Leo (lat. Leo) is the zodiac constellation of the northern hemisphere of the sky, lying between Cancer and Virgo.
Short description
| a lion | |
| Lat. Name | Leo |
| Reduction | Leo |
| Symbol | a lion |
| right ascension | from 9 h 15 m to 11 h 52 m |
| declination | -6° 00' to +33° 30' |
| Square | 947 sq. degrees (12th place) |
| brightest stars (value< 3 m) |
Regulus (α Leo) – 1.36m Algieba (γ Leo) – 2.01m Denebola (β Leo) – 2.14m Zosma (δ Leo) – 2.56 Algenubi (ε Leo) – 2.97m |
| meteor showers | Leonids |
| neighboring constellations | Big Dipper Lesser Lion Hair of Veronica Virgo Chalice Hydra Cancer Sextant Lynx (angled) |
| The constellation is visible at latitudes from +84° to -56°. The best time for observation is February, March. |
|
Full description
The constellation Leo belongs to the zodiac constellations. The ecliptic passes through it, along which the Sun “moves”. This cluster of stars is located between Virgo and Cancer. Ursa Major, Lesser Lion, Bowl and Sextant also settled nearby. The location of the brightest stars in the cluster, indeed, is somewhat reminiscent of a lying animal. IN Ancient Greece The lion represented strength and ferocity. At that distant time, there were a lot of these powerful predators on the Balkan Peninsula. It is now that almost all of them have been exterminated, and the miserable remnants of Asiatic lions live only in the Gir reserve (India). But then, not now.
One of these formidable predators was the Nemean lion. He lived in the mountains near the city of Nemea (Peloponnese) and terrified the surroundings. No one could defeat the beast, but then Hercules appeared. He fearlessly entered into a fight with a lion and strangled him with his own hands. To perpetuate this feat, Zeus laid out the stars in the sky in the form of a lion figure. Since that time, a cluster of stars has been shining on the celestial sphere, symbolizing the victory of the son of Zeus over a ferocious animal.
The brightest star in the constellation is the blue-white star Regulus.
It is also one of the brightest stars in the night sky. From the Earth to it within easy reach. The distance is only about 78 light years. The luminary consists of 4 stars, which are combined into 2 pairs. One contains a blue-white Main Sequence star and a white dwarf. In the second pair, 2 dim stars of the Main Sequence coexist in unison.
Regulus practically "lies" on the ecliptic, so it is often covered by the Moon and less often by such planets as Venus and Mercury. The main white-blue star, which makes this system as bright as possible, exceeds the solar mass by 3.5 times, and exceeds our star by 160 times in brightness. The shape of the star is oblate due to the very rapid rotation around its own axis. From Latin, Regulus is translated as "little king", and the Arabs called the luminary the "Heart of a Lion".
In the back of the predator snugly nestled in the night sky is Star of Denebola. From Arabic, the name translates as "lion's tail." The luminary is considered the third brightest in the constellation. It belongs to the Main Sequence. Almost 2 times the mass of the Sun and 12 times brighter. It is separated from the Earth by 36 light years. Denebola is a Delta Scuti variable star. Its brightness changes slightly over several hours.
On the lion's mane, when he turns his head, is a golden yellow star Algieba. In translation, the name means "lion's mane". The luminary consists of 2 stars. The luminosity of the main component is 180 times greater than the solar one, and the diameter is 23 times greater. The second star shines 50 times brighter than the Sun, and its diameter is 10 times larger. They revolve around a common center with an orbital period of 500 years. They are 126 light-years away from the blue planet.
There are also several other bright stars. Zeta Leo or Adhafera is in a thick lion's mane. This is a giant white star, the brightness of which is 85 times greater than the sun. It is 3 times heavier than the Sun, and its radius is 6 times larger. It is located at a distance of 274 light years from our planet.
One of the closest stars to Earth is Wolf (wolf) 359. This is a red dwarf. It is separated from the blue planet by 7.8 light years. It belongs to the so-called flaring variable stars. They are characterized by the fact that an unpredictable sharp increase in brightness can occur within a few minutes. The increase in brightness lies in the spectrum from X-rays to radio waves. Outbreaks usually occur at intervals of several days. The star is relatively young. Its age does not exceed 1 billion years, and the luminosity is 100 thousand times less than the solar one.
The star is of great interest. Kaffau or SDSS J102915+172927. Found it in the galactic halo. It is described in detail in the American journal Nature, September 2011. The fact is that this luminary has an age of 13 billion years. It is one of the oldest stars milky way. Its mass is 0.8 solar. This cosmic body has a deficiency of carbon, oxygen, nitrogen and is completely devoid of lithium.
As we all well know, oxygen and carbon play a decisive role in the formation of low-mass stars. Therefore, the very principles of formation and existence of Kaffau are a mystery. The search for similar stars is currently underway. It is assumed that in space there can be from 5 to 50.
asterisms
In the constellation Leo, there is an asterism called the Sickle. It consists of six stars. Namely, α, η, γ, ζ, μ and ε. The shape of this asterism resembles exactly a sickle, or a question mark. The point of this question mark is the most bright Star of this constellation - Regulus.
The most interesting objects to observe in the constellation Leo
1. Spiral galaxy M 65 (NGC 3623)
spiral galaxy M65- one of Triplet Leo(Also M66 And NGC 3628). As a rule, this trio of galaxies is not divided even when observed through a telescope. Often in astronomical sources you will meet exactly the name "Triplet Leo". The entire system of galaxies is removed from us at a distance of 35 million light years.
M65 has a magnitude of 9.3m, a surface brightness of 12.7m, and an angular apparent size of 9.8′ × 2.9′. A very oblate and elongated galaxy. In a telescope with an aperture of up to 200 millimeters, it will be possible to notice a concentrated bright core and the shape of the galaxy as a whole. In order to distinguish the spirals of the galaxy, you will need a telescope with a main mirror diameter of 300+ millimeters.
2. Spiral galaxy M 66 (NGC 3627)
large galaxy M66, belonging to the type of spiral, is removed from us at a distance of 35 million light years. Its diameter is 100 thousand light years. The apparent dimensions are 9.1′ × 4.1′, while the magnitude is 8.9m and the surface brightness is 12.7m. Despite the spirality of the galaxy, M66 included in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies. The galaxy has such an elongated and slightly flattened shape due to gravitational interaction with close neighbors in the cluster Triplet Leo. In this cluster, it is territorially located to the south of other galaxies.
3 Spiral Galaxy NGC 3628
The weakest, but at the same time the most beautiful galaxy NGC 3628 in the cluster, the Leo Triplet measures 13.1′ × 3.1′, has an apparent magnitude of 9.6m, and a surface brightness of 13.5m. To distinguish the dark band of dust "passing" through the galaxy, you need a telescope with an aperture of 200 millimeters or more. The galaxy is seen edge-on, and a careful detailed study will reveal the deformation of the arms. This is due to the mutual gravitation of the three galaxies.
4. Spiral galaxy M 95 (NGC 3351)
In 1781 the galaxy M95 was discovered by the French astronomer Pierre Mechain, and four days later included in his catalog by Charles Messier. Despite the convenient turn of the deep-sky relative to the observer from the Earth, the angular dimensions of the galaxy are only 7.4 ′ × 5.0 ′, the apparent stellar magnitude is slightly lower than 10 (more precisely, 9.8 m) and is removed from us at a distance of about 40 million light years. Along with three more (at least) deep-sky objects, M 95 is a member of the Local Group of galaxies. In 2012 in M95 discovered a supernova SN 2012aw.
