the-star-stuff:

Orion the Hunter

The constellation Orion the Hunter — visible in the winter sky from the Northern Hemisphere — is big and bright, so it’s easy to photograph. This 5-minute single exposure captures the colors of Orion’s prominent stars, most notably coppery Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis), which sits in the upper-left corner. The Orion Nebula (M42) glows below the three stars of the Hunter’s Belt and the wispy tendrils of Barnard’s Loop make a large red C on the left side of the shot. Finally, look carefully beneath the leftmost star in the Belt for a tiny dark indentation in the red cloud of gas. That’s the elusive Horsehead Nebula (B33). 

by Chin Wei-Loon from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia