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Environment & Science

WATCHING THE SKIES | May 13-19 | Wednesday will be a bright night for this Leo the Lion star

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Watching the skies with Brad Klein

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – WLVR’s Brad Klein reviews the week’s astronomical highlights with Bethlehem’s ‘Backyard Astronomy Guy,’ Marty McGuire. This week, it's all about the star, Regulus.

Brad and Marty Eclipse
Christine Dempsey
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WLVR
WLVR’s Brad Klein, left, and ‘Backyard Astronomy Guy’, Marty McGuireBrad at the SteelStacks in Bethlehem.

On Wednesday, May 15, shortly after sunset, the first quarter moon will be low in the western sky. McGuire says that you can use the moon to find the bright star, Regulus.

Regulus is one of the brightest stars in the night sky, and the brightest component of the constellation, Leo, the well-known lion of the Zodiac.

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Pithecanthropus4152 via Wikimedia Commons
The constellation Leo with the star system Regulus at bottom right.

While Regulus will look like a single point of light to a casual star-gazer, it’s actually a star system containing two pairs of two stars. But it takes a high powered telescope to reveal the full star system.

“A lot of times a single point of light can actually be multiple stars,” McGuire said.

On Wednesday, just after sunset, find the moon in the western sky and look just below it, and to the right. You should see Regulus shining bright! (That rhymes!)