Leo

It contains one 1m star, Regulus, which with five others further north arranged in a semi-circle, form the Sickle, the most conspicuous object in the constellation. There are two or three bright stars northeastward from Regulus, and one 2m star 25 east of it named Denebola. Denebola forms an almost equilateral triangle with Spica and Arcturus. This brings us entirely round the heavens, whence we began with the summer constellations of the northern hemisphere.

This is the Nemean Lion slain by Hercules. So says the Greek fable, but the Egyptian charts placed a lion in this part of the sky long before the birth of the fabled Hercules. No modern imagination, however, can trace the
form of a lion in the constellation.

Leo contains many bright galaxies. Leo includes many Messier objects and makes for a great stopping point in any Messier 110 or hunt. The list includes Messier 65 (M65), Messier 66 M66), Messier 95 (M95), Messier 96 (M96), and Messier 105 (M105) - the first two being part of the Leo Triplet.

Leo also includes NGC 3628 and NGC 2903.


The Leo Ring, a cloud of hydrogen and helium gas, is found in orbit of two galaxies found within this constellation.