Orion's Belt

stars · constellations · night sky

Three super bright stars. Orion's Belt is made of three massive stars named Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka. They line up so neatly that they look like a giant's belt across the sky.

Easy to find at night. This asterism (that's what we call a star pattern) is one of the easiest things to spot with your eyes alone, no telescope needed. It appears in the winter sky in the Northern Hemisphere.

Perfectly spaced out. The three stars are nearly equally spaced in a straight line, spreading across about 2.3 degrees of sky. That's roughly the width of four full moons side by side.

Many other names. Different cultures called this pattern the Three Kings, the Three Sisters, and the Belt of Orion, showing how important this star pattern has been to people all over the world.

Part of a bigger picture. These three stars are part of the constellation Orion, which looks like a giant hunter in the sky and includes many other bright stars and nebulae.