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THE

GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS,


AND
CLASS BOOK OF ASTRONOMY,
A CELESTIAL ATLAS.
BY ELIJAH H. BURRITT, A. If.
REVISED AND CORRECTED
BY O. M. MITCHEL, A
NEW YORK:
PUBLISHED BY HUNTINGTON AND SAVAGE,
216 PEARL STREET.
CINCINNATI :-H. W. DERBY &. CO.
1849.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
P ~ a & P ~ a &
Pre&ee to the lint edidlm, 7 Ur-. major, 110
.. Mitehel'. edition,. 11 BoO.., . . . 128
PreIimiDary chapter, 17 Draco,. 180
MagnitwIee of stan,". 18 ComaBezeaicea,. 1M
UOll8t.ellatioos 19 Canes Venatici,. 138
Right..-naion and decIiDatiou, 20 COlODa BomaIis, 138
Sidereal time,. . 22 Leo minor, 139
'rable b liDding meridian JIU" The Lynx, 140
BlIp of objec&sin mean time, K Libra,. 141
Correction lOr mean from appa- Scorpia,.. j 44
rent time, 28 Ur-.minor," 148
DefinitioIII,. . 28 CepheuB, 163
Greek aIphabet,. M CameloperoWl, 166
Andromeda, 87 BagiUariWl,. 167
PtllIIII1I8 et Caput Mem.., 40 Scutum Sobielki, 159
Triangulom, 44 Hen:nles, 161
CIIIBiopeia, 45 CygnWl, 186
Piscea,. 51 Lyra, . 170
Aries, 55 Aquila et AntinoWl,. 174
Cetus,. 82 DelphinWl, ., 177
Tauma, ~ 86 Vulpecula et Anser,. 179
Orion,. 72 8erpentarius vel Ophiuchus,. 181
Eridanus, 79 Pegasus,. . . 188
Auriga,. 81 Equulus vel Equi 8ectio,. 189
Gemini, 85 Aquarius, 190
Cancer, : 90 Capricomus, 194
Canis minor, 93 Rising, culminating, and setting
Monoceros,. 95 of the Visible conateUatiOl\ll
Canis major, 96 in each month, 198
Leo major,. 102 Filled stan, PIII1I11u,. 201
8e1ltaus, 107 Distances of the /hed stan, 206
Hydm, 108 Mi1ky Way, .. 208
Virgo,. 1181 Cluaten md Nebula,. 207
Carvus, 118 AatzaI.,.atem and central sun, 209
" (v)
TABLE OF CONTENTS,
PAS .. , PAS ..
8oIar.,...., . . III I NeptaDe, sst
The SuD, 110 I ComebI, 186
Men:ury,. 116 ' TranIIati.oD of the IIQD tJuoush
Venlll, 119 ' 1IpIIIlII,....... .. 198
The Earth,. 138 Law of grantation,. 198
The Moon, Me AUrIeIiveandprojediletimlell, SOl
Solar and lUJlet Eelipa, 163 ~ , . 308
EcIiJI- oCtile aun,. . . t56 N utatlon, A hcjrrati.ou,. 304.
Ecli.- of the Moon,. 168 ParalIu:,. 806
Man, 181 ' RefracIicm, 306
The AIIIianJidI, 1184. Tw.,. . S07
Jupiter, 170 I The 8euoaI,. 811
8atum, 176 AII&ronomiealIDltramlmll,. 811
t!nnUi at B...... 181 QUIIItioDI, tabJe8, &co, 8M
PREFACE
TO THB PIRBT EDITION.
I BAVB long felt the want of a Class Book, which
should be to the starry heavens, what Geography is
to the earth; a work that should exhibit, by means
. of appropriate delineations, the scenery of the
heavens, the various constellations arranged in
their order, point out and classify the principal
stars, according to their magnitudes and places,
and be accompanied at the same time, with such
familiar and illustrations, adapted to
recitation, as should bring it within the pale
of popular instruction, and the 8cope of juvenile
understandings.
Such a work I have attempted to supply. I have
endeavored to make the descriptions of the stars so
familiar, and the instructions for finding them so
. plain, that the most" should not fail
to understand them. In accomplishing this, I have
relied but little upon globes and maps, or books.
I very early discovered that it was an easy matter
to sit down by a celestial globe, and, by means of
an approved catRlogue, and the help of a. little
graduated slip ofbrus, make out, in detail, a minute
(vii)
viii PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.
description of the stars, and discourse quite fami..;
liarly of their position, magnitude and arrangement,
and that when all this was done, I had indeed given
the pupil a few additional facilities for finding those
stars upon the artificial globe, but which left him,
after all, about as ignorant of their apparent situa-
tion in the heavens, as before. I came, at length, to
the conclusion, that any descnption of the stars, to
be practically useful, must be made from a careful
observation of the stars themselves, and made at
the time of observation.
To be convinced of this, let any person sit down
to a celestial globe or map, and from this alone,
make out a set of instructions in regard to some
favorite constellation, and then desire his pupil to
trace out in the firmament, by means of it, the vari-
~ u s stars which he has thus described. The pupil
will find it little better than a fancy sketch. The
bearings and distances, and especially, the compar-
ative brightness, and relative positions, will rarely
be exhibited with such accuracy that the young
observer will be inspired with much confidence in
his guide.
I have demonstrated to myself, at least, that the
most judicious instructions to put on paper for the
guide of the young in this study are those which I
have used most successfully, while in a clear eve-
ning, without any chart but the firmament above, I
have pointed out, with my finger, to a group of
listeners, the various stars which compose this and
that constellation.
PRU'ACE TO THE EDITION. ix
In this way, the teacher will describe the stars
as they actually appear to the pupil- taking ad-
vantage of those obvious and more striking feature.
serve to identify and to distinguish them from
all others. Now, if these verbal instruction8 be
committed to writing, and placed in the hands of
any other pupil, they will &nswer nearly the same
enc. This is the method which I have pursued in
this work. The descriptive part of it, at least, was
notcomposed by the light of the sun, principally,
of a lamp, but by the light of the stars them-
Having fixed upon the most conspicuous
star,or group of stars, in each constellation, as it
passu! the meridian, and with a pencil carefully
Dotedall the identifying circumstances of position,
brightness, number and distance - their
geom4rical allocation, if any, and such other de-
scripti'\e features as seemed most worthy of notice,
I then lI3turned to my room to transcribe and classifY
these nemoranda in their proper order; repeating
the SaID observations at different hours the same
evening,and on other evenings at various periods,
for a of year_; always adding such emen-
dations 81 subsequent observations matured. To
satisfY mYlelf of the applicability of theBe descrip-
tions, I h_e given detached portions of them to
different and sent them out to find the stars ;
and I have had the gratification of hearing
them "every thing was just as I had
described it., If a pupil found any difficulty in
recognizin, .,star, I re-examined the description
\
X PREFACE TO TBE FIRST EDITION.
to see if it could be made better, and when I found
it susceptible of improvement, it was made on the
spot. It is not pretended, however, that there is
not yet much 1:oom for improvement; for whoever
undertakes to delineMe or describe every visible
star in the heavens, assumes a task, in the ac-
complishment of which he may well claim some
indulgence.

