On To The King Of Beasts!

During the months of February through June, you can use Figure 15 to locate the first magnitude star Regulus in the constellation Leo, the Lion.  As shown in the figure, you extend an imaginary line starting with the star which joins the handle to the cup and passing through a star in the bottom of the cup.  Follow the line until you get to this very bright star.  Notice that Regulus sits at the bottom of a sickle shaped asterism.  The ancients thought that asterism to be the head of the lion.  Do you see the large triangle composed of three stars to the left of the Regulus?  Those stars constitute the lion’s haunches (rear section). 

Well, that about exhausts The Big Dipper’s usefulness for finding other asterisms and constellations.  On to other subjects.

Figure 15: Two stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper point to Regulus.

copyright 2004 Singularity Scientific, all rights reserved.

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