SkyRef / Star patterns

The Sickle

An asterism in Leo, formed from 6 stars. Not one of the 88 constellations.

The pattern

Stars in the figure6
Brightestmagnitude 1.35
Sits inLeo
Right ascension10.1h
Declination+20°

What to look for

A backwards question mark ending at Regulus, forming the head and mane of Leo. The Leonid meteors radiate from inside it.

The Sickle is centred near right ascension 10.1 hours, declination +20°. It sits well north on the sky and is comfortably placed for northern hemisphere observers.

Asterism, not constellation

The International Astronomical Union recognises 88 constellations, and they divide the whole sky between them like countries on a map. The Sickle is not one of them — it is a pattern picked out of Leo. That makes it an asterism: a shape people recognise and name, with no official standing whatsoever.

The distinction matters less than it sounds. Asterisms are usually easier to find than the constellations containing them, which is exactly why they survive.

Find it tonight

SkyRef can draw the Sickle in its real position for wherever you are — switch on the asterism layer and it appears dashed across the constellations it runs through.

Open the live sky map →

Other star patterns

the Big Dipperthe Little DipperOrion's Beltthe Summer Trianglethe Winter Hexagonthe Great Square of Pegasusthe Teapotthe Sicklethe Northern Crossthe Wthe Keystonethe False Crossthe Southern Pointers