1 00:00:02,168 --> 00:00:24,357 JAMES: WELCOME TO STAR GAZERS. 2 00:00:24,457 --> 00:00:28,228 I'M JAMES ALBURY, DIRECTOR OF THE KIKA SILVA PLA PLANETARIUM IN GAINESVILLE FLORIDA. 3 00:00:28,328 --> 00:00:31,398 DEAN: AND I'M DEAN REGAS, ASTRONOMER FROM THE CINCINNATI OBSERVATORY. 4 00:00:31,498 --> 00:00:35,802 JAMES: THE CONSTELLATION OF LEO THE LION IS RIDING HIGH IN THE EVENING SKY RIGHT NOW AND 5 00:00:35,902 --> 00:00:38,872 HE HAS SOME INTERESTING STARS WITH SOME CREATIVE NAMES. 6 00:00:38,972 --> 00:00:44,477 DEAN: SO FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS FOR A RIDE THROUGH THE SKY WITH LEO THE LION! 7 00:00:44,577 --> 00:00:49,049 JAMES: OK, WE HAVE OUR SKIES SET FOR ABOUT AN HOUR AFTER SUNSET, FACING SOUTHEAST. 8 00:00:49,149 --> 00:00:54,087 HIGH ABOVE THE HORIZON YOU'LL SEE LEO CASUALLY RECLINING JUST AS THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS DEPICTED 9 00:00:54,187 --> 00:00:56,156 HIM IN A REGAL SPHINX LIKE POSITION. 10 00:00:56,256 --> 00:01:00,593 DEAN: HIS HEAD AND FOREQUARTERS ARE FORMED BY A BACKWARD QUESTION MARK WITH THE BRIGHT 11 00:01:00,693 --> 00:01:03,630 BLUE WHITE STAR REGULUS MARKING HIS HEART. 12 00:01:03,730 --> 00:01:09,135 HIS REAR IS MARKED BY A TRIANGLE OF STARS WITH LEO'S SECOND BRIGHTEST STAR, DENEBOLA, 13 00:01:09,235 --> 00:01:10,804 MARKING HIS TAIL. 14 00:01:10,904 --> 00:01:15,275 JAMES: THE STARS IN THE HEAD OF LEO ALSO FORM AN ASTERISM CALLED THE SICKLE. 15 00:01:15,375 --> 00:01:19,579 ALL THE STARS ARE VISIBLE TO THE NAKED EYE EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE QUITE FAR FROM US. 16 00:01:19,679 --> 00:01:24,084 DEAN: THE NAMES OF THE STARS, STARTING AT THE TOP OF THE BACKWARDS QUESTION MARK AND 17 00:01:24,184 --> 00:01:31,558 WORKING OUR WAY DOWN ARE: EPSILON LEONIS, RASALAS, ADHAFERA, ALGIEBA, ETA LEONIS AND 18 00:01:31,658 --> 00:01:33,560 OF COURSE REGULUS. 19 00:01:33,660 --> 00:01:37,697 JAMES: AS FAR AS THE TRIANGULAR SHAPE OF STARS MARKING THE TAIL, YOU ALREADY KNOW ABOUT DENEBOLA, 20 00:01:37,797 --> 00:01:42,836 HOWEVER THE OTHER TWO STARS ARE ZOSMA (TO THE NORTHWEST OF DENEBOLA) AND CHERTAN (TO 21 00:01:42,936 --> 00:01:44,370 THE SOUTH OF ZOSMA). 22 00:01:44,471 --> 00:01:48,708 DEAN: WITHIN THE OFFICIAL BOUNDARY OF LEO, THERE ARE OVER 90 STARS! 23 00:01:48,808 --> 00:01:54,747 5 OF THOSE STARS ARE LESS THAN 33 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH (THAT'S KINDA CLOSE FOR ASTRONOMERS) 24 00:01:54,848 --> 00:01:58,518 AND AT LEAST 13 OF THOSE STARS HAVE PLANETS CIRCLING AROUND THEM. 25 00:01:58,618 --> 00:02:03,256 JAMES: THE BRIGHTEST STARS OF LEO ARE AN EXCELLENT EXAMPLE OF PERSIAN STAR NAMING. 26 00:02:03,356 --> 00:02:07,060 IF YOUVE WATCHED OUR SHOW OVER THE YEARS, YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED THAT A LOT OF THE STARS 27 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:08,895 HAVE ARABIC NAMES. 28 00:02:08,995 --> 00:02:12,332 DEAN: THAT'S BECAUSE MANY OF THE STARS WERE NAMED BY PERSIAN ASTRONOMERS THOUSANDS OF 29 00:02:12,432 --> 00:02:14,167 YEARS AGO. 30 00:02:14,267 --> 00:02:18,671 THE STAR PATTERNS THEY SAW WAY BACK THEN ARE SIMILAR TO WHAT WE STILL CALL THEM TODAY. 31 00:02:18,771 --> 00:02:23,776 AND THEY OFTEN NAMED THE STARS AFTER THE BODYPART THAT THE STAR REPRESENTED WITHIN THE CONSTELLATION. 