PREFACE
TO IU'OHEL'B EDITION.
To extraordinary discoveries :which have mark-
ed the History of Astronomy. during the last few
years. demand corresponding changes in the books
designed for the instruction of those who seek a
knowledge of this science. Feeling confident that
nothing can be more important. than the furnishing
of our schools with valuable eleinentary works in
science. I have been induced to undertake the
revision and the re-writing of a large part of the
well known school book, The Geography of fJuJ
Heavena. In consequence of the rapid advance in
Astronomy. and the important change, which has
recently commenced in our country, in the mode
ofpros8Cuting its study, this revision has become ab-
solutely necessary. When this work first appeared
there were very few telescopes in the United
Statee, and of these a very small proportion were
employed in the schools and academies. as means
of instruction. Hence, at that time, any dElscrip-
tion of the telescopic objects, found within the
(xi)
xii PREFACE TO MITCHEL'S EDITION.
limits of the several constellations, would have
been almost useless. Within the last six years a
new era in science has on
, our country. A zeal and ardor has been aroused
in its behalf, which, at one time, was regarded as
quite impossible, in consequence of the peQuliar
nature of our govemment and institutions. The
reproach cast upon us by Europeans, for our utter
neg]ect of science, if ever just, is no longer so.
Only a fe. years have p88Beci, since the first. elfort
was made to arouse tIM American people to the
importance of the cultiVation of Astrenomical
loienC&, and. we now are able to point to no less
than three fil'llt cl818 observatories, aU erected
within the lut five yean, at points widely dis-
tant from each other. The. example thus set in
the West and the East, basprampted to active
ejfort in many parts of our eaotry, and, at this
time, there is scarcely a school or college of any
rank, at which it has not been J'et!lolved to attempt
the founding of an AstrOJu)JniceJ Observatory, of
greater or leu magnitude. To meet these rapid
changes. in the mode of conveying the truths of
Astronomy, and to present,.in I.imple and intelligible
form, the results of the recent important discoveries,
win be the main objects of attention in the: revisidn
of this work.
A large put of the Mythological notices will be
PllEI'ACB TO MITCHEL'S EDITION. xiii
omitted, lUI less important than the description of
telescopic olUects found in the various constella-
tions. These objects, consisting ofnebulm, clusters,
double, triple, multiple and binary stars, rich fields
and vacant spots, will be noticed, and described,
their places given, and drawings of the more im-
portant objecta, with a note of the diameter of the
olUect glass which will show them, and their
observation possible.
Among the new topics treated, we may notice
the following as some of the more important.
The subject of the binary and double stars, their
distances and periods of revolution, has engaged
the attention and talent of many of the best As-
tronomers of the . world, for the last twenty years.
Tliese revolving suns will be found to fill their
appropriate places in the revised work. The en-
larging of the limits of the solar system, by the
discovery of a planet exterior to Uranus. the extra-
means of its discovery, its subsequent
history, aDd the elementa of its orbit, constitute a
topic of deep interest; add to thi. the discovery of
five new asteroids, within the last two years; and
the perfection of the tables of all the old planeta
l
and we find most import&llt advances in our knowl-
edge of the solar sy.tem.
In the structure of the Sidereal HeaveDII, and onr
lmowledge of the distribution of the stan in space,
d" PAEt ACE TO MITCHEL'S EDITION.
little had been done after tbe death of Sir W.
Herschel, until ,within the" lut few years. The dia-
covery of the actual diatance of a fixed star, by
Bes8el, gave a new impUlse to the inveetigation of
these 'sublime sulUects. This triumph of Bessel
was speedily followed by many others, of a like
kind. M. Argelander demenmatea the motion of
the lun and solar system in space, and the
point towards whiQh it is moving; M.Otho Strive
determines- its annual angular motion as seen from
the fixed' stars . of the 1lrst magnitude; and, finally,
M. Petera, of RU88ia, fixes the distance of the stars
of the second magmtudf4 from the mean parallaX
of some thirty stars, deduced from observation.
With these ,data, iUld' the preceding investigations
of, Sir W. Herschel, M. Strtive, Pulkova, Russia,
commences a disCUI!Ision of the distribution of the
stars in space; the popUlousness of the Milky Way
aad the heavens, generally, in stars; determines the
relative distances' of the spheres of the fixed stars
of the different magnitudes; and, ftnally, their abso-
lute di8tances, and the actual velocity of the sun
anti solar system through If We add to
these topics the discoveries by Lord Rosse's great
reflector, the' changes in the views hitherto enter-
tained on the subject of LaPlace" nebular hypO.
the.aI,' and MUter'. thbOty', or 'the great eentml
sun, we '.d:that tile "t, feW-year. 'have
, .
PllEFACE TO MITCHEL'S EDITION. xv
most wonderful, and the most trnitful, in the whole
history of Astronomy since the time of Newton.
The necessity of a new edition of the Geography
of the Heavens need not be urged, after what has
been said. To meet the demands, a new set of star
charts have been prepared expressly for this work,
and the text will be found to conform to these
charts.
MOVJrT ABU., .,l1t, IIKB.
TUE REVI8ED
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
PRELIMINARY CHAPTER.
To phenomena of the heavens have excited the
curiosity, and fixed the attention, of mankind, in all
ages of the world. The beautiful. clustering of the
bright stars, the moving plUlete, the extraordinary
changes of the mOOD, the phenomena of the day
and night, were themes for study at a period so
remote, that neither "history nor tradition reach far
enough back in the past, to tell us when or by
whom, these researches were commenced, or prose-
cilted. From the earliest ages, do-.n to the present
time, the science of astroRomy h .. presented prob-
lems, t&XiJlg the. highest powers of the human in-
tellect, and requiring for their solution the most
profound reasoning, the moet accurate observation,
the most powerful instruments, a.nd an ardor, ~ r s e
verance and devotion, which have signalized hUlnan
effort in no other dtlpartment of scientifio research.
"The heavens declare the glory of God," and the
sllCC6asful examination of these same heavens, haa
most perfectly demonstrated that other great truth,
that man has been made" but a little lower than the
angels." By the effort of hi8 genius, he has risen
to a knowledge of the structure and law. of the
universe, he has vindicated the wisdom of God, in
the beautiful adjustments of the moving planets,
and the harmonious revolutions of a multitude of
worlds, linked together by a mysterioua bond. He
17
18 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
has extended the dominion of law to the remote
stars, and has computed the periods of' these far
distant orbs. But these sublime results have not
been obtained by any single individual, or by any
one nation. The great problem of the universe
has been given to the human race, and its solution
haR been the progressive work of all nations, in all
agee, for the last six or seven thousand At
the end of this ,'ast period, we gather the f'ruits of
all . preceding effort, and condense into narrow
limits that knowledge, to gain which, has required
the highest intellectual activity of the best minds
which have adorned the earth.
In looking out, of a clear night, on the starry
heavens, we find a multitude of brilliant objects,
scattered over'the sky, without any law or order in
their We readily remark a great dif-
ference in the brilliancy of the stars, and our
attention is soon fixed upon certain groups of
brighter objects, whose configurations, or relative
positions, enable us to find them, readily, when
they are in the visible heavens. The diversity' in
brightness has occasioned the classification of the
stars, in order of their brilliancy. The brightest
occupy the first class, and are called 8tar8 tf tkeJir8t
mognitrule. Of these there are only a few. From
the brightest stars down to those just visible to the
nalted eye, the scale has been 'so divided that it
comprehends Biz mogni,tude8, the number of stars in
each class increasing as the brightness of the class
decreases. We have six magnitUdes visible to the
naked eye, and then the telescopic stars carry the
series down to the sixteenth magnitude, and even
still lower. In the description of any star, then, we
must always give its magnitude, as one means of
fixing its identity. But as there are many stars in
each class, the magnitude, alone, would not serve
to point out a particular stat. In the early ages
PRELIMINA.RY CHAPTER. 19
of astronomy, the hea,'ens were divided into certain
subdivisions, or groups of stars, called ronatellation6 ..
and the figure of some animal, or other object, was
as!Jigned, whose outline would embrace all the stars
in a given constellation. These subdivisions have
been retained in modern times, and although at-
tended with many inconveniences, they are too
firmly fixed, and too intimately woven, in all works
on astronomy, ever to be changed.
There is no resemblance between the configura-
tion of the stars, and the object, whose name is
assigned to the group; yet when the limits of the
constellation, as fixed by the outline of the object
whoi1e name it bears, becomes accurately known
and laid down on maps, these subdivisions, or
constellations of stars, greatly assist in obtaining a
knowledge of the heavens. We may even identify
a star, by knowing it is the brightest of a given
constellation. To render it possible to designate
the stars of each constellation, they have been
named after the letters of the Greek alphabet, until
these are exhausted, calling the brightest star after
the first letter, and so on down. In case the num-
ber of letters is insufficient to give names to all the
visible stars in a constellation, the Roman alphabet
is called into use, and after this is exhausted, the
Arabic characters, 1,2, 3,&0., are employed. Thils
we call the brightest star in the constellatioJ;l of the
Swan, a. Cygni, or Alpha qf tJuJ Swan,' the next
brightest in the same constellation is called f3 Cygni,
or Beta of the Swan; Cygnus being the Latin for
Swan, and Cygni, meaning rf tJuJ Swan. The same
is true of the other constellations, the Latin names
being always retained in the designation of the
~ ~ . .
If the constellations contained a very few stars,
and those of marked difference of magnitude, this
mode of designating them might be sufficient for
2,0 GEOGRAPHY or THE HEAVENS.
their. identifieation and description. But in, eon-
sequence of the multitude of stars: and the difficulty
ot distinguishing them from each other by their
magnitudes, it has become necessary to fix their
positions in the heavens, as the places on the
earth's surface are by their longitude and
latitude. The term/il applied to
heavenly l>odies, are right ascenaioR. and tleclination,
which terms we proceed to define.
To us sun appears to move among the fixed
stars, and in the course of one year to return again to
the point departure. If his track could be mark-
ed by leaving behind him a hright line of fire, this
line.would be found to Qe a circle traced out among
the fixed stars, and this track of the sun is called
the ediptic. .', .
There are two poin" in thill track of especial
interest, from the fact that on the days when the
sun occupies them; the length of the day and night is
exactly the same, each being twelve hours. These
points, on the ecliptic or 8un's track, are called the
equi1UJCtial poinJ.s. The one through which the sun
passes in the spring is called the 'VtJrnal equi7lOX, that
occupied by the sUD in autumn is called the autu11l1l8l
equi7lOX. '
Each day and night the sun, and other heavenly
bodies, appear to describe circles in the heavens,
called diunu.d circles. They are all parallel to
each other. That diurnal circle described by the
sun, at either equinox, is called the t;elestiol equator,
or the equi1UJCtioJ. If the equinoctial could be marked
by a line of fire in the heavens, it woul\. be found
to cut the sun's. track, or the ecliptic, in two opposite
points, which we have already called the equi1UJCtial
points. To fix the place of a star, or other heavenly
body, it is referred to the equi1UJCtial, or celestial equa-
tor. A star on the north side of the equinoctilll is
in 1Wrtllern dec1iflll#un, and one on the south side of
PRELIMINARY CHAPTER.
21
the same circle is in soutJaern tlecli1UZtirm. To meas
ure the distance of any object in the heavens, north
or south of the equator, an imaginary circle is drawn
through the object perpendicular to the equator, and
the distance measured on the circle thus drawn from
the object to the equator is caned its decli1/lltion.
Knowing the declination of a star, north or south
of the equator, does not suffice to fix its place in
the heavens. It o ~ l y locates it on the circumfer-
ence of a small circle parallel to the equator, and
distant from it by an amount equal to the known
declination of the object. To fix the exact poirit
of the object on this small circle, it is only neces-
sary to know how far the circle, drawn through the
object and perpendicular to the equator, cuts the
equator from the vernal equinox. This distance
measured on the 'equator, from the vernal equinox
round eastward, is called the right ascension. Any
circle drawn through a heavenly body, and perpen-
dicular to the equator, is called a meridian. That
meridian which passes through equinoctial points,
is called the prime meridian, or the equinoctial co-
lure. Any star, or heavenly body, situated on the
prime meridian, has no right ascension, or its right
ascension is equal to zero. In case the equator be
divided into twenty-four equal parts, and meridians
be drawn through the points of division, these
meridians are called hour circles. A heavenly body
situated on the first hour circle, east of the vernal
equiaox, has one hour. of right ascension; if it be on
the second hour circle, east, it will have two hours
of right ascension, and so round, through the twenty-
four hours of right ascension to the vernal equinox
again. .
That point in the heavens, directly above us, in
which a perpendicular to the sUrface of still water,
carried upward, would pierce the celestial sphere, is
called the %CI/.ith. If the same perpendicular be
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
to pass downward and pierce 'the lower
hemisphere, the point of piercing is ca.lled the 1IOdir.
The circle perpendicular to the equator, and passing
through the zenith of any place, is ca.lled the
meridian of that place. All points on the earth's
surface in the same will have the same
meridian.
The instant when the vernal equinox reaches the
meridian of any place on the earth's surface, i. the
beginning of the sidereal day, which terminates when
the vemal equinox shall have passed entirely round
and returned to the meridian again. A clock, or
watch, so regulated as to mark 0 hours at the in-
stant when the vernal equinox is on the IJ).erWian
of a given place, and to mark the hours from 0 to
twenty-four houra, is called a sidereal clock, and
keeps sidereal time. It will be found that the right
ascension (marked R. A.) of each is given in
this work. In case the right ascension of a star is
3 h. 12 Ol. 10 s., it tells us that it will reach the
'meridian 3 h. 12 m.' 10 s. after the vernal equinox
has passed it. If the time, aB' shown by a sidereal
clock, is less than the R. A. of a star, then the star
has not yet reached the meridian; on the contrary,
should the time indicated by the sidereal clock be
greater than the R. A. of any object, then the
hb already p$8led the meridian, and is west of it
by an amount equal to the difference between the
sidereal time aud ,the R. A. To render this clear,
take the following examples. ,
The R. A. of a star is 4 h. 26 m. 10 s., the sidereal
time is 3 h. 15 m. 25 s. Is the star east or west of
the It is east of the meridian, and to
find the amount by which it is east,
.... L
FIOmtbeR.A.=41810
8libtraet 8 Iii iii the time.
Dia:= 1 10 til
PRELIMINARY CRAPTER.
In caSe the sidereal time is 6 h. 12 m. 20 s., then
the star has already passed the and il
west by an amount found as follows:
.... L
PIOm the time = 0 II 10
8ab&nIet the A. R. =. 18 10
Diit=o.a 10
Or the ltar i8 0 h. 46 m. 10 I. WAst of the meridian.
Anyone p08l!essing a sidereal time piece, whether
clock or chronometer, will.find no difficulty in fixing
the place of a heavenly body, as to its angular dis-
tance east or west of the meridian, at any hour in
the twenty-four. The declination of the object,
shows its distance north or south of the equator,
and combining tbe t.wo, the A. R. and the Declina-
tion, we have the exact position of .the object in
question. It frequently happens that perlons are
not provided with sidereal time pieces, but may
possess very good solar clocks, chronometers or
watches. Mean Bolar time is reckoned from the
instant, that the center of the mean sun (or one
moving with the mean motion of the true Bun), is
on the meridian. It differs from sidereal time,by
3 m. 56.5554 B. in each twenty-four hours, or a
sidereal clock gains that amount daily on a mean
solar clock. Hence we perceive that mean solar
and sidereal time seldom, if ever, agree. When
any heavenly body is on the meridian of a given
place, a well regulated sidereal clock will show the
time exactly equal to the right ascension of the body.
No such relation exists between mean StJar t';m8 and
the right a8Ce1I.8itm.
To find the instant that ali object, whose right
ascension is given, reaches the meridia.n in mean
solar time, or that .bOWD by ordinary clocks and
watches, the following table has been computed:, .
J. ...
-. .. "
14 GEOGRAPHY OF THE
- ---i-
liar. "'1"'. "-, ,..,. ... IopL Oct. Now. Doe.
..... bolD. b. ... b. .. h. ID. h.m. .. Ia,,, b. Ill ......... lao
1 i 14,3 01 I 1223 1sl,21 it 11 20111 151:3 1911 31935131
11,5 OU 267 I 08,z:j 15 III 2311110,11 1615 1113 1511 lr7 931 1lr7
315 04 II 6a I 04 13 11 21 IV 19 16.17 1215 07 13 1211 114 9 27 112
46 00 2 49 1 0123 or II 16 18 12;17 0815 04 13 08 11 110 , 23 7 18
614 6U 45 0 6193 04,111 1211 08,'17 04 15 00 13 05 11 17 II 19 7 14
64 512 41 0 63 23 00 21 !!'l111 04 16 11814 5813 01 11 139 111 1 09
7:4 47 1I:rr 0 4912 66;21 04 19 00 16 11614 5:.! 12 11111 09 9 11 7 05
8'4 4112 33 0 4622 113,21 OU 18 66 UI 5114 48 111 54 11 06 8 or 1 01
914 3U 0 4UIl 49110 6818 61 18 4714 44 III 50 11 Ol! 9 03 8 66
104 3U 2S 0:'" 12 45110 5218 47il11 43 14 41111 4710 58 859 6
11 4 29 2 21 0 36112 42110 4818 18 14 :rr III 43 10 55 8 66 8 41
124 26 11 0 31 22 38!*I 18 38 ui 14 33 12 3810 61 8 51 8 4:1
13
1
'4 III 2 13 0 27 34,20 41 18 35 16 31 14 21 III J6 10 47 8 41 6 39
14,4 1st 09 0 24 I!! 31110 :rr 18 3118 17 14 110 II 31 10 43 8 43 II 34
164 112 05 0 20 22 lr7 110 33 18 27 .. 14 22 12 t9 10 40 838ft 30
16'4 03 2 01 0 1622 23/110 lID 18 falf6 1914 18 III 26 10 36 8 35 6 26
114 041 111 0 1322 20 20 25 18 18 8 1614 14 II 21 10 32 8 30 6 21
18
1
1
3 69 I M 0 0912 16110 21 18 1416 11 14 11 III 1810 1!8 8 116 6 16
193 58 I 50 0 06 22 1220 1718 10 16 or 14 or 12 1410 25 8 22 6 111
20,'8 61 I (6 0 02112 0820 1318 06
1
16 11-114 031111 1110 1118 18 6 08
21 3 47 I 4l1li3 lIB III 05110 OIl 18 02 IS S9 13 119 111 or 10 17 8 14 6 03
22'3 42 I 38 23 55 lIS 01 lID 05 17 67 15 66 J3 66112 03 10 138 09 5 59
23 3381 34193 61 21 51110 0117 41111 51 13 hill 0610 10" 05 5 54
24 3 1M I 311'23 4721 113111 11117 4915 47 n 48'11 5810 06 8 01 6 50
15 3 3D I 27 28 44 21 50 18 113 17 4& III 4:1I3 45 11 113 10 on S7 6 46
110 3 is I 13 93 40 21 (619 4911 41'1& 3913 4111\ 49 9118163 6 41
213 111.1 19;93 3611 4218 46 IT 37 15 3513 37 11 411 9 64 7 48 0 3&
te3 17 I 1623 33 21 3819 4111 31 Iii 3113 34 11 42 II 50 7 44 5 32
11113 1tll 1423 1121 35 19 31 11 28 15 27113 30 \I 38 9 47 7 40 5 :!II
30 3 09 28 25111 3119 3217 24 15 23 13 116 11 35 9 4:17 3Ii 5 113
311306 . 12312. 19 118 16 1913231 ... 938 5 It
A few examples will 8uffice to explain the use of
this table.
Given the A. R. of Sirius = 6 h. 38 m. 07 8.-
required the apparent time of its meridian passage,
on January 11th.
Ruu.-To 1M numlJer placed uppoaite 1M date, add
1M A. R. if 1M star, all fou/nIl in this work.
B." ..
'l'huI: A. R. of 8iriUII = 8 88 07
Tabular No. , 19 00
Sam 11 07 08
PUI,I'MIlfAllY CIIAPT&L
I
Or Sirius passes the meridian at 11 h. 07 m. 08 s.
apparent time.
ExAuLE.-Required the apparent time or the
........ meridian pllSl$age of Vega, on May 30th .
.. .. L
A. R. of Vega = 18 31 M
Tabular No. = 19 31 00
8um= 38 OIl M
8abUaet 24 hours M 00 00
Merjdian pa-ae 14 03 M apparent time.
It will ~ noticed that the foregoing computations
have been made for apparntI. time. This is slightly
dift'erent from the time shown by clocks and watches,
called mean time. .ApparenJ noon is the exact in-
stant when the trae 8un's center is on the meridian.
III consequence of the apparent irregular motion
of the sun, there is a variable difference between
o:pparent or tnuJ- time, or that shown by the sun, and
1IIIl'aR time, or that shown by the clock.
Since we rely for our time on the clock, we here
present a table which will exhibit the mean days in
the year, on which a clock Or watch, regulated to
mean time, will be an even number of minutes faster
or slower than the sun.
From thi8 table it is easy to reduce the apparent
tWe of any metridian PfP,sage, found by the pre-
ceding table, to mean or ~ r o c k time. To be rigidly
accurate, the correction should be taken from the
nautical almanac, or other accurate ephemeris, but
for Ol'dinary gazing these table. are quite sufticient.
In ease the IIDII produced by addins to the tabuJar number oppoaita .
the given date the A. R. of the Itar, or other hea"f8llly body, be gJe8Iier
thIpa &wenly-tOar bola, tiom the IIDII IUhIract bnIDty.6ar bo-. UId the
NIIIIIIiDder will be the ~ time. of IIIIIIidiIIl ,......
C
26 GEOGRAPHY 01' THE HEAVENS.
Now, returning to the examples already given
of the meridian passages of Sirius and Vega; the
fiJ'8t of these stars was found to culminate or pass
the meridian at 11 h. 07 m. 08 s. apparent time, on the
11th Jan. By the last table, on the 11th of Janu-
ary, the clock is 8 m. faster than the sun. Hence
the culmination by the clock, will take place at
10h. 69 m. 08s.
Again, Vega was found to cuhninate at 14 h. 03 m.
34 s., on the 30th May, apparent time. By the
preceding te.ble, on the 28th of May the clock was
3 m. slower' than the sun, and gaining one minute
in 7 days, or about 9s. per day. On the 30th the
clock will be slow, about 2 m. 42 s.; and hence
Vega will culminate, by the clock, 14 h. 03 m. 34s ..
+ 2m. 42s. = 14 h. 06 m. 16s.
These approximations are sufficiently accurate
for ordinary purposes. .
The first te.ble will not be in error more than 1 m.
for twenty years, when the stars will culminate
about one minute later than shown by the te.ble.
From all the foregoing considerations we deduce
the following dtfinititm8 :
The magnitude of a star is its brightness compared
with any star IlRsumed as a standard.
A star of the 1st magnitude is of the highest order
of brightness.
PRELIMINARY CBAPTEIL. ' 27
All stars below the 6th mognittule are only rendered
visible by telescopic aid. '
A cunstel1t.d:i.r, is a group of stars falling within
the limits of the outline of any animal or object
whose name it bears, and whose figure is conceived
to be drawn in the heavens, and is actually drawn
on globes and maps of the heavens.
The ecliptic, is the path which the sun appears to
describe in a year among the fixed stars.
The erpuztor or the equinoctioJ, is a great circle cut
&om the heavens by producing the plane of the
earth's equator to meet the celestial sphere. The
equi1llXl:eS are the points in which the celestial equa-
tor and the ecliptic cut each other. ,
DiurnoJ circles, are those circles which the h e a v e n ~
ly bodies appear to describe every twenty-four
hours. They are all parallel to the equator.
Meridio:ns, are great circles perpendicular to the
celestiaJ.. equator, and meeting in the points 'called
the 1I.01'tk and sUI.IiA poles of the heavens.
Huur circles, are meridians, cutting the equator so
as to divide it into twenty-four equal parts; the
first point of division being at the vernal eqainox.
The zenith, is the point in which a perpendicular
to the surface of still water, pierces the celestial
IiIphere above.
The nadir, is where the same perpendicular pierces
the celestial sphere below. '
The meridian of any place; is the great circle, per-
pendicular to the celestial equator, and passing
through $e zenith of the place. The rigltJ, ascension
of a heavenly body, is its distance east of the vernoJ
equinox, reckoned on the celestial equator.
The declination of a heavenly body, is its distance
north or south of the eqnator, measured on a meri-
dian passing through the heavenly body.
The declination is expressed in degrees, minutes
and seconds, of a great circle, and is expressed by
28 GlWGlUPBY OF THB HEAVENS.
these symbols,O ,I ". Thils we write 12 degrees,
17 minutes, 10 seoonds: 12
0
17' 10". .
A Wlereol day, is the interval from the instant the
vernal equinox is on the meridian of a given place,
till ~ t again reaohf>s the same meridian.
A tf"U8 solar day, is the interval from t h ~ instant
the oenter of the true SUD is on the meridian of a
given place, till it again reaches the same meridian.
A mean solarday,'is the interval from the instant
that the center of an imaginary sun (moving with
the mean daily.mo.tion of the true sun) is on the
meridian of any given place, till it reaches again
the meridian of the same plaoe. .
The equi1UJCtiol colure, is a meridian passing
through the equinoctial points.
ParaJlels of declination, are small circles, north o.r
so.uth of the e.quator, and parallel to it.
The rationBl hori%07&, is a plane. passing through
the oenter o.f the earth, and perpendicular to the
radius dra.wn to any place on the earth's surface.
It divides the heavens into two hemispheres, the
upper being the 'Visihle, the lower the in..n.ilJle hemi.
sphere.
Any heavenly body is in the act of rising, when
. it passes from below up through the plane of the
ratiuruil horizon. It is setting, when in the act Df
passing below this same plane. .
The sensiJJle horizon, is the circle limiting :our
view, Dr where the earth and sky appear to meet.
Vertical circles, pass through the zenith, and per
pendioular to the horizon. .
The prime tJertfcol, is the great oirole, which outs
the horizoll in the east and west points.
Before proceeding to an exploration of the
heavens, it. will be necessary to acquire 80me know-
ledge of the classes Df olUects; the individuals of
which will be hereafter described. The mO,st ca-
sual observer oannot fail, on the first examinat.ion
PRELIKINAllY CBAPT&L
of the heavens, to notice an irregular zone, of une- '
qual brightness, called the Milky Way, which is seen
to sweep entirely round the celestial sphere. This
bright zone is found to consist of millions of stars,
scattered with rich, but irregular profusion, through-
out its entire extent .. Nearly all its stars are below
the sixth magnitude, and are, of course, invisible to
the naked eye. But .the smallest telescopic aid
reveals multitudes of stars; and as the power of
the telescope is increased, the number of stftrs
brought to view iucreases in a like proportion.
Although, according to the investigations of modern
science (to be more fully examined hereafter), we
may not fix absolute bounds and limits to the mil-
lions of stars composing the Milky Way, yet if we
confine our examinations to the richer or denser
portions, we are able to assign a figure within
whose limits the Milky Way will be confined.
Were it possible to enclode all the stars composing
the Milky Way in some opaque envelope which
would shut them out from all space beyond, within
this envelope and not very far from its center, our
own sun, itself a fixed star, would be found. Having
thus enclosed the stars of the Milky Way in imagi-
nation, it is found that the space on the outside. of
this envelope is not void' space. Very far beyond
this limit, the telescope has revealed objects of
greater or less brightness, which, when examined
with powerful instruments, are found to consist of
millions of minute points, grouped together, and
assuming all possible forms, among whioh the glo-
bular manifestly predominates. These. are called
cluster8 of stars, and are in many instances so large,
as to ocoupy as much, if not more space than that
takeu up by the Milky Way, and containing,inall pro-
bability, as many stars. These naagnificent cluster8
are so remote, that the telescope may often grasp, at
one view, their vast extent, and innumerable millions
02
80 GEOQaAPBY OF THB RU VENS.
of stars., Other bright objects are seen beyond the
limits of the stars composing the Milky Way, whieh
assume a l ~ possible shapes, and which, in many
respects, resemble the clusters; with this diifereBC8,
that no telescopic power has ever revealed' any
stars within their limits. These are oalled 'Min4la,
or faint luminous clouds. Among the nebula, some
present characteristics which indicate ,the fact, that
in case they could be examined with greater tele-
scopic power, they would be found to be composed
of stars too remote to be seeR separately, but whoee
combined light reaebes us from their vast distances,
and shows tlJ,em as faint luminous clouds. There
are others which exhibit no such charaeteristiea,
and which many astronomers believe consist of
luminous matter, resembling that, composing the
tails of comets. These are called irresolvolJUJ ~ .
In this class, the most remarkable are the planetary
neImla, so called from the fact that they present
disks, very like those of the planets, with a lumi-
nous surface of uniform brightness. They resemble
the very distant. planets,of our systelu, and are, in
some instances, only a little less bright.
Among the stars we reckon the following classes,
viz. :
Single 8fo:ra, Juuhle alars, mvltiple stars, bi1llD'1l star.,
periodical' or varialJle stars, new 8tarB, and ~
Btars. '
Single stars, are those which, to the naked eye,
and under telescopic examination, are found to
consist of one individual star.
DuuJile stars, are those which, to the naked eye,
appear single, but which, under ,telescopic exami-
nation, are found to consist of two star.. Some-
times the component stars are equal, at other times
they are very unequal, the relative magnitude and
distance being diiferent in every set. .
lWultiple star" are 'Such as are leen single, by the
81
nak.f!d eye, but which the teleacope 1lnda compoMd
of three or more
Binarystars, are double etan, in whioh com-
ponents have been fou.nd to be united in such ..
way that they revolve around each other. These
are suns revolving about BUDa, and not a pltlfllll.
about a sun.
Yariahle are those which are found to
go certain fluctuations in brightneel. Sometim81
they are found tp 101e their light
l
and actually to
become invisible. Then they regain their brilliancy,
by slow degrees, and reach their original brightnesi.
In some individuals these changes are accomplished
in a certain fixed period; in other eases the fluctu
ations of light Me not governed by any known law.
New stars, are those which have. suddenly blazed
forth in some rf\gion of the heaveDB previoully
blank or vacant. They generally die away and
disappear in the course of one or two years.
Nebvi.()'I.U stars, are luch as are surrounded by
faint halo, or luminous haze of nebulouamatter.
It will be readily remarked that all tlleee objects,
except the single are telelCOpk, IUld are invi-
sible to the naked eye. .
The region in the heavens about four degrees
on each side of the ecliptic, or SUD'S path, is called
the uxlioc, and is remarkable as the region in which
the sun, moon, and large planets perform their
revolutions among the fixed stars. The canstella ..
tiond, into which the stars in the. region of the zo-
diac were divided, are doubtless among the most
ancient in the In consequence (If the
apparent annual motion o(the SUD among the con-
stellations of the zodiac, tlie stars of constel-
lations will be successively lost in the 8uperior
brilliancy of the 8un, and will become invisible
while in the immediate vicinity of the sun. This
remark is true of all the . constellations beyond the
82 GEOGB.APBY OF THE IlEA VENS.
limits of the zodiac, and near enough to the sun's
track to be above the horizon with the sun, and to
be extinguished by his light. As we approach the
north pole of the heavens, we find certain groups
of or constellations which never sink below
the horizon, and are consequently visible at all
seasons of the year. Others, more remote from the
north pole, sink below the horizon, and disappear
for only Ii. short time. '
As the stars abont the south pole of the heavens
never rise above the horizon of any place in our
northem latitudes, they are never visible to us ; and
to be seen to advantage, the spectator must travel
to southern latitudes.
The Atlas 'which aCCfompanies this work, contains
detailed maps of 'all the principal constellations.
involving the stars down to 'the sixth magnitude.
inclusive, the principal clusters, nebulm, double
stars, &c. The constellation exhibited on any map.
is, in general, snrrounded by its bounding constella-
tions, so as to show their relative positions. This
necessarily occasions the repetition of certain
stellations on several maps. But the inap intended
for use, in the study of each constellation, is referred
to in the text describing the constellation.
As "each judicious instructor will select his own
method of teaching the constellations to his classes.
it has been thought best not to arrange this work
with reference to one invariable plan, which must
be followed to render it useful. It is, in
better to study a constellation, when it occupies a
position in the heavens far enough above the hori-
zon to render all its sta.rs visible. This can only
occur at a eertain season of the year; and as clasl!les
will commence the study of astronomy at any con-
venient time, this work is so arranged that the
teacher clln commence at any constellation which
may be favorably situated for examination at the
.:aaLUllNART CBAJITBlL 88
time when hilt elas. enterB upOn the study of the
heavens. . .
In toaehing the confltellatioilll, it ill tertaibly best
to CO.lllln81lCe with some one in which the principal
.tal'lt are large and brilliant, and thus eaei\y recog-
nized; such as the sta1'8 in MajOl", or In Lyra,
or in Orion, or in Tauttlil. Having adopted any
point of departure'easily recogniled, it will not be
difficult to refer the surrounding cbnstellations to
this point, and gradttally to extend the examina-
tion until it embraces 'the whole visible beaventl.
The mllps present, as nearly as may be, pictures
of the heavens, as 88en with the naked eye. A
faint outline of the ilgure name the cons tel-
latiGh bears, is found on the map; not so prominent
88 to become the striking object, but sufficiently
distinct for all useful'pw-poses of reference. These
outlines mUllt be retained, as the $re most
readily described, and their plac;es found, :by their
positions in the constellation. Thus we epeak of
the bright star Albireo, in the bill l!f 1M Srvtm; Al-
debaran, in the eye l!f tile BvJl, &e.; and by the lo-
cality thue given, the eye seizes the on the
map at a glance.
The parallels of declination al'id the houi' circles
have not been drawn on the map, to prevent con-
fusion; but the degrees of declination are marked
on the right and left of the map, and the hours of
Right Ascension fit the 'top and 'bottom. Hence it
is easy to determine, from the maps, the A. R. and
Dec. of any object. , .
The double stars are at once recognized, on the
maps, by being duuble and rtlu:nd, while all other
aws are stellated or 8tar-shaped. The nebnlm
and clusters-are readily distingUished 88 small faint
objects, on tho maps. .
We commence with the con8tellation!! upon -and
to the east of the prime meridian, &nd' shall trace
84 GEOGRAPHY OF TIlE BEA YENS.
them, in the orderln which they appear to reach the
meridian, going ronnd the celestial sphere.
Ali! Greek letters 80 frequently occur in catalogues
and tnape of the. stars, and on the celestial globes,
the Greek alphabet is here introduced for the
of those who are unacquainted with it. The capi-
tals are seldom used for designating the stars, but
are here giv.en for the sake of regularity.
THB Q:aBBB: ALPHABBT.
A 0
Alpha a
B,
-
. Beta
b
r
1
Gamma
! A a Delta
E

Epsilon e short
II
C
Zeta z
B
''I
Eta e IODg
e

Theta th
I Iota i
K

Kappa k
A
a. Lambda I
M p
Mu m
N II Nu. n

e
Xi x
0
.. Omicron oshon
D

Pi
P
p
p Rho r

,
Sigma s
T <I
Tau t
T v
Upsilon u

t
Phi ph
X
%
Chi ch .

