In the northern hemisphere, Leo is easily seen in the . Every month or so one of the constellations in the belt hides directly behind the Sun opposite to Earth. Regulus A is a spectroscopic binary star composed of a blue-white main sequence star belonging to the spectral class B7 V, and a companion star which cannot be resolved, but is believed to be a white dwarf. It was first discovered by astronomer Pierre Mchain in 1781, and added to Charles Messiers famous catalogue of astronomical objects just four days later. With a visual magnitude of 1.35, Regulus A is responsible for the star systems brightness and bluish colour. Regulus Star Facts & Features About The Little King. While watching the sky, the dominant star would appear in its season, each having a time of the year when most noticeable. Experience the game! Photo: ESO. The galaxy is notable for having a long tidal tail spanning about 300,000 light years, and a broad, obscuring dust band along the outer edge of its spiral arms. The constellation was first catalogued by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century, along with all the other constellations of the zodiac. The heliacal rising of Regulus (rising just before the dawn after a period of invisibility) occurs in early September. The two components in the Omicron Leonis system belong to the spectral classes F9III (a giant) and A5mV (a main sequence star). The galaxy can be found below the bright star Theta Leonis. It has a visual magnitude varying from 4.4 to 11.3 with a period of 312 days and is classified as a Mira variable. Except that he did throw his lot in with Voldemort, which doesn't strike us as particularly clever. Its extended envelope is believed to have at least 1.4 solar masses of ejected material. Regulus A is only a few million years old. Come early July, Regulus will be low to the west an hour after sunset. It has an apparent magnitude of 12.6. So bright planets sometimes pass near Regulus. EarthSky | Meet Regulus, the Lion's Heart Consequently, its apparent magnitude varies too, ranging from 1.19 to 10.96. Like Regulus, Denebola is a rapid rotator, which results in an oblate shape of the star, with a bulge at the equator. The central region of M95 has a ring-shaped starburst region around the core with a diameter spanning about 2,000 light years. The representation may be mythical (e.g. The name Regulus is a diminutive form of "rex", which is Latin for "king". Find movie showtimes and movie theaters near 85340 or Litchfield Park, AZ. Native Americans have two general Ursa Major myths. Lyra Constellation Facts, Stars and Myth of The Lyra If you like the image at the top, click here. 4 stars. The Regulus BC pair can be observed in smaller instruments. EarthSky | Spica, bright beacon of Virgo, is 2 stars [18] The star's surface at the equator rotates at about 320 kilometres per second (199 miles per second), or 96.5% of its critical angular velocity for break-up. Regulus is the only 1st magnitude star to sit almost squarely on the ecliptic, which marks the path of the sun, moon and planets across our sky. 1 star. The Chinese knew Regulus as the Fourteenth Star of Xuanyuan, the Yellow Emperor (). And Regulus is not the only star with a fast spin. Messier 96 is another intermediate spiral galaxy in Leo constellation. In Arabic, it is . Both phrases mean Lions Heart. From a distance of 262 light-years away, Spica appears to us on Earth to be a lone. The Diamond of Virgo. Regulus can be used to find several bright galaxies that lie in the region of the sky between the Lions heart and the fainter Denebola, Beta Leonis, the star that marks the Lions tail. Its estimated age is 162 million years. Regulus B has the stellar classification K2 V, indicating an orange main sequence star, while Regulus C appears red and has been given the spectral class M4 V. The stars are much less massive than the primary, with masses of 0.8 and 0.3 solar masses respectively. Algieba is composed of a giant star with the spectral classification K1-IIIbCN0.5 and a dimmer companion star which belongs to the spectral class G7IIICN-I. Eta Leonis is white supergiant belonging to the spectral class A0 Ib. Along with the brighter Vega, Altair, and Achernar, Regulus is one of the brightest and best-known examples of gravity darkening. It is between 390 and 490 light years distant from the Sun. It has a mass of 3.8 solar masses and is an extremely fast spinner, with a rotational velocity of 347 km/s. 163 Erigone, a large, dark asteroid from the asteroid belt, about 73 km in size, occulted Regulus on March 20, 2014. Regulus B has a radius of 0.83 solar radii and Regulus C, 0.37 solar radii. DSS is one of the programs of STScI (Space Telescope Science Institute). The asteroid 166 Rhodope, discovered in August 1876, was observed occulting Regulus by a team of researchers on October 19, 2005. The galaxy belongs to the NGC 3607 Group, one of the many Leo II groups of galaxies. Space is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Because