5. Spiral galaxy M 96 (NGC 3368)
Like the previous galaxy ( M95) M96 was discovered by Pierre Mechain in 1781. It is noteworthy that this is one of the first discovered spiral galaxies, as well as the brightest in the Leo I local group. It has a brightness of 9.2 m and an angular size of 7.8' × 5.2'. The distance to the galaxy lies in the range of 30 to 40 million light years. It was determined using Cepheid variable stars.
6 Elliptical Galaxy M 105 (NGC 3379)
M 105 (left), NGC 3384 (bottom) and NGC 3389 (right)M105 is an E1-type elliptical galaxy. The Hubble Orbiting Telescope has discovered a giant object at the center of the galaxy with a mass of about 50 million solar masses. Presumably, this is a huge black hole. The brightness of the galaxy is 9.3 m, the apparent dimensions are 5.3' × 4.8'.
On a clear night, a 10-inch telescope can see all three galaxies in the same field of view of the eyepiece. By the way, this galaxy was also not discovered by Messier and it was not even included in the second edition of his catalog. Only in 1947, the American astronomer Helen Hogg, after studying letters and notes, included the galaxy in the Messier catalog.
7 Elliptical Galaxy NGC 3384 (NGC 3371)
In the previous image, the lowest of the three galaxies is an elliptical galaxy. NGC 3384. In the "New General Catalog" (NGC) is recorded under two serial numbers: the second - 3371 . Visible angular dimensions - 5.4' × 2.7' and brightness - 9.9 m. More flattened and turned in spirals towards the observer.
third galaxy ( NGC 3389) in the catalog is located under two numbers: the second – 3373 . It has an apparent stellar magnitude close to 12 and is not considered in detail within the framework of this review. Visible as a cloudy small oval speck in telescopes with an aperture of 250 millimeters or more.
8 Elliptical Galaxy NGC 3377
Another small, but with a saturated core elliptical galaxy in the constellation Leo - NGC 3377. In the Hubble sequence, it has type E5, that is, it has a strongly oblate shape at the poles. Visible angular dimensions - 5.0' × 3.0' and brightness - 10.2 m .
9 Lenticular Galaxy NGC 3412
If you remember, lenticular (SB0) is a type of spiral galaxy in which the branches are very poorly expressed and have a bright, saturated core. Unfortunately, I did not find a normal photo on the Internet. Visible angular dimensions NGC 3412- 3.7 ′ × 2.2 ′, and the brightness is 10.4 m (in some places it is lowered to 10.9 m).
10 Lenticular Galaxy NGC 3489
And another SB0 type spiral galaxy NGC 3489 slightly deviated from the group of previous galaxies and is not associated with them by any gravitational forces. This is a single deep-sky object, the search for which can be started from different reference stars. Or from a star κ Leo, about which I wrote earlier, or start on the other side of the brighter star Sheratan ( ΘLeo), whose magnitude is 3.5 m.
11. Spiral galaxy NGC 2903
In the head of the Lion, not far from the star Alterf ( λLeo) hid an amazing spiral galaxy NGC 2903. The galaxy is notable for the fact that active star formation is in full swing at the edges of the "sleeves". One of the regions of star formation, which is located at the northern end of the bar, scientists managed to identify and add to the catalog under the serial number NGC 2305. Apparent magnitude (8.8 m) allows you to see a deep-sky object even in an amateur semi-professional 150 mm telescope. By the way, some details of the branches and the inhomogeneity of the galactic core can already be distinguished through a telescope with a primary mirror diameter of 250 millimeters or more. The apparent dimensions of the galaxy are 12.6′ × 6.0′ – thus, it seems to “stand on its feet”, that is, it is elongated vertically relative to the observer.
It is removed from us at a distance of a little more than 30 million light years and is quite well studied by astronomers in the Hubble telescope. But we can find it by plotting a route from the Algenubi star ( ε Leo) and turning the telescope tube to the star Alterf, and then a little lower.
12. Pair of galaxies NGC 3226 and NGC 3227
A fantastic picture of a pair of interacting galaxies was captured by the Hubble telescope. Interestingly, NGC 3226 is an elliptical galaxy (E2), while NGC 3227 is a barred spiral galaxy. The latter is more massive and, with its attraction, will completely absorb its neighbor over time and form a new large galaxy. Only it will be in hundreds of millions of years. The total brightness of the galaxies is close to magnitude 11, and in addition to a powerful telescope, a clear moonless night and the ability to distinguish barely noticeable dark-light irregularities against the background of space will be required.
13 Elliptical Galaxy NGC 3640
Very small (4.0′ × 3.2′) and dim (apparent magnitude 10.3m) elliptical galaxy NGC 3640 hid in the southern part of the constellation among several stars of 6-8 magnitudes. nearest bright star τ Leo(4.95 m). If you manage to notice it in the finder, then it will be an excellent start on the way to the desired galaxy.
14. Spiral galaxy NGC 3521
Fantastically attractive barred spiral galaxy NGC 3521, same as the previous one NGC 3640 is located in the south of the constellation Leo. On star map green landmarks marked a short route from the star ρ 2 Leo.
The apparent stellar magnitude is 9.2m, and the angular dimensions are 11.2′ × 5.4′. Due to its large size, it has a low surface brightness (13.5 m). However, it is possible to find a galaxy and even notice some dark-light inhomogeneities already in a 150-millimeter telescope.
Compared to other images of galaxies, the image NGC 3521 many times superior in detail and quality. In 2015, the Hubble Space Telescope updated a previous image from 2011, and the following image can now be found in astronomical sources:
15 Elliptical Galaxy NGC 3607
Triplet of elliptical galaxies NGC 3605, 3607 , 3608 not gravitationally bound. Only optically it seems that they are nearby and experience mutual attraction. In fact, only one of the three NGC 3607- has a brightness below magnitude 11 (10.0 m), the rest, even "at the glitch level", will be extremely difficult to notice. By the way, there is another galaxy nearby - a spiral galaxy NGC 3626 or in the Caldwell catalog C40, but its brightness also exceeds 11 m .
How to find the constellation Leo in the sky?
The constellation is clearly visible throughout Russia. Finding the constellation is quite simple, it stands out in the sky with its bright star Regulus, located next to the ecliptic. The brightest stars in the constellation form a trapezium.
East of Leo is the constellation Virgo. Star Spica (A Virgin) is also near the ecliptic and together with Arcturus (A Bootes) forms a well-known asterism - "spring triangle". North of Leo is located "ladle" Big Dipper.
The best conditions for observations are in February and March. The sun enters the constellation 10th of August.
Constellation in different cultures
Considered one of the oldest celestial constellations. Information from archeology proves that a constellation similar to Leo was found in Mesopotamia as early as 4000 BC. The Persians called it Shir (Sher), the Babylonians - UR.GU.LA ("great lion"), the Syrians - Arya, and the Turks - Artan.
In Babylon, they also knew about the star Regulus, about which they said: "the one that stands at the lion's chest" or "the star of the king." The constellation and the brightest star have been noted in many cultures.
The Greeks saw in him the Nemean lion, which Hercules killed. This story served as the first feat. Erastofen and Gigin wrote that the lion was placed in the sky because it is the king of beasts. In the sky, you can see 6 bright stars in the shape of a sickle, displaying a lion's head. The brightest - Regulus marks the heart, Danebola - finished the tail, Algieba - the neck (although the name is translated as "forehead"), and Zosma - the rump.
Greek myth
The mythology of the Greeks connects the constellation Leo with the monstrous Nemean lion and with one of the labors of Hercules.
Having defeated the titans, Zeus cast them into the gloomy Tartarus. At the huge gates of Tartarus, the hundred-armed hecaton-cheirs vigilantly guarded the terrible enemies. The Titans have lost their power over the world forever. But the struggle of Zeus for power over Heaven and Earth did not end there. He still had to defeat the last enemy - Typhon, who instilled fear in everyone and was the cause of many disasters on Earth.
