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Even inexperienced eyes can find the constellation Orion. Thanks to the conspicuous formation, the constellation is easy to spot in the night sky from August to April.
How to find the constellation Orion
The constellation Orion is visible in Central Europe in winter from August to April. Thanks to its striking formation and bright stars, you can spot it with the naked eye. Even with binoculars you can see the Orion Nebula. You can see the stars and the planetary nebula even more closely with a telescope with an aperture of 10 centimetres or more.
- In August, the constellation Orion can only be seen in the morning, in April you can find it in the evening night sky. So from about February to April, you can find the winter hexagon in the evening while stargazing.
- Look south, that is, to the left of the sunset.
- Orion’s most prominent stars form an H with six stars, some see it more as an X.
- For further orientation, you can look for the winter hexagon. One of the corners is Sirius, the brightest star. Orion is in the centre of the hexagon, surrounded by other constellations such as Taurus, Gemini and the Big Dog.
Worth knowing about the constellation Orion
Like many common names of our celestial bodies, the name Orion comes from Greek mythology.
- Orion is a mythological hunter of special power and size. Various legends are entwined around him.
- As a successful as well as overambitious hunter, he was a thorn in the side of various nature gods. Gaia, goddess of the earth, Artemis, goddess of the hunt, and Hera, goddess of wisdom and justice, joined forces to create a scorpion that killed Orion with a single sting.
- After his death, Orion was moved to the night sky. Scorpio was also immortalised in the stars. Interestingly, they are almost never visible at the same time in the night sky in Central Europe. Orion rises in late summer while Scorpio sets.
- The brightest star of the constellation Orion is Rigel.
