276 ELEMENTS OF GENERAL SCIENCE 



277. Stars visible in April, May, and June. In May, at 

 8 P.M., the Big Dipper is almost exactly above the Pole Star. 

 The Great Bear extends north, south, and west of this group, 

 but all except the dipper is faintly shown. 



The stars of the Big Dipper constitute a great group 

 having nearly parallel motions. In the Big Dipper the star 

 at the head of the handle is called Mizar. It is about 

 7,000,000 times as far from us as the distance from the earth 

 to the sun, and seventy-five years are required for its light 

 to come to us. Its faintness is due to its great distance, for it 

 radiates 115 times as much light as the sun. 



In the south, a little to the west of the meridian, is the 

 constellation Leo, the Lion. It is marked by the sickle, 

 the end of whose handle is the bright star Regulus, which 

 will be seen about two thirds of the distance between the 

 horizon and the zenith. The blade of the sickle extends to 

 the north of Eegulus and opens to the west. Near the third 

 star hi the Sickle is a very faint one, which is a severe test 

 for keenness of sight. One of the interesting things in con- 

 nection with Leo is that it is in this part of the sky that 

 numerous meteors are seen about November 14, each year. 

 Three times in a century this display becomes unusually 

 magnificent. 



Almost straight east, and about three fourths of the dis- 

 tance from the eastern horizon to the zenith, is the fine 

 orange-colored star Arcturus, in the constellation Bootes, 

 the Hunter. This star is so far away that a hundred years 

 are required for its light to reach the earth. This means 

 that in light-giving power it is at least five hundred times 

 as great as our own sun. 



278. Stars visible in July, August, and September. In 

 August, at 8 P.M., a small but very interesting group of stars 

 known as Lyra, the Lyre or Harp, is almost directly over- 

 head. It contains a very brilliant bluish-white first-magnitude 

 star called Vega. 



