The Gould Belt is a partial ring of stars local to us in the Milky Way. It is about 3000 light years across, tilted from the galactic plane by 16 to 20 degrees. It has many large and bright O- and B-type stars.
The belt may be the local spiral arm to which the Sun belongs. At present the Sun is about 325 light years from the arm's centre. The belt is thought to be from 30 to 50 million years old, and of unknown origin. Benjamin Gould identified it in 1879.
The belt contains bright stars in many constellations including (in order going more or less eastward) Cepheus, Lacerta, Perseus, Orion, Canis Major, Puppis, Vela, Carina, Crux (the Southern Cross), Centaurus, Lupus, and Scorpius (including the Scorpius-Centaurus Association).