When Gaia (Earth) found out how cruelly Zeus acted with her children - the titans, she married the gloomy Tartarus and gave birth to the terrible hundred-headed monster Typhon - a creature with a hundred dragon heads, continuously spewing flames in all directions.
As soon as Typhon rose from the bowels of the Earth, the whole Earth shuddered from its weight. The deafening roar of angry bulls and lions, the barking of dogs and the terrifying snake hissing spread far across the Earth, and the flames erupted by the dragon's heads burned everything around. Horror seized people and animals, and even the gods were frightened. The earth burned, and everything melted from the hellish heat. Stormy flame swirled around Typhon. Only Zeus was not afraid. He boldly marched against Typhon, showered him with lightning and deafened him with peals of thunder. Earth and Sky merged into a continuous fire, it seemed that even the air was on fire. Zeus' lightning turned everything to ashes. Zeus incinerated all one hundred heads of Typhon, and he collapsed to Earth like a huge rock. Such heat emanated from his body that everything around him melted, and the Earth itself almost turned into a fiery river.
Wasting no time, Zeus grabbed the huge body of Typhon and threw him into the depths of the gloomy Tartarus, which gave birth to this monster. Typhon remained there forever. But even in Tartarus, Typhon still threatens the gods and inspires fear in people, causing terrible hurricanes that sweep away everything in their path. The fire of Typhon passes through the thickness of the mountains, and then fiery rivers flow along their slopes. But the worst thing happened when Typhon married Echidna. They gave birth terrible monsters- the two-headed dog Orfo, the three-headed dog Kerber with a snake tail, the Lernean hydra, the Nemean lion, etc. Some monsters rose to Earth and caused terrible disasters and terrible suffering to people.
Typhon and Echidna (half-woman, half-snake) left their offspring - a huge lion - in the mountains, not far from the city of Nemea (hence its name - Nemean Lion). With a terrible roar, he rampaged around the city and devastated everything around. Horror gripped people and animals when they heard this roar. The people did not dare to leave their dwellings, famine set in, diseases began. Weeping and wailing were heard in Nemea. No one could save people from the unbearable disaster that all of Greece was talking about. King Eurystheus instructed Hercules to kill the Nemean lion and bring his corpse to Mycenae.
Hercules immediately set off. In Nemea, he saw a devastated, scorched earth. All living things hid in their homes. No one could even tell him where the terrible lion's lair was.
All day Hercules wandered through the wooded slopes of the mountains, but nowhere could he find a monstrous lion. The sun was already setting and it was getting dark. And then a terrifying roar of a lion reached Hercules, who woke up and waited for complete darkness to start hunting ...
In several gigantic leaps, Hercules reached the lion's den, which was a huge cave with two exits. Before one of the exits, Hercules piled up huge stones, and he hid at the second exit and prepared a bow and arrows. A little time passed, and a giant lion appeared from the cave with a roar. Hercules showered him with arrows, but none of them even wounded the monster - the arrows bounced off the lion, whose skin was harder than iron. Hercules did not know that the Nemean Lion was invulnerable to weapons. When Hercules saw that the arrows were bouncing off the lion, he threw away his bow and attacked the lion with a club. With one powerful blow to the head, Hercules stunned him, then grabbed his neck with his mighty hands and squeezed so hard that he strangled the lion.
Having shouldered a huge beast, Hercules went to Nemea. There he sacrificed to Zeus and established, in memory of his first feat, the Nemean Games, during which wars ceased throughout Greece and universal peace reigned.
Hercules took the lion to Mycenae. When Eurystheus saw the monster, he was so frightened of the strength and power of Hercules that he forbade him to approach Mycenae, and ordered evidence of the fulfillment of his further instructions to be shown at the city walls.55
The great thunderer Zeus turned the Nemean lion into a constellation and left it to shine in the sky to remind people of the feat of his son Hercules, who saved people from this terrible disaster.
Leo
Description
Leo is the zodiac constellation lying between Cancer and Virgo. The four bright stars of the constellation - α, β, γ and δ form the tops of a trapezoid and, as ancient astronomers believed, make up the torso of a lion. The lion's head is formed by a small arc of stars.
The brightest star is the white-blue Regulus (α Leo), which in Latin means "King". Bright shine (1.36 m) is explained by the proximity of the star to the Earth (78 light years). Regulus is located near the ecliptic, so it is often obscured by the Moon. This phenomenon is called in astronomy the covering of one object by another.
In the eastern part of the figure of Leo is the star Denebola (β Leo, 2.14 m), translated from Arabic - “lion's tail”. It is 43 light years away from Earth. At the base of the "lion's head" is a golden-yellow Algeba (at Leo), which means "lion's mane". It is visually a binary star with a magnitude of 2.0 m.
Of the interesting objects of the constellation, the star Wolf 359 can be noted (apparent brightness 13.5 m). This is a very faint red dwarf, a star quite close to the Earth. The distance to it is only 7.8 light years. If we put Wolf, whose luminosity is 100,000 times less than the sun, in place of the Sun, then a day on Earth would look like a night on a full moon.
Among the distant objects in the constellation Leo, the spiral galaxies M 65, M 66, M 95, M 96, as well as the elliptical galaxy M 105, are especially interesting. The apparent brightness of these objects is in the range between 8.4 and 10.4 magnitudes, they can be observed through a small telescope.
Most interesting objects
α Leo - Regulus. A bright blue-white main sequence star of spectral type B7. It is a binary system consisting of stars with a brightness of 1.36 m, spaced from each other at a distance of 3 ". The entire system is 78 light years away from the Sun.
γ Leo - Algebe. A binary system consisting of a red giant of magnitude 2.6 and a yellow giant of magnitude 3.8.
R Leo- a long-period variable star that changes brightness from 4.4 to 11.6 m in 313 days.
Triplet Leo- a system consisting of three galaxies: M 65, M 66 and NGC 3628. This system is removed from the Sun at a distance of 35 million light years. Galaxy M 65 is a spiral, class Sa, has a brightness of 9.3 m and angular dimensions of 8 "x1.5". Galaxy M 66 is also spiral, but of class Sb, has a brightness of 8.9 m and angular dimensions of 8 "x2.5". Three supernovae have been observed in this galaxy: 1973R, 1989B, 1997bs. The third galaxy in the NGC 3628 system is the faintest, but also the most beautiful. It is an Sc-class spiral galaxy with a brightness of 9.5m and an angular size of 14"x3.6". It is seen edge-on and in its central plane a dark dust lane is clearly visible, hiding the bright core and young stars of the spiral branches. All three galaxies are slightly deformed under the influence of mutual gravity.
Spiral galaxy M 65 in the constellation Leo
M 95 - NGC 3351 is a barred spiral galaxy, class SBb, which is part of the Leo I cluster. This cluster is at a distance of 38 million light years from us. Brightness 9.7 m , angular dimensions 4.4"x3.3".
M 96 - NGC 3368 is a spiral galaxy of class Sa. The brightest in the Leo I cluster has a brightness of 9.2 m and an angular size of 6"x4". The distance to this galaxy was determined using Cepheids.
M 105 - NGC 3379- an elliptical galaxy of class E1, which is part of the Leo I cluster. The study of the central region of this galaxy by the Hubble space telescopes showed that there is an object with a mass of about 50 million solar masses. Most likely, this is a huge black hole. Brightness 9.3 m , angular diameter - 2".
NGC 3521- a fairly bright galaxy (9.8 m) with a strongly distinguished nucleus and a weak halo. Angular dimensions 10.9"x5.1".
