Oye, Beltalowda! - Orion's Belt

The title of this two-panel mosaic, “Oye, Beltalowda!,” comes from The Expanse—the cry of those living in the asteroid belt to unite against the oppression of the “Inners,” those from the Earth and Mars, who exploit and oppress them. This seems, unfortunately, relevant in January 2026 as we witness an expansive fascist regime of our own attack opposition through every means of official power.

As to the image, what we see here is the Belt of Orion—a formation clearly visible from our homeworld with the naked eye that is 900 to 1,300 light years awat. But in this case, we see a rendition only possible with the long, deep exposures of a digital camera exposing for almost 100 hours. It reveals realities not visible to the woeful instruments of light-gathering stationed at the top of our faces: ionized hydrogen gas, lanes and globules of dust made from complex hydrocarbon compounds, and giant, bright stars that are not long (in a cosmic sense) for this universe.

The bright stars in the frame are, from right to left, Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka. All three are blue-white supergiant stars that will last only a short time (a few million years) and eventually die in cataclysmic Type II supernova explosions. Alnilam is a single star system where its belter brothers, Alnitak and Mintaka are multiple star systems (a very common phenomenon in this, our only discernible universe).

The most complex area in the frame surrounds Alnitak on the right and includes the Horsehead and Flame nebulas as well as several vdB objects. Scroll down to “Related Images” to learn more about this area.