Rising in the east and dominating the evening sky during winter and early spring is the famous constellation Orion, the Hunter. Orion is easily recognizeable by the three bright stars that form the hunter's belt. On either side of these belt stars are the bright stars Betelgeuse and Rigel. The name Betelgeuse comes to us from Arabic and means "armpit of the Central One," referring to its location near one of Orion's shoulders. Betelgeuse is a red supergiant star near the end of its life cycle. Compare its orange-red color to Rigel, which appears brilliant blue-white. Another blue-white star, Sirius, which happens to be the night sky's brightest star, can be found by following a line drawn along the belt stars and extending southeastward (down toward the horizon in winter during early evening). Sirius appears bright to us mainly because it currently happens to be one of the closest stars to the Sun, at a distance of only about eight light-years. It is part of the constellation Canis Major, one of Orion's hunting dogs.

Extending the line through the belt stars in the opposite direction will bring you to the stars of the constellation Taurus, the Bull, with its bright star Aldebaran. Taurus is recognizeable by a 'V' shaped pattern of stars that represent the bull's face, with Aldebaran marking one of the bull's eyes. As the mighty bull charges toward Orion, the hunter is extending his shield and holding up his club in order to fend off the attack. Not far from Aldebaran, but just off the top of the frame in the photo below, is the beautiful Pleiades Star Cluster, or "Seven Sisters." Orion is home to one of the telescopic showpieces of the night sky, M42, also known as the Orion Nebula, which is located in Orion's sword, just below his belt. This vast cloud of dust and gas is giving birth to new stars in the same way as the Pleiades Star Cluster formed some eighty million years ago.

Move the mouse over the image to see the stars and constellations labeled.