of its proximity to Earth, the star is often mentioned in works of fiction. The galaxy was discovered by William Herschel in 1784. Regulus appears as a single star to the unaided eye, but it is in fact a quadruple star system consisting of two pairs of stars and possibly more components. The name Regulus was officially approved by the International Astronomical Unions (IAU) Working Group on Star Names (WGSN) on June 30, 2016. Regulus is the faintest of the 22 first-magnitude stars. Regulus B, meanwhile, has its own companion: Regulus C. At magnitude 13.5, its only visible with powerful telescopes. It has an estimated age of at least a billion years. Regulus A is the dominant star, with a binary companion 177" distant that is thought to be physically related. It has a visual magnitude of 3.856 and is approximately 5,000 light years distant. In fact, this image from Hubble frames a perfect spiral specimen: the stunning NGC 2903. EarthSky | Aldebaran is Taurus the Bull's bloodshot eye Its estimated age is less than 400 million years. In Chinese astronomy, Regulus is part of the Xuanyuan asterism, which consists of about 17 stars, among them 10 Ursae Majoris, Alpha Lyncis, 38 Lyncis, Kappa Leonis, Alterf (Lambda Leonis), Epsilon Leonis, Rasalas (Mu Leonis), Adhafera (Zeta Leonis), Eta Leonis, Algieba (Gamma Leonis), Subra (Omicron Leonis), and Rho Leonis. Differential bending of light was measured to be consistent with general relativity. The constellation Orion sits on the Celestial Equator, making it visible to people in both the northern and southern Hemispheres (via NASA's Chandra x-Ray Observatory).It is said to represent the figure of Orion, a famed hunter from Greek mythology.One of the earliest references to this constellation by the name Orion can be found in the ancient Greek epic poem "Iliad" by Homer (via Britannica). They were also believed to govern events in the world. Beta Leonis is a relatively young star. The staff is so caring and amazing. Regulus is actually a quadruple-star system composed of four stars that are organized into two pairs. "Regulus Star Facts & Features About The Little King". History and mythology of Aldebaran. In the MUL.APIN, a catalogue of stars and constellations in Babylon, Regulus was listed as LUGAL. Ultraviolet emissions from the galaxys central region suggest that it has a supermassive black hole at its core. Every 8 years, Venus passes very near the star system around or a few days before the heliacal rising, as on 5 September 2022 (the superior conjunction of Venus happens about two days earlier with each turn of its 8-year cycle, so as this cycle continues Venus will more definitely pass Regulus before the star's heliacal rising). Regulus B, and its companion star, Regulus C are dimmer main sequence stars that are bound together by gravity. Oops! The galaxy was discovered by Charles Messier in 1780. NGC 3842 is an elliptical galaxy, notable for having one of the largest black holes known. Venus last occulted Regulus on July 7, 1959. The star has a relatively high projected rotational velocity, 23 km/s. Regulus, or Alpha Leonis, is the brightest star in Leo onstellation (magnitude 1.40). Regulus is not a binary star for once, although there is a binary nearby, and possibly a white dwarf. Bottom line: Regulus, the brightest star in the constellation Leo the Lion, is associated with the arrival of spring, and is prominent in May skies. 5 star rating. Messier 65 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in Leo. The star is sometimes known by its traditional names Chort (from the Arabic al-khart or al-khurt, which means small rib), Coxa (Latin for hip) and Chertan (from the Arabic al-khartn, meaning two small ribs). [29] The center of the shadow path passed through New York and eastern Ontario, but no one is known to have seen it, due to cloud cover. In fact, if Regulus rotated just a bit faster, it would fly apart! It contains a nuclear star-forming ring, almost 2000 light-years across, where a large proportion of the galaxys star formation takes place. In other words, they are the brightest stars in the sky. Wolf 359 is one of the nearest stars to the Sun. Algieba (Gamma Leonis) lies on the lions neck, even though its name means the forehead. Zosma (Delta Leonis) marks the lions rump. Regulus isn't a single star, but rather a quadruple star system composed out of two stars organized into two pairs. The star Regulus is known by many different names in different cultures. NGC 3626 is a medium-tightness spiral galaxy in Leo. It has an apparent magnitude of 1.35 and is not actually a single star, but a multiple star system. Exopaedia :: Regulus Leo (constellation) - Wikipedia Source. Theta Leonis is another white main sequence star. Regulus is not a binary star for once, although there is a binary nearby, and possibly a white dwarf. NGC 3593, image: NASA/ESA The Hubble Legacy Archive (HLA): Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), the Space Telescope European Coordinating