Mythology and Symbolism
Leo is one of the great constellations of the zodiac. It follows the path of the ecliptic in the night sky and has much history in many cultures over various time periods. The ancient Sumerians, Babylonians, Persians, Syrians, Greeks, and Romans all recognized this constellation as a lion. In the ancient Chinese zodiac, it was representative of a horse. In Incan lore they were seen as a springing puma. It is not completely known where the symbol of a lion originated from, but there are a few different theories. The first is that, because the sun moved along with the stars in the summer, they were seen as the most powerful beast known: the lion. The second theory holds that since the lion came to the Nile River to cool in summer, it was connected with the constellation that the sun passed through during that time of year.
To the Greeks, the constellation was seen as the mythological Nemean Lion that was slain by Hercules. In the myth, Nemean was a ferocious monster that had claws as sharp as razors and a hide that mortal weapons could not penetrate. Hercules eventually was able to slay the beast by using its own claws to cut the creature’s skin.The Romans associated the stars with the god of wine who, in their imagery, often dressed in a lion skin. Others also associate it with the lion on the British coat of arms, the Lion of Judah, and the symbol of the Israeli tribe Judah. The brightest star of Leo has often been associated with things regal and mighty. The Greeks called it “Basiliskos”, meaning “little king”, and the modern name of “Regulus” also means “little king” in Latin, making this star the heart of the lion, appropriate considering its relative placement in the constellation.
Identification & Associated Stars
Leo is found in the eastern part of the sky in the northern hemisphere where it rises at night in winter and during the day in summer. In mythology it is often associated with the sun and appropriately, symbolism of greatness and regality, due to the fact that, in the summer months, it rises and follows with the path of the sun. It is easy to find because the primary stars have relatively low magnitudes (1.35 being the brightest & 3.85 being the lowest of the primary stars), and it lies just to the east of the big dipper but slightly lower on the horizon. The primary stars in the constellation along with their relative magnitude are:
Regulus: Magnitude 1.35 Algieba: Magnitude 2.2Leonids
The Leonids is a meteor shower that occurs around November 16. They are called so because the all the meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Leo; meaning that all the “tails” point more or less towards that area of the sky.
Other Objects in the Vicinity
There are many objects in the boundaries of Leo. Some of the most well known are:
M65 (Spiral Galaxy) M66 (Spiral Galaxy)
M95 (Spiral Galaxy) M96 Spiral Galaxy
Subra (Two Stars) Wolf 359 Red Dwarf Star, referenced in many fictional works
M105 (Elliptical Galaxy) NGC 3628 (Spiral Galaxy)
M65, M66, & NGC 3628 form what is known as the Leo Triplet. All three are galaxies and are all 35-36 million light years away. The triplet is located near the star Chertan and the star “n Leo” (not to be confused with ƞ Leo).
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