NGC 3626- a small elongated spiral galaxy with a brightness of 10.9 m and an angular size of 2.8 "x2". The bright core stands out well. To the right is the galaxy NGC 3608 (brightness 11.8 m , angular dimensions 1.4"x1.0"), and below NGC 3607 (brightness 11 m , angular dimensions 1.8"x1.3").
Research History
The constellation was known to the Sumerians 5000 years ago. It is included in the Almagest catalog of the starry sky by Claudius Ptolemy.
Two thousand years ago, the point of the summer solstice was in the constellation Leo, at this time in Egypt there was a strong heat, and the Nile began to flood. It is believed that this is why in the ancient drawings of this constellation, streams of water flow from the mouth of the Lion. They still make decorative bowls and fountains in the form of a lion's head, from the mouth of which water flows.
In antiquity, the star Regulus was used to keep the calendar. Hence the word “regulate” appeared in Russian.
Observation
It is very easy to spot a lion in the night sky. This bright constellation stands out for its star Regulus, which lies next to the ecliptic. A characteristic pattern of the constellation is a trapezoid, which is formed by its brightest stars.
East of Leo is the constellation Virgo. The star Spica (α Virgo) is also near the ecliptic and together with Arcturus (α Bootes) forms a well-known asterism - the "spring triangle". To the north of Leo is the "bucket" of the Big Dipper.
The sun enters the constellation on August 10. The best conditions for observations are in February and March. The constellation is clearly visible throughout Russia.
Mythology
The constellation Leo is associated with one of the exploits of the mythical hero Hercules, which he performed on the orders of the Argos king Eurystheus.
In the vicinity of Nemea, a huge lion appeared, twice as large as an ordinary lion and having a skin that was impenetrable by arrows. He lived in the mountains, in Argolis, and devastated the valley, devouring the people and cattle of Eurystheus.
To prepare for the battle with the lion, Hercules made a huge club from the trunk of a wild olive, pulling the tree with roots out of the ground and clearing it of branches and twigs. Then he took a bow and arrows and went to the vicinity of Nemea.
Encountering a lion, Hercules shot an arrow from his bow. However, the arrow bounced off the skin of the lion, as from a stone wall. The lion was immune to arrows. Then the hero took out a club and hit the lion on the head with all his might. But even this blow did not bring the lion the slightest harm, but only enraged him even more.
But as it is not difficult to guess, if there is a Small one, then there must be a large one or just a lion. It is precisely about the constellation Leo that the further narrative will go. It is located just south of the Lesser Lion, and by the contours of the bright stars you can easily recognize the constellation in the night starry sky.
Legend and history
a lion- one of the 13 zodiac constellations. The name was given in honor of the lion that Hercules had to kill in one of the 12 labors. Many historians admit that the constellation received its name much earlier than from the Greek myth. For example, in ancient Mesopotamia, the constellation was called " Big dog". Included in the catalog starry sky Claudius Ptolemy "Almagest". For a long time, Russian sources were "silent" about this constellation. Only in the 11th century in the manuscript "13 words of Gregory the Theologian in the Old Slavonic translation" was the constellation mentioned.
Characteristics
| Latin name | Leo |
| Reduction | Leo |
| Square | 947 sq. degrees (12th place) |
| right ascension | From 9 h 15 m to 11 h 52 m |
| declination | From −6° to +33° 30′ |
| The brightest stars< 3 m) | |
| Number of stars brighter than 6 m | 70 |
| meteor showers | Leonids |
| neighboring constellations | |
| constellation visibility | +84° to -56° |
| Hemisphere | Northern |
| Time for observation on the territory Belarus, Russia and Ukraine | March |
The most interesting objects to observe in the constellation Leo
1. Spiral galaxy M 65 (NGC 3623)
spiral galaxy M65- one of Triplet Leo(Also M66 And NGC 3628). As a rule, this trio of galaxies is not divided even when observed through a telescope. Often in astronomical sources you will meet exactly the name "Triplet Leo". The entire system of galaxies is removed from us at a distance of 35 million light years.
M65 has a magnitude of 9.3m, a surface brightness of 12.7m, and an angular apparent size of 9.8′ × 2.9′. A very oblate and elongated galaxy. In a telescope with an aperture of up to 200 millimeters, it will be possible to notice a concentrated bright core and the shape of the galaxy as a whole. In order to distinguish the spirals of the galaxy, you will need a telescope with a main mirror diameter of 300+ millimeters.
In the telescope finder we find the bright (3.3 m) Sheratan star ( ΘLeo) and move a little lower:
Leo Triplet: NGC 3628 (top), M 66 (left) and M 65 (right)
2. Spiral galaxy M 66 (NGC 3627)
large galaxy M66, belonging to the type of spiral, is removed from us at a distance of 35 million light years. Its diameter is 100 thousand light years. The apparent dimensions are 9.1′ × 4.1′, while the magnitude is 8.9m and the surface brightness is 12.7m. Despite the spirality of the galaxy, M66 included in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies. The galaxy has such an elongated and slightly flattened shape due to gravitational interaction with close neighbors in the cluster. In this cluster, it is territorially located to the south of other galaxies.
IN M66 observed in 1973, 1989 and 1997.
3 Spiral Galaxy NGC 3628
The weakest, but at the same time the most beautiful galaxy NGC 3628 in the cluster, the Leo Triplet measures 13.1′ × 3.1′, has an apparent magnitude of 9.6m, and a surface brightness of 13.5m. To distinguish the dark band of dust "passing" through the galaxy, you need a telescope with an aperture of 200 millimeters or more. The galaxy is seen edge-on, and a careful detailed study will reveal the deformation of the arms. This is due to the mutual gravitation of the three galaxies.
4. Spiral galaxy M 95 (NGC 3351)
In 1781 the galaxy M95 was discovered by the French astronomer Pierre Mechain, and four days later included in his catalog by Charles Messier. Despite the convenient turn of the deep-sky relative to the observer from the Earth, the angular dimensions of the galaxy are only 7.4 ′ × 5.0 ′, the apparent stellar magnitude is slightly lower than 10 (more precisely, 9.8 m) and is removed from us at a distance of about 40 million light years. Along with three more (at least) deep-sky objects, M 95 is a member of the Local Group of galaxies.
In 2012 in M95 discovered a supernova SN 2012aw.
Below is a map of the starry sky. The search should start with the brightest star in the constellation Regulus ( α Leo) and move towards a bright star (3.8 m) p Leo, and then straight to the galaxies M95, M96 and others.
Search for galaxies M 95, M 96 and others, starting from the star Regulus
5. Spiral galaxy M 96 (NGC 3368)
Like the previous galaxy ( M95) M96 was discovered by Pierre Mechain in 1781. It is noteworthy that this is one of the first discovered spiral galaxies, as well as the brightest in the Leo I local group. It has a brightness of 9.2 m and an angular size of 7.8' × 5.2'. The distance to the galaxy lies in the range of 30 to 40 million light years. It was determined using variable stars.
A supernova was discovered in 1998 SN1998bu.
6 Elliptical Galaxy M 105 (NGC 3379)
M 105 (left), NGC 3384 (bottom) and NGC 3389 (right)
M105- elliptical galaxy type E1. The Hubble Orbiting Telescope has discovered a giant object at the center of the galaxy with a mass of about 50 million solar masses. Presumably, this is a huge black hole. The brightness of the galaxy is 9.3 m, the apparent dimensions are 5.3' × 4.8'.
On a clear night, a 10-inch telescope can see all three galaxies in the same field of view of the eyepiece.