Facility (ST-ECF), and the Canadian Astronomy Data Centre (CADC) zoranknez (Aladin software). [1] The Persians believed that the sky was divided into four districts with each district being guarded by one of the four Royal Stars. According to Bantu Mythology mankind is not indigenous to planet Earth. Regulus is the nearest first-magnitude star to the ecliptic, located only 0.465 degrees north of it. His small book on world star lore, Constellations, was published by Running Press. The star belongs to the IC 2391 supercluster, a stellar association whose member stars share a common motion through space, but are not gravitationally bound. The star is suspected to be a member of the Ursa Major Moving Group, a group of stars that includes most of the brightest stars in Ursa Major that share a common origin and motion through space. Most of the stars in the galaxy are old. Regulus is the bright star that makes the point of the question mark. It might appear featureless and unexciting at first glance, but NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope observations of this elliptical galaxy known as Messier 105 show that the stars near the galaxys centre are moving very rapidly. The constellation Leo was mentioned in the Tetrabiblos, an ancient Roman text by Ptolemy (c. A.D. 100 170). 12/13/2022. "The picture makes me wonder what it would be like to be in a solar system with this type of star.". In astrology, the royal stars of Persia are Aldebaran, Regulus, Antares and Fomalhaut. The galaxy has an apparent magnitude of 12.8 and is approximately 331 million light years distant from Earth. For example, in 1959, Regulus was occulted by Venus. Leo Constellation: Origin, History and Facts | CosmoNova Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! [4] The constellations of the royal stars were said to be fixed because their positions were close to the four fixed points of the sun's path. In Indian astronomy, Regulus corresponds to the Nakshatra Magha ("the bountiful"). The binary pair (two dwarfs, orange and red) are about 4,200 Earth-sun distances (astronomical units, or AU) away from Regulus and take about 130,000 years to complete one orbit, Darling said. Spica - Alpha Virginis - Constellation Guide I. It has an apparent magnitude of 13.54 and is only 7.78 light years distant. [18], The primary of Regulus A has about 3.8 times the Sun's mass. The asterism looks like a backwards question mark and outlines the head of the celestial lion. Mu Leonis belongs to the spectral class K3. Leo constellation map by IAU and Sky&Telescope magazine. The second brightest star is Denebola, an A-type main-sequence star-forming the tail of the lion. Regulus, designated Alpha Leonis, is a blue-white main-sequence star of magnitude 1.34, 77.5 light-years from Earth. It has a visual magnitude of 10.8 and is a member of the Leo II Group (NGC 3607 Group) of galaxies. In science fiction, Regulus has been used for television series such as "Star Trek" and "Babylon 5." It has a visual magnitude of 10.67 and is 33.1 light years distant. Draco) or exist in the real world (e.g. ", is co-written with astronaut Dave Williams. Denebola, Spica, and Arcturus form the Great Diamond (the Diamond of Virgo) with the fainter Cor Caroli, the brightest star in Canes Venatici (the Hunting Dogs). It has a visual magnitude of 10.6/10.9. The primary component, formally known as Regulus, has been given the stellar classification B8 IVn, with the luminosity class of a subgiant star. Regulus first received its name from the 16th-century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, the encyclopedia added, "marking the fact that it had been regarded as one of the leading stars in the sky for some 2,000 years.". Now let's take a look at some of the best things to do in Litchfield Park, Arizona. They are the only navigational stars in Leo. 3.324), Adhafera (Zeta Leo, mag. Charles Messier discovered it in 1780. This occurs in spates every 9.3 years, due to lunar precession. Regulus can also sometimes be occulted by asteroids. Overall rating. He's a former planetarium director in Little Rock, Fort Worth and Denver and an adjunct faculty member at Metropolitan State University of Denver. NGC 3596 is an intermediate spiral galaxy with a visual magnitude of 12.0. M65 does not contain much dust and gas and there isnt much star formation occurring in it. Astrophotographer John Chumack sent in a photo of Mars (red), Regulus (blue star) and the waning crescent moon in a triangle over his backyard observatory in Dayton, OH. It has an apparent magnitude of 3.511 and is approximately 2,000 light years distant from Earth. Filter by rating. The planet Venus passes the star around this time every eight years. It is classified as a high proper motion star. This black hole releases huge amounts of energy as it consumes matter falling into it and causing the centre to shine far brighter than its surroundings. Regulus is a four-star system composed of two pairs of stars. It is emitting polarized light because of this. Iota Leonis is a spectroscopic binary star with the stellar classification F3 V. It has a visual magnitude of 4.00 and is approximately 79 light years distant from the Sun. The brighter pair, designated Regulus A, is a spectroscopic binary system consisting of a bright blue star of spectral classification B7 V, and a companion that has not been directly observed, but is likely a white dwarf with a low mass of only 0.3 solar. The companion is believed to be a white dwarf. 