When spring arrives in a couple of months, the Sun will stand near the body of one of the fish of Pisces. Over time, though, the Sun’s location at the vernal equinox slips westward. About 6500 years ago, it was just above the head of Orion, the hunter. Orion is best known for his strong shoulders and legs and his sparkling belt. The tiny triangle of stars that marks his head doesn’t look nearly as impressive. Yet the stars themselves really are standouts. The brightest of the three is known as Lambda Orionis. It’s actually a pair of stars locked in a tight orbit. Both stars are many times bigger, hotter, and brighter than the Sun. In fact, one of them is a member of the hottest class of stars. It’s tens of thousands of degrees hotter than the Sun, and more than 60,000 times brighter. That makes it easily visible across more than a thousand light-years of space. The other stars are Phi-1 and Phi-2 Orionis, which represent the hunter’s cheeks. Although they share a name, they aren’t rela