+
Psi ps
0 lot Omega
,
o long
To find in what,part of the heavens to look for a
constellation, at any season of the year and hour
of the night, examine the map, and note the meftll
right ascension of the constellation in question.

Then find by the rule (page 14) the meridian pas-
PULIMINARY CBA.PTU.

aage of the mean right aaeenaion of the conatella-
tion on the given day. In case the time at which
you Beek the constellation. is later than the time of
meridian passage, then the center of the constella-
tion has passed the meridian; on the contrary,
should it be earlier, the colUltellation is east of the
meridian, and its angular dietanC8 from the meri ..
dian will be expressed by the differe'RC6 between
the time uf meridia1l.1assage of the center point.of
the constellation an the time . uf aiJmi1Ultitn&.
ExAMPLE.-Where must we look for the constel-
lation Andromeda, at ten O'clock, p. M., on the I flth
of October?
From Map No.1, the right ascension of the
middle point of this constellation is about one hour

... L
A. R. of the middle point, = I 00 00
Tab. Nb.. - - - - - - - - = 10 61 00
Bum = 11 61 00
Time, 10 o'clock, 1Ubt., - - - 10 00 00
1 61 00
1'he center of the constellation is, therefore,
_ Ih. 51m. east of the meridian; and as the mean
declination, shown by the map, ia about. 40 north,
its place may be readily found .in the heavens.
It will be well for the student to fix in the heavens
Bome standard of measure, in degrees and in hours.
Each hour of right ascension contains fifteen de-
grees of arc. The distance from the zenith to the
horizon is .90, or one quarter of the whole circum-
ference. If this distance be divided by the eye into
six equal parts, each of these parts will be U;o. It
should be remembered that hours of A. R. are
always measured on the equator, and the hour
circles' are just 15 apart at the equator, but con-
verge to a point at either pole. Hence the space
GQW" TPB JlUUNS.
iBtel'Cepted 0" the parallela of declination by two
alijacent; hour circlee, grow smaller the farther the
parallel is from the equater, either north or south.
In the notices of the double and binary stars, the
of the oomponent8, and the angle formed
by -a line drawn from the ' center of the larger COi!l-
ponent through the 08nter of the smaner one, with
the meridian. counting from the north to the east
round the circle, are given, with the date or
at which the giV8Il cijstance and position were ob-
served. It is by means of measures of the distan08s
and angles of position, that it becomes possible,
after many years of observation, to the
curves which the binary stan describe, in their
orbituaI motion around their common center o(
gravity.
In the description of the coJDPonenis, the largest
star is called - - - - - 4.
The next in size, .,. - - B;
and if there be components than two, as is the
case with multiple stars, they are named A, B, C,
D, &c., in the order of magnitude.
In many instances ,there is a marked dift'erence
ill the color of the oomponent8 of double, and mul-
tiple stan. Whenever this di1fert'nce is readily
recognized, the COlOl8 are given in tJ,te description
of the components.
CON8TELLA TlON or ANDILOIIEDA. 87
CHAPTER I.
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS O ~
MAP NO.1.
AlmaoIRDA.
PIWlEUS BT CAPUT MEDUS&.
TIlWfGULYM. To TJU.UrGLB.
CASSJOPBIA.
Favorahly Bilvaled for emmination in Nooem/Jer, ]),..
cemher, and Jan1llU'!J.
AND ROM. E D A
If we look directly over head at 10 o'clock, on the
lOth of November, we shall see the constellation
celebrated in fable, by the name of AImllOMEDA. It
is represented on the map by the figure of a woman
having her arms extended, and chained by her
wrisbJ to a rock. It is bounded N. by Cassiopeia,
E. by Perseus and the head of Medusa, and S. by
the Triangle and the Nortbern Fish, It is situated
between 20 and 50 of N. declination. Its mean
right ascension is nearly 15, or one hour E. of the
equinoctial colure.
It consists of 66 visible stars, of 'which two arc
of the 2d magnitude, and two of the 3d; mOljlt of
the rest are small. . I
The stars directly in .the zenith are. too small to
be seen in the presence of the moon, but the bright
star Almaack, marked "I, of the 3d magnitude, in
the left knee, may be seen 13 due E., and Merach;
marked ./3, of the 2d magnitude, in the girdle,7 south
of the zenith. This star is then nearly on the meridi-
aD, and with two others N. W. of it, form the girdle.
D '
. GEOGRAPHY OF THI:
The three stars forming the girdle. are of the 2d,
3d, and 4th magnitude, situated in a row, 3 and 4C?
apart, and are called,3, 1. and to. .
If a straight line, connecting 'Y with iJ be pro-
duced i'outhwestedy, SO farther, it will reach to a, a
star of the 3d magnitude, in the left bre8.l:it. This
star may be otherwise known by its forming a line.
N. aud 8., with two smaller ones on either side of
it; or by its constituting, with tWI) others, a very
small triangle, S. of it.
Nearly in a with 'Y, iJ and a, but curving a
little to the N., 7 farther, is a lone star of the 2d
magnitude, in the head, called Alpheratz, or a.An-
tltf1Tllella. This is the N. E. cornf\r of the great
" Square of Pegasus," to be hereafter described.
It will be well to have the position of Alpheratz
lVell fixed in the mind, because it is but one minute
W. oOhe great. equinoctial colure, or first meridian
of heavens, and forms nearly a right line with
0, in the wing of Pegasus, 14 South of it, and
with fI, in Cassiopeia,300 N. of it. If a line, con-
necting these tru'f\e stars, be produced, it will
terminate in the pole. These three guides, in con-
nection with the North Polar Star, point out to as-
tronomers the pOtlition of that great circle in the
heavens from wnich the right as.cension of all the
heavenly bodies is measured.
Bode has registered 226 stars in Andromeda.
TEL E 8 COP I.e 0 B J E C T 8.
A DOllBLB BT.t.B.-A.R.=Oh.lm.43L Dec.+2500t'2",OD
the crown of Andromeda's head, in a coarae clulder. A 10, B 11 mag ..
bo&h reported pale blue. According to Sir Williem Henchel, till. .tar ..
eurrounded by extensive nebuloaity, exceedingly faint and ditfueecl. No
outline has yet been given by even the moat powerful inatrumenl&
POlIo 120 0'. DiaL .".00. Epoch 1886.81.
n AIIDBOXDB.-A. R. = 0 h. 2 m. 2.. Dec. + .5 to' 9", a fine
double .tar, in the Milky Way, between the left baud of Andromeda and
the head of A Ii, B 8 mapitude..
SlatiOllUY,' POlIo 8lio Ii'. Dia. 4".7. Epech ,1886.
... Alf .. oxu.a.-A.R.=0b.28m.21 .. Dec.==321i0'. A __
;iouble alar, 011 the left breast. of Andromeda. A 4i. B. 9 magnitude.
S&altiOlUU')" POlIo 17SO 9'. DiaL 36".6. Epoch 1832.110.
TaR GBUT NtBl1L4 Jlf AlfDBO'llJ:D4.-A. R. = 0 b. 34 m. Ii ..
Dec. -r + 40 23' 6". Known as fllr back as 905 A. D., and of COUI'llll
di.;covered by the naked eye. Besides being the oldest nebula on record,
it is the only one fairly visible without the aid of the teleacope; yet to _
it requires a keen eye. !!ond a pure atmOllphere. 11 was rediscovered by
MariWl, with the unaided eye, and drst examined by him with the
Io!lescope, 011 the 15th Dec., 1612. Owing to the variety in the power
of the teleecopea IllIed by different obeervers, in the examination of thiI
object, it baa received great diversity of description; IIOIDII call it round,
others ovaL CaBBini thOUght it nearly triangular.
Sir William Herschel considered this the neareat of all the great nehu-
Ie; on what ground I know not, unlea it be its apperent magnitude.
He considers its distance to be about two thouaand timea the distllnce of
and if iSiriU8 be as remote a8 61 Cygni. then would the light of
this object require no 1_ than twenty thousand yeara, at twel!!, milliOil
milee per minute of time, to reach U& Such periods and distllncea are
not more overwhelming than the magnitude of the object undet exam-
illlltion. Great as above distance may appear. in case we are to re-
prd thia mv.ty ligld as an aggregation of milli0D8 of distant auns, we mUl&
sink it ,vaet.ly deeper in epace, to reconcile the hypothelia with the fae&
that the atllrs which compoee it have OlIver been revealed by the moat
powerful instrumenL ' -
There is a small attendant, or companion. dilCOVered by I.e Jentil in
Nov .. 1749. which baa been pertially resolved into IItars by Lord Ro.e'.,
three feet Reflector.
The drawing was made while under inspection with the twelve inch
Refractor of the Cincinnati Obeervstory. '
86 AlfDBoxu.II.-A. R. == 0 b. 46 m. 24 II. Dec. + 22D 46' 7".
A very cloae double atar. in the right elbow of Andromeda. A 6, B 7
magnitude; both of a golden color. The measurea indicate a biliary
ch.aracter.
Poe.
320 47
322 9
330 14
DiaL QI'.90
0.937
1 .000
1 .050
Epoch 1830.78 Be_hel.
1896.90 . Stri:'ve.
1843.12
1847.70 MitcheL
! AIfDROJIIllD -A. R. = 0 h. 47 m. 53': Dec. -I- 37
q
37' 8". A
.. ide double star in the girdle of Andromeda. A 4, 'B 16 IDIlgIli.tude.
Poe. 110
0
28'. Pist. 49".19. Epoch 184267. Challi& '
'fhis objtlct ia diJticult, in consequence of the minute size of the
companion.
55 A .. -A. R. ,= 1 h. 43 m. 42.. Dec. = + 39'" 56' t".
A delicate double star on the left. leg of Andromeda. A Iii, B, 18
40 GEOGUPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
mapitude. Diaovered by BencbeI, ad maJked .. "a IDe apeciJDOD
of a nebulOUIIIIbu'."
POB. 360
0
0'. Dis&. 25".0. Epoch 1832.96.
" Aifn __ n -A. R. == 1 h. 54 m. 06.. Dee. == + 4,1
0
33' 8".
A magnificent triple IIbu' on the left knee of Andromeda. A 3i, B and
C combined make a IIbu' of 6i magnitude. Thill IItar was known to lie
double .. '&r back... 1778. The atar was examined and Dleasured ..
double by all B\Jbaequent obeerverB down to SUe. Ye, who in 1842, with
the great refractor of the Pulkova obIervatory, first divided the BlDafi star
into two, making it 1l triple lilt. The distance between the dOlI<' green
Itars cannot ellceed 0".4, and to .ee it fairly double requires a moat power-
ful instrument I ob&ained many _res of this object, ami sucCeeded
in dividing the IIlarII, clearly, showing a diflerence in the magnitude of the
componentl. The meuures of ang1es of poaition, agree remarkably weD
with esch other, and give the pose 11 0 00'. Dist. 0".4 O. Epoch 1846.6.
It is worthy of remark. that the firBt examination. of this object, IDIIIIe
by myaelf; were with a diminUhed apmure. Theae were imaucceaaful,
and it was only after the fuU aperture was employed that the BlarII were
desrly divided. This division requires a capital atmllsphere, and a
maooth clock motion, for its IIIlCODlplishment. .
POB. A to B,82 9'. Dis&. 10".8. Epoch 1837.80.
A'JI EW'JI8.tTJIn N .. vu.-A. R. == 2 h. III m. 31i.. Dee. == +
'10 36' 1 H. On the right foot, a little above a line drawn from Peraei to
" AndrolllelhB, at about two-third. the diatance from the. first atar. It very
IDueh reeemb\es an annulus E8Il very obliquely. It wu discovered by
Kill Caroline Herachel, in August l783, with a very ordinary reftector,
and power of thirty timeI. The dark IIJIIIC8 along the greater ads, w ..
clearly E8II by Sir William Henchel, and he reganIed the object .. an
immen8e ring of myriads of IIlarII, 80 remote that their individUl!lliy _
.. WIlIer his greateIt apace-penetrati power. .
ET CAPUT
PBsM is represented with a sword in his right ;
hand, the head of Medusa in his left. It is 8itua-'
ted directly N. of the Pleiade8 and the Fly. between
Andromeda on the W. and Auriga on the E. Its
mean declination i8 49 N. It i8 on the meridian
the 24th of December. It contains, including the
head of Medu8a, 59 8tars, one of which is of the 2d
magnitude, and four of the 3d. According to Eu-'
dosia, it contains, including the head of Medu8a, 67
stars.
CONSTULA TION or PERSEU8.41
-----"" p-D8Xt,
Brandiahes high in heaven his IWOrd of flame,
And holds triumphant the dire Golgon'. head,
Flasbing with fiery makes I the atara he eounta
Are " and two of theIIe he
N obi, refulgent in the aeOOnd rank- .
One. m his vest, one in Meduaa'. head. .. .
Tn HB-\D OF MJi:DUSA is nota separate constella-
tion, but forms a part of Perseus.
It ilt represented as the tnlDkle.8s head of a fright-
ful crowned with coiling snakes, instead of
hair, which the victor Perseus holds in his hand.
are, in all, about a dozen stars in the Head
of, Meduta; two of the 4th and one,
varying alternately from the 2d to the 4th magnitude.
This remarkable star is called Algol, and marked jJ.
It is situated 12 E. of 'Y, in the knee of
and may be known by means of three stars of the .th
magnitude, lying a few degrees S. W. of it, and
forming a small triangle.
It is on the meridian' the 21st of December; but
88 it continues above the horizon 18 bours out oC
24, it may be seen .every evening from. September
to May. It varies from the 2d to the 4th magni-
tude in about 3, hours, and back again in the same
time; after which it remains &'teadily brilliant for
2! days, when same' changes recur.
The periodical of Algol was determin-
ed in 1783, by John Goodricke of York (Eng.) to be
2 days, 20 hours, 48 minutes, and 56 seconds.
Dr. Herschel attributes the variable appearance
of Algol to spots upon its surfact', and thinks it hail
a motion OB its axis similar to that of the m1l. He
also observes, of variable stars generally :-" The
rotary motion of stars upon their axes is a capital
feature in their resemblance to the sun. It appears
to me now, that we cannot refuse to admit such a
motion, and that indeed it may be as evidently prov-
ed as motion of the earth. Dark IIIpots,
D2 .
D GEOGRAPHY OF TIlE BEAVENS.
large portions of the surface less luminous than
the rest, turned alternately in certain directions
either towards, or from 08, will account for all the
phenomena of periodical changes in the luster of
the stars, 80 satisfactorily, that we certainly need
not look out for any other cause."
It is said that the famous astronomer Lalande,
who died at Paris in 1807, was wont to remain
whole nights, in his old age, upon the Pont Neuf, to
exhibit to the CUriOO8 the variations in the brilfiaa-
cy of the star Algol. ' '
Nine degrees E. by N. from Algol, is the bright star
marked A, of the 2d magnitude, in the side of
Perseus, which with., Andromeda, makes a perfect
right angle at Algol, with the open part towards Cas-
iopeia. By means of this strikingly perfect
the three stars, last mentioned may always be re-
cognized without the possibility bf mill taking them.
Algenib may otherwise be readily distinguished by
its being the brightest and middle one of a number
of stars l)ing four and five degrees apart, in a large
semicircular form, \Curving towards Ursa Major. .
Algenib comes to the meridian on the 21st De-
cember, 15 minutes after Algol, at time the
latter is almost directly over head. When these
'two titars are on the meridian, that beautiful cluster,
the Pleiades, is about half an hour E. of it; and in
short, the most brilliant portion of the starry hf'a\'-
ens is, then visible in the eastern hemisphere., The
glories of the sC)tlne are unspeakably magnificent;
and the student who fixes hie eye upon those lofty
mnnsions of being, cannot fail to covet a knowledge
of their and relations, nnd to " reverence Him
who Malle the Seven Stars and Orion."
The Milky-Way around Perseus is very vivid,
bei ng undoubtedly a rich stratum of fixed stars. pre-
senting the most wonderful and sublime phenom-
enon of the Oreator's power and greatness. Koh-
CONIITELLATION 01' PERIlEUS.
"8
Jer, the . astronomer, observed a beautiful nebula
Dear the face of Perseus; besides eight other nebu-
louscJusters in different parts of the constellation.
Bode has registered 196 st8l'8 in this constellatioD.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
78 M. Paaul.-A. R. = 1 h. 32 m. 18 L .Dec = + 50" 46' 5
H
, an
Oftl white nebula, cloII8 to the toe of Andromeda, thougb in the limit. 01
p--. Diacovered by Meehain. Me.ier pIOIlOIlDIled it a com..-J
duater; while Hencbel thought it a double me.oIvable nebula. With
the Northumberland E9uatorial, Cambridge. E.ug. nhu a 'PfMIl/eil ..
pttzrtmt:e. .PnJ( CbaIJia .y." the r.olution ia very doub&fuL"-
A M .... R'II'IC.!fT Cuana.-A. R. . = b. 07 m. 68 L :0-
+ 68
0
24' 4". In the 8WOld bandle of P_ Tbia ia certainly one
cl the m08l. brilliant and beautiful objecta in the heaftna; under __
able circumstances, the field of view g10W8 and Iparldee 'With innUlJlllllo
able diamonds, em a ground dark. and rich .. the bIaekeIl velvet.-In the
center, five ItarII are IUT8IIged in the fOrm of a bow IIlrongly bent, while a
bright 8th mag. etar ia lituat.ed precileIy at the point where the thumb
and would hold the arrow. Thill cluster ill COIlIidered by Sir W.
HeracbeI, and with .. a protuberant portion of the Milky-Way,
Of vall stratum Of etIirI of which our own lun ill an indi"idual-With
the fuU aperture of the inch R.efractor, all bazDte. dilapJI8Brs, aild the
beavena beyond are dark and pure. ehowing that the vilion 11M
entirely beyond the limit. of apace Occupied by these atan, and
that the interval between them and the neareet group beyond ill 10 great
.. to bide them abaolutely from the view. No drawing can give an.,
idea of the aplendOl' of dliI object. The one which IICCOmlJaniee diia
de.:ription Wall taken with care, and givee a correct idea of poaition and
relative magnitude, but not of the aparkling beauty of the stara.
A. ELOlfOATIID NKllvu.-A. R. = I h. 30 m. 26 L Dec.
= + 38 21' Near the head of Med ... Discovered by Herachel,
J 788. Thill is probably one of thole ItupendoUl rings of ItarII f(liming
..,.me univeme, lib oar own, and _ under great obliquity.
/I. Pall.III.-A. R. = 2 h. 33 m. 8. Dec = 48" 32' 9", A Tri-
ple etar oil the Ieft moulder of P_ . A' 4, yellow; B J 3, violet;
C. II, py.-No change in poaition aeema to have occUJ'ftld aince fin&
djacovereci by Herachelin 1782. DiaL A to B = 1(/'
A.toC=!l7"
P .. IIIJ,-A. R. = 2 h. 39 m. 6&1.\ Dee. = 56 13' 5". A double
or rtther multiple &tar (IB the head of. PeraeUl. A 6, orange; B 8.\,
blue. There are !DID..Y aIaIII in the tield. The principal one baa thrM
amall etIirI on one aide, and one on the other, all nearly in the _
aUaight 1ine, and fOrming miniature of Jupiter and hilllalellliw.
44 GEOGllPHY OJ' THE:REA VENS.
No chaD&e in positian, ,yet .
PunI, AlgoL-'-A. R. = h. 67 m. 46 I. Dee. = + 40 20'
A C081'fIIi donble star in the head of Med\l8ll; on the shield of Pen.eus.-
A 2 to 4 mill!"' B. 11. is themllllt wOIIc1erfulllDloDg the Yal'iable
BtarB. 1'he rapidity and . regularity of its changes; the great amount of
change in brilliancy, and ita double ehamcter, IJl8.rk it as a most extra-
ordinary objeeL-It diminishtis from the 211 to the 4th magnitude in about
hours, retains its diminished splendor about 18 minutes, and in 3i ho.urs
resumes by degrees its former splendor ...:.Ita period is 2d. 20 11. 48 m. 66&.
PJ:BIBI.-A. R. = 3 h. 47 m. 08 I. Dee. = -t- 390 32' 4", a line'
double star near the left leg of Perseua. A Si, B 9. Discovered by
Herschel.
POI. = 8 82' DiIt..== 8'.00 Ep. 1780.69 HerseheL
A COJl[PBUnD G.ovp.-A. R. = 3 h. 68 m. lis. Dec. = + 49
ew in the left knee of Perseua.-First by Herschel 1790.
TRIANGULUM
. The Triangle is supposed to have derived its name
from'the Egyptian Delta. li.'ormerly there was but
one Triangle; a second was added by Hevelius, and
is retained on the map.
, The Triangles are situated between the head of
Aries, on the south, and the knee of Andromeda, on
the north. They contain one star of the third, and
one of the fourth magnitude. The other' stars are
small.
Ptolemy reckoned, in this constellation, foui' lltars ;
Hevelius, nine; Piazzi, twenty-fh'e; and Bode has
registered thirty-three stars. Most of them are tele-
scopic ..
TELESCOPIC OBJE CTS .
A L4aaJ: )'AIlIT N .. 17U-A. R. = 111. 24 m. 611. Dec. + 29
61' 03"; between the head of the Northern Fish and the TrlaDgle.
Discovered by MtlIIier, 1764; IIlIIOIved by Herschel, 1783, into minute
stus. He locates this object in the 334th order of distances, or reganIs-
it aa 334 au- more remote than BtarB of the tim magnitude.
CONSTELLATION 01' CASSIOPEIA, "
Tau.lf8I1LI.-A. ft.=1 h. 63 III. 88.. Dee= + H" 30' INY', A
eboe double II&ar on the triangle. A IIj, B III, mag. Diacmend '"

