I am on the west coast of the U.S. and for several weeks I have seen two large, twinkling objects in the eastern sky at night with the naked eye. In between them there are 3 smaller ones that are stacked vertically and very close to one another. All 5 rise in the sky as a group as the evening progresses. Could this be Orion? Thank you.
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1$\begingroup$ Not an answer because it's unclear which constellation you were seeing without a better description or a photograph. That said, I suspect you were seeing Orion. The three stars that form Orion's belt are called the three sisters in some cultures. $\endgroup$– David HammenCommented Dec 28, 2017 at 6:46
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$\begingroup$ Also there are more famous seven sisters, the Pleiades, which are positioned very roughly in a similar direction as Orion. Maybe you're confusing those? $\endgroup$– AtmosphericPrisonEscapeCommented Dec 28, 2017 at 10:39
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$\begingroup$ The Seven Sisters are a smallish fuzzy blob in which one can possibly distinguish seven stars, perhaps more with good eyesight and good viewing conditions. The three stars on Orion's belt are easily seen even with not so good eyesight and with significant light pollution. $\endgroup$– David HammenCommented Dec 28, 2017 at 14:22
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$\begingroup$ @lifewithamac, additional information that would help would be your approximate position (LA or Seattle?), the exact time you're seeing it, and the best idea of direction (is is straight east, or south of due east?) $\endgroup$– BowlOfRedCommented Dec 31, 2017 at 6:16
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3 Answers
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Using the calsky.org website, this is a chart showing a view of the eastern night sky from a point near San Francisco, CA at 7pm this evening. (The green tick mark on the horizon is due east).
Orion is located between the moon and the horizon, and will be rising quickly.
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1$\begingroup$ Indeed. Moon/sun/planet graphics seem to be large enough to be recognizable rather than realistic. On this graphic, actual size would be about 5 pixels wide instead of the 20 or so it used. $\endgroup$ Commented Jan 2, 2018 at 6:47
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$\begingroup$ @BowlOfRed That's wrong. In fact, the moon goes exactly once into the upper triangle of the Orion. (triangle Betelgeuse-Bellatrix-Meuse). And it is obvious that it's true on this picture. $\endgroup$– User123Commented Mar 12, 2020 at 15:34
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Now that you have extensively modified your question (in particular the stars now rising in the east), then yes this is Orion. The upper bright star is Betelgeuse - you should be able to see that it is red - and the lower bright star is Rigel, which is bluish white.
The 3 stars in the middle form Orion's belt.
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It depends where the two bright stars are, but most likely those two are Betelgeuse and Rigel. And if there are three stars closely next to each other, then that could be Orion’s Belt. So yes, most likely what you are seeing is the constellation Orion.
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4$\begingroup$ Hello. Thanks for the answer. This old question already has two answers, and your answer doesn't seem to add much. There are lots of unanswered questions - perhaps your contribution would be more valuable if you answered one of those. $\endgroup$– James KCommented Oct 2, 2022 at 18:51