Mintaka: A Blazing Hot Star System in Orion’s Belt

Mintaka is the rightmost star in Orion’s belt and may be viewed with the naked eye. The star has multiple companions, but most observers will enjoy seeing the primary bluish-white color of Mintaka contrasted against a nearby fainter pale blue star.

Mintaka burns hot and bright. As you stare at this bluish-white star, just imagine the heat coming off it: a whopping 51,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, this diamond star of the winter night is 190,000 times more luminous than our sun. There’s no surprise it’s so bright from 900 light years away.

My Observations

With an outside temperature of 19F and a humidity of 93%, this New Year’s Eve is fridged. When 2021 started, we were hopeful the end of the pandemic was in sight. But unfortunately, a new version of the virus (called Omicron) seems to be spreading everywhere. Tonight, as I stand freezing in the snow trying to get a little stargazing in between small patches of clouds, I’m grateful for life and for this moment of clear skies.

Mintaka appears a bright white to me, like Rigel. Not far is a 7th magnitude blue star. For an interesting comparison of colorful double stars, I suggest viewing Miram after looking at Mintaka. Both stars have blue companions, so it’s interesting to compare both during the same night.

As I focus on Mintaka, I notice my fingers are becoming numb. I wear gloves my wife made with the fingers exposed so I can easily use my digital pen while sketching on cold nights. But tonight, the air is cutting through with each subtle breeze. I imagine the cold of space and wish the venture close to the heat of Mintaka.

Key Stats

Constellation	Orion
Best Viewing	Winter
Visual Magnitude	+2.2, +7
Absolute Visual Magnitude	-4.4
Distance from Earth	690 ly
Separation	33.4″ | 7090 AU
Orbital Period	5 days
Milky Way Location	Orion Spur
My Viewing Grade	B

Sources and Notes

Illustration of Mintaka by Pablo Carlos Budassi and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Details here.

Sketch by Wayne McGraw

AKA: Delta Orionis, SAO 132220, 34 Ori