Orion: Ruler of Minnesota's winter skies

Looking for something to do on these clear crisp wintry nights? Check out the constellation Orion in the southern sky.

To me, the first glimpses of Orion in late September or October signify the coming winter. It’s interesting that Orion is at peak elevation at midnight around the December solstice. It fades further southwest in the sky at midnight as spring approaches in late winter.

The hunter

It’s doesn’t take a great imagination to see Orion as the hunter in the night sky. His broad shoulders, belt, and knife are clearly visible on clear Minnesota winter nights.

Orion is the hunter. Some interesting tidbits from the Wikipedia post on Orion.

Orion is a prominent constellation located on the celestial equator and visible throughout the world. It is one of the most conspicuous and recognizable constellations in the night sky. It was named after Orion, a hunter in Greek mythology. Its brightest stars are the supergiants: blue-white Rigel (Beta Orionis) and red Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis).

Other December stars

Here’s more on other December stars from Minnesota Starwatch.

December opens with Jupiter dropping into the sunset. On the 3rd, Saturn, Venus and Jupiter form a diagonal line with Jupiter in the sun's afterglow and brilliant Venus almost exactly midway between the other two planets.

As Jupiter sinks, Venus climbs. In the second week of the month, Venus passes much dimmer Saturn, coming closest on the 10th and 11th. On the 28th, Venus comes out above a thin young crescent moon; together, they form a celestial semicolon.

December moon

The waxing first quarter moon shines brightly in the sky this week. Here are more moon highlights this month from the University of Minnesota Bell Museum.

Dec. 4—First quarter moon
The Moon is one-quarter of its way through its orbit around
the Earth, which makes half the Moon illuminated and half
dark from our perspective.

Dec. 11—Full moon
The Moon is located on the opposite side of the Earth as the
Sun and the side we see is fully illuminated.

Dec. 18—Last quarter moon
This phase occurs when the Moon is three-quarters of the
way through its orbit around the Earth.

Dec. 25—New moon
The Moon is located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun
and is not visible in the night sky. This is the best time of the
month to observe faint objects like galaxies and star clusters
because there is no moonlight to interfere.

Our crystal clear winter air masses give us plenty to see out there at night these days.