Pc.. lU'o f1 Dial. == (/' Epoch 1881i.711 Smyth.
I Tau.lfIJI1LI.--A. R. = 2 h. 8 III. 08.. Dec. = + 29SS', A
ebe double 1I&ar, un .. the bue CJfthe triangle. A topaz yellow,"
B 7, .. green." DiKoYend '" H8IICbeL a..-t _u_ indicate
hity in the compOnents. '
POll. 77" Iif1 Di8t. 80".1198 Epoch 1830.97 Struve. .
A CWII: Douau &r ..... R. ==2 h. J9 III. th. Dee. =+""
12' 05". Between the Fly and Triangle. A 61, B 10. Dia:overed
'" 8&r'."ftI. '
POll. MOO 4f1 DiA. 1",808 Epoch 1882.86 &,uve.
CASSIOPEIA.
This consteJlation is situated 26 N. of Androm
eda, and midway between it and the North Polar
Star. It may be seen; from our latitude, at all
hours of the night, and may be traced out at almost
anl season of the year. Its mean declination is
60 N. and its right ascension 12. It is on our
meridian the 22d November, but does not
change its position for several days; , for it should
be remembered that the apparent motion of the stars
becomes slower and slower as they approximate
the poles. .
Cassiopeia is a beautiful conl!tellation, contain
ing 55 stars that are visible to the naked eye; of
which one is of the 2d and four are of the 3d mag
nitude, and so sit\1ated as to form, with one or two
smaller ones, the figure of an inverted chair.
---,,---" Wide her atan.
Dispened, nor imine with m1UUal aid impnrted i ,
Nor duzIe. brilliant with eomipouII8ame :
Their number fifty-Ave."
46 GEOGRAPHY: OF THE HEAVENS.
Caph, J3 Cft8siopeill, in the garland of the chair, is
almost exactly in the equinoctial colure, 30 N. of
Alpheratz, II Andromeda, with which, and the Polar
Star, it forms a straigh.t line. Caph is therefore
on the meridian the lOth of November, and one
hQur past it on the 24th. It is the westernmost
star of the bright cluster. Schedir, 0/ CasE!iopeia, in
the breast, is the uppermost st!lr of the five bright
ones, and is 5 S. E. of J3 : the other three bright ones,
forming the chair, Bre easily distinguished, as they
meet the eye at the fint glance.
There is an importance attached to the position
of J3 that concerns the manner and the surveyor. It
is used, in connection with obilervations on the
Polar Star, for determining the latitude of places,
and for discovering the magnetic variations of the
needle.
It is generally supposed that the North Polar Star,
so called, is the real immovable pole of the heav-
ens; but this is a mistake. It is 80 near the true
that it has obtained the appellation of the North
Polar Star " but it is, in reality, more than a degretl
and a half distant from it, and revolves about the.
true pole every 24' hoUl'B, in 'a circle whose radius
is 1' 31'. It will in 24 hours, be
twice on the meridian" once ohove, and once heZOID
the pole: and twice at its greatest elongation E.
and W .
. The polar Star not being exactly in the N. pole
of the heavens, but 01Ie degree and 31 minutes on that
side of it which is towards Caph, the. position of the
latter becomes important, as it .shows on. '
which side of the true ,pole the polar star is .
. There is another important fact in relation to the
position of this star. It is equidistant from the pole,
Hnd exactly qpposite another remarkable star in the
.<;quare of the Great Bear, on the other side of the
pole. It also serves to mark a spot in the litarry
C'ON8TELLATION OF C,uSIOPBIA. 47
heavens, memorable 88 being the place
of a lost star. Two hundred and sixty-six years
ago, a bright star shone 5<> N. N. E. of Caph, where
now is a dark void I
On the 8th of November, 1572, Brahe and
Cornelius Gemma.saw a star in the constellation
of Cassiopeia, which became all at once, so brilliant,
that it surpassed the splendo.r of thp. brightest pla-
nets, and; might be seen even at noonday I Gradu-
ally, this grea.t brilliancy diminished, until the 15th
of March, 1573, when,' without moving from its
place, it became utterly extinct. .
Its color, during this time, exhibited all the phe-
. nomena of a prodigious flame-first it was of a
dazzling white, then of a reddish yellow, and
lastly of an ashy paleness, in which its light ex-
pired. It is impossible, says Mrs. Somerville, tQ
imagine any thing more tremendous than a confla-
gration that could be visible at such a distance. It
was seen for eixteen months.
Some a&tronomers imagined that it reap-
pear again after 150 years; but it has never heen
discovered since. This alarmed all
the astronomers of the age, who beheld it; and
many of them wrote dissertations concerning it.
Rev. Professor Vince, one of the m08t learned and
pious astronomers of the age, has this remark :-
"The disappearance of some stars may. be the
destruction of that system at the time appointed
by the DEITY for the probation of its inhabitants ;
and the appearance of new starsmay bp. the forma-
tion of new systems, for. new races of beings then
called into existence, to adore the works of their
Creator."
Thus, we may conceive the Deity to have been
employed from all eternity, and thull he may con-
tinue to be employed for endless ages; forming'
new systems of beings to adore him; and trans-
t8 GEOGRAPHY or THK HEAVENS.
planting beings already formed into happier regions,
who will continue to. rise higher and higher in their
elijoymeilts, and go on to oontemplate' system after
system through the boundless
LA. Puc. says :-" Asto those stars which sud-
denly shine forth with a very vivid light, and then
immediately disappear, U ie extremely probable that
great conflagrations, produoed by .extraordinary .
oauses, take plaee on their surface. This couject-
ure, is confirmed by their change of oolor, .which
is analogous to that presented to us on the earth
by those bodies which are set on fire and then gra-
dually extinguished."
The late eminent Dr. Good. also observes that-
" Worlds and systems of worlds are not only perpet-
ually creating, but also perpetually disappearing.
,It is an extraordinary fact, that within the period
of the last century, not less than stars, in
different constellations, seem to have totalJy perish-
ed,. and' ten new ones to have created.. In,
many instances it is unquestionable, that st81'8
themselves, the supposed habitation of other kinde
or orders of intelligent beings, together with the dif-
ferent planets by which it is probable they were
surrounded, have utterly vanished, and the spots
which . . Occupied in the heavens, have become
blanks I What has befallen other systems, Will
assuredly befall our own. Of the time and the
manner we know nothing, but the fact is incontro-
vertible; it is foretold by revelation; it is inscribed
in the heavens;. i.t i, felt thrOugh the earth, Such
is the awful and daily text; what then ought. to be
'the comment?"
The great and good Beza, falling in with the
luperstition of hid age, attempted to prove that this
was a comet, or the same luminous appearance.
which conducted the magi, or wise men of the East,

CONSTE1.LATION OF CASSIOPEIA. 49
,
into Palestine, at the birth of our and that
it now appeared to his second coming I
About 6 N. W. of Caph, the telescope reveals
10 us a grand' nebula of small stars, apparently
compressed into one mass, or single blaze of light,
with a great number of 100s6 stars surrounding it.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
A LU8J1 .Un! LoqaJl CLveTu.-A. R. == 0 b. 18 m. 10.. Dec.
= + 70" 30' 3". RegiIItered by Sir Jno. Hencbel, and by bim regarded
.. good teet for the light and defining power of a teleecope. It ie lit-
WIled between the tOot.tocllllld the knee of CepheWl, . .
A CLOBJI DouaLa BT ..... -A. R. = 0 b. 38 m.68 e. Dee = 60
0
:w 2." Between Andromeda'1 knee and the heed of CBSBiopeiL A 7i
B I mag. .
p_ 147
0
2 Diet. 2".3 Epoch 1832.87 Smyth.
146 25' 2 IH47.60 Mitchel.
The reJatiOllBbip ie merely optical
C.u.lOPIIU.-A. R.=O b. 39 m. 27.. Dee. + 56 57' 9". A
binary ater in the CeetwI of CBSBiopei... A 4 peIe white,.B 7i purple,
IMcovered by Henchel,' . .
. 1779, when ita position was 620 04 Diet. 1\".27
1843.19 the meaIUI1lII.pve 95 08 9.1 Smyth.
1847.60 101 20 8 59 MitcheL
M:idler tbinb the periodic time of this eyatem will be about 52 yean.
p. C.I.8IJOPJlu...-A. R.=O b. 57 m. 23.. Dee. MOO' 8". A COIIlIIII
triple ater on the right elbow, of an extraordinary proper m0-
tion, amounting to 5".8 in A. R. and 1".55 in Dec. per annum. In Cue
we locate this ater at the distance fiom our system due to its magnitude,
its hourly motion cannot be less than 125,000 milea I a quantity IBr ex-
ceeding the velocity of the moving
A Loon CLUIT ... -A. R. = 0 h. 69 m. 19.. Decl. ' \f- 6()o
44' 0". below the right hip of CBSBiopeia, on the robe, one quarter way on
the line joining ,. and .. It was discovered by Miss Caroline Herschel,
in 1783, and ie deecqbed by Sir William as a cluater of pretty COJIlIlla'
Ed 1IIarIJ." .
A SllolLL DoURLJlBT.lll.-A. R. = 1 b. 9m. 10 .. Dec. =+ /i'/'O
1\6' 9", Between the right knee. and elbow of CBSBiopeia, A 9. B 10
magnitude.-'J'his oi!ject ill situated in the center of a brilliant_m-
blage of small &tara discovered by Henehel 1787
.,. C.I.88JOPJI'A.-A. R. = 1 b. 14 m. 42.. Dec. -: + 6'/'0 17' fI'.
E
60 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
A line triple star cbe to the 1_ put of CIIIIiopaia'. throne. A 4,
orange. B 9 blue. C 11 reddiIIb.
DiscoveTed by !Strilve.
Poe. A. B. 102
0
01' Dis&. 81".9 Epoch 1836.28 Smyth.
B. C. 262 36 2 .0 1836.:l8 Smyth.
A. B. 102 37 30 .394 70 . MitcheL
B. C. 253 07 32 856 1837.70 . Mitchel.
This oIiject may be found between the noith star and I CllSIIiopeia, at
a little _ than' one-third of the distance which separates them nom the
laUer 1Itar. '
A .. 0 ... CL17I1TJ:R.-A. R. = 1 h. 18 m. 61.. Dec. = + 61
0
27' 8". On the lady'. leg, half way wm I to 1" Deecribed as .. a
pthering of amall and large etan, with of star d\lllt of collllidar-
able extenL"
A CL17IT .. ..-A. R. == 1 h. 33 m. 06.. Dec. = + 61
0
04' 9".
JUIIt below the. right knee of Cuaiopeia. mid-way. between I and., Dis-
eovered by Herachel. 1787. It is IIOID8 2' or 3' in diameter, and baa an
8! magnitude star in the center.
66 CU810PllB.-A. R. = 2 h. 2 m. 0 L Dec. + 65
0
46' 2". A
star with two distant companion.-Iocated very near the position in the
heavens in which the celebrated r&tW ,tar of 1672 made ita BUdden and
, brilliant appearance. The first.Bight of this moat extraordinary stranger,
seems to have been caught by Schiler, of Wittemburgh. as early as the
6th of August, 1672. On the 11th ofNOVIlIIIber, following, the celebrated
Tyeho BraM, on returning to his house wm his laboratory, was surprised
to _ 80me peasants gazing up in the heavens. He lOOn discovered the
oI!ject of their curiosity to be a IwiJIiIInt Btar, which he bad never before
.en. His finely stocked observakllY, gave him an opportunity of obIler-
Wig the stranger with great aoouracy. He 'lOOn determined that it was
located beyond the region of the planets, and even among the fixed stant,
as it had no sensible parallax, and never changed its position during the
time it remained visible. The brilliancy of this object increased from the
time of ita diacoYel)', until it that of Sirius, the brightest of all the
fixed stan, and even came III be acarcely 1_ than that of VenUll, the moat
brilliant planet. Having attained its maximum brilliancy, it began to
decline by degrees, losing its splendor, until finally, in March 1574,
teen montha after its discovery, it disappeared for ever from the sight.
This being the first change in the region of the fixed atara, since the
revival of letters in Europe, created a great sensation, and produced 8
great variety of pub1iabed accounts. Strange as it may appear, at this
day, Tyebo was ashamed to pub1iab his to the world, con-
Bidering it .. a diegrace, for a nobleman, either to study 80eb subjects, or
to publish them to t8e world!'
These new and tempora.". stan, are among the inscrutable worb
of God. No intellect, however great, no study. however profound, baa
yet hemP able to tathom theirmyaterious coming and going. Some ha?e
the idea that they are moving in exC88lli.vely elongated orbit"t

