Leo the Lion

Nathaniel De Guzman

Mr. Loveall
Period 5
May 27, 2016

Introduction:
Leo the Lion is a zodiacal constellation that consists of nine main stars, which are
Denebola, Regulus, Delta Leonis, Zeta Leonis, Sigma Leonis, Epsilon Leonis, Gamma Leonis,
Theta Leonis, and Iota Leonis. But the stars of this constellation are not the only interesting thing
about Leo the Lion. Another interesting aspect about Leo the Lion is its mythology. In this
research paper, we will learn about the stars that make up Leo the Lion and discuss about their
characteristics. We will also learn the mythology of the constellation. In addition, we will also
talk about the characteristics of this whole constellation.

Denebola:
Denebola is one of the nine main stars that make up this constellation. This star is 36 light
years away from Earth. A light year is a unit of distance that show how long light travels in a
year. It also has a right ascension of 11 hrs and 48 mins. Right Ascension is the angular distance
of a celestial body or point on the celestial sphere and it measured eastward from the vernal
equinox along the celestial equator to hour circle of the body or point. This star has a declination
of +14.35. Declination is the angular distance to a point on a celestial object and it is measured
north (positive degrees) and south (negative degrees) from the celestial equator. It also has a
bluish white color and it is the main sequence star on the Hertzsprung - Russell diagram. The
Hertzsprung - Russell diagram is a diagram that shows the absolute magnitude and temperature
of a star. Not to mention that this star has an absolute magnitude of 2.2 and has a temperature of
9100 K. Also, it has an apparent magnitude of 2.14.

Regulus:
Regulus, is also one of the nine main stars that make up Leo. This is also one of the
brightest stars that make up this constellation. It even has an absolute magnitude of -0.3 and has
an apparent magnitude of 1.35. Absolute magnitude means the intrinsic brightness of a celestial
body that is measured in magnitudes and can be viewed from a distance of 10 parsecs, or 32.6
light years. Also, there is an apparent magnitude which means the luminosity of a celestial body
as observed from the earth. In addition, this star has a temperature of 12,000 K. It also has a
right ascension of 10 hrs and 8 mins and has a declination of +11.58. Regulus can also be
classified as a main sequence star on the Hertzsprung Russell Diagram. It also has a bluish
white color. Regulus is 77 light years away from Earth.

Delta Leonis:
Now, the next star of Leo is Delta Leonis. Delta Leonis is also one of the stars that make
up this constellation. This star has an apparent magnitude of 2.56 and its absolute magnitude is
the same as its apparent magnitude. In addition, this star is 58 light years away from Earth. This
star can be classified as a white main sequence star. A main sequence star is a star that has a
relatively low mass, small size, and has an average or below average luminosity. This star has a
temperature of 8,296 K. The declination of this star is +20.5 and the right ascension is 11 hrs
and 14 mins.

Zeta Leonis:
Another star that make up part of Leo is called Zeta Leonis. Zeta Leonis has an absolute
magnitude 3.33. Its apparent magnitude is also the same as its absolute magnitude. In addition,
the stars temperature is approximately 6,792 K. Zeta Leonis can be classified as a white

yellowish giant. It has a declination of +23.25 and has a right ascension of 10 hrs and 16 mins.
The star has a size of 4. 967 E or 30 kg. In addition, this star is dying, which means that this star
is nearing the end of its lifetime. Zeta Leonis is 270 light years away from Earth.

Sigma Leonis:
The next star on Leos list is Sigma Leonis. Sigma Leonis has an absolute magnitude of
4.1. It also has apparent magnitude of 4.044. This star has a declination of +6.1and has a right
ascension of 11 hrs and 21 mins. The temperature of this star is 10,250 K. Sigma Leonis can also
be classified as a bluish white star. The star is 210 light years away from Earth.

Iota Leonis:
Another star that is part of Leo is Iota Leonis. Iota Leonis is classified as a white class F
star. Its absolute magnitude is 4 and its apparent magnitude is the same as its absolute magnitude.
It also has a declination +10.31 and has a right ascension of 11 hrs and 23 mins. It has a
temperature of 6700 K. The star is 79 light years away from Earth.

Gamma Leonis:
Now, another star that makes up this constellation is Gamma Leonis. Gamma Leonis can
be classified as a binary star. A binary star is a system where two stars revolve around their
common center of mass. This star is 130 light years away from Earth. It has an absolute
magnitude of -0.92 and apparent magnitude of 2.01. This star has a right ascension of 10 hrs and
19 mins. It even has a declination of +19.50. This star is orange-red in color and has a
temperature of

4900 K.

Epsilon Leonis:
The next star on the list is Epsilon Leonis. Epsilon Leonis has an absolute magnitude of
-1.46. It has an apparent magnitude of 2.97. Epsilon Leonis has a declination of +23.8 and has a
right ascension of 9 hrs and 46 mins. This star is 247 light years away from Earth. It has a
temperature of 5300 K. It is even classified as a main sequence star, but its now becoming a red
giant. A red giant is a star that is in its intermediate stage of evolution and is characterized by its
large volume and has low surface temperature with a reddish hue.

Theta Leonis:
Finally, the last star on Leos list is Theta Leonis. Theta Leonis is classified as a white
main sequence star. This star is 165 light years away from Earth. It has a declination of +15.25
and a right ascension of 11 hrs and 14 mins. It has a temperature 9320 K. In addition, this star
has an absolute magnitude of 3.34 and has apparent magnitude of 3.33.

Characteristics of Leo the Lion:

Now that we have gone over the characteristics of each star, the next thing that we will
learn is the characteristics of the constellation. Leo the Lion is one of the earliest recognized
constellations. It has a right ascension of 11 hrs and has a declination of 15 degrees. It is also one
of the 12 zodiac signs. Leo the Lion also has stars that make up the bowl of the Big Dippers
Asterism and those stars are also the stars that make up the Sickle of Leo. Asterism is a pattern of
stars that is not one of the traditionally established and they are often named and may be
composed of stars that are part of one or more constellations. In addition, Leo means lion in
Latin.

Mythology:
Now that have we learned everything about Leo the Lion, let us learn its mythology. Leo
the Lion is a Greek mythology that originated from Ancient Greece. It was said in Greek
mythology that a hero named Hercules was in trial and that he had to find and kill the Neman
Lion, a lion that is so huge and powerful and has an impenetrable skin. When Hercules found the
Neman Lion, he decided to shoot the lion with arrows only to realize that it just made the Lion
mad. But Hercules did not run away, instead he decided to fight the Neman Lion. While he was
fighting the Lion, he blocked an entrance and run into a cave. When he did that, he hit the
Neman Lion with his club really hard and stunned it. After he stunned the Lion, he choked the
Lion to death with his bare hands. In the end, Hercules took the Lion and began to skin the pelt
to prove his victory to King Eurystheus. Hercules realized that in order to skin the Lion, he must
use the Lions claws. After skinning the Lion, Hercules took the pelt back to King Eurystheus
and the King decided to use the Lions pelt as a personal armor.

Conclusion:
Now that we have covered everything about Leo the Lion, we can conclude that this
constellation is more than just stars creating a picture of a lion in the sky. It also shows that this
constellation had a very long history, from the time of Ancient Greece to the time of Modern
Astronomy. In addition, Leo the Lion is a beautiful and extraordinary constellation to look at
during the night. Also, it is amazing that this constellation has a very interesting story, especially
when the story is about the fight of Hercules against the famous Neman Lion.