What is the Orion Arm?
Q: What is the Orion Arm?
A: The Orion Arm, or Orion–Cygnus Arm, is a minor spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy. It is of interest because the Solar System (including the Earth) is inside it.
Q: How wide and long is the Orion Arm?
A: The spiral arm is some 3,500 light-years (1,100 parsecs) across and approximately 10,000 light-years (3,100 parsecs) in length.
Q: Where does its name come from?
A: The Orion Arm is named after the Orion constellation, one of the most prominent constellations. It is seen in the Northern Hemisphere during winter and in the Southern Hemisphere during summer.
Q: What stars and celestial objects are located in this arm?
A: Some of the brightest stars and most famous celestial objects are in the Orion Arm such as Betelgeuse, Rigel, stars of Orion's Belt and also the Orion nebula.
Q: Where does it lie relative to other arms of our Galaxy?
A: The Orion Arm lies between two major arms - Carina–Sagittarius Arm (toward Galactic centre) and Perseus Arm (toward outside Universe).
Q: How far away from Galactic Centre is Solar System located?
A: The Solar system lies on an 'Orion spur' between two longer adjacent arms Perseus and Carina-Sagittarius at about 8,000 parsecs (26,000 light-years) from Galactic centre.