By the way, this galaxy was also not discovered by Messier and it was not even included in the second edition of his catalog. Only in 1947, the American astronomer Helen Hogg, after studying letters and notes, included the galaxy in the Messier catalog.
7 Elliptical Galaxy NGC 3384 (NGC 3371)
In the previous image, the lowest of the three galaxies is an elliptical galaxy. NGC 3384. In the "New General Catalog" (NGC) is written under two serial numbers: the second - 3371 . Visible angular dimensions - 5.4' × 2.7' and brightness - 9.9 m. More flattened and turned in spirals towards the observer.
third galaxy ( NGC 3389) in the catalog is located under two numbers: the second - 3373 . It has an apparent stellar magnitude close to 12 and is not considered in detail within the framework of this review. Visible as a cloudy small oval speck in telescopes with an aperture of 250 millimeters or more.
8 Elliptical Galaxy NGC 3377
Another small, but with a saturated core elliptical galaxy in the constellation Leo - NGC 3377. In the Hubble sequence, it has type E5, that is, it has a strongly oblate shape at the poles. Visible angular dimensions - 5.0' × 3.0' and brightness - 10.2 m .
In the photograph, several more galaxies are visible in the background, but their brightness decreases to 15 - 16 magnitudes and is absolutely not noticeable even in powerful professional telescopes.
Galaxies NGC 3377, 3412 and NGC 3489
As you can see, three more elliptical galaxies are located above the previous group and, if the clarity of the sky allows, it is recommended to start the search from the star κ Leo, which has a brightness of 5.45 m .
9 Lenticular Galaxy NGC 3412
If you remember, (SB0) is a type of spiral galaxy in which the branches are very poorly expressed and have a bright, saturated core. Unfortunately, I did not find a normal photo on the Internet. Visible angular dimensions NGC 3412- 3.7 ′ × 2.2 ′, and the brightness is 10.4 m (in some places it is lowered to 10.9 m).
10 Lenticular Galaxy NGC 3489
And another SB0 type spiral galaxy NGC 3489 slightly deviated from the group of previous galaxies and is not associated with them by any gravitational forces. This is a single deep-sky object, the search for which can be started from different reference stars. Or from a star κ Leo, about which I wrote earlier, or start on the other side of the brighter star Sheratan ( ΘLeo), whose magnitude is 3.5 m.
The galaxy has small visible dimensions (3.6' × 2.2'), is flattened towards the equator and has a brightness of 10.2m. Becomes available for observation in 8 - 10 inch telescopes.
11. Spiral galaxy NGC 2903
In the head of the Lion, not far from the star Alterf ( λLeo) hid an amazing spiral galaxy NGC 2903. The galaxy is notable for the fact that active star formation is in full swing at the edges of the "sleeves". One of the regions of star formation, which is located at the northern end of the bar, scientists managed to identify and add to the catalog under the serial number NGC 2305. Apparent magnitude (8.8 m) allows you to see a deep-sky object even in an amateur semi-professional 150 mm telescope. By the way, some details of the branches and the inhomogeneity of the galactic core can already be distinguished through a telescope with a primary mirror diameter of 250 millimeters or more. The apparent dimensions of the galaxy are 12.6' × 6.0', so it is, as it were, “standing on its feet”, that is, it is elongated vertically relative to the observer.
It is removed from us at a distance of a little more than 30 million light years and is quite well studied by astronomers in the Hubble telescope. But we can find it by plotting a route from the Algenubi star ( ε Leo) and turning the telescope tube to the star Alterf, and then a little lower.
12. Pair of galaxies NGC 3226 and NGC 3227
A fantastic picture of a pair of interacting galaxies was captured by the Hubble telescope. Interestingly, NGC 3226 is an elliptical galaxy (E2) while NGC 3227 is a barred spiral galaxy. The latter is more massive and, with its attraction, will completely absorb its neighbor over time and form a new large galaxy. Only it will be in hundreds of millions of years. The total brightness of the galaxies is close to magnitude 11, and in addition to a powerful telescope, a clear moonless night and the ability to distinguish barely noticeable dark-light irregularities against the background of space will be required.
At one of the Canadian astronomical forums, I found a real picture of galaxies in a 400-millimeter telescope. I present to you:
The program, for a reason that is not clear to me, does not designate a pair of galaxies at all, although the route for searching for them is trivial: from Algieba (γ Leo) and counterclockwise.
13 Elliptical Galaxy NGC 3640
Very small (4.0′ × 3.2′) and dim (apparent magnitude 10.3m) elliptical galaxy NGC 3640 hid in the southern part of the constellation among several stars of 6-8 magnitudes. nearest bright star τ Leo(4.95 m). If you manage to notice it in the finder, then it will be an excellent start on the way to the desired galaxy. I marked the location with red arrows below:
Fantastically attractive barred spiral galaxy NGC 3521, same as the previous one NGC 3640 is located in the south of the constellation Leo. On the star map, green landmarks marked a short route from the star ρ 2 Leo.
The apparent stellar magnitude is 9.2m, and the angular dimensions are 11.2′ × 5.4′. Due to its large size, it has a low surface brightness (13.5 m). However, it is possible to find a galaxy and even notice some dark-light inhomogeneities already in a 150-millimeter telescope.
Compared to other images of galaxies, the image NGC 3521 many times superior in detail and quality. In 2015, the Hubble Space Telescope updated a previous image from 2011, and the following image can now be found in astronomical sources:
Spiral galaxy NGC 3521 (Hubble telescope, 2015)
NGC 3607 (center), to the right is NGC 3605, and to the left is NGC 3608
Triplet of elliptical galaxies NGC 3605, 3607 , 3608 not gravitationally bound. Only optically it seems that they are nearby and experience mutual attraction. In fact, only one of the three - - has a brightness below magnitude 11 (10.0 m), the rest, even "at the glitch level", will be extremely difficult to notice. By the way, there is another galaxy nearby - a spiral galaxy NGC 3626 or in C40, but its brightness also exceeds 11 m .
Below on the map, I marked with colored arrows both the location of the galaxy and possible routes for its search.
16. Spiral galaxy NGC 3810
The spiral galaxy (Sc) closes the list of bright deep-sky objects in the constellation Leo. Despite the good quality image taken by the Hubble telescope, the galaxy is small (4.3′ × 3.0′) and barely below magnitude 11 (10.8 m , and now the total has been reduced to 11.98 m). In a 250mm telescope, it looks like a faint hazy speck with no distinguishing features or details. To distinguish among dim stars, you have to turn the sharpness knob and by “smearing” the image, the galaxy somehow shows its appearance.
Geographically located near the constellation Virgo and I recommend starting the search with a bright star Denebola (β Leo). By the way, if you continue to follow the route and move a little clockwise, then 3 stars of the sixth magnitude will appear in the field of view of the eyepiece, resembling an equilateral triangle in shape.
17. Double star Algieba (γ Leo)
γ Leo- a double star with a total brightness of 2.01 m consists of a red and yellow giant. The angular distance between the components is 4.4″. To separate a star into its components, you will need a telescope with an aperture of 150 mm or more and a maximum magnification.
.| a lion | |
|---|---|
| Lat. Name | Leo |
| Reduction | Leo |
| Symbol | a lion |
| right ascension | from 9 h 15 m to 11 h 52 m |
| declination | -6° 00' to +33° 30' |
| Square | 947 sq. degrees (12th place) |
| brightest stars (value< 3 m ) |
|
| meteor showers |
|
| neighboring constellations |
|
| The constellation is visible at latitudes from +84° to -56°. The best time for observation is February, March. |
|
Holds 5 Messier objects: (M65, NGC 3623), (M66, NGC 3627), (M95, NGC 3351), (M96, NGC 3368) and (M105, NGC 3379), as well as 11 stars with planets.
