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| Leo Minor | |
|---|---|
| Name | Leo Minor |
| Abbr | LMi |
| Genitive | Leonis Minoris |
| Symbology | the Lesser Lion |
| Ra | 10h 30m |
| Dec | +30° |
| Family | Ursa Major |
| Quadrant | NQ2 |
| Area total | 232 |
| Rank | 64th |
| Bright star name | 46 Leonis Minoris |
| Bright star mag | 3.83 |
| Nearest star name | HD 86728 |
| Nearest star dist | 61.4 |
| Lat max | 90 |
| Lat min | -45 |
| Month | April |
Leo Minor
Leo Minor is a small northern constellation located between the larger constellations Ursa Major and Leo. It was introduced in the 17th century by the astronomer Johannes Hevelius and is notable for a sparse field of faint stars, a handful of variable stars, and several distant galaxies cataloged by Charles Messier contemporaries and later surveys. The region lies in a rich area of northern sky used by observers from facilities such as Palomar Observatory, Mt. Wilson Observatory, and Kitt Peak National Observatory.
Leo Minor occupies a modest area of sky within the Ursa Major family and is bounded by constellations including Cancer, Coma Berenices, Camelopardalis, and Leo. Its three-letter abbreviation, LMi, is recognized by the International Astronomical Union and appears on modern star charts produced by institutions like the Royal Astronomical Society and the International Star Atlas publishers. The constellation contains few stars brighter than fourth magnitude, making it less prominent than neighboring figures such as Regulus in Leo or the stars of the Big Dipper in Ursa Major.
The modern constellation was delineated by Johannes Hevelius in his 1690 atlas _Firmamentum Sobiescianum_, and later formalized in catalogs by John Flamsteed and Ludolph van Ceulen. Its Latin genitive form, Leonis Minoris, follows classical naming conventions used in the catalogs of Hipparchus successors and the star designations implemented by John Flamsteed. The constellation was adopted into the 88 modern constellations codified by the International Astronomical Union in 1922 and appears in the catalogs of Heinrich Olbers, William Herschel, and Friedrich Wilhelm Argelander.
Despite its faintness, the constellation hosts several noteworthy stellar objects. The brightest star, designated 46 Leonis Minoris, is cataloged in the Henry Draper Catalogue and studied in spectroscopic surveys at Harvard College Observatory and Mount Stromlo Observatory. Other cataloged stars include multiple entries in the Hipparcos mission, the Tycho Catalogue, the Gliese Catalogue, and the Bright Star Catalogue. Variable stars and spectroscopic binaries in the area have been observed by projects at European Southern Observatory, Keck Observatory, and by the AAVSO. Several stars in the constellation are included in exoplanet searches by Kepler Space Telescope follow-ups and radial-velocity programs at HARPS and the Lick Observatory.
Leo Minor contains galaxies and galaxy groups cataloged by notable surveys and compilations. Objects in the region include members from the New General Catalogue and entries later imaged by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the Two Micron All Sky Survey. Detailed studies have been published through observations with Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer Space Telescope, and radio arrays such as the Very Large Array. Several faint galaxies cataloged by Charles Messier contemporaries and by William Herschel are targets for amateur astrophotographers using instruments at Lowell Observatory and backyard setups guided by charts from Sky & Telescope and Astronomy Magazine.
Although not linked to a specific figure in classical Greek mythology, the constellation's name and depiction as the Lesser Lion stem from associations with the larger Lion figure represented by Leo. Its late addition to celestial charts by Johannes Hevelius reflects the Renaissance and early modern trend of expanding star atlases undertaken by cartographers and astronomers like Albrecht Dürer illustrators and printmakers working with scholars such as Tycho Brahe. The constellation appears in star atlases circulated by Bayer and in celestial globes commissioned by patrons in the courts of Louis XIV and Peter the Great.
Leo Minor is best observed in the month of April from northern latitudes, visible from observatories in regions including Europe, North America, and Asia. Amateur observers commonly locate the constellation using landmarks such as the Big Dipper and stars of Leo; telescopes at public facilities like Griffith Observatory and university planetariums often schedule viewing sessions when Leo Minor culminates. Professional surveys covering the area have been conducted by instruments at Mauna Kea Observatories, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, and arrays participating in the Pan-STARRS project. The field is included in star catalogs maintained by institutions like Centre de Données astronomiques de Strasbourg and is referenced in educational programs run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.
Category:Constellations