Orion the Hunter

Orion: One of the most recognizable constellations in the night sky.  In the northern hemisphere, Orion is a winter constellation. In the southern hemisphere, Orion appears during the summer months.  It also appears inverted and upside-down from there.  Orion's body consists of seven bright stars. The top left (Orion's shoulder) is a red supergiant named Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis).  Betelgeuse is so large, that if it were placed where the sun is, it would engulf Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, the asteroid belt, and possibly even Jupiter! Astronomers believe that Betelgeuse will go supernova (explode) in the near future. Astronomically speaking, that could be within a million years.  That will be quite the site!  Moving to Orion's right shoulder, we have the star named Bellatrix (Gamma Orionis). This star is over eight times as large as our sun.  The star that represents Orion's left leg (or foot) is known as Saiph.  Finally, the star for Orion's right leg (foot) is known as Rigel (Beta Orionis).  Rigel is the brightest star in Orion.

Orion's belt is made up of three stars.  The names of these stars, starting from the left are: Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka.  These three stars can be used as pointer stars, or guide stars, to guide the observer to the brightest star in the night sky, Sirius.  Simply draw an imaginary line starting at the right and extend the line through Orion to find Sirius.  Sirius is also know as the "dog star" because it lies in the constellation Canis Major (the Greater Dog).  Just below Orion's belt, there lies a fuzzy patch of sky that can be seen from a moderately dark sky site, known as Orion's Nebula (M42).  This nebula is one of the more famous nebulae and one of the first objects photographed by the great Hubble Space Telescope.  The Orion Nebula is a place where stars are born.  When using a low power optical aid, such as binoculars, an observer can see a few of the brighter stars in what is known as the Trapezium.  These stars are relatively young in astronomical terms. The Orion Nebula is over 1,300 light years tall, from our perspective.  A light year is the measure of the distance light travels in a year.   Which is quite a bit considering that light travels 300,000 kilometers per second (about 186,000 miles per second)! That means that one light year is about 6 trillion miles!

I find that looking at objects in the night sky, such as the Orion Nebula and the Trapezium very satisfying and amazing to be able to see something so awesome.  It doesn't look anything like the pictures that you can find in books, magazines, and on the Internet, but is still amazing to look at with my own eyes. Most objects similar to the Orion Nebula appear white to blue grey with an inky black surrounding when viewing them through binoculars or a telescope.

Here is a picture I took from St. George this last weekend of Orion.  See if you can name the stars and find Sirius!

I encourage you to go outside tonight to look at Orion.  It will be found towards the south west.  It is slowly leaving our sky and will no longer be visible to us until winter. When you go out, you may also notice a very bright "star" in the sky almost directly above your head. This is actually the largest planet in our solar system, Jupiter.  Don't forget to follow the three stars of Orion's belt to find Sirius!

My Start in Astronomy

I have always been interested in astronomy, but haven't realized how much until recently.  The first time I remember actually looking up and enjoying the night sky was with my Dad.  We would sit on a little hill in the backyard of our house and watch the sunset.  We would talk about how school went for me and how work was for him.  We must have had a lot to talk about on this particular day because we talked long after the sun went down.  We rested our backs on the hill and looked up at the stars.  After this night, I would spend many nights sleeping out under the stars in the backyard with my brother, sister, and friends. My love for the night sky was beginning to churn. 

In 1995 and 1996 comet Hale-Bopp lit up the night sky. I remember two distinctive tails, one blue and one green. This comet was visible in Utah for roughly 8 months.  I am always looking forward to another bright comet to come our way for a spectacular view.  Also in 1995 one of the NASA space shuttles flew through Utah on the back of a 747. I believe it was Endeavour but my memory is cloudy.  My Dad was excited to tell me to watch for it the day it flew over.

A few years went by when my parents, sister, and I moved to a house that had somewhat darker skies. From here, I was able to make out the spiral arm of the Milky Way.  I would spend hours looking up at the night sky in awe.  I recently found a very nice location for stargazing that I have nicknamed "Area 62."  From there, I can clearly see the Milky Way.  

I am currently attending a university to earn my bachelors degree in physics.  After which, I will move out of Utah to earn an astrophysics degree.  Astrophysics is exciting to me because I feel that the universe is calling me.  I want to discover why the universe is the way that it is.  What's it made of?  Why do black holes act the way they do?  Why does gravity works the way it does?  Where are the other living organisms located in our universe and how can we detect and study them?  

The night sky fascinates me like a fishing lure attracts a fish, hence my blog name - "Cosmic Lure".  Space is so vast and exciting - yet governed by laws and mathematics; all of which I want to explore.  My goal for this blog is to have a place to write about the things that fascinate me.  I hope you will dive in and become a fish on the line too!