CONSTELLATION OF CASSIOPEIA. 61
whose principal axee are tumed directly towards our own system, and
Chat it ia only in their JleIII'I!IIt approach to the earth that they become
ftIible. In COJl8elIuene8 of the appearance of Dew Itar8, in the
_ region, in 946 and 1264, BirJohn Herachel baa IIIggeIIted that thi8
may be a periodical star, with a retum after intervals of about thn!e
hundred YeaJII. .
It C8II8 we estimate the ?elocity of thia IItar in ita orbit, by the dimi-
pution of ita light, we IIhall find it moving at 110 ltupendous a rate as to
lI&un the irnagination-and we are a1moet driven from a theory requiring
lII1eh motion. If we yield to the suggeetion of Besee\, that there exist
</arlc.bodia in IIJIIUl8, capable of modifying the movements of the fixed
Btam, we might IIoCOOUnt for th41 sudden appearance of new Itar8, by their
emergence from behind one of these non-luminous bodies. Their disap-
pearance, however, still remains an enigma, and we can only yield and
acknowledge that .. the heavens declare the glory of God "-wheth81 man
can follow or fail.
A BUUTlFlTI. TBTPLJ: &r.n.-A. R. = 2 h. 15 m.1i8 8. Dec. + .
66 40' 7". Under CII8IIiopeia'. right foot, mid-way between /II. Pemei
and ,. Cephi. A ti pale yellow B 7 lilac. C 9 blue.
Poe. A. B. 274
0
2 Diet.' 2".1 183483
A. C. 107 1 Diet. 7.6 1834.83
No change in poaition or distanee baa been remarked Bince the
di8covery by Heracbel, in 1779.
A MULTlPLJ: BuB.-A. R. = 23 h. !l2 m. 40.. Dee. + 670 40'.
One of the stanI WIll diacovered to be clOIIIto double, by the Hm. W. R.
Dawes, J 840. ".
Pos. 222
0
DiaL 1".6
6 R. = 23 b. 50 m. 56 8. Dec. = + 6to 61', 8".
A fine double star on the left elbow. A 6. B 8. magnitude. 'The large
IItar is white, the emall'one blue, with colora said to be clear and distinct.
---
DIRECTJONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. II.
PISCES. THE FISHES.
Favorably sitUated for examination in October, No-
tJemher and December. .
THE FISHES.
THIS constellation is now the first in order, of the
52 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
12 constellations of. the Zodiac, and is ul'ually rep-
resented by two fishes tied a considerable distance
apart, at the extremities of a long undulating cord,
or ribbon. It a large triangular space in
the heavens, and its outline at first is somewhat
difficult to trace.
In consequence of the annual precession of the
I!Itars, the constelloJ.i07l. Pisces has now come to OCPJlPY
the sign Aries; each constellation having advanceu
one whole sign in the order of the Zodiac. The
sun enters the sign Pisces, while the earth enters
that of Virgo, about the 19th of FebruarY, but he
does not reach the constelloJ.iun. Pillces before the 6th
of March. The Fishes, therefore, are now called
the "Leaders of the Celestial Hosts."
. That loose assemblage of small stars directly
south of Merach, A, in the constellation of Androm-
eda, constitutes the Northern Fish, whose mean
length is about 16, and breadth, 7. Its mean
right ascension is 1 h, and its declination 25 N.
Consequently, it is on the meridian the 24th of
vember; and, from its breadth, is more than a week
in passing over it. The Northern Fish and its
ribbon, beginning at II, Andromedre,may, by a train
of small stars, be traced, in a S. S. easterly.direction,
tor a distance of 33, until we come to the star El
Rischa, II Piscium, of the 2d magnitude, which is
situated in the node, or .flexure of the ribbon. This
is the principal star in the constellation, and is
situated 2 N. of the equinoctial, and 53 minutes
east of the prime meridian.
From II Piscium the ribbon or cord makes a Hud-
den flexure, doubling back across the ecliptic, where
.we meet with three stars of the 4th-magnitude
situated in a row 3 and 4 apart, marked on the
map " I, a. From a the ribbon runl' north and
westerly along the Zodiac, and terminates at the tail
of the Western Fish. The head of the fish may be
OONSTELUTION 0., PISCES.
recogniJled by the star IJ, 4th magnitude, 111'\ louth
of .. Pegasi. . .
This part of the ribbon, including the Western
Fish at the end of it, has a mean declination of 5
N., and may be seen throughout the month of No-
vember, passing the meridian slowly to the W.,
near where the sun pasS611 it on the lBt of April.
Twelve degrees W. of this Fish, there are four small
stars situated in the form of the letter Y. The two
Fishes, and the cord between them, make two sides
of a large triangle, 30 and 40 in length, the open
part of which is towards the N. W. When the
Northern Fish is on'the meridian, the Western is
nearly two hours past, it. This constellation il
bounded N. by Andromeda, W. by Andromeda and
Pegasus, S. by the Cascade, and E. by the Whale,
the Ram and the Triangles. .
When, to enable the pupil to find any star, its
direction from another is given, the latter is always
understood to be on the meridian. '
After a little experience with the maps, even
though unaccompanied by directions, the ingenious
youth will be able of himIJelf, to devise a great
many expedients and facilities for tracing the con-
stellations, or selecting out particular stars.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
179 P. xxru PiBcium.
A DST.IC4TJ1 DOUBU BTAR_A. R. == 23 h. 37 m, 49.. Dec. ==
- 0"'37' .".' Under the p..-Jing Fiah, mid-way between FOIIIIIhaux
aDd ~ CBllliopeia. A 8i. B 15 magnitude. ,
Diaeovered by M. Str;:'ve. .
Po& 2280 23' .Di&. r.417 Epoch 18:12.50 StriiYe.
230 00 3 .000 , 1833.79 Smyth.
227 33 '2 .702 1847.66 Mitchel.
Theee, m ~ 1 8 I idIiml no evidence of change. Thoee of Smyth ..
mere eatimltiODll. '
34 PI8CIU.":-A. R. = 0 h. 1 m. 63.. Dec. = + 100 14' 8". 'A
fine double star, Dell the wiDr of p..... A 8. B lSi mapitnde.
DiBcovered by Striive.
52
54 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
POll. 160" 08' . DilL 8".87 Epoch 1828.73 &ril_.
38 PIICUI -A. R. = 0 b. 9 m. 9 . Dec. = + '[069' Ir. A
double liar on the &ip of the tail of the Fiah. A 7!. B 8
magnitude. . '
Discovered by Herachel, 1782.
POll. 244,0 67' DiaL = 4".00 Epoch 1782.68
235 64 . 4 .80 18:i7.89 19rnyth.
235 li9 4,646. 1847.65 . MilcheL
These last _ to decide the fixity of these sIarI. . .
49 Prsc1I1 . -A. R. = 0 b. 22 m. 29 110 Dec. = + 160 09' 2". A'
difficult sIar, between the wing of P.- and the right hand of
Andromeda. A 7. B 13 magnitude. . . .'
Discovered by Struve, and thus messured by hilldn November 1828
. Poa.: 1070 42' DilL 13".26
65 PJICJu R. = 0 b. 81 m. 31.. Dec. = + 20
0
33' 6".
Be'tWeen the head and right band of. Aildromeda. A 6, orange. B 9,
dee"p blue.
Diacovered by Strii yeo
POll. 192
0
4f1' Diat. 6".37 Epoch 1830.22 StrUve.
191 52 7.014 1847.65 Mitchel.
'!'here is no. evidence of binary character, and uw.is doubtless all
optical duplicity merely. - .
65 Pllcun._A. R. = 0 h. 4l m. 18 I. Dec. = + 26" 50' 3". A
dose double sIar on the right arm of Andromeda. A 6. B 7 magnitude.
Discovered by Sir W. Herschel, who made the followipg measurea.
POlIo 3000.57' .Diat. 4".00 Epoch 1783 . 15
298 30 4 .60 1838.17 Smyth.
297 32 1847.65 Mitchel.
Henchel thought there might be physical eonnection between the com
ponents in set. If 10 the period will be very greet. .
., pJlcun ..--A. R. = I b. 5 m. 4 110 Dec. = + 23 44' 1". OIl
lbe ventral fin of the Northern Fish. A 6, B 13 mag.
DUicovered by Str'lve, and thus measured
POlIo 2:17 '52'. Diet. 7".98. Epoch 1832.06.
{ PrscI1JJI.-A. R. = 1 b. .5 m. 21 110 Dec.::;: + 6
0
43' 7". A
__ double sIar on the bend of the band joining the two Fishes. M::d-
1er ranks this &n1ODg the IItanI in which there is a probable retrograde
.
POll. 670 23' DiaL 22".187 Epoch 1781.88 Herschel.
63 31' 23".226 1841.57 M;odler.
A. R. = 1 h: 27 m. 41.. Dec. = + 6
0
49' 6". A close double sIar
in the space between the two Fishes aDd the curve of tke A 6!
ylillowish, B 8 psIe white.
Diacovered by Herschel, 1792-
POI. 20
0
00' DiaL 1".467 Epoch 1830.13 Strr._
CONSTELLATION OF PISCES.
A. R. = 1 h. Um. 88L Dec. = 1 03' r. A c10Ie double ..
at the end of the Ribbon. A 7, B 71. .
Diaccmnd by 8\ru ve, and thUl IIIIIIIIIUIed by him.
POll. MO .1' DilL 1".282 Epoch 1831.'11.
" PI8cnn -A. R = I h. 63 m. ~ 6 L Dec. = 1
0
59' 3". A clOlll
doable IItar at the IIOUtheru extremity of the Ribbon; A 6, pale green.
B 6, blue.
Poa. 3370 23' Dial Epoch 17S1.79 HeracheI.
3320 611' 3".775 1830.93 BeMeI.
331
0
W 3".733 1831.60 Miiodler
330 03' 1847.66 Mitchel. .
Mii.dIer, after a full m.cu..ion of all the ohlemationa, tbiub a retr0-
grade mo&ion ill probable. and a period of revolution amoUDting to about
6000 years. 'IiIMe lIIowly-revolving objecta require clOlll !,xamination ;
my own _ go to confirm, in _ degree, Madler'. opinion.
A' F.l.IlIT NJ:BVLIo.-A. R. = 23 h. 06 m. 36 L Dec. = + SO
39' or'. In the eye of the preceding or western Fish. Ita length is 4 ,
and ite breadth 1', according to ite diaco_. It is p..-Ied by a filinter
nebula. Th_ ol!jecta are very difficult in any but the.JllOll powerful
instrumente.
Diaeovered by HencbeI, 1786.
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. '111.
AllIES. THE RAM.
FatJ07'fihly situated for emmi7UZtion in Nooember, De-
cember, and Jan'ULl.T'!J.
THE R ~ M .
TWENTY-TWO centuries ago, as. Hipparchu8 in-
forms us, this constellation occupied thefirst sign in
the ecliptic,. commencing at the vernal equinox;. '
But as the constellations gain about 50" on the
equinox, at every revolution of the heavens, they
have advanced in the ecliptic nearly 31 beyond it,
or more than a whole sign: so that the Fishes now
6. GEOGRAPHY OF HEAVENS.
occupy the same place in the Zodiac, that Aries did,
in the time of Hipparchus; whence the ctm8teUotiun,
Aries is now in the sign Taurus, Taurus in Gemini,
tt.nd Gemini in Cancer, and so on. .
Aries is therefore now the second constellation
in the Zodiac. It is situated next east. of Pisces,
and is midway between the Triangles and the. Fly
on the N. and the head of Cetus on the S. It con-
tains 66 stars, of which, one is of the 2d, one of
3d, and several of the 4th magnitudes.
"First, from the east, the Ram conducts the yev:;
Whom with twia nine stara adol1lB,
Or which tWo only claim the Second rank ;
The rest,. when Cynthia lills the sign, are
It is readily distinguished by means of two bright
stars in the head, about 4 apart, the brightest being
the most north-easterly of the two. The first, which
is of the 2d magnitude, situated in the right horn, is
called .i Arietis, or simply Arietia; the other, which
is of the 3d magnitude, lying near the left horli, is
called Sheratan, j:J Arietis,' and may be known by
another star of the 4th magnitude, in the ear, ItO
S. of it, called Mesartkim, 'Y Arietili!, which is thefirst
star in this constp.llation. .
Arietis and Sheratan, are one instance out of
many, where st.ars of more than ordinary brightness
are seen together in pairs, as in the Twins,
Little Dog, &e., the brightest star being commonly
on the east.
The position of' Arietis affords important facilitie!!l
to nautical science. Difficult to comprehend as it
may be, to the unlearned, the skillful navigator who
should be lost upon an unknown sea, or in the
midst of the Pacific ocean, could, by measuring the
distance between Arietis and the Moon, which often
passes near it, determine at once not only the
he was in, but his true eourseand distance to any
known meridian or harbor on the earth.
CONSTELLATION OF ,ARIEl!.
&7
Lying along the moon's path, therl'l ftre nine con-
spicuous stars that are used by nautical men for
determining their longitude at sea, thence called
'tUZfdicoJ stars. .
These stars are Arietis, Aldebaran, Pollux, Regu-
lv, Spica Vir:ginis, Antares, Altair, Fomollw.ut, and
MarkolJ.
The true p1at'f18 at tOO. slant, fur every day in. the year, are gi"en io
the Nautical Almanac, a valuable work published anoually by the I ng-
lilIh "Board of Admiralty.". to guide marinen in navigating the Sl.'a&
They are usually publiahed two or three yean in advance, for the bene1ii
of long voyages. .
That a man, .y. Sir John Herschel, by merely meuuring the mooo',
appareot Ililqnee from a I&ar, with a little portable inatrwneot held in his
hand, and applied to his eye, even with 80 unlllable a footing as the deck
of a ship, sha1l .y positively within five miles. where he is, 011 a boUIl .....
leas ocean, cannot but appear to persons ignorant of phyaical astronomy,
an approach to the mimculous. And yet, .y. he, the alternatives of
lilB and death, wealth and ruin, are daily and hourly stalr.ed, with perfect
CQQfidence, on tOO. marvelous computations.
Capt. Basil Hall, of the royal navy, relates that he had lIIiIed from San
BIas, 00 the west COIIIIt of Mexico, and after a voyage of 8000 miles, ooc:u-
pying eighty-nine days, arrived oft" Rio Janeiro, having in this
through the Pacific ocean, rounded Cape Hom, and the
South Atlantic without making any land or seeing a Iingle.1IIiI 00 the
voyage. Arrived within a few day.' IIIiI of Rio, he took a set nf lunar
obIervatiOll8, to aseertaio his true poaitiim. and the bearing of the harbor,
and shaped his coune accordingly. "I hove to," ay. he, "at four in
the morning, till the day should break, and then bore up; iIr although
it was hazy, we could _ before us a couple of miles or 80. A bout eight
o'clock it became 80 foggy that I did not 1iIte to stand in further. and was
jwJt bringing the the wind again before aending the people to
bresk&at, when it y cleared oft; and I had the satisfiletion of _
jug the great Sugar-Iosf rock, which stand. 011 one side of the harbor'.
mouth, 80 nearly right ahead that we had not to alter our coune above a
point, in order to hit the entrance of Rio. 'I'his was the lint land we
had seen for three months, after ClOIIIing 80 ID!lDY -.. and being set
backward. and forwards by innumerable l:urrenta and foul winda."
Arietis comes to the meridian about twelve mi-
nutes after Sheratan, on the 6th December, near
where the sun does in midsummer. Arietis,
is nearly on the same meridian with Ahnaack, in
the foot of Andromeda, 19 N. of it
l
and culminates
only four minutes after it. The other stars in this
constellation are quite small, constituting that 100S6
68 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
cluster which we see between the Fly on the north,
and the head of Cetus on the solith.
: When Arietis is on the meridian, Andromeda and
Cassiopeia are a little past the meridian, nearly
over heQ.d" and Perseus with the head of Medusa, is
as far to the east of it. Taurus and Auriga are
two or three hours lower down; Orion appears m
the S. E., and the Whale. on the meridian,just below
Aries, while Pegasus and the Swan are seen half
way over ,in the west.
The manner in which the ancients divided the Zodiac Into twelve
equal parts, was both simple and ingeniouS. Having no instrument
that would meuu:re time exact1y, " They took a v_I, with a small hole
in the bottom, and having filled it with water, IIUfi'ered the aame to distill. .
drop by drop, into anoth.er ve.e\ set beneath to receive it, beginning at
the moment when IIODI8 star rose, and continuing till it rose the next
following night, when it would have performed one comp\et.e revolution
in the heavens. The water fiilling down Into the receiver they divided
into twelve equal parts: and having twelve other small v_Is in ream-
neaa, each of them capable of containing one part, they again poured aU
the wat.er into the upper v ~ and ohiIerving the rising of some star in
the ,Zodiac. at the same time suftered the water to drop into one of the
lInall vesaela. And aa soon aa it was full, they removed it, and set an
empty one in its place. Jullt aa each _I waa full, they took notice what
&tar of the Zodiac roae at that time, and thus continued the proces8
through the C:til the twelve _Is were filled." ,
'rhus the 'was divided into twelve equal porticms, corresponding
to the twelve months of the year, commencing at the VfIJlal equinox.
Each of these pomona served aa the vialble IIlJIr686ntative or Iign of the
month it appeared in.
All those stars in the Zodiac which were observed to riee while the
first vessel waa filling, were ClOI18Iellated and ~ u d e d in the first sign,
and called .Ariu, an animal held in great ellteem by the shepherds of
Chaldea. All those stars in the Zodiac which roae while the second
ve.e\ was filling; were conIIteUated and included in the second sign,
which for. similIl' reaaOna, waa denominated TIJIIfW; and all those staN
which were observed to riee while the thUd _I waa filling, were con-
atellated in the third aign, and called Gemini, in allusioD to the twira
__ of the flocks. .
ThUB each sign of BOO in the Zodiac, received a distinctive appellation,
according to the limcy or supentiticm of the inventors; which names have
ever sinee been retained, although the conatellationB themselves have
aee left their nominal signs more than 30
0
behind. The sign A riea,
therefore, included all the atara embraced in the 'first 300 of the Zodiac,
and no more. The aign Taurus, in like manner, included all those stars
embraced in the next 300 of the Zodiac, or those betwl!6n 300 and CillO,
OF PISCES. 59
and 80 of the rest. O! thoee who imagine that the twelve constellations
of the Zodiac refer to the twelve tribes of Israel, lOme aacribe Aries to
the tribe of Simeon, and others, to Gad.
During the campaigns of the French anny in Egypt, General Dessaix
discovered among the ruins at Demlera, near the banks of the Nile, the
great temple suppoeed by lOme to have been dedicated to leis, tbe femate
deity of the Egyptians, who believed that the rising of the Nile W88
OCC&Sioned by the tears which ahe continually shed for the 1088 of her
brother Osiris, who was murdered by Typhon.
Others suppoee this edifice W88 erected for astronomical purpoeea, from
the circumstance that two Zodiau were discovered drawn upon the
ceiling, on opposite sides. On both these Zodiacs the equinoctial pointe
are in Leo, and not in Aries; from which it has been concluded, by thoee
who pertinaciously endeavor to array the argumente of science against
the chronology of the Bible and the validity of the Mosaic account, that
these Zodiacs were constructed when the sun entered the'sign Leo, which
must have been 9720 years ago, or 4000 years before the inspired account
of the creation. The infidel writers in ,France and Germany, make it
lU,OOO years before. But we may "llet to our aea!," that whatever ill
true in fact and correct in inference on this subject will be found, in the
end, not only col1sistent with the Mosaic record, but with the common
meaning of the eJlpreSsions it uses.
The discovery of Champollion has put this CJ.uestion for ev.er at rest;
and M. Latronne, a most learned antiquary, has very IIIIl:isfiIctorily de-
monstrated that these Egyptian Zodiacs are merely the horoscopes of
distinguished personages, or the precise situation of the heavenly bodies
in the Zodiac at their' nativity. The idea that such was their purpose
and origin, first suggeSted itself to this gentleman on finding, in the box
of a mummy, a similar Zodiac, with II1,lch inscriptions and characters 88
determined it to be the horoaCope of the person.
Of all the diacoveries of the antiquary among the relics of ancient
Greece, the ruins of Palmyra, the gigantic pyramids of Egypt, the
temples of their gods" or the sepulchres of their kings, acarcely one 80
aroused and riveted the curiosity of the learned, 88 did the diacovery of