The brightest star is Regulus, whose apparent magnitude reaches magnitude 1.35. There are two meteor showers. Peak Leonid falls on November 17-18 and they shine brightly near the star of Algieba. The January Leonids are a small shower, peaking on January 1-7.
Leo is included in the group of zodiac constellations (12 signs of the zodiac), where you can also find,, and. Consider the scheme of the constellation Leo on the starry sky map.
The myth of the constellation Leo
It is considered one of the oldest celestial constellations. Information from archeology proves that a constellation similar to Leo was found in Mesopotamia as early as 4000 BC. The Persians called it Shir (Sher), the Babylonians - UR.GU.LA ("great lion"), the Syrians - Arya, and the Turks - Artan.
In Babylon, they also knew about the star Regulus, about which they said: "the one that stands at the lion's chest" or "the star of the king." The constellation and the brightest star have been noted in many cultures.
The Greeks saw in him the Nemean lion, which Hercules killed. This story served as the first feat. Erastofen and Gigin wrote that the lion was placed in the sky because it is the king of beasts.
The mythical lion lived in a cave in Nemeia (southwest of Corinth). He was dangerous because he preyed on people. No one was able to kill him, as the skin did not succumb to any known weapon. Hercules tried to use the arrows, but they bounced off. Then he drove him into a cave and strangled him. To remove the skin, he used the claws of the beast, after which he wore it as a cloak for protection.
In the sky, you can see 6 bright stars in the shape of a sickle, displaying a lion's head. The brightest - Regulus marks the heart, Danebola - finished the tail, Algieba - the neck (although the name is translated as "forehead"), and Zosma - the rump.
The main stars of the constellation Leo
Explore the bright stars zodiac constellation Leo with a detailed description and characteristics.
Regulus(Alpha Leo) - with an apparent visual magnitude of 1.35, it becomes the first brightest star in the constellation and the 22nd in the sky. Located 77 light years away. This is a four-star system, represented by two pairs of stars.
Regulus A is a spectroscopic binary star consisting of a blue-white main sequence star (B7 V) and a companion star thought to be a white dwarf. They revolve around a common center of mass every 40 days.
Regulus B (K2V) and Regulus C (M4V) have a common correct movement. From Regulus A they are separated by 177 arc seconds. They are dimmer main sequence stars with apparent visual magnitudes of 8.14 and 13.5. They are located 100 AU from each other, and their common orbital period is 2000 years.
The main star Regula A is a young star, with an age of several million years, and 3.5 times the mass of the Sun. It rotates very quickly (period - 15.9 hours), which is why it formed in an oblate shape. If it were spinning 16% faster, then the centripetal force created by gravity would not be enough to keep it from collapsing.
Regulus is the closest bright star to the ecliptic, which is why it is constantly blocked by the Moon, and sometimes by Mercury and Venus. In the northern hemisphere, it is best seen in the evening in late winter and spring. But it cannot be found on August 22, as it comes too close to the Sun.
"Regulus" is Latin for "little king" or "prince". The same meant Greek name"Basiliscos", but the Arabic "Kalb al-Assad" - "the heart of a lion."
Denebola(Beta Leo) is a main sequence star (A3 V) with an apparent visual magnitude of 2.113 and a distance of 35.9 light years. It ranks second in brightness in the constellation and 61st in the sky (it can be easily found without the use of technology).
By mass, it is 75% larger than the sun, reaches 173% of its radius and is 12 times brighter. This is a Delta Shield variable (brightness may vary slightly over several hours). Denebola shows 0.025 magnitude changes in luminosity about 10 times a day.
Age - less than 400 million years. It also rotates rapidly (128 km / s), therefore it has a flattened shape. There is a significant infrared excess, which is why it is believed that there is a dust disk in orbit.
Refers to the cluster IC 2391 (its members share the same movement, but are not bound by gravity). It also includes Alpha Painter, Gomeis, and the stars in the open cluster IC 2391. "Denebola" is from the Arabic ānabab al-asad, "lion's tail."
Algieba(Gamma Leo) is a binary star represented by a giant (K1-IIIbCN0.5) and a companion (G7IIICN-I). The first object is 180 times brighter than the Sun, and the apparent visual magnitude is 2.28. The second is 50 times larger than the Sun in light with an apparent magnitude of 3.51, and also 10 times larger in diameter. Their orbital period lasts 500 years. In November 2009, a planet was found in the orbit of the giant.
The total apparent visual magnitude is 1.98, and the distance is 130 light years. It is very easy to find even in a small telescope, and under good conditions, red and greenish components are visible. "Algieba" is translated from Arabic as "forehead".
Algieba, Zeta Lion and Eta Lion are sometimes called the Sickle.
Zosma(Delta Leo) is a white main sequence star (A4 V) with a visual magnitude of 2.56 and a distance of 58.4 light years. It covers 214% of the solar radius in size and is about 15 times brighter. In 600 million years it will become a red giant. The rotation speed reaches 180 km / s, which is why its shape is flattened, and the equator is wider than the poles.
May be part of the Ursa Major moving group of stars (stars with a common origin and movement in space). "Zosma" is translated from ancient Greek as "belt" (located on the lion's thigh).
Hort(Theta Leo) is a white main sequence star (A2 V) with an apparent visual magnitude of 3.324 and a mass 2.5 times that of the Sun. It is 165 light-years away from us, but visible to the naked eye.
With an age of 550 million years, it is much younger than the Sun. A huge amount of infrared radiation is noticeable, indicating the presence of a circumstellar dust disk. Rotates at a speed of 23 km / s.
There are several traditional names: Hort (Arabic for "small rib"), Coxa (Latin for "thigh") and Chertan (Arabic for "two small ribs").
kappa lion- a double star (K2III) with an apparent magnitude of 4.46 and a distance of 210 light years. The traditional name "Al-Minlyar" is translated from Arabic as "lion's face".
lambda lion- a class K5 star with an apparent visual magnitude of 4.32 and a distance of 336 light years. The traditional name "Alterf" comes from the Arabic aṭ-ṭarf - "view (of a lion)".
Omicron Lion- a double star located 135 light years away. It is represented by a giant (F9III) and a main sequence star (A5mV) with an apparent visual magnitude of 3.53.
This lion- a white supergiant (A0 Ib) with an apparent visual magnitude of 3.511 and a distance of 2000 light years. The star is 5600 times brighter than the Sun, and its absolute magnitude reaches -5.60. This is supposed to be part of a binary system.
Zeta Leo- a giant (F0 III) with an apparent visual magnitude of 3.33 and a distance of 274 light years. 85 times brighter than the Sun. Accompanied by the optical companion 35 Leo, whose apparent visual magnitude is 5.90, and the distance from the main star is 325.9 arc seconds. The name "Adhafera" comes from the Arabic al-βafīrah, which means "curl" or "braid".
Rasalas(Mu Leo) is a K3 star with a visual magnitude of 4.1 and a distance of 133 light years. "Rasalas" is an abbreviation for the Arabic phrase ra "s al-" asad aš-šamālī, which means "northern (star) of the lion's head."
Epsilon Leo- a bright giant (G1 II) with a visual magnitude of 2.98 (the fifth brightest in the constellation) and a distance of 247 light years. Age - 162 million years. The name "Ras Elased" is taken from the Arabic phrase rās al-"asad al-janūbī - "the southern star of the lion's head". It is 288 times brighter than the Sun, 4 times more massive and 21 times larger in radius. This is a Cepheid variable with changes at 0.3 magnitude every few days.