3 stars. The two stars complete an orbit around their common centre of mass every 40 days or so. Both Eratosthenes and Hyginus wrote that the lion was placed among the constellations because it was the king of beasts. Image: Hubble ESA (CC BY 2.0). Inferno Escape Room. The Behenian fixed stars are a selection of fifteen stars considered especially useful for magical applications in the medieval astrology of Europe and the Arab world. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Ancient Arab stargazers called Regulus by the name Qalb al-Asad, which means Heart of the Lion. It is a double star divisible in binoculars, with a secondary of magnitude 7.7. The Gamma Leonis system has a combined apparent magnitude of 1.98 and is approximately 130 light years distant from the Sun. [23], The Regulus system as a whole is the twenty-first brightest star in the night sky with an apparent magnitude of +1.35. Some Peruvians also knew these stars as the Mountain Lion, whereas in China it was sometimes seen as a horse, and at other times as part of a dragon. Erigone extinguished the stars light for 14 seconds, but the occultation was not observed due to unfavourable weather conditions. M95 belongs to the M96 Group of galaxies, which also includes M96 and M105, and also at least nine other galaxies. Leo constellation lies in the northern sky. [4], The constellations of the royal stars were said to be fixed because their positions were close to the four fixed points of the sun's path. For this reason, it is regularly occulted by the Moon and, rarely, by Mercury and Venus. It is of about the same mass and size as the Milky Way. Both the constellation and its brightest star were well-known in most ancient cultures. Your submission has been received! For other uses, see, Notable stars and star systems coplanar with the ecliptic (and sun and approximately its planets, but specifically earth), "Validation of the new Hipparcos reduction", "MSC a catalogue of physical multiple stars", "Spectroscopic Detection of the Pre-White Dwarf Companion of Regulus", "Gaia Early Data Release 3: Summary of the contents and survey properties", "Bulletin of the IAU Working Group on Star Names, No. It is approximately 135 light years distant. R Leonis is approximately 370 light years distant from the solar system. [3], By 700 BCE the Assyrians had essentially mapped the ecliptic cycle because of the four stars and were in result able to map the constellations, distinguishing them from the planets and the fixed stars.[4]. R Leonis is a red giant star of the spectral type M8IIIe. Regulus and its Leo neighbour Denebola are among the 58 bright stars that have been given a special status in the field of celestial navigation. The two stars take approximately 40 days to complete an orbit around their common centre of mass. He used the lions claws to cut off its pelt, and then wore the pelt as a cloak, complete with the lions head. While it appears relatively dim to the unaided eye, the star is 5,600 times more luminous than the Sun and has an absolute magnitude of -5.60. The star was listed as one of four "royal stars," first under the name Venant and then Miyan ("the center", according to the Encyclopedia of Astronomy and Astrophysics.). [40] It was one of the fifteen Behenian stars known to medieval astrologers, associated with granite, mugwort, and the kabbalistic symbol . Variations in the spin of the star mean there is probably a white dwarf, or dead star, lurking in the vicinity of Regulus, the astronomers argued in 2008. [16] The companion pair has an orbital period of about 600 years[5] with a separation of 2.5" in 1942.[16]. It has 214% of the solar radius and is about 15 times more luminous than the Sun. (Cepheid variables, named after Delta Cephei in Cepheus constellation, are very luminous stars that have a direct relationship between their luminosity and pulsation period, which makes these stars important standard candles for establishing distance scales.). In the northern hemisphere, Regulus is best seen in the evening in the late winter and spring. Alpha Leonis is the closest bright star to the ecliptic. By early April, Regulus was well up in the southeast an hour after sunset. Regulus is the dot of the question mark. The stars traditional name, Zosma, comes from ancient Greek and means the girdle. Zosma is located on the lions hip. The stars Altair and Achernar are also fast spinners with flattened, oblate shapes. "There's nothing that we know of that can speed this star up," said Georgia State University astronomer Hal McAlister, who led the study of the star at the university's Center for High Angular Resolution (CHARA), in an interview at the time. It can also be occulted by Mercury and Venus, but this only happens rarely. Meet Regulus, Little King of the Ecliptic - Sky & Telescope Marissa B. Goodyear, AZ. 1. This article is about the star. It has a visual magnitude of 2.98 and is the fifth brightest star in the constellation Leo. The stars proximity to the ecliptic (the apparent path of the Sun across the sky) means that Regulus is frequently occulted by the Moon. Also, Regulus Black is the name of a character in the "Harry Potter" series by J.K. Rowling. