Star profile
Bellatrix
Gamma Orionis · Orion
Hot blue starWhat is Bellatrix
Bellatrix, «the female warrior», marks the left shoulder of Orion with a fierce blue heat, 252 light-years from the Earth. Its Latin name travelled through the Renaissance linked to amazons and women of arms; in modern astronomy it remains one of the few stars carrying a traditional feminine name, which gives it a recognisable identity even for those who do not know the sky well. The light now crossing European winter nights left the star when Galileo first turned his telescope toward this very constellation.
Where it is and when to see it
Bellatrix lies in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is visible to the naked eye under a dark sky. Its best month of the year is December: the Sun sits at the opposite point of the sky and the star culminates around midnight. How high it climbs above the horizon depends on the latitude you watch from.
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The signature wall
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A signature without a lock can be replaced by someone else's. The lock makes the signature permanent and lets you choose a symbolic name for the star, always shown next to the star's catalogue identifier. How the lock works
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A public signature from a real person. The chosen name is a symbolic denomination within Stelvia, with no official standing or IAU recognition: the sky is not for sale and belongs to no one.
Astronomical data for Bellatrix
- Constellation
- Orion
- Apparent magnitude
- 1.64
- Distance
- 252.5 light years
- Coordinates (J2000)
- RA 81.283° · Dec 6.350°
- Catalogue
- HIP 25336 · HD 35468
A symbolic commemorative gift: neither the signature nor the chosen name implies ownership of the star or recognition by the IAU.
Other stars in Orion
Orion has 128 stars in Stelvia's catalogue. Here are a few of them.
- RigelBeta Orionis0.18
- BetelgeuseAlpha Orionis0.45
- AlnilamEpsilon Orionis1.69
- AlnitakZeta Orionis1.74
- SaiphKappa Orionis2.07
- MintakaDelta Orionis2.25
- HatysaIota Orionis2.75
- TabitPi 3 Orionis3.19