Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Orion, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Orion and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Orion
- Astronomy & Satellites ...
- Whether using binoculars, a small telescope or the naked-eye, the Heavens-Above website can help you to find your way around the night-time sky. In addition to detailed sky charts, their website will help you find planets, asteriods, comets, satellites and their tracks across the sky.
- To give accurate results, Heavens-Above requires the latitude and longitude of your location. As a starting point, when we link to Heavens-Above, we pass this GPS location for Orion:
- 41.352559, -90.376659
- Once you're on the Heavens-Above website, you can improve its accuracy by giving a more precise longitude and latitude as your actual position.
- The Heavens-Above Website, centered on Orion
- Bird Watching ...
- We enjoy finding new spots for bird watching and we use the eBird website for local sighting reports and to help identify hotspots.
- The eBird website is organized on a county-by-county basis. We have selected Henry County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Henry County
- Since Orion is near Mercer County and also Rock Island County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Mercer County
- eBird sighting report for Rock Island County
- Waymarking ...
- Looking for somewhere out of the ordinary? Find a unique place and want to share it with others? Then it's time to visit Waymarking.com:
- Waymark.com
Communities Also Named Orion ...
We found thirteen communities that share the name Orion.
Within Illinois, the name Orion is unique.
Beyond Illinois, we know of another thirteen communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these thirteen communities, twelve are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Alberta
- This Orion lies 1,132 miles [1,821.8 km]<1> to the northwest of the Orion that is located in Henry County.
- Arkansas
- California
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Cloud County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Orion [Cloud County].
- Gove County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Orion [Gove County].
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Nevada
- North Carolina
- Oklahoma
- Wisconsin
Curious and Interesting Names Near Orion ...
As we travel, we always see a community with a name that gives pause. While there are names which are interesting or familiar, some catch our attention or strike our fancy. We always wonder about such a name. If time permits and the community is not too far, we'll usually try to make a side-trip.
- Cable
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest) - Coal Valley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coal Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Valley
- Coal Valley is located in Rock Island County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,719 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coal Valley <5>
- Green River
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green River have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green River
- Green River is located in Henry County
- Green Rock
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Rock
- Green Rock is located in Henry County
- Griffin
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest) - Lynn Center
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lynn Center have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn Center
- Lynn Center is located in Henry County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lynn Center <5>
- Poplar Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Poplar Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Grove
- Poplar Grove is located in Rock Island County
- Sunny Hill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunny Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunny Hill
- Sunny Hill is located in Henry County
- Timber Ridge
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Timber Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Ridge
- Timber Ridge is located in Henry County
How Far From Orion to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a village such as Orion to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Orion and extending to:
- Cambridge, which is the Seat of Henry County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<1> to the east southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Orion to Cambridge, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Springfield, which is the State Capital of Illinois, lies 114 miles [183.5 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about two hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 7 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 723 miles [1,163.6 km] to the east (E). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 29 days and walking would take 41 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,308 miles [10,151.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,050 miles [11,345.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,937 miles [7,945.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Orion. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Henry County: www.henrycty.com/
The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Orion) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Orion. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.3526, Longitude: -90.3767 |
| <2> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Orion, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer. Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Mile's to see Pete ... Mile's is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name. Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time. Also keep in mind that Orion could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out. |
| <4> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | While we have tried to pick reasonable speeds, the rate of travel is very theoretical - obstacles like fences, hills, lakes, river crossings and rest stops have been ignored. When we say 'Days' of travel, we're assuming 8 hours of travel per day. |
| <7> | The shortest line can be visualized by stretching a string on a Globe from Point A to Point B - this is known as a Great Circle Route. Where you might expect the shortest route from Orion to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 316.267 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 313.35 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.074 degrees. |