CELESTIAL ATLAS / 01
Rotating celestial sphere with real star coordinates. From Orion to Octantus, explore pictures, read reference pages, and discover International Astronomical Union maps.
NEW / LOCAL HORIZON
Calculate the altitudes and azimuths of 12 targets for UTC location and time.
Orion / Ori
M42 is a nearby star formation region. Betelgeuse and Rigel represent different stages in the evolution of massive stars.
Genitive case: Orionis. Directory Signature Center: RA 5.60 h, Dec 13°. These are not the boundaries of the region.
Open separate page →J2000 coordinates from the d3-celestial/XHIP open directory. The map is an overview of the celestial sphere, not a calculation of the current visibility above your horizon; proper motions and precession are not applied. A constellation is an area of the sky, rather than a physically connected group of stars.