アルニタク vs ミンタカ

Spectroscopy puts them in the same box — O-type for アルニタク as for ミンタカ — so the differences lie elsewhere. Intrinsically the balance shifts: アルニタク carries an absolute magnitude of −5.03 against −4.38 for ミンタカ, making it about 1.8 times more luminous once distance is removed from the comparison. Both lie at a comparable distance from the Sun — 736 light-years for アルニタク and 692 for ミンタカ. Apparent magnitudes of +1.74 and +2.25 place アルニタク some 1.6 times brighter in the sky than ミンタカ.

Property comparison

Property アルニタク ミンタカ
名称 50Zet Ori 34Del Ori
星座 Orion Orion
スペクトル型 Class O — O-type (Blue) Class O — O-type (Blue)
見かけの等級 +1.74 +2.25
絶対等級 -5.03 -4.38
距離 736 ly 692 ly
質量 N/A N/A
半径 N/A N/A
温度 N/A N/A
光度 N/A N/A

Full data for each star: アルニタク · ミンタカ

Key differences

Key Differences

  • ◆ Both are O-type stars in Orion's Belt, but Alnitak is the eastern star and Mintaka the western.
  • ◆ Alnitak is the brightest O-type star in the night sky; Mintaka lies almost exactly on the celestial equator.
  • ◆ Alnitak is near the Horsehead Nebula and Flame Nebula which it illuminates with its intense UV radiation.
  • ◆ Both are multiple star systems containing O-type primaries.
  • ◆ Alnitak is somewhat more massive and more distant than Mintaka.
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