Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

Alnitak, Alnilam, Mintaka

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for October 13, 2005 is “Alnitak, Alnilam, Mintaka,” an image. It is credited to Credit: Digitized Sky Survey , ESA/ESO/NASA FITS Liberator Color Composite: Davide De Martin ( Skyfactory ). The original explanation runs about 162 words.

Alnitak, Alnilam, Mintaka
Credit: Digitized Sky Survey , ESA/ESO/NASA FITS Liberator Color Composite: Davide De Martin ( Skyfactory ) Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“Alnitak , Alnilam , and Mintaka , are the bright bluish stars from east to west (left to right) along the diagonal in this gorgeous cosmic vista. Otherwise known as the Belt of Orion , these three blue supergiant stars are hotter and much more massive than the Sun.”

— APOD editors, October 13, 2005

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
October 13, 2005
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: Digitized Sky Survey , ESA/ESO/NASA FITS Liberator Color Composite: Davide De Martin ( Skyfactory )
Copyright
No copyright notice on the entry. Check the credited institution’s own usage rules before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 162 words

All of October 2005 → · 2005 by month → · Full archive since 1995 →

Topics in this entry

The SunOrionNebulae

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: October 13 in other years

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Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.