Ro Lion- a double star with a visual magnitude of 3.856 and a distance of 5000 light years. The B1 lab classification suggests that the object has evolved to a supergiant. 21 times the solar mass, 37 times the radius, and 295,000 times brighter. Speed - 30 km / s. The main component is a blue supergiant with a companion located at 0.11 arc seconds and with a visual magnitude of 4.8.
Iota Leo- a spectroscopic binary star (F3 V) with a visual magnitude of 4.00 and a distance of 79 light years. Objects are too close, so it is difficult to see them even with a telescope.
Sigma Leo- a blue-white star (B9.5Vs), whose apparent magnitude reaches 4.044, and the distance is 210 light years.
Wolf 359- a red dwarf (M6.5Ve) with an apparent visual magnitude of 13.54 and a distance of 7.78 light years. Despite this proximity, it can only be found with a large telescope. It is one of the smallest stars ever discovered, and also one of the faintest. Releases only 0.1% of solar energy, reaches 8% mass and 16% radius. Age is less than a billion years.
This is a flare star that has a sudden increase in brightness over several minutes due to magnetic activity on the surface. Flares splash out strong gamma and x-ray radiation.
This is one of the closest stars to the Sun (only Alpha Centauri and Bernard's Star are ahead). It is often mentioned in fantasy works. Star Trek fans will recognize it as the site of the battle where Starfleet ships were destroyed.
Gliese 436- a red dwarf (M2.5 V) with a visual magnitude of 10.67 and a distance of 33.1 light years. In 2004, the exoplanet Gliese 436b was found in orbit, and in 2012, UCF-1.01.
CW Leo(IRC+10216) is a carbon star surrounded by a thick shell of dust. It is located 390-490 light years from the Sun. Demonstrates changes in brightness over 649 days. The nominal luminosity is 11,300 times that of the sun, but it is subject to a pulsation cycle (6250-15800 solar brightness). Therefore, the apparent visual magnitude also varies from 1.19 to 10.96.
It is in a late stage of development, blowing off the outer layer to transform into a white dwarf. The shell is 69,000 years old, and the star is losing more and more mass every year. The expanded envelope is believed to have at least 1.4 solar masses of ejected material.
In 1969, it was discovered by American astrophysicist Eric Breklen.
R Leo- a red giant (M8IIIe) with a visual magnitude of 4.4-11.3 and a period of 312 days. The radius is 320-350 times greater than the sun. It is a Mira variable (an advanced red pulsating variable star whose pulsation periods span more than 100 days). Eventually, it will destroy the outer shell to create a planetary nebula and become a white dwarf.
Removed by 370 light years. When it is located in the brightest place, it can be observed without the use of equipment. But in other cases, you will need at least a 7-cm telescope.
Celestial objects of the constellation Leo
(M65, NGC 3623) is an intermediate spiral galaxy with an apparent visual magnitude of 10.25 and a distance of 35 million light years. Charles Messier found her in 1780. Together with Messier 66 and NGC 3628 they form the famous Leo Triplet. The galaxy has little dust and gas, and no active star formation. Most of the stars are old.
The deformation of M65's disk, as well as some areas of star formation, hint that the galaxy is interacting with another object.
Messier 66(M66, NGC 3627) is an intermediate spiral galaxy discovered by Charles Messier in 1780. The visual magnitude is 8.9, and the distance is 36 million light years. It is 95,000 light years wide. Special attention attracted by dust lanes and bright star clusters. Part of the Leo Triplet.
M66 and NGC 3628 have collided in the past. The gravitational interaction between them has resulted in an extremely high central mass concentration in M66, a high molecular to atomic mass ratio, and allowed non-corrosive accumulation of HI material escaping from the spiral arm.
Messier 95(M95, NGC 3351) is a barred spiral galaxy with a visual magnitude of 11.4 and a distance of 38 million light-years. Surrounding the core is an annular star-forming region about 2,000 light-years across.
M95 belongs to the M96 group, which also includes M96, M105 and 9 other galaxies. In 1781, the galaxy was found by astronomer Pierre Mechain, and after 4 days Charles Messier added it to his catalog. In March 2012, a supernova was seen.
Messier 96(M96, NGC 3368) is an intermediate spiral galaxy with an apparent visual magnitude of 10.1 and a distance of 31 million light-years. Ranks first in brightness in the M96 group. It is a double-bridged helix with a slight internal bulge running through the center along with the outer bulge. Ultraviolet emissions from the central region hint at the presence of a supermassive black hole.
On March 20, 1781, Pierre Mechain found it, and a few days later Charles Messier added it to his catalog. In May 1998, a Type Ia SN 1998bu supernova was observed.
(M105, NGC 3379) is an elliptical galaxy with a visual magnitude of 10.2 and a distance of 32 million light years. Has a supermassive black hole. In March 1781, Pierre Mechain found her. This happened a few days after he first discovered M95 and M96.
NGC 3628 is an unbarred spiral galaxy 35 million light-years away. It was found by William Herschel in 1784. The object is notable for having a 300,000 light-year long tidal tail and a broad, obscuring dust lane along the outer edge of the spiral arms. Part of the Leo Triplet.
Lion Ring- a giant primordial cloud of hydrogen and helium, found in the orbit of two galaxies. In 1983 it was found by radio astronomers.
NGC 3607 is a spiral galaxy with a visual magnitude of 10.8. It belongs to the NGC 3607 group.
is a spiral galaxy with an apparent visual magnitude of 12.6.
NGC 3384- an elliptical galaxy, 35.1 million light-years distant from the Earth. In 1784, William Herschel found her. In the central part are very old stars. More than 80% are second-generation stars that are over a billion years old. The galaxy is part of the M96 group.
NGC 3842- an elliptical galaxy containing one of the largest black holes, whose mass reaches 9.7 billion solar. The apparent magnitude is 12.8, and the distance is 331 million light years.
NGC 3596 is an intermediate spiral galaxy with a visual magnitude of 12.0. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1784. Look under the bright star Theta Leo.
is a barred spiral galaxy. The visual magnitude is 9.7, and the distance is 30.6 million light years. The galaxy was discovered by William Herschel in 1784.
NGC 3626- a medium-density spiral galaxy with a visual magnitude of 10.6-10.9. Located near Delta Leo (Zosma), 70 million light-years away. It belongs to the NGC 3607 group.
NGC 3357- an elliptical galaxy, found on April 5, 1864 by the German astronomer Albert March.
The arrangement of bright stars really resembles a recumbent lion, whose head and chest represent the well-known asterism "Sickle", similar to a mirrored question mark.
The “point” at the bottom of this sign is the bright white-blue star Regulus (α Leo), which in Latin means “king”. Sometimes it is also called the "Heart of the Lion" (Cor Leonis). The luminosity of Regulus is 160 times higher than the solar one, and the high visible brightness (1.36 magnitude) is due to its relative proximity to us (85 light years). Among the stars of the first magnitude, Regulus is closest to the ecliptic, so it is quite often covered by the Moon.
At the back of the figure of the beast is the star of Denebola (β Leo), translated from Arabic - "lion's tail". It has a magnitude of 2.14 magnitude and is only 43 sv away. of the year.
At the base of the "lion's head" is the golden yellow Algieba (γ Leo), which means "lion's mane". This is a close visual double of magnitude 2.0.
R Leo is one of the brightest long-term variables, varying in brightness from 5th to 10th magnitude. The very faint red dwarf Wolf 359 (visible magnitude 13.45) is the third among the nearest stars (distance 7.80 light years); its luminosity is 100,000 times less than that of the sun. If this star took the place of our Sun, then at noon on Earth it would be a little brighter than it is now at the full moon.
