Homes, businesses, pets and even an iconic tree along the highway are all adorned with lights representing hues across the spectrum.
At home the celebratory scenes carry over from outside to inside, blanketing every room of our house. We love this time of year and the joy we receive from all the lights and colors around our community.
One can enjoy these splendid colors gracing the night any time of the year, just by looking to the heavens. The constellation Orion is full of colors, though you might need a pair of binoculars or a small telescope to define some of them. Deep red/oranges and bright blue/whites are all easily discernible against the inky backdrop.
The easiest grouping of stars to find is the belt of The Hunter. Three stars in a nearly straight line rise almost vertically above the eastern horizon each evening. Just to the lower right of the bottom star in the belt is The Hunter’s sword, a cluster of three more stars that contain the Orion Nebula. Even the smallest viewing instruments can begin the resolve the beautiful colors of this hydrogen-rich star nursery 1,300 light years from earth. Larger and more advanced scopes will often photograph this nebula with various filters to accentuate the variety of elements comprising this massive cloud of star dust.
Working around the perimeter of the constellation, the left shoulder of Orion is Betelgeuse, one of the largest stars visible to the naked eye, apparent by the bright red hues it emits. Continuing clockwise around the belt are Bellatrix, Rigel, and Saiph, each with a cool blue-white tone.
Varying in distance from about 250 to over 2,000 light years, the stars in the Orion constellation give the amateur astronomer the perfect opportunity to learn their new equipment and the sky. Take a few evenings this month and use different eyepieces to look at the stars and nebulae in Orion. There are three nebulae and multiple double-star systems, How many can you find?
If you would like to learn more about the sky, telescopes, or socialize with other amateur astronomers, visit us at prescottastronomyclub.org or Facebook @PrescottAstronomyClub to find the next star party, Star Talk, or event.
Adam England is the owner of Manzanita Financial and moonlights as an amateur astronomer, writer, and interplanetary conquest consultant. Follow his rants and exploits on Twitter @AZSalesman or at Facebook.com/insuredbyadam.
