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Star-hopping from Orion to Sirius, before they go

Dots and lines forming the constellation of Orion, with a red line and arrow star-hopping from Orion's belt to Sirius.
Star-hopping is going from stars you know … to stars you don’t know. On April evenings, you can look west after sunset to star-hop from the constellation Orion to the bright star Sirius. Chart via Chelynne Campion/ EarthSky.

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Star-hopping from Orion to Sirius

One very easy constellation to find at this time of the year is the magnificent Orion the Hunter, now descending in the west after sunset. It’s easy because Orion contains a very noticeable pattern of three medium-bright stars in a short straight row. These stars are known as Orion’s Belt. Find Orion, and continue the line of his belt to star-hop to Sirius. Found in the constellation Canis Major, this is the sky’s brightest star!

As Earth revolves around the sun, both the constellation Orion and the star Sirius are about to disappear for a while. They always drop into the sun’s glare shortly after this time of the year, as Earth’s motion brings the sun between us and them. So be sure to look for them while you can, soon after the sun goes down. We’ll see them again in the east before dawn, beginning around late July or early August.

Try it for yourself

People learning to recognize the stars often use star-hopping – going from stars and constellations they know to ones they don’t know – to find and recognize new stars and constellations. The use of Orion’s Belt to find Sirius is one of the best-known star-hops in the sky, because the stars are so bright and the pattern is so definite. Another great star-hop to try is using the Big Dipper to find Polaris, the North Star. If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, this star-hop will allow you to always find north!

Blue sky with trees and a building lit up along the bottom edge, and with annotated lines forming an asterism and an arrow.
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Cecille Kennedy in Lincoln City, Oregon, captured this photo of the Big Dipper and Polaris on March 2, 2021. She wrote: “So thrilled to see the Big Dipper and Polaris, the North Star! I was facing the other way (southwest) taking photos of the bonfires on the beach, and when I turned around to face north, there they were.” Thank you, Cecille!

Bottom line: Star-hopping is going from stars you know … to stars you don’t know. On April evenings, look west after sunset to star-hop from the constellation Orion to the bright star Sirius. Give it a try before Orion and Sirius sink out of view!

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The post Star-hopping from Orion to Sirius, before they go first appeared on EarthSky.

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