32 00:02:23,877 --> 00:02:27,647 JAMES: FOR EXAMPLE, THE PREFIX "DENEB" MEANS TAIL. 33 00:02:27,747 --> 00:02:29,849 AND "RAS" MEANS HEAD. 34 00:02:29,949 --> 00:02:33,353 SEVERAL STARS IN THE SKY HAVE EITHER DENEB OR RAS AS PART OF THEIR NAMES. 35 00:02:33,453 --> 00:02:40,193 DEAN: RASALAS (ALSO KNOWN AS MU LEONIS) IS THE STAR AT THE TOP OF THE LEOS HEAD. 36 00:02:40,293 --> 00:02:47,267 ITS 133 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH AND ITS NAME IS SHORT FOR AL RAS AL ASAD AL SHAMALI. 37 00:02:47,367 --> 00:02:50,870 WHEN TRANSLATED IT MEANS THE NORTHERN STAR OF THE LIONS HEAD. 38 00:02:50,970 --> 00:02:52,839 WOW, THAT'S AWFUL SPECIFIC! 39 00:02:52,939 --> 00:02:57,677 JAMES: AND ON THE OTHER END OF THE LION, DENEBOLA IS A BLUE-WHITE STAR AND ITS 36 LIGHT YEARS 40 00:02:57,777 --> 00:02:58,711 FROM EARTH. 41 00:02:58,811 --> 00:03:00,613 ITS NAME MEANS THE LIONS TAIL. 42 00:03:00,713 --> 00:03:06,085 JAMES: REGULUS IS A BLUE-WHITE MAIN SEQUENCE STAR WITH A DIMMER SECONDARY STAR. 43 00:03:06,186 --> 00:03:09,656 BOTH STARS ARE A LITTLE OVER 77 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH. 44 00:03:09,756 --> 00:03:11,791 AND THE NAME REGULUS MEANS LITTLE KING. 45 00:03:11,891 --> 00:03:17,363 DEAN: ALGIEBA IS A BINARY STAR SYSTEM 126 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH AND IT'S NAME MEANS 46 00:03:17,463 --> 00:03:19,165 "THE FOREHEAD." 47 00:03:19,265 --> 00:03:23,703 JAMES: ADHAFERA IS A WHITE GIANT STAR 260 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH AND IT'S NAME MEANS 48 00:03:23,803 --> 00:03:26,439 "THE BRAID", WHICH IS IN REFERENCE TO THE LION'S MANE. 49 00:03:26,539 --> 00:03:31,844 DEAN: IN 2014, IT WAS ANNOUNCED THE RASALAS HAS A PLANETARY COMPANION MORE THAN TWICE 50 00:03:31,945 --> 00:03:35,915 THE MASS OF JUPITER, WITH A YEAR 358 DAYS LONG. 51 00:03:36,015 --> 00:03:40,220 JAMES: THE LAST TWO STARS WE'LL TALK ABOUT ARE NEAR THE TAIL OF LEO. 52 00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:43,089 THEIR NAMES ARE ZOSMA AND CHERTAN. 53 00:03:43,189 --> 00:03:46,326 ZOSMA IS A WHITE STAR OVER TWICE THE DIAMETER OF OUR SUN. 54 00:03:46,426 --> 00:03:51,598 IN ANCIENT GREEK, ITS NAME MEANS "GIRDLE" AND THIS STAR IS 58 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH. 55 00:03:51,698 --> 00:03:56,069 DEAN: CHERTAN IS A LARGE STAR THAT IS MORE THAN TWO AND A HALF TIMES THE MASS OF OUR 56 00:03:56,169 --> 00:03:59,639 SUN AND ITS NAME MEANS "TWO SMALL RIBS". 57 00:03:59,739 --> 00:04:05,712 CHERTAN IS 141 TIMES BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN AND IS 165 LIGHT YEARS AWAY. 58 00:04:05,812 --> 00:04:06,813 JAMES: WOW! 59 00:04:06,913 --> 00:04:09,249 IF CHERTAN WERE OUR SUN, WE'D BE PRETTY TOASTY. 60 00:04:09,349 --> 00:04:10,850 DEAN: MOST DEFINITELY! 61 00:04:10,950 --> 00:04:14,921 DEAN: SO, GET OUTSIDE AND CHECK OUT THE BRIGHTEST STARS OF LEO THE LION! 62 00:04:15,021 --> 00:04:19,926 JAMES: WE HAVE RASALAS, ADHAFERA, ALGIEBA, AND REGULUS MAKING PARTS OF HIS HEAD 63 00:04:20,026 --> 00:04:24,230 DEAN: AND ZOSMA, CHERTAN AND DENEBOLA MAKING HIS REAR END AND TAIL. 64 00:04:24,330 --> 00:04:25,865 JAMES: HE'S EASY TO FIND WHEN YOU 65 00:04:25,965 --> 00:04:29,965 BOTH: KEEP LOOKING UP!