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1784. It was another of the constellations identified by Ptolemy, but records show that it was known to an earlier Greek astronomer named Eudoxus. In the Babylonian MUL.APIN, Regulus is listed as Lugal, meaning king, with co-descriptor, "star of the Lion's breast".[41]. It is easy to observe in a small telescope under good conditions and appears as a bright double star with orange red and greenish yellow components. There is a great deal of mythology associated with Leo, perhaps the most common tale being that Leo was the Nemean Lion of the Hercules story. Babylonians knew the star Regulus as the star that stands at the Lions breast, or the King Star. Accessed 1 May, 2023. The cloak both protected Heracles and made him appear even more fearsome. Search local showtimes and buy movie tickets from theaters near you on Moviefone. Heracles is represented by the larger constellation Hercules. The proper names of stars that have been officially approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) are Adhafera, Algieba, Alterf, Chertan, Denebola, Dingolay, Formosa, Moriah, Rasalas, Regulus, Sagarmatha, Subra, and Zosma. Leo belongs to the Zodiac family of constellations, along with Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Virgo, Libra, Scorpius, Sagittarius, Capricornus, Aquarius and Pisces. It can be located using the stars of the Big Dipper; Megrez and Phecda, the two inner stars of the Dippers bowl, point the way to the asterism. The text dealt with astrology and the supposed effect of events in the sky on humanity. In Greek mythology, Leo is associated with the tale of the Nemean Lion from the myth of Heracles and his twelve labours. It is sometimes known by its traditional name, Subra. The Sickle can be found using the bright stars of the Big Dipper, the most recognizable part of the constellation Ursa Major. This group, named the M96 Group, also includes the bright galaxies Messier 105 and Messier 95, as well as a number of smaller and fainter galaxies. Beta Leonis, called Denebola, is at the opposite end of the constellation to Regulus. [32], For Earth observers, the heliacal rising (pre-sunrise appearance) of Regulus occurs late in the first week of September, or in the second week. Gliese 436 is another red dwarf located relatively close to the Sun. 2.56), Epsilon Leonis (mag. Messier 95 is a barred spiral galaxy in Leo. Regulus was associated with Jupiter and Mars, and linked with granite and mugwort. Kappa Leonis is a binary star with an apparent magnitude of 4.46, approximately 210 light years distant from the solar system. Messier 66 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in Leo. Lambda Leonis is a K5-class star, about 336 light years from the Sun. It has 11 stars with known planets. It has an apparent magnitude of 1.35 and lies at a distance of 79.3 light years, or 24.3 parsecs, from Earth. Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, During the December 2026 occultation, Mars and Jupiter will be nearby. He's a longtime member of NASA's Solar System Ambassadors program. There are no recently available measurements. This new NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows Messier 96, a spiral galaxy just over 35 million light-years away in the constellation of Leo (The Lion). In Persian astronomy, the sky was divided into four districts and each district was guarded by one of the four bright stars. Regulus (Alpha Leonis): Star System, Name, Location - Star Facts In Arabia, Regulus was referred to as Malikiyy, "the kingly one", according to stellar nomenclature expert Richard Hinckley Allen. Regulus D is a 12th magnitude companion at 212",[33] but is an unrelated background object. It has a surface temperature of 4,885 Kelvin (8,333 F or 4,612 C), and it shines at a magnitude of 8.1. Regulus A is a spectroscopic binary star composed of a blue-white main sequence star belonging to the spectral class B7 V, and a companion star which cannot be resolved, but is believed to be a white dwarf. Pingback: Antares: the scorpions heart |, Pingback: Aldebaran: the Bulls Eye WE ARE STAR STUFF, Pingback: Spica: the Wheat Sheaf We Are Star Stuff. The Spring Triangle and the Diamond of Virgo, image: Stellarium.
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