Orion the Hunter is a famous summer constellation, and it is up in the early evening for you to see now. First thing in the evening, look directly to the east. The brightest star you’ll see is Sirius.
Directly to the left of Sirius is what is often referred to as ‘the Saucepan’, and it’s part of the Orion constellation. There are three bright stars in a reasonably straight line that make up the base of the saucepan, and a handle sticks out at the top right.
Orion has been known since ancient times. In Greek mythology, Orion is a mighty hunter, but his image is upside down in the southern hemisphere. The three bright stars of the base are Orion’s belt, and the saucepan handle forms Orion’s sword.
With lovely summer evenings ahead, take an opportunity to marvel at the incredible constellation of Orion.
Astronomer and author Ray Norris says “There are many stories about the Orion constellation right across Australia, and they are nearly always about a group of men hunting or fishing.
According to Norris, the Yolngu people in Arnhem Land tell a story of the three brothers in a canoe in the Orion constellation, better known as Djulpan.
The three stars in Orion’s belt are the brothers sitting side by side, with the stars Betelgeuse and Rigel marking the front and back of the canoe. The stars in Orion’s nebula represent a fish, and the stars of Orion’s sword mark out a fishing line trailing behind the canoe. “I love it because it actually looks like a canoe when you see it,” says Norris.
When to look: Early to late evening
Which direction to look: East
Something Interesting
If you have a telescope, there’s a beautiful object for you to find in Orion. The middle star of the handle of the ‘Saucepan’, is not just one star at all. When looked at through a telescope or powerful binoculars, the beautiful Orion nebula reveals itself.
A nebula is a gaseous region in space where new stars are born. The Orion Nebula actually has about 700 baby stars that give the glow. It is approximately 1,400 light years from Earth and is a massive region of about 24 light years in diameter. The Orion nebula reaches its highest point in the sky at around midnight on 14 December 2024.
It will be visible all night in Perth from around 20:25 on the eastern horizon, steadily rising to its highest above the northern horizon, and finally disappearing at dawn on the western horizon.
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