Other Stars and Constellations 209 



Milky Way and near the celestial equator. It is visible 

 in the early evening from June until December. With 

 Vega and Deneb, Altair forms a bright triangle in the 

 sky that can be seen prominently overhead during August 

 and September evenings. 



Leo, the Lion. In the latter part of winter, as soon 

 as the sun has set, Leo, the Lion, is conspicuous in the 

 eastern heavens. As the season advances, it will be 

 found higher above the horizon, appearing nearly over- 

 head or a little south of the zenith at nine -o'clock in 

 April and west of the meridian in June. Its brightest 

 star, Regulus, which marks the heart of the Lion, lies 

 about 12 degrees north of the celestial equator. Deneb- 

 ola, at the end of the tail, is a bright second-magnitude 

 star between Regulus and Arcturus and somewhat 

 nearer the former. The stars in the front part of the 

 Lion make a good Sickle, with Regulus at the end of 

 the handle. A line drawn through the Pointers of the 

 Great Dipper from the North Star will pass a little west 

 of the Sickle. 



Leo is one of the twelve constellations which make 

 the zone of animals, or zodiac, that lies along the ecliptic. 

 Regulus is on the ecliptic, so that in August the sun passes 

 exactly between it and the earth. It must be far larger 

 than the sun, for it is all the time giving out a thousand 

 times as much light. If it were not farther away than 

 the sun, its light and heat would be unbearable, but 

 it is so far away that its light is more than 70 years in 

 reaching us. It is millions of times as distant as the 

 sun, and its distance is increasing at the rate of nearly 

 150 millions of miles a year. If the sun were as far 



