This six-panel mosaic shows the three stars in the center of the constellation Orion the Hunter. From left to right, they are Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka. Alnitak and Mintaka are 1,200 light-years away while Alnilam lies some 2,000 light-years distant.

Orion’s Belt or the Belt of Orion, also known as the Three Kings or Three Sisters, is an asterism in the constellation Orion. It consists of the three bright stars Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka.

Looking for Orion’s Belt in the night sky is the easiest way to locate Orion in the sky. The stars are more or less evenly spaced in a straight line, and so can be visualized as the belt of the hunter’s clothing. They are best visible in the early night sky during the Northern Winter/Southern Summer, in particular the month of January at around 9:00 pm.