[rahy-juh
l, -guhl] 
| a first-magnitude star in the constellation Orion. |
| Ri·gel (rī'jəl) n. A bright double star in the constellation Orion. [Arabic rijl, foot; see rgl in Semitic roots.] |
| Rigel (rī'jəl) Pronunciation Key
A very bright, bluish-white supergiant star in the constellation Orion. It is a binary star, with an average apparent magnitude of 0.12. Scientific name: Beta Orionis. Our Living Language : The history of astronomy owes much to Arabic scientists of the Middle Ages, who preserved the astronomical learning of ancient Greece and made improvements on it. The English names of many of the brightest stars in the heavens are Arabic in origin. The name of the supergiant star Rigel, for example, comes from the Arabic word for "foot" (the foot of the constellation Orion, that is). Some other important stars whose names are Arabic include Aldebaran, "the one following (the Pleiades)"; Betelgeuse, "hand of Orion"; Deneb, "tail" (of the constellation Cygnus, the swan); and Altair, "the flying eagle" (in the constellation Aquila, the eagle). The names of other stars are usually Greek or Latin, such as Antares or Sirius, as are the names of the constellations. |
Rigel
one of the brightest stars in the sky, intrinsically as well as in appearance. A blue-white supergiant in the constellation Orion, Rigel is about 770 light-years from the Sun and is about 37,000 times as luminous. A companion star, also bluish white, is of the sixth magnitude. The name Rigel derives from an Arabic term meaning "the left leg of the giant," referring to the figure of Orion
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