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Winter Constellations

Orion
Constellation Orion

Orion the Hunter is a recognizable constellation in the winter sky. Orion's bright stars include: Rigel, Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, and Saiph, plus Alnilam, Alnitak, and Minitaka which form his belt. The most famous object in this constellation is M42, the Great Orion Nebula. One of the brightest deep-sky objects, this diffuse nebula is a massive star-forming region. The Horsehead Nebula, IC 434, is another popular feature of Orion, located near the star on the farthest left of the belt, Alnitak. The constellation of Orion is best viewed in January at 9:00 p.m.


Orion is also host to the Orionids meteor shower, which occurs annually in late October. This meteor shower is caused when the earth encounters dust particles from Halley's Comet. There are usually ten to fifteen meteors per hour during the peak of the Orionids.

Canis Major
Canis MAjor

Canis Major is a small constellation of the southern hemisphere. Canis Major contains several bright stars. Sirius, the brightest of all the star\s belongs to this constellation. It borders to Monoceros in the north, Leus to the west and Columba to the southwest while the eastern border is covered by Puppis, Together with Prokyon and Betelgeuze, Sirius forms the so called Winter Triangle.

Canis Minor
 

Canis Minor is a small constellation. It was included in the 1st century astronomer Ptolemy's 48 constellations, and is still included among the 88 modern constellations. Its name is Latin for "smaller dog" in contrast to Canis Major, the larger dog, and it is commonly represented as one of the dogs following the constellation of Orion the hunter.

Gemini
Gemini

Gemini is one of the constellations of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for "twins", and it is associated with the twins Castor and Pollux in Greek mythology. Its symbol is (Unicode ?). It lies between Taurus to the west and the dim Cancer to the east, with Auriga and Lynx to the north and Monoceros and Canis Minor to the south.

Auriga
Auriga

Auriga is a constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for 'charioteer' and its stars form a shape that has been associated with the pointed helmet of a charioteer. It was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 1st century astronomer Ptolemy, and is included among the 88 modern constellations. Its brightest star is Capella.

Taurus
 

Taurus is one of the constellations of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for bull, and its symbol is (Unicode ?), a stylized bull's head. Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the northern hemisphere's winter sky, between Aries to the west and Gemini to the east; to the north lie Perseus and Auriga, to the southeast Orion, to the south Eridanus, and to the southwest Cetus.

   
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