak period on June 25th is 65438+1October 2 1, and the second peak period from 65438+1October 17 to 18 is also worthy of attention. It was also caused by Halley's comet.

Edit the relevant information in this paragraph.

Signs of life

20 10 In March, Herschel Space Observatory discovered the chemical fingerprints of potential life in Orion Nebula. Orion Nebula is a life signal discovered in Orion by Herschel Observatory of the Milky Way.

There is a star nursery nearby. The detailed spectra obtained by the far-infrared equipment of Herschel Observatory provide important information about the formation of life in space. This spectrum belongs to one of the first spectra taken by Herschel Observatory after it resumed normal operation in June 20 10, after the observatory went on strike due to technical failure. In August 2009, the electronic system of Herschel Observatory experienced an unexpected voltage surge, which may be caused by high-energy particles in the universe, leading to the termination of the instrument. On 20 10 65438+ 10/0/4, Herschel Observatory successfully started the backup electronic system. After a series of tests and inspections, the instrument began to work again.

Orion and the pyramids

The two passages in the pyramid of Khufu's tomb were once considered as ventilation tunnels, leading directly to the outside of the pyramid. However, Egyptian archaeologists generally believe that there was no ventilation system in the pyramids of the fourth dynasty in ancient Egypt at the same time, so these two passages facing south and north may not be ventilation holes, but are related to astronomical and religious implications. Astronomers calculated that the northern passage pointed to the then (about 4600 years ago) Draco Alpha. At that time, Tianlong α was in the position of today's North Pole Star, and the stars revolved around it. Khufu and his former Egyptian pharaohs both claimed to be sun gods. The moral of "The Passage to the North" may be that the veterans of France won eternal life, shared the glory with the stars and continued to be surrounded by them. Nantong Road points to one of Orion's famous "Three Stars". In ancient Egypt, Orion represented Osiris, the god who ruled life and death and reincarnation. Its religious implication is that it is hoped that Pharaoh and Osiris will jointly take charge of human solar terms and make them last forever. The three largest pyramids, headed by pyramid of khufu, not only correspond to the "three stars in the belt" in position, but also show the different luminosity of the three stars through the size of the pyramids. In addition, if the Great Pyramid is aimed at the belt of Orion's three stars, then five of the seven pyramids of the fourth dynasty just correspond to the positions of the other five stars of Orion. What is particularly mysterious is that if we compare this map of the sky, the position of the Milky Way in the sky just corresponds to the Nile River in Egypt. Orion and pyramid of khufu correspond to each other in the sky and underground, and the Milky Way and Nile are also symmetrically distributed on the horizon.