Champollion the younger, which der:ipktn the hUrog(lJPhiu of ancient
Egypt.
'rhe potency of thia invaluable diacovery has already been signally
manifested in settling a formidable controversy between the champions
of infidelity and thoee who maintain the Bible account of the creation.
It has been shown that the constellation PiM:u, since the days of Hip-
parchus, has come, by reason of the annual precession, to occupy the
same apparent place in the heavens that Aries did two thousand yeam
ago. The Christian ptronomer and the. infidell\l'8 perfectly agreed as
to the fad, and the amount of this yearly gain in the apparent motion
of the &lara. They both believe, and both can demonstrate, that the fixed
IItara have gone forward in the Zodiac, about 50" of a degree in every
revolution of the heavens since the creatiQll; 80 thAt were the world to
6ght upon any authentic inBcription or record of past agetI, which should
give the true positiOIl. or longitude of any particular star at that time, it
would be easy to Ai an unquestionable date to auch a record. Accord-
60
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVEN8.
ingly, when the WnoUB .. Egyptian Zodiacs," which were IICUlptured OIl
the walla of the temple at -nendera, were brought away en ""'11#, and
exhibited in the Louvre at Parie, they enkindled a more ex citing intereat
in the thOlllllUlds who laW them, than ever did the entrance of Napoleon
.. Educated men of every order, and those who had the vanity to think
themselves sw:h," .YI the commentator of Champollion, .. rushed to t.
hold the ZodiDu. These Zodiacs were immediately puhliahed and com-
mented upon, with more or 1_ good faith and decorum. Science IIIruck
out into lysteiDa very bold; and the Ipirit of infidelity, seizing upon the
diacovery, lIattered. itaeIf with the hope of drawing from thence new 1Up-
port. It was . unju8t:ifiably taken for granted, that the ruina of Egypt
furnished astronomy with monuments, containing observations that ex-
hibited the state of the heavens in the IIIOIIt remote periods. Start:ini
with this IUIIWJIpt:ion, a pretense was made of demonstrating, by means
of calculations received as infallible, that the celeal.ial appearances assign-
ed to these monuments extended back from forty to sixty-five centuriea ;
that the Zodiacal system to which they must belong, dated back fifteen
thousand years, and must reach far beyond the 1imita asaigned by Moaea
to the exiatence of the world." Among those who stood forth more or
1_ bold as the adveraarieol of revelation, the IIlO8t prominent was M.
Dupuis, the famous author of L'origine tk tow 1u Cultes.
The infidelity of Dupuis was spread about by means of pamphlets, and
the advocates of the MOIIIIic account were acandalimd "until a ne.
Alexandt!r arose to cut the Gordian knot, which men had vainly lOught
to untie. This was Champollion the younger, armed with his diacovery."
The.hieroglyphica now apeak language that all can understand, and no
one gainlay. " The Egyptian Zodiacs, then," .ys Latronne, "relate in
no respect to astronomy, but to the idle phantasies of judicial astrology,
as connected with the destinies of the emperors who made or completed
them." .
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
A CLOIB DovaLa R. = 1 h. 41 m. 19 I. Dec. =;f-
11
0
28' 7
H
On the hom of AIle&. A 6, yellow. B 8, blue.
Diacoveied by Herschel
Poe. 1720 26' DiaL 8".378
169 6' 2 .400
Epoch 1823.98 StrUve.
1836.11 Smyth.
,. ARIKTII.-A. R. = I h. 44 m. '5 L Dec. =+ ISO 30' 5". In
the lower bend of the Ram'l hom. A 41. B 5. This ia the firal double
star ever detected. Less than one hundred years have elapsed, and now
they are numbered by thouaandL
Diacovered by Dr. Hook 1764.
M .. dler thinks motion is probable.
Poe. 183
0
65' DiaL .Epoch 1779.6a HerscheL
. 179 30 8 .957 1831.79 Striive.
178 20 8 .8\9 1841.78 Miidler.
176 37 9 .184 1847.65 Mitchel
It we are to receiva obaenat:ionI as conclusive of periodic revolu-
CONSTELLATION OF PIICE&.
81
tiaa, die mighty year of a- two __ cumot &II mach Ibart of four
tbou.nd of our y_ .
A Rovn NlIBl1LA.-A. R. = I h. 60 m. Sf.. Dec. = + 180
18' 6". Following ,. OIl the neck of Arlee. It ill quite large but f'ainL
A Ql1.1.DRl1PLlI BTu_A. R. = I h. 110 m . .u.. Dec. = + 200
16' 7". Under the ear of An... A 6, B 16, C 10. D 9 JDBgDitude.
Measures of A and B only are given. The other distancea are great.
A to B POI. = 630 83' DiaL 1".370 Epoch 1831.42 Btri:.ve.
10 AauTI_A. R. = 1 h. M m. 36.. Dec. = + 260 09' 7".
Over the head of the Ram. A 61. B 81.
I>iIIcmered by Struve.
POI. 260 IT Diet. 1".98 Epoch 1833.06 Struve
.. AauTII.-A. R. = " h. 40 m. 12.. Dec. + Hlo 4T 8"'. On
the haunch of Arlee. A beautiful triple lilt. A 6, B 81. 0 11
DlllgDitude.
DiIIcovered by Sir W. HeneheJ. October 1782-
.AalaTll1.-A.R.= 20h.:IOm. 04 .. Dec. = + 200 41' OS"
A very c1081l double i!&ar at the root of the teil of Aries. A 1\. B 61.
DiIIcovered by StrUve, and reckoned by him ill among hill elmut, and
III1IIbd ., pervicinm , It _ ODe of the fimt teats employed after the
erection of the Cincinnati Refractor, and 10 easily separated u to excite
the BUBpicion thet the disttnce between the componenla hu been in-
CI'I!I1IIing. Thill ill confirmed by the following meaBUIeII.
POI. 1880 60' DiaL 0".647 Epoch 1830.16 Striive.
196 11 0.7640 1841.87 M;;dler.
32 AalaTII.-A. R. = 2 h. 1i6 m. 06.. Dec. = + 240 8T OT'.
A triple Bet between the tail of Arlee and the Fly. A 6j, B '. C 16,
mag. Diacovered by StrUve.
, A to B POI. 2660 Sf' OS" Diet. 0".45 Epoch 1841.87 M;;dler.
A to C 3S6 00 00 6.00 1886.88 Smyth.
A Cloon D011BLlI BTu_A.R. = 3h. 14m. 06 .. Dec. = +200
13' 07". FoIlovring the t8il of Arlee. A 8, B 9. mag. .
~ by Striive.
POI. 930 42' DilL 0".76 Epoch 1827.16 8triive.
F
62 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS O ~
MAP NO. IV.
CETUs-THB WHALE.
PART OF ERIDANU8-To RIvER Po.
Favorohly situated for examination in Octohcr, N ~
her, Decemher, and January.
THE WHALE.
As the whale is the chief monster of the deep,
and the largest of the aquatic race, 110 ill it the
largest constellation in the heavens. It occupieR a
I"pace of SOo in length, E. and W., with a mean
breadth of 20 from N. to S. It is situated below
Aries and the Triangles, with a mean declination
of 12 S. It is represented as making its way to
the east, with its body below, and its head elevated
above the equinoctial; and is six weeks in passing
the meridian. Its tail comes to the meridian on
the 10th of November; and its head leaves it on the
22d of December. ' ,
This constellation contains ninety-seven stars;
three of the 2d magnitude, nine of the 3d, and seve-
ral of the 4th. The head of Cetus may be readily
dil!tinguished, about 20 S. E. of Aries, by means
of five remarkable stars, 4 and SO apart, and 'so
situated as' to forma regular pentagon. The
brightest of'these is Menkar, II Ceti, of the 2d mag-
nitude, in the nose of the Whale. It occupies the S.
E. angle of the figure. It is 3lo N. of the equinoc-
tial, and ISO E. of EI Rischa, II Piscium, in the bight
of the cord between the Two Fishel:!. It is directly
37 S. of Algol, and nearly in the same direction
from the Fly. It makes an equilateral triangle
with Arietis and the Pleiades, beinJt distant from
CONSTELLATION OF CETUS.
each about 23 S., and may otherwise be known by
a star of the 3d magnitude in the mouth, SO W. ot'
it, called "/, placed in the south middle angle of the
pentagon. ,'.' . ' .
,; .... ls a sw of the 4th magnitude, 4 N. W. of "/,
and these two constitute the S. W. side of the pen-
tagon in the head of the Whale, and the N.E. side
of a similar oblong figure in the neck.
Three degree", S. S. W. of "/, is another star of
the 4th magnitude, in the lower jaw, m,arked a, con-\.
stituting the 'east side of the oblong pentagon; and
6 S. W. ofthis, is a noted star in the neck of the
Whale, called Mira, marked 0, or the "wonderful.star
of 1596," which f o r ~ the S. E. side. This variable
star was first noticed as such by Fabricius, on the
13th of August, 1596. It changes from a star of
the 2d magnitude 80 as to become invisible once in
334 days, or about seven times in six years. Her-
schel makes its period 331 days, 10 hours, and 19
minutes; while Hevelius assures us that it once
disappeared for four years; so that its true period,
perhaps, has not been satisfactorily determined.
The whole munbar of IIanI .-rtained to be variable, amounlB to only
15; while thole which are rmapected to be ~ amount to 37.
Mira is 7 S. S. E. of 0 Piscium, in the bend or
knot of the ribbon which connects the Two Fishes.
Ten degrees S. of Mira, are four small stars, in the .
breast and paws, about 3 apart, which form.a
square, the brightest being' on' the east. Ten de-
grees S. W. of Mira, is a star of the 3d magnitude
in the heart, called Baten Kaitos, ~ Ceti, which makes
8 scalene triangle with two other 'stars of the same
magnitude 7 and 10 west ofit; also, an equilateral
triangle with Mira and the easternmost one in the
Iilquare.
A great number of geometrical figures may be formed fTom the stara
In this, and in ID06t of the other COIIIItIllIationa, merely by refenmce to the
64 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
maps; but it i. better that the lltudeut ehoaId ueJCiae his own ingenuity
in &biB way with refimmce to the tItuII tbemIel-, for when once he baa
oonstructed a group into any letter or figure of his own invention, he
never will forget iL
The teacher ahould tberefoIe require his cIaaa to colllllli& to writing the
reauI.t of their own obaervaliona upon the relative poaition; magnitude IUld
figurea of the principal tItuII in each coD8tellation. One evening's eXel"
ciae in &biB way will diaclOll8 to the student a II1llprising multitude of
_, MJ1Ml"U, trianglu, _ and Idttra, by which he will be better
able to identify and remember them, tlw1 by. any inatrudiona that could
be given.
For example: 0 and (, in the Whale, about 10 apart, make up the
8 .. E. or IIhorter Bide of an ilregular aquare, with " in- the node of the
Ribbon, and another star in the Whale .. &r to the right of {, .. " is
above 6. Again,
There 111'8 three IIIalB of equal magnitude, formiq a straight line W.
of Baten; from whi'ch, to the middle star is 100, thence to the W. one
121; and 8 or 9 S. of this line. in a triangular direction, is a bright
star of the second magnitude in the coil of the tail, called Diphda, or "
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
It R. = 0 h. tl m. 63 II. Dee. = - ,0 50' 06". A
difficult double star. between the Whale'. tail and the Southern Fish.
A 6, yellow; B l5, blue. Position end distance estimated .. fullowa, Dr
the Bedford Catelogue:
POI. 1800: 66' DiaL 6".5 Epoch 1837.89.
A LOKD KnRO .... NuuL.I..-A. R.=Oh. 39m. 4611. Decl.=-
t6
0
10'. Near the boundary of the A pparstu. 8culptoria.
Discovered by Miss Henc:bel, in 1783.
. .
42 CBTI.-A. R.= I h. 11 m. 38 II. Dee. = _10 21', A clo.e
double star,. between the whale'. back and the band of Piacee-A 6.
B 8 mag. Discovered by StrUve and marked among his .. Vicime "Itan.
POI. = 334
0
30' Diat. 1".177 Ep. 18:J6.91
61 CBn.-A. R. = .1 h. 66 m. 37 II. Dee. = - 10 06' 6". A
double star on the back of tie head of CetuL A 7, B 81 mag. Di.
covered by Str" ve, who reports the following meuurea.
POI. = t600 00' Diat. .... 78. Epoch
OItTI. MIU.-A. R. = t h. 11 m. 16 II. Dec. = - 30 'S' 3",
A remarkable variable star, with a distant companion, on the middle of
the whale's neck. It is the first of these wonderful objects ever discoveroo
ell, and was noticed by David Fabricius .. early as 1596. It becomes ..
bright as the IIeCOlld magnitude, and then decreases to invisibility. Her-
schel estimates its period at 331 days 10 hours 19 minutes. Its maxi-
mum brilliancy is. aUained about the first of October at this time. 'Ibe
color olthis star is also to vary with the magnitude. .
CONSTELLATION OF CETUS.
8i
A Pt..t.lIHABV NUVL4_A. R. = 2 h 19 m. 26 .. Dec. =_1
0
61' 6". In the iDiddle of the whale', neck.' Discovered by HeracheI,
1'186
., CBTL-A. R. = 2 h. 27' m. 29 I. Dee. = + 4
0
53' 5". A
double IItar in the whale', eye.. A 4i, yeDow, B 1", blue.-Thia ill one
of Struve'. " difficilea ". He leportB the following measures:
Poe. 830 30' Diet. T'.726 Ep. 183l.9:I.
84 CJ:TJ..-A. R. = 2 b. 33 m. 02.. Dec. = - 1
0
22' T'. A
cIifficult oiject like the preCeding, on the whale'. under jaw, Strilve,
ita disco_ fumiahea th_ measuree :
Poe. 334
0
3T Diet. 4".866 Ep. 1831.90.
A ROVB"D Nnvlo4. - A. R. == 2 h. 34 m. 30 ,. Dec. == - 00
41' 02". On the Whale',.lower jaw. Examined by HenK'hel, and
placed in \he 910th order of diatancea; that is, 910 times more remote
than the fixed IIlanI of the lilIIt magnitude.
Diacovered by MII8Bier.
,. CJ:TT..-A. R. = 2 h. 81; m. 01". Decl. = + 20 Sa' 01\". A
beIlutiful cloae double atar, in the Whale'. mouth. The Bedfonl Cata-
logue regards the .. fixity" of the componentll as lllltabliabed; while
thinks an increasing mOtion CIlrtain, with a period of about 569
yean. The following measures are reported
PO&. = 28:-40 DiaL 2" .liS/) .t:poch StrUve.
287 06 2 .680 18:1. .. 36"
293 37 2 .946 . 1841.14 ... M:idler.
All OVAlo R. = 2 h. as m 08 L Decl. = - 80 16'
1". On the breast of the Whale." It ill pale, thoqgh qi,stinct, and
brightens at the center." .
Dillcovered by Hemchel, 1785. '"
94 CV.TT.-A. R; = 3 h. 04 m. 38 L DeeL == - 10 4T 09". A
difficult double 1Itar. in the top oftha Whale', tongue. A 5j, B 16, Diag.
Discovered by Sir John HencbeJ.
1'2
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. V.
T AUllUS-Tn BULL.
ORION. .
PART OF ERIDANU8-THE Rrvn Po.
Favorably situated for ezami1U.l.twn in DecemlJer, Ja-
fI...zry, February and Marek. .
TAURUS.
THE BULL is represented in an attitude of rage,
M if about to plunge at Orion, who seems to invite
the o n ~ e t by provocations of assault and defiance.
Only the head and shoulder-s of the animal are to
be seen; but' these are so distinctly marked that
they cannot be mistaken. Taurus is now the lIe-
C01IJl sign and tAird constellation of the zodiac; but
anterior. to the time of Abraham, or more than 4000
years ago, the vernal equinox took place, and the
year opened when the sun was in Taurus; and the
Bun, for the space of 2000 years, was the prince
and leader of the celestial host. The Ram suc-
(,eeded next, and now the Fishes lead the year.
Tile head of Taurus sets with the sun about the
last of May, when the opposite constellation, the
Scorpion, is seen to rise in the S, E. It is situated
between Perseus and Auriga on the north, Gemini
on the east, Orion and Eridanus on the south, and
Aries on the west, having a mean declination of
16 north.
It contains 141 visibl6 stars, including two re-
markable clusters, called the PLEIADES and HYADES.
The first is now on the shoulder, and the latter in
the face of the Bull.
The Pleiades, according to fable, were the seven
daughters of Atlas and the nymph Pleione, who
CONBTELLA TION OF T AUBU8.
were tumed into stars, with their sisters the Hyades,
on account of their amiable virtues and mutual
aft'ection.
That! we everywhere 1l1li1 that the ancien.., with all their barbari.n
mel idolatry, entertained the belief that unblemiahed virtue and a rnerito-
rioua iii!! would meet their rewud in the 1Iky. 'l'hU8 Virgil ~ t a
Mapu. Apollo u beDdiDg &om the IIky to ~ the youth IulU8_
II Made 110ft Wtulie paer: lie itur lid utra;
Im. geait.e, et geuiture n-."
.. Go on, ~ boy. in the patb8 of Wtue; it ia the way to the Itan;
c6pring of the god_ thyaelf_ Ihak thou become the father of godL"
Our diagu.t at their 8lIpen&i&ioIIII_y be in lOme IJI8IIIl11re mitigated,
by aerioWlly ~ , that bad .aIDe of the. ~ lived in our
day. they bad been omamenta in the Chrialian ehureh, and mocIeIB of
IOcial Wtue.
The names of the Pleiades are Alcyone, Merope,
Maia, Electra, Tayeta, Sterope and Celeno. Merope
was the only one who married a mortal, and on
that aecount her star is dim among her sisterl5.
Although but six.of these are visible to the naked
eye, yet Dr. Hook informs us that, wit.h a twelve
feet telescope, he saw 78 stars; . and Rheita affirms
that he counted 200 stars in this tlmall cluster.
The IDOIIt ancient autbora, BUCh u Homer, AUaJua, and Geminua,
counted only ft::e' PIeilde8; but Simonidea, Varro, Pliny, Aratua, Hip'
parcbU8. and Ptolemy. reckon them seven in number; and it wu ....
aerted, that the seventh had been _ before the burning of Troy; but
this difference might arise &om the difrerence in diat.inguiabing them with
the naked eye.
The Pleiades ftre so called from the Greek word,
~ f W , pleein, to sail,. because, at this season of the
year, they were considered" the star of the ocean"
to the benighted mariner. .AlCJj01le, of the 3d mag-
nitude, being the brightest star in this cluster, is
sometimes called the light of the Pleimles. The other
five are principally of the 4th Rnd 6th magnitudes.
The Pleiades,. or as they are more fnmiliarly
termed, the seven mrs, come to the meridian 10
minutes before 9 o'clock, on the evening of the lBt
01 January, and may serve, i ~ place of the sun, to
:68 OF THE HEAVENS.
indicate the time, and as a guide to the' surrounding
stars.
to Heaiod, who wrote about 900 yean before the bi11h of
our Saviour, the heliacal riaiug of tbe Pleiadell ,took place on the 11th of
May, about the time of harvest.
.. When, A tta.bom, the PJeiad BtarII arise
BetOre the 8\ID above the dawning akies,
'Tia time to JeIIP: and when tbey link below
The mom-illumin'd "eat, 'till time to lOW."
ThWl, ill all agee, have the BtarII been oo-ved by the hubandman.
for "lignBand for_" '
Pliny say. that 'Fha", the MiletaD u&ronomer, determiDed the eo.
micalBetting of the Pleiadell to be 2. da,.. after the autumnal equinox.
'I'hi. would make a, difference between the Betting at that time and the
preaent, of 35 daya, and u a day an&We18 to about 59' of the ecliptic,
th_ day. will make 34 So.,'. Thia, divided by tbe annual preceMion
(1iOi"), 'will give 2465 yeal8 since the time of Thalea. Thus dOM
utronomy become the parent
If it be borne in mind that the stars UDifonaly rille, come to the meri-
dian, and eel about fOur minutes earlier every lucceeding night". it will be
very easy to determine at what time the seven BtalII pus the meridian on
any night eubaequent or 8Iltllcedebt to'tIW 18& of January. }o'or exam-
pie: at what time will the I8VlID BtalII qulmjnate on the 5th of January !
Multiply the live days by fOur, and take the reeuit from the time they
culminate on the 1st, and it will give thirty miputes after eight o'clock in
the evenina.
The Pleiades are also sometimes called VergilitlJ,
or the" Virgins of spring;" because the sun entel"ll
this cluster in the" season of blossoms," about the
18th of May. He who made them alludes to this
circumstance when he demands of Job: "Canst
thou bind the sweet influences of the Pleiades,"
&c.-[Job xxxviii, 31.]
The Syrian name of the Pleiadee ia Sueeotla, or Suct:mh-&ootla, de-
rived from a ChaIdaic word, which aignifieia "to speculate, to obsene,"
and tbe .. Men of' Succoth" (2 Kinga nii, 80), have been thence
COJIIidered obIBrvera of the IIaJB.
The Hgades are situated 11
0
S. E. of the' Pleiades,
in the face of the Bull, and may be readily dis- '
tinguished by means of five stars so placed as to
form the letter V. The most brilliant star is on
CONSTELLATION 01' TAURUS. eg
the left, in the top of the letter, and called N.tlelJa
ran, Go Tami, from which the moon's distance is
