Some Stars and Nebulae in Orion
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Orion contains a rich array of objects. Point to the image or the links to highlight the featured objects. Click for information about an object.
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| Alnilam | |
| Distance | 1359.01 light years |
| Apparent Magnitude | 1.68 |
| Absolute Visual Magnitude | -6.42 |
| Variability | tiny < 0.06 Mag |
| Radius | 44 solar radii |
| Companions | binary > 10" sep |
| Temperature | 15,903 Kelvin |
| B-V colour | -0.18 |
| Luminosity | 112,435 suns |
| Alnilam is a blue supergiant star.
It is much younger than the Sun and very much more massive.
It is burning much more brightly than the Sun and is using fuel at an extraordinarily rapid rate.
Alnilam will have a much shorter life than the Sun.
Once its fuel is exhausted, Anilam's core will collapse to a neutron star or possibly a black hole.
This will trigger a supernova explosion that will hurl enormous amounts of
outer-layer material into surrounding space.
Alnilam is member of a multiple star system. Its slight variability may be caused by a companion that regularly passes across its face. | |
