BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Brad Klein reviews upcoming astronomical highlights with Bethlehem’s "Backyard Astronomy Guy," Marty McGuire.
This week: A look at the most prominent constellation in the winter sky, Orion the Hunter.
“I look forward to finding this one every winter,” McGuire said.
And I feel the same way.
It’s prominent in the southern sky during winter evenings in the Lehigh Valley.
And unlike many constellations, it’s easy to imagine a human figure just by looking at the three bright stars that mark Orion’s belt, and the four bright stars that serve as shoulders and knees.
Below and to the left of Orion is the brightest star in the night sky, Sirius, the dog star. It’s part of its own constellation, Canis Major.
You can imagine Orion as a hunter, with his trusty hound beside him. But as I walk my own dog in the winter evenings before bed, I prefer to imagine Orion the Dogwalker, out with man’s best friend.