computed .
.. A lIIar of the liM magnitude Ulumell
His radiant head; and of the IBCODd rank,
Another beams not liar remote."
.Aldebaran. is of Arabie origin, and takes its name'
from two words which signify, " He went before, or
led the way "-alluding to that period in the history
of astronomy when this star led up the starry host
from the vernal equinox. It comes to the meridian
at nine o'clock on the lOth of January, or 48l
minutes aCter Alcyonej'l Tauri, on the Is.t. When
Aries is about 27
0
high, Aldebaran is just rising in
the east. So MAlfILJUS :-
.. Thus "hen the Ram hath doubled.ten degreee,
And join'd _ mcxe, then riae the Hyadee. "
A line 15l
o
E. N. E. of Aldebaran 'will point out
a bright star of the 2d magnitude iu the extremity
of the northern horn, marked fJ or El Nath; (this'
star is also in the foot of Auriga, and is common to
both constellations.) From fJ in the northern horn, .
to , in the tip of the southern horn, it is 8
0
, in a
southerly direction. This star forms a right angle
with Go and fJ. IJ and ',both, in the button of the
horns, are in a line nearly north and south, 8
apart, with the brightest on the north. That 'Very
bright star 171
0
N. of fJ, is Capella Go, in the constel
lation .Auriga.
This map contains the most brilliant, and on
ftll accounts, the most interesting portions of the
hf!l1vens. According to the investigations ofStriive,
this region is nearer to our sun and system than
any other portion of the celestial sphere, as will be
more fully developed hereafter. Besides this, A l ~ y
one is regarded as the great center of the millions
'10 GEOGRAPHY 01' THE HEAVENS.
of stars ,together and forming the Milky
Way.
This region, on account of its splendor, and the
remarkable configurations of its stars, forms an ad-
mirable point in beginning the study of the heavens.
'fELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
7 T.U1Rl.-A. R. = 3 b. 24 m. 58 8. Dec. = + 2:\055' 4". A
triple star on the back of Taurus. A 6, B 6i, C II magnitude.
Discovered by and two of the components are among bis
.. or close stars. From his measures. compared with
Mii.dler's, a retrograde movement in A and B seems to be certain.
A to B Pas. 271
0
00' Diet. = 0".fi3 Epoch 1827.16 fltruve.
264 36 0 .55 1841.80 Madler.
A + B to C Poi!. 630 36 Di8t. 22".25 Epoch 1827.16 Struve.
-2- 601822.50 1841.80
The period of A about B, is probably about 680 or 690 yean.
80 TAuRT.-A. R. = 3 b. 39 m. 30 B. Dec. = + 16
0
38' 8". A
delicate double star on the left sboulder-blade of Taurus. A 6, " pale
emerald." B 10, .. purple."
Discovered bv Herscbel.
Poe. 680 46
f
Dist. 9".867' Epoch 1824.98 Struve.
A DoUBLJI STAll.-A. R. = 3 b. 51 m.,27 8. Dec..= 22
0
44' 7".
In the neck of Taurus; be\Wef!Il tbe Pleiades and Hyades. . A 7i, B 8
magnitude. A distant companion of the 12 magnitude.'
Discovered by StrUve.
Poe. 12:7
0
41' Dist. 7".208 Epoch 1823.98 South.
80 Tuilll.-A. R. = "h. 21 m.Ol 8. Dec. = + 150 17'. A
close double star on the Dull's face, BOUth west of Aldebaran. A II.
H 8i. .
Poe. 120 65' Diet. 1".74 Epocb 1831.18 Struve.
A CLOSE DOUBLE SUll.-A. R. 5 h. 7 m. 23 8. Dec. + liP
15' 3". On the southern bom ofTalllUB. A 8, B 8i.
DiscoveJed by Btr;: ve.
Poe. 171 0 13' Dis!. .2".327 Epoch 1830.63 Stri: ve.
/ A STu.-A. R.=5b.8m.Oa .. Ike. =+ 19057'2".
In the,middle of the southern born of Taurus. A fI, B 11 magnitude.
Discovered by Str;: ve.
Poe. 147 33' Dis!. 10".547 Epocb 1828.19 Btr"ve.
118 TAUlll.-A. R. = 5 b. 19 m. 25 8. Dec:. = + 25
0
00'8"'.
Between tbetips of the Bull's borns. A 7, B 7j. .
Poe. 196
0
46' Dist. 4".89 Epoch 18:l9.63 Btl;: ve.
CONSTELLATION OF TAURU8.
A LA.Rln: NIIB17U.'--A. R. = 6 b.' 2'm.1I1 .. Decl. =+ 210 1i4'
(12". One degree N. W. or (Tauri, on the tip of the Bull's southern
hO!IL Discovered by MMBier, 1758, and is No. I ofhia great catalogue.
It was IICcidentally picked up while obaerving the comet of that year, and
induced Me&Iier to commence a search for BIlCh objects. It is reIOlved
wi1h diftic:ulty by the best inBtruments, and Herschel reckOIlll its profun-
dity of tile 980th order-that ia, 980 ~ more remote than stars of the
firat magnitude. . . .
T.17 -A. R. = 8b. 87 m. 69.. Deel. = + lISO 86' 8". AI-
c:yone, \be prineipaI star In the P1eiadee, a IIIDIIll cluster visible to the eye
In the necIt of Taurua. Thie little group has ever 00en remarkable, but
recently a tenfold Interest has been given to it by the announcement of
Dr. MiUJler of Dorpat, RUIIIIia, that its Chief star, Alc:yone, is the central
au1l of om aMral ayllem. It is ablOlutely certain that the law of gravi-
tation extends to tile fixed stars, as is abundantly shown by the orbitual
revolution of &he doUble. stars, w . h ~ periods and pIacee have 00en com-
puted and predicted by the application of this law.
This being eert8in. In the mighty group of millions of stars with which
our own BUD is associated, there mil" be a 'flier of gravity; and it
then remains to delentline whether tru. point is filled by a ponderous
globe, of vast dimensions, and bearing the IIUIle relation in point of mag-
nitude to the millions of suns by wbich it is surrounded, as our BUD does
to the planets, satellites, and comets by which it is encireled. Analogy,
in the solar system, taught the existence of such' a ponderous mass, but
this analosy was broIr.en in the revolving Btars; in whic)l it often occurs
that the components are nearly equal in magnitude, moving round I
common center of gravity.
Again, in examining the heaveb8, such a mighty preponderating body
would be detect.ed by the swifter propet motion o( the stars in its vicinity.
A fter a laborious search, M"dler reached the conclusion that no BIlCh vast
globe existed, and that the center or gravity, probsbly vacant, could only
be found by a severe examination of tIil proper motions of the fixed Btars.
By a beautiful trsin of reasoning and dll8ely conducted ~ , he
finally reached the conclusion that Alcyone, in the Pleiades, now holds
the high rank of centralaun.. but that, in the course of ages, by the
perpetual changes constantly going on among the components of our
utral ay,tem, this rank may JlIlIIII to some other star. He computes
roughly the distance of Alc:yone, and reckons it to be so great, that light,
8ying with ~ velocity of twelve milliOllB of miles a minute, csnnot resrh
u. from that star in 1IlIIB than 537 years.' He further computes roughly,
that our BUD revolve. about A1eyone in a period of 18,200,000, in an
orbit inclinllll to the ecliptic under an angle of S4
0
00'. Should &his
wonderful theory be confirmed, the proper motions of the fixed Btars
assume a new and increased interest.-(See P!1iidler's Paper, "Centml
8un"-Mitehel's Sidereal M_ger, Nos. 4 and 5, Vol. L)
A NSB17J.0171 Sru.-A. R. = 8 b. 59 m. 86-.. DeeL + 300 20
Olin. Over the neck of 'Iaurus. This object was discovered by tbII
elder Heraohel, and was the final link in that long chain of obam:valio.
72 GEOGRAPHY 01' THE HEAVENS.
,
which led to the adoption of the .. DebuIar tbeoJy ,n The liar is perf'ectIy
in the center of the I18bulOll8 atmoBphere which eunounda it, and He..'
del arguee the nebuloeity of &his -mg almoepbere from tbe fact that,
in cue each shining point is a &tar, wbat muat be the magnitude of the
central oro, which exceed. &hem all in the eoormoua ratio of millions to
one. Tbe8e 118bu10118 atan ... c:ertain1J moat wOllderful objects, and
d.erve the moat rigid ICI'Iltiny. ,
X TAnl_A. R. = 4 b. IS m. lit.. eeL = + Jlio 14' or. A
doUble &tar at'the back of the Bun'. ear. ,A 6, B 8, mag,
Poe. 250 00' Dis&. 19".3 lfpoeb. 1831.91 Smyth.
ORION.
WHOEVER looks Up to this constellation and learnl'!
its name, will never forget it. It is too beautifully
splendid to ne\ld a description. When it is on the
meridian, there is then above the horizon the most
magnificent view of the celestial bodies that the
starry firmament dords; and it is visible to all the
habitable world, because the equinoctial passes
through the middle of the const.ellation. It is rep-
resented on celestial maps by the figure of a man
in the attitude of assaulting a Bull, 'with a sword in
his' belt, a huge club in his right hand, and the skin
of a lion in his left, to serve for a shield.
Manilius, a Latin poet, who compol!ed five boob
on astronomy, a short time before the birth of our
Saviour, thus describes its appearance:
" Firat next the Twins, - great Orion rille,
Hia arms extended I!treteh o'er half the ekiee;
Hia stride as large, and with a steady pace
He marchea on. and DltlII8UleII a vut ~ ;
On each broad shoulder a bright &tar diaplay'cJ,
And three obliquely grace hie banging blade.
In hie ...at head, iuuners'd in bound1eea spheres,
Three atara, 1_ bright, but yet u great, he 'be8nt,
But fiuther off remo'fed, their eplendors JOlt;
Th1l8 gJaC'd and arm'cJ, he Ieede the atarry hOll&."
The center of the constellation is midway between
the poles of the heaven. and directly over the equa-
CONSTELLATION OF ORION.
'73
tor. It is also about SO W. of the solstitial colure,
and comes to the meridian about the 23d of Janu-
ary. The whole number of visible stars in t h i ~
constellation is . seventy-eight ; of which two are
of the 1st magnitude, four of the 2d, three of the
3d, and fifteen of the 4th.
Those four brilliant stars in the form of a long
square or parallelogram, intersected in the middle
by the "Three Stars," or "Ell and Yard," about
25 S. of the Bull's horns, form the outline of Orion.
The two upper stars in the parallelogram are about
15 N. of the two lower ones; and, being placed
on each shoulder, may be called the epaulets of
Orion. The brightel!lt of the two lower ones it! in
the left foot, on the W., and the other, which .is the
least brilliant of the four, in the right knee. To be
more particular: Bellatrix,.y Orionis, is a star of the
2d magnitude on the W. shoulder; Betelguese, II
Orionis, is a star of the lilt magnitude,7lo E. of
Bellatrix, on the E. shoulder. It is brighter than
Bellatrix, and lies a little farther towards the north;
ana comes to the meridian thirty minutes after it,
on the 21st of January-. These two form the upper
end of the parallelogram ..
Rigel, ii Orionis, is a splendid. star of the Ist mag-
nitude, in the left foot, on the W. and H,o S. of
Bellatrix. &ipk, is fl star of the 3d magnitude, in
the end 'of the sword scabbard, Bio E. of Rigel.
These two form the lower endo the parallelogram.
----" .:Fint\ in l'IUJk
The martial star upon hie ahoulliar ftamea:.
A rival star illuminates hie foot ...
ADd on hie girdle bMma a JUminuy
Which, in 'ricinity of other ..
Might claim the proudest bonOJ'l."
There is a little triangle of three small stars in
the head of Orion, which forms a larger triangle
with the two in his shoulders. In the middle of the .
G
74 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
parallelogram are three stars of the 2d magnitude,
in the belt of Orion, that form a straight line about
3 in length from N. W. to S. E .. They are usually
distinguished by the name of the Three 8t4r., be-
cause there are no other stars in the heavens that
exactly resemble them in position and brightnel5s.
They are sometimes denominated the Three.King.,
becaulle they point out the Hyades and Pleiades on
one side, and Sirius, 01' the Dog-star on the other.
In Job they are called the /Jmuh of Orion; while
the ancient husbandmen called them JQIXJ/i. rod, and
some times the Rake. The University of Leipsic, in
1807, gave them the name of Napoleun. But the
more common appellation for them, including those
in the sword, is the EU and Yard. They del'ive the
latter name from the circumstance that the line
which unites the" three stars tI in the belt measures
just 3 in length, And is divided by the central 'Star
into two equal parts, like a yard-stick; thus serving
as a graduated sta.dard for measuring the distances
of stars from each "'ther. When therefore any star
is described as beiag SO.r.na.Dy degrees from another,
in order to determine tile di .. tance, it is recommend-
ed to apply thill rule.
It is'neceMaIY that the acholar douJd tuk his ingenuity only. h
nerunga in applying such a standard to the IIIanI, before he will Jearn to
judge of their relative distances with an accuracy that will aeldom ....,.
a degree from the truth. .
The northernmost star in the belt, called Mintika,
a, is less than l
O
S. of the equinoctial, and w h ~ n on
the meridian, is almost exactly over the equator.
It is on the meridian, the 24th of January.
The" three stars tI are situated about 8 W. of
the solstitial colure, and uniformly pass the meridian
one hour and fifty minutes after the seven stars.
There is a row of stars of the 4th and 5th mag-
nitudes, S. of the belt,. running down obliquely to-
wards Saiph, whieh forms the sword. This row i.e
CONSTELLATION OF ORION.
75
31"'0 oalled the Ell, because it is once and a quarter
the length of the Yard or belt.
A very little way below Thabit, :. Orion is, in the
sword, the,,<, is a nebulous appearan.ce, the most
remarkable one in the heavens, With" good tele-
scope an apparent opening is discovered, through
which, as through a window, we seem to get a
glimpse of. other heavens, and brighter regions
beyond.
A. the telescope extends our knowledge of the ItaJII and greatly in-
peaBeII their visible number, we behold hundJeda and thOUlllllltla, which,
but for this almost divine improvement of our _on, had remain
ed, unaeen by us, in an unfathomable void. .
A BtIIr in Orion'. aword, which appears Bingle to the UIIII8IIiated vision,
is multiplied into six by the teleacope; and another into twelve. Galileo
tound eighty in the belt., twenty-one in a nebulous BtIIr in the hBBLI, and
about five hundred in another part of Orion, within the comp.1S8 of one
or two degrees. Dr. Hook _ aeventy-eight atara in the Pleiades. and
Rheita with a better teleBcope, .w about two hundred in the IIIUDB cluster
and more than two thouand in Orion.
About go W. of Bellatrix,,),, are eight stars, chiefly
of the 4tJt magnitude, in a curved line running N,
a.nd S. with the concavity towards Orion; these
point out the skin of the lion in his left hand. Of
Orion, on the whole, we may remark with Eudosia:
.. He who admires not, to the ItaJII is bIind."
As the CODBtellation Orion, which rises at noon about the 9th day of
Much, and seta at noon about the 21st of June, is generally to
be IUlCOmpanied, at ita rising, with great rains and storms, it became ex-
tremely terrible to marinel1l, in the early adventures of navigation. Virgil,
Ovid, and Horace, with lOme of the Greek poets, make mention of this,
Thus Eneas accounts for the storm which cast him on the AIi:ican
cout on his way to Italy :-
.. To that blest shore we ateer'd our destined way,
When BUdden, dire ()riqn rous'd the sea:
A II charg'd with temp!lStB rose the baleful Iter,
And on our navy pour'd his wat'ry war."
To induce him to delay his departure, Dido'. sister advises her to
.. Tell him, that, charg'd with deluges of rain,
()riqn rages on the wintry main,"
76 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
The II8ID8 of this CODIIteIIation is mentioned iri &be boob of Job aDd
ADI08, and in Homer. The inspired prophet, 'penetrated like the paabnist
of Israel, with the omniscience and power displayed in the celestial giorlee.
uUenI this sublime injunction: .. Seek Him that maketh the aeven IItanI
and Orion, and tumeth the abadow of death into morning." Job aJeo.
with profound veneration, adores Hill awful majesty who '''oommandeth the
.un and aeaJeth up the 1IbIJ8; who alone spreadeth out the heavellll, and
maketb. Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades,' and the cbambeJB of the BOUth : "
And in another place, the Almighty demands of him-.' Knowest thou
the ordinances of heaven t Canst than bind the BWeet inlIuences of the
Pleiades, or 100II8 the bandB of Orion; canst thou bring forth
in his -.on. or canst thou guide Areturus with his BOna , "
Calmet suppoES that Mozzarotk ill hr.re put ror the whole lIl'Iier of
eeleslial bodies in the Zodiac, which by their appointed revolutiollll, pr0-
duce the various _na of the year, and the regular succe&8ion of day and
night. .An:t_ ill the name of the principal star in Bootes, and ill
here .put ror the constellation i_It The expression, hill WTUI, doubtle81
JeferB to Asterion and Char&, the two greyhounds, with which he _011
to be pIIlIIIIing the great bear around the North pole.
TELESCOPlC
258 P. IV. OBIOIlU.-A. R. = 4 h. 49 m. 48 B. .Dee.'= + 1
0
115' 04". A double star Orion'. right knee. A 8j, B 9, mag.
Discovered by Henchel. .
P08. 174
0
51' Diet. 2".00 Epoch 1782.85 Herecbel.
179 M 2 .M 1832.09 Str"ve.
t ORIO_IB.-A. R. = II h. 04 m. IiIi B. Dee. = + 2 39' 09". A
double star between the right ann and thigh of Orion:. A 6, B 8j, the
first orange, the aecond blue.
P08. 63
0
28' Diet. 7".05 Epoch 1832.05 Struve.
/; OBIOlUB.-A. R. = II h. 6 m. 111.. Dee. =...;. 8
0
.23' 05". Ri-
gel, a double star in the right foot of Orion. A I, "pale yellow," B 9,
.... pphire blue." A third star has been recently added by artificial
occultation. at the Cincinnati Observatory. It is of the 20th magnitude,
and invisible without hiding the principal Btara. ,
The relative positions of the IIbIJ8 remain unchanged since their w..
covery, in 1781.
Discovered by Henchel.
Poe. 199
0
46' Dist.9".14 Epoch 1831.113 StrUve.
84 P. V. ORIO_IB.-A. R. = 5 h. 16 m. 53 B. Dec. = + 1
0
46' 4".
A close double star in Orion'B right side. A 8, B 10. The oomponenta
ani fixed.
Discovered by Herschel.
Poe. 323
0
13' DiIt. 2".61 Epoch 18.11.81.
92 OlllO_II.-A. R.=5h. 22Il1019 . Dec. =+ 50 49' 03". A
dose double star on the ahoulder of Orion. A 5, 8 7, mag. A IlOIIl-
CONSTRLLATION OF ORION. 77
pariIun oflate meuurea with thOl8 of Herschel in 178l1, indicatea a IIow
ietrograde uwtiOll, amounting to lOme 1 ()C' or 12 in half a century.
Poe. 203 45' DiaL 1".04 Epoch 1830.96 Struve.
S3 OaIOII'II.-A.R. = lih. 22m. iii L Dec. =+3'1 09'9"'. A
dose double star 00 the right shoulder. A 6, B 8, mag.
POL 25'> 35' DiaL 1".87 Epoch 1831.22 StriAve..
A OaIolI'ltI.-A. R. = Ii h. 18m. 19 a. Dec. == t 9
0
49' OS". A
double .tar in the ear of Orion. A., .. pale white,' B 6, .wJet No
ehaDge haa been detected.
Discovered by HBlIICbel, 1779.
Poe. 40
0
32' DiaL 4".M Eporb 1830.l Stri.ve.
/I OaIOII'II.-A. R. = 5 h. 27 m. 25 L Dee.-II
o
30'. A lelltople
.tar in the great nebula in the sword acabbsrd of Orion. A 6, B 7,
C 7i, D 8, E 15, F 16, mag. For more thsn fifty y_ this ol!jeet w ..
regarded as only ~ p l e . After the mounting of the " Dorpat refrac:-
tor," Strr.ve addea a fifth star to the lour alresdy known; IIIld a tew
yean since a Ili:i;th was discovered by Sir J IUJItl8 South.
It is not certain that any change haa yet been detected among the
components of this remarkable 1JI'OUp.
Pos. A B, 311
0
14' DiaL 12".983
A C, 60 07 13 .467
A D, 342 10 18 .780
B E, 365 42 3 .860
Epoch 1832.1i3
1832.53
1832.53
1832.53
Struve.
..
..
"
TIlII GBUT N IIBUJ..t. II' Oa,oll'.-A. R. = Ii h. 27 m. 21i 8. Dee.
= - 6 30'. This Itupendoos object is situated in the middle of the
8CIlbbard of Orion's swonI. Diac:overed by Huygens, 1666. It bas been
Bn object of the greatest interest, to all astronomers, in conaequence of its
brilliancy and extraordinary magnitude. Sir William HertlChel 'repeat-
edly elamined it with ecrutiny with his fOrty filet refraclor, but detected
nothing like resolvability. Moat IICC1lI'Bte drawings were made by his
