Constellation Leo in the present and past

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

The Leo constellation is one of the twelve zodiac constellations and has been known to people for a long time. Since that time, many peoples have considered it a symbol of fire, associating it with the dry and hot period of the summer solstice. Our ancestors believed that being between the stars of Leo, the Sun became stronger and hotter.

The constellation Leo owes its name to the ancient Egyptians, who noticed that at the time when it appeared in the sky, the Nile dried up, and at night hungry lions announced the surroundings of the desert with a loud growl. For this reason, he is depicted as a lion with a stream of water flowing from his mouth. However, there is another version, according to which the constellation received this name. It says that during a drought, the dry Nile was filled with floodgates made in the shape of a lion's head. Another link to the past is the classic myth that tells how the constellation Leo came into being. This legend is connected with the Nemean monster and the exploits of Hercules. It tells that on the lands of Nemea, a city in the northeast of the Peloponnese, a huge lion appeared, several times larger than usual in size, with a skin impenetrable by arrows. This beast lived in the mountains, andate livestock and people. King Eurystheus instructed Hercules to get rid of the predator.

Bogatyr began to prepare weapons to fight the enemy. He made a club from an olive tree, uprooting it from the ground, took arrows with a bow, and went to the Nemean lands. Having found the beast, the hero began to shoot arrows at him, but they bounced off the skin of a lion, like from a stone wall. Then the club went into action, but she only annoyed the monster. It was invulnerable. Realizing the futility of his weapon, Hercules rushed at the predator with his bare hands, and with great effort nevertheless coped with him, strangling him with his inhumanly strong hands. Throwing his carcass over his shoulders, the winner went to the palace of King Eurystheus. The skin of prey went to the hero and served him as a reliable cloak until death. And the gods took the beast itself to the sky and placed it in the form of bright stars. This is how, according to legend, the constellation Leo arose, and in honor of the feat of Hercules, the Nemean Games began to be organized. When they were held, peace was declared throughout Greece. In the sky, this constellation occupies the space between Virgo and Cancer and consists of 122 stars,

which can be easily seen in our country in late February and early March at midnight. The largest star in the constellation Leo is Regulus (meaning "king"), it has a blue-white color and a luminosity that is 165 times greater than the sun. The slightly smaller luminaries include: Denebola - it is located at the end of the lion's tail and is very close to the Earth; Algeba - located in the center of the head,golden yellow, and Wolf is a dwarf faint red star, its brightness is one hundred thousand times less than that of the Sun. The Leo constellation is associated with wisdom, courage and strength. It belongs to the element of fire and is ruled by the Sun. It is considered a royal sign, and if a person was born under it, then he will have a royal disposition, pride and nobility, as well as the ability to control people.