Among the distant objects in this constellation, the spiral galaxies M 65, M 66, M 95 and M 96, as well as the elliptical galaxy M 105, which lies near the last two spiral galaxies, are of interest. Their apparent brightness is from 8.4 to 10.4 magnitudes.
Asterism "Sickle"
Asterism Serp consists of six stars of the constellation - α (Regul), η, γ (Algieba), ζ, μ and ε (Algenubi). The shape resembles a sickle or a mirrored question mark.
Observation
As a rule, the Sun is in the constellation from August 10 to September 15. The best conditions for observations are in February and March.
In the constellation Leo lies the radiant of the Leonid meteor shower, formed from the breakup of comet Tempel-Tuttle and observed in mid-November.
Story
The constellation was known to the Sumerians 5000 years ago. Included in the catalog of the starry sky "Almagest". Classical myth links the Lion to the slain Nemean monster. One of the earliest mentions of the constellation in Russian is in a manuscript of the 11th century, published by A. Budilovich under the title "XIII words of Gregory the Theologian in the Old Slavonic translation ...".
Leo (zodiac sign)
Leo is the fifth sign of the zodiac, corresponding to the sector of the ecliptic from 120 ° to 150 °, counting from the vernal equinox; permanent sign of the trine Fire.
IN western astrology it is believed that the Sun is in the sign of Leo from about July 23 to August 23 or 22, in the Vedic - from August 15 to September 15. The sign of Leo should not be confused with the constellation Leo, in which the Sun is located from August 10 to September 15.
The Lion symbol ♌ (may not be displayed in some browsers) is in Unicode under decimal number 9804 or hexadecimal number 264C and can be entered as ♌ or ♌ in HTML code.
click on the image to enlarge it
| Lat. Name | Leo |
|---|---|
| Reduction | Leo |
| Symbol | |
| right ascension | from 9 h 15 m to 11 h 52 m |
| declination | -6° 00' to +33° 30' |
| Square | 947 sq. degrees |
| brightest stars (value< 3 m) |
|
| meteor showers | |
| neighboring constellations |
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| The constellation is visible at latitudes from +84° to -56°. The best time for observation is February, March. |
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Constellation Leo from the Atlas "Uranographia" by Jan Hevelius (1690)
Constellation Leo from the Atlas "Uranographia" by J. E. Bode (Berlin 1801)
click on the image to enlarge it
Constellation Leo from the Atlas "Urania's Mirror" (London, 1825)
Mythology
Nemean lion of the first feat of Hercules. In short, right?
However, it may be that Zeus placed him in the sky simply as the king of beasts. But it's kind of a boring version.
The constellation Leo has been known to people since ancient times. The name was given to him by the Egyptians in ancient times. They associated it not with legends or mythology, but with recurring seasonal phenomena.
IN Ancient Egypt, when at night in March and April, high above the horizon, almost at the very zenith, the stars of the constellation Leo began to shine, a period of terrible heat set in. Even the fertile valley of the Nile dried up, the soil cracked due to the unbearable heat. At this time, the terrible growling of lions was heard at night, wandering through the desert in search of prey. Nobody dared to go there. The desert turned into a realm of lions. This was repeated from year to year, and therefore the ancient Egyptians called that part of the starry sky, which they saw at that time, the name of Leo. So the king of animals Leo appeared in the starry sky.
According to legend, great kings were to be born under the sign of this constellation. Therefore, the brightest star in the constellation Leo was named Regulus (from the Latin rex - king).
The mythology of the Greeks connects the constellation Leo with the monstrous Nemean lion and with one of the labors of Hercules.
Having defeated the titans, Zeus cast them into the gloomy Tartarus. At the huge gates of Tartarus, the hundred-armed hecaton-cheirs vigilantly guarded the terrible enemies. The Titans have lost their power over the world forever. But the struggle of Zeus for power over Heaven and Earth did not end there. He still had to defeat the last enemy - Typhon, who instilled terror in everyone and was the cause of many disasters on Earth.
When Gaia (Earth) found out how cruelly Zeus acted with her children - the titans, she married the gloomy Tartarus and gave birth to the terrible hundred-headed monster Typhon - a creature with a hundred dragon heads, continuously spewing flames in all directions. As soon as Typhon rose from the bowels of the Earth, the whole Earth shuddered from its weight. The deafening roar of angry bulls and lions, the barking of dogs and the terrifying snake hissing spread far across the Earth, and the flames erupted by the dragon's heads burned everything around. Horror seized people and animals, and even the gods were frightened. The earth burned, and everything melted from the hellish heat. Stormy flame swirled around Typhon. Only Zeus was not afraid. He boldly marched against Typhon, showered him with lightning and deafened him with peals of thunder. Earth and Sky merged into a continuous fire, it seemed that even the air was on fire. Zeus' lightning turned everything to ashes. Zeus incinerated all one hundred heads of Typhon, and he collapsed to Earth like a huge rock. Such heat emanated from his body that everything around him melted, and the Earth itself almost turned into a fiery river. Wasting no time, Zeus grabbed the huge body of Typhon and threw him into the depths of the gloomy Tartarus, which gave birth to this monster. Typhon remained there forever. But even in Tartarus, Typhon still threatens the gods and inspires fear in people, causing terrible hurricanes that sweep away everything in their path. The fire of Typhon passes through the thickness of the mountains, and then fiery rivers flow along their slopes. But the worst thing happened when Typhon married Echidna. They gave birth to terrible monsters - the two-headed dog Orfo, the three-headed dog Kerber with a snake tail, the Lernean Hydra, the Nemean lion, etc. Some monsters rose to Earth and caused terrible disasters and terrible suffering to people.
Typhon and Echidna (half-woman, half-snake) left their offspring - a huge lion - in the mountains, not far from the city of Nemea (hence its name - the Nemean Lion). With a terrible roar, he rampaged around the city and devastated everything around. Horror gripped people and animals when they heard this roar. The people did not dare to leave their dwellings, famine set in, diseases began. Weeping and wailing were heard in Nemea. No one could save people from the unbearable disaster that all of Greece was talking about.
King Eurystheus instructed Hercules to kill the Nemean lion and bring his corpse to Mycenae.
Hercules immediately set off. In Nemea, he saw a devastated, scorched earth. All living things hid in their homes. No one could even tell him where the terrible lion's lair was.
All day Hercules wandered through the wooded slopes of the mountains, but nowhere could he find a monstrous lion. The sun was already setting and it was getting dark. And then a terrifying roar of a lion reached Hercules, who woke up and waited for complete darkness to start hunting ...
In several gigantic leaps, Hercules reached the lion's den, which was a huge cave with two exits. Before one of the exits, Hercules piled up huge stones, and he hid at the second exit and prepared a bow and arrows. A little time passed, and a giant lion appeared from the cave with a roar. Hercules showered him with arrows, but none of them even wounded the monster - the arrows bounced off the lion, whose skin was harder than iron. Hercules did not know that the Nemean Lion was invulnerable to weapons. When Hercules saw that the arrows were bouncing off the lion, he threw away his bow and attacked the lion with a club. With one powerful blow to the head, Hercules stunned him, then grabbed his neck with his mighty hands and squeezed so hard that he strangled the lion.
Having shouldered a huge beast, Hercules went to Nemea. There he sacrificed to Zeus and established, in memory of his first feat, the Nemean Games, during which wars ceased throughout Greece and universal peace reigned.
Hercules took the lion to Mycenae. When Eurystheus saw the monster, he was so afraid of the strength and power of Hercules that he forbade him to approach Mycenae, and ordered evidence of the fulfillment of his further orders to be shown near the city walls.
The great thunderer Zeus turned the Nemean lion into a constellation and left it to shine in the sky to remind people of the feat of his son Hercules, who saved people from this terrible disaster.