.on, without any IlUBpicion that it was composed of a mass of stara. A.
Sir John HertlChel remarked, the greater the power employed the mo""
mysteriooa did the oI!ject appear. Dr. J. Lamant, of Municb, baa exa-
mined this nebula with great attention, and many yealll since affirmed
that with the twelve in .. h refractor of the Munich Obaenatory, he caught
glimpses of multitlldes of point-like atMB, crowding and producing the
brighter parts of the nebula; yet to this announcement little heed __
to bave been given. On moUnting the giant reftector of Lord ~ , it
wtI8 a matter of deep interest to learn the appearance of this nebula under
the acrutiny of this magnificent inltrumenL More than one altronomer
made the jounaey to the cutle of Lord ~ , to inspect this wonderful
object. For a long time it reaiated the full power of the greatest of aU
optical instruments, until at length Lord ~ makes the following an-
_cement: .
.. C_1e P""""own, MarcA 19. 1846-
.. In accordance with my promiee of communicating to you the reauIt
~ our examination of Orion, I think I caa lIBfeiy.y there caa be bIlt
02
78 GEOGRAPHY OF THE
little, if any doubt, as to the of the nebula. Since YOIl left
'l1li, there was not a single night, when, in abiJence of the moon, the air
_ free enough to admit the use of more than half the magnifying
power the speculum bears; atill,. we could plainly -. that. all alJout the
trapeaium ill a IlIII88 of still'll; the real of tile nebula abounding in atan.
and exhibiting the characteristics of reaoIvability ItroDgly marked.
. "RoiAL"
This announcement baa been made the buill of an argument, by Dr.
Nichol, to overthrow the nebular. theory of the formation of the univelll8 ;
theory which had derived much of its popUlaritY from the powerful
argument in its behalf made by the IIIlIDe gentleman, a abort tinl\l before.
in his "Architecture of the Heevens." If Lord Rosse is quite lure of
the resolution of the nebula, it but confirms the previous declaration of
Dr. Lamont, and the nebular theory loses but little of its former strength
by the removal of a prop already much shaken by the Munich A.uonomer.
Resolved or unresolved, this is certainly, under every aspect, one of the
most sublime objects revealed by teleacopic agency-ao vast that the
mind fails, utterly, to grasp its mighty outlines. .-\ 8 a starry system, it is
so distant that the light which. leaves it, to journey to our eyes, spends
no lea! than :10,000 years in sweeping over the stupendous interval. As
a: nebula, it containll materials sufficient for the production of millions of
IIWlS and systems. VIeW it as we may, its vastnesa, its magnificence; mDBt
exalt our ideas of the omnipotence of the Great Architect of the Heavens.
Under the full power of the Cincinnati refractor, the deep contrast he-
tween the brilliancy of the stars and nebulosity. and the jet black heavens
on which they are aeen, is one of the most beautiful Bights in the heavens.
W hetlw this bitukfIPM be the .eIfilct of mere contrast, or an intrinsic
darkness, occasioned by the abeence of aU light, it ill difficult to determine.
This is not a solitary instance of the phenomenon in question. I have obo
lIIlrVed the same in lleVeral other instanca-but in no case have I remark-
ed such intense blackness in the heavens, as about this nebula.
.. OllloYJa.-A. R. = 6 h. 30 m. 4.1.. Dee. = - 2
0
"1' 8". A
multiple star just below the belt of Orion, an excellent object for fellting
the light of telescopes. There are no less than tm stars counted as the
components of thia one. A 4, a II, B 8, C 7, D 8i, E 9, F 8.
magnitudes.
34 HERBCHBL, OBIOJlJ8.-A. R. = 6 h. 33 m. 21 I; Dec. = +
go Oil' 2". A planetary nebula on Orion's neck.
Discovered by Herschel, and described by hill BOn as "a &maU 'pale,
but distinct nebula, with a &int disc, rather oval, and perhaps a little
mottled." .
78 MERalBR, ORIONIS.-A. R. = I) h. 38 m. 33.. Dec. = + 0
7". ." Two stars in a wispy nebula, just above Orion's hip." Thill
18 a remarkable
Discovered by Mellier in 1780.
CONSTELLATION OF ORION.
79
62 OBI,WIa.-A. R. = Ii h. 39 m. M.. ~ = + 60 13' 8". A
dose double IItar in Orion'. left ahoulder. A 6, B 6; riIepitude. The
position baa never cbanged.
Poe. 20()0 01 Dist. In.76 Epoch lsaUS &rii.w.
ERIDANU8.
To RIvER Po.-This constellation meanders over
a large and very irregular space in the heavens. . It
is not easy. nor scarcely desirable, to trace out all
its windings among the stars. Its entire length is
not less than 130
0
; which, for the sake of a m01'e
eas}'reference, astronomers divide into two sections,
the northern and the southern. That part of it which
lies between Orion and the Whale, including the
great bend about his paws, if! distinguitlhed by the
Dame of the Northern stream; the remainder of it
is called the 8uutJtern 6tream.
The Northern stream commences riefl.r Rigel
( M ~ p No. V). in the foot of Orion, and flows out
westerly, in a serpentine course nearly 400, to the
Whale (Map No. IV), where it suddenly makes a
compfete circuit and returns back nearly the same
distance towards its source, but bending gradually
down towards the south, when it again makes a
simihir circuit to the S. W. and finally disappears
below the horizon.
w;,. of {6 Orionis (Map No. V) there are five or sill stars of the 3d and
4th magnitudes, arching up in a semicircular form, and marking the firll
bend of the nurthem stream. About SO below these, or 190 W. of {J,
ia a bright star of the 2d magnitude, in the ,ecund bend of the northern
stream, marked". This star culminates thirteen minutes after the
Pleiades, and one hour and a quarter before (6. Passing ')-. and a smaller
star west of it, there are four stars nearly in a row, which bring us to the
breast of Cetus. SO N. of ')-, is a amalllltar named KUd, which is thought
byBODle to be considerably nesrer the earth than SiriUl.
. T hetmim, in the BOuthem stream, is a 8Iar of the 3d magnitude, about
1 7 ~ 8. W. of the equare in "epUll, and may be known by means of a
smaller star. 1 above it. AcktJrrw.r is a brilliant 8Iar of the 1st magnitude,
in the extremity of the aouthern stream; but having 68
0
of S. declina-
t1on, can never be _ in this latitude.
80 GEOGR.APHY OF THE HEAVENS.
The whole number of stars in this constellation is
eighty-four; of which, one i8 of the lst magnitude;
one of the 2d, ..and eleven are of the 3d. Many of
these cannot be pointed out by verbal description;
they must be traced from the map.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
98. P, m. EaID.uu.-A. R. = 3 h. 28 m. 36 e. Dee. = + 00
03' 7". A delicate deuble Btar, in the line joining It Celi and fd Oriom.,
at on&third their distance. A Si, yeUow; B 9, pale blue.
Diacovered by HeracheI.
Poe. 21111
0
Ill' Dial. 11".812 Epoch 1824.02 Btrun.
This o ~ is betweeu the BuU'. cheat and the northern branch of the
River.
107 HUllcBn I, EBID.lln.-A R; = 3 h. 33 m. 02.. Dec. =
- 19
0
04' 8". A white nebula between the two northern reachee of
the River. '.
Diacovered by Henchel, and deecribed U .. pale but distinct, round and
bright in the center."
32 EaID.lm.-A. R. == 8 b. 46 m. J 6.. Dec. == - 30 21\' 9".. A
double star between the cheat of Taurue and the River. A II, yellow ;
B 7._green.
Diecovered by HeracheL
Poe. 3490 45' Diat. 6".76 Epoch 18211.00 Struve.
39 EaID.lm,-A, R. = 4 l1. 06 m. 48.. Dec. - 10
0
39' 4". A
double ltar in the north, foUowing bend of the River. A 6, II full yellow; ..
B 11, .. deep blue,", , . .
Diacovered by Herschel.
Poe. 1520 Ill' Dial. 6".28 Epoch 1833.14 Stru_
26 H ... e B S ~ IV. RaID. un_A. R. = 4 h. 06 m, 50.. Dec. ==
- 13
0
09' I" A planetary nebula under the N. F. bend of the River.'
Discovered by Herschel, in J 784. who IIW it slightly eUiptieal, and
thought it might be a 'globular cluter at l1li immeDae distance.
CONSTELLATION OJ' AUIlIGA. 81
.DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. VI.
AUlUGA-THE W AGOJfER.
Fcmorohly situated for ezamiMtion in DecemlJer.
January, Febrw.ry and Marek. .
AURIGA.
THE Charioteer, called also the Wagoner, is rep-
resented on the celestial map by the figure of a man
in a reclining posture, resting one knee upon the
horn of, Taurus, with a goat and her kids in hid
right hand, and a bridle in his left.
It is situated N. of Taurus and Orion, between
Peneus on the W. and the Lynx on theE. Ita
mean declination is 45 N.; so that when on the
meridian, it is almost directly over head in New
England. It is on the same meridian with Orion,
and culminates at the same hour of the night.
Both of these constellations are on the meridian at
9 o ~ c l o c k on the 24th of January, and 1 hour and 40
minutes east of it on the 1st of January.
The whole number of visible stars in Auriga is
sixty-six, including one of the 1st and one of the 2d
magnitude, which mark the shoulders. Capella, ..
Aurigfe, is the principal starin this constellation,
and is one of the most brilliant in the heavens. It
takes ita name from Capella, the goat, which hangs
upon the left shoulder. It is situated in the west
shoulder of Auriga, 24
0
E. of Algol, and 28 N. E.
of the Pleiades. It may be known by a little sh.arp-
pointed triangle formed .by three stars, 3 or 4 this
side of it, on the left. It is also 18 N. of ~ Tauri,
which is common to the northern horn of Taurus,
and the right foot of Auriga. Capella comes to the
meridian on the 19th of January, just 21 minutes
82 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
before in the foot of Orion, which it very much
resembles in brightness.
Mmlralina, Auriga, in the eat ahoulder, i8 a liar of the 2d magni-
tude, 7lO E. of Capella, aud culminate. the nellt minute after Betelgu-,
" Orionia, 37,0 S. of it. e, in the right leg, i8 a liar or the 4th
magnitude, SO directly aouth of MenkaIina.
It may be 1'8IDIIJked" .. a curioua coincicJence, that the two IlIIrII in the
shouldem of Auriga are of the 8IUD8 magnitude, and just .. liar aput ..
thoae in Oric;m. opposite to Again, the two in the shoul- "
dere of Aunga, With the two m the shouldem of Onon, miIrIt the ell-
tremities of a long, narrow parallelogram, lying N. aud S., and whoee
length i8 just five timea ilB breadth. A hIo, the two &tan! in A uriga, and
the two in Orion, make two slender and aimilar trianglea, both meeting
in a common point," half way between them, at in the northern hom
of Taurue. .
Delta, a liar of the 4th magnitude in the Iiead of A uriga, is about 90
N. of the two in the shouldera, with which it makes a triangle, about half
the bight of thoae just alluded to, with the vertex at Delta. The two
IlIIrII in the should81'8 are therefore the baae of two .imilar triangles, one
8lItending about 90 N., to the head, the other ISO S., to the beel, on the top
of the born:" both figures together resembling an elongated diamond.
Della in the head, in the right moulder, and e in the ann of Auriga,
make a straight line with BeteJgutaI in Orion, I in the square of the
Hare; and in Noah'. Dove; all being very nearly on the IIWl8 meridiam,
40 W. of the solstitial colme.
II See next the Goatherd with his kids; he ehiDee
With seventy eIarII, deducting only (our,
Of which Capella never seta to WI,
And ican:e a liar with equal radiance beams
Upon the earth: two other eIaI'8 are seen
Due to the second order."-Eudnria.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS
AVRI .... -A. R. = 4 h. 4S m.24.. Dec. = + 370 38' 6". A.
double liar preceding the hip of Auriga. A 6. pale red; B 9,light blue.
Discovered by Sir W. Henchel, who recon1s the following _
PCM. = 362" 37' Diet. = 6" .1i0 Epoch" 1779.86
361 66 6 .46 Stri..ve.
Though the di8taneee recorded by Benchel differ from the later ones,
there is no retUIOII to believe that the difterence i4 due to an actual
dlange in the plaeee of these two 1lIIrII. Bencher. meana of makiJ!g
" meaauree were lese perfect than thoae now in use; and his mee8un!a are
1_ to be relied on, from thi8 cause.
II A VRI.a.-A little north, aud IiIllowing Aurip. A delirate
double star. A 6, B 10 magnitude.
Diacovered by Stri.. va, with the Polkova refradca-.
CONIITELLATION OF AURIGA.
83
A CUI .. DonLK s-ru.-A. R. = 4 'h. &7 m. 11.. Dec. == +
S'JO OS' 4". On the 1_ garment of Aurip. A 7. B 8 magnitude,
_ a looooe clullter. . '
by Str;ive, whoae measure. Itood as followB:
pqa. 12' Diet. = 1".61 Epoch 1828.60
, I" AUR1GB.-A.R. =I\b. 04 m. 69 .. Dec.=+ 82 29'8". A
triple alar in the right knee of A urip. A &. B 71. C 16 magnitude.
A and B, have been long known, C was recently added by Pro 8trC-w.
Be records theBe meuunIB.
A B Pc& 225
0
(8' Diet. 14".653, Epoch 1830.66
A C 342 37 12 .a77 18:10.1\6
A CLUI'nB.-A. R. ' 6 h. 17 m. 18 e. Dec. = + 35
0
10' S".
On the robe under the \eft thigh of A urip. This object is about 3' in
diameter. and is composed of atara of varioUl magnitudes, from the 10th
to the 14th. It is by a amalI double Itar. A 91. B 11 magni-
tude. Diet. 5".00
Diacovered by Henchel. 1787.
A Rrca CLUSTER-A. R. = 5 b. 18 m. 41.. Dec. = + 850 U'
9". On the left thigh aC Auriga.
Diacovered by Me.ier, 1764, and described by him as " a _ of ataI'II
ofa Iquare form, without any nebulosity, extending to about 16' of one
degree."
A RE80LVA1ILE N'EB1l'LI..-A. R, = 6 b. 20 m. '&1.. Dec. = +
34
0
06' 9". On the 1_ garment of Auriga.
J>i8oovered by Henehel in 1793, who say. that it _me to have one
or two atara in the middle, or an irregular nucleua.
,
A FllfE CLUITU.-A. R. = & b. 41 m. 46 Dec. =+ 32 30'
1". In front of Auriga's \eft Ihin. '
Diacovered by Meaaier, 1764, and maaa of amaIlltarI
in nebulous matter."
8 AUls.l.-A. R. = & h. 48 m. (8.. Dec. + 370 11"1". A
line double star in the \eft wrUt. A 4, lilac; B 10, pale yellow.
Pos. 2890 0' Diet. 30".00 Epocil 1832.64
41 AURI9B.-A. R. = & b. &9 m. 21.. Dec. = + 480 ' 1",
On the chin of Aurip. A 7. white; B 71.
Pos. 3630 07' Diet. 7".99 Epoch 1830,31 8triive. ,
Many other double and triple atara, nebula! and cluaten, may be found
on the chana, and by aligDmai1t their placea in the beavena may be
readily made out.
CONSTELLATION OF GEMINI. 85
CHAPTER II.
DIRECTIO:'llS FOR TRACING THE CON!lTELLATlONS ON
MAP,NO. VII.
GEMINI-THE TWINS.
CANCEJI.-THE CRAB.
CANIS MINOR-THE LrrrLE DOG.
Fa:vorahly situated for e:xami7Ullion in JanlUlry, Febru-
ary, Marck and April.
GEMINI.
THE TWlN8.-This constellation represents the
twin brothers, Castor and Pollux.
Gemini is the third sign, but fuurth constellal:itm in
the order of the Zodiac, and is situated south of the
Lynx, between Cancer on the east and Taurus on
the west.. The orbit of the earth passes through
the center of the constellation. As the earth moves
round in her orbit from the first point of Aries to the
same point again, the sun, in the meantime, will
appear to move through the opposite signs, or those
which are situated right over against the earth, on
the other side of her orbit.
Accordingly, if we could see the stars as the SUD
appeared to move by them, we should see it passing
over the constellation Gemini between the 21st of
June and the 23d of July; but we seldom see more
than a small part of any constellation through which
the sun is then passing, because the feeble luster
of the stars is obscured. by. the superior effulgence
of the sun.
When the lUll ill jUlt entering the outlinea of coIiateI1ation OIl the
H
86
GEOGRAPHY OF TIJE HEAVENS.
east, its weate.n limits may be aeen in the morning twilight,.JtISt aoovtt
the rising lun. So when the 11m h .. anived at the western limit of a
constellation, the eastern part of it may be aeen lingering in the evening
twilight, just behind the setting 11m. Under other circumetances, when
the 11m is said to be in, or to enter, a particular conltellation, it is to
be understood .that the conltellalion is not then visible, but that thOll8
opposite to it, are. for example: whatever conlltellation sets with the
sun on any day, it is Plain. that the one opposite to it mllBt be then riling,
and continue visible throughout the night. A 180, whatever constellation
rises and seta with the sun to-day, will, six months hence,' rise at 1Im-
setting, and set at 11m-riling. For example: the IIIIn is in the center of
Gemini about the 6th of July, and mual rise and set with it on that day;
consequently, six months from that time, or about the 4th of January. it
will rise in the eaat, jus!: when the sun is setting in the west. and will
come to the meridian at midnight; being then exactly opposite to .
the sun.
Now.. the stars gain upon the 11m at the rate of two hours every
month, it follows that the center of this conateIIatiOll will, on the 17th of
February, come to the meridian three hours earlier, or at 9 o'clock in the
evening.
It would be a pleuant ellercise for l&udents to propose questions to
each other, 80mewhat like the following:-What zodiacal constellation
will rise and set with tllll sun to-day 1 What one will rise at lIm-setting 1
What conltellation is three hours high at sun-set, and where will it be at
9 o'clock? What constellation rises two hours before the SUD 1 How
. daYI or IDOIlthe IIIlnce. and what hour of the evening or morning,
in what. part of the sky shall we _ the conateIIation whOll8 center is
nb .. where the IIIID is! &c., &c.
'tn IIOIving these and similar questions, it may be remembered that the
suJi iiin the vernal equinox about the 21st of March, from whence it
adVance8 through one sign or constellation every succeOOing mOllth there-
after; and that each ccmstellatinn'is one' month in advance of the Bigft
of that name: wherefore, reckon Pisces in March, Aries in April, Taurus
in May, and Gemini in June, &e. ;. beginning with- each COIllIteIlation at
tb,e 21.., or 21d of the month. .
Gemini contains eighty-five stal'f!, including two
of the four of the 3d, and six of the 4th magni-
tudes:. It is readily recognised by means of the two
principal stars, Castor and Pollux, a. and JJ, of the 2d .
magnitude, in the head of the Twins, about 41
apart.
There being only 11 minutes difference in the
transit of these two stars over the meridian, they
may both be considered as culminating at 9 o'cJock
about the 'l4th of February. . Castor, in the head
of Castor, is a of the 2d magnitude, 41 N. W.
CON8TELLA. TIC". OF GEMINI. 87
of ';pollux, and is the northernmost and the bright"'st
of the two. Pollux is a stili' of the 2d magnitude,
in the head of Pollux, and is -ij0 S. E, of Castor.
This is one of the stars from which the moon's
distance is calculated in the Nautical Almanac ..
--" Of the &.med Ledean pair,
One moat illua1rioua .tar adorns their IigD,
And of the second order shine twin lights."
The relative magnitude or brightness of these
stars has undergone considerable changes at differ-
ent periods; whence it has been conjectured by
various astronomers that Pollux must vary from
the 1st to the 3d magnitude. But Herschel, who
observed these stars for a period of twenty-five
ascribes the variation to Castor, which he
found to consist of two stars, very close together,
the less revolving about the larger once in 342
years and two months.
Bradly and Mutelyne tDund that the .Une joining the two IIIaJII which
form Castor was, at aU timeB of the year, parallel to the line joining Cutor
and Pollux; and that both of the former move around a common center
between them, in orbits nearly circular, as two balls attached to a rod
would do, if suspended by a string affixed to the center of pvity between
them.
"'J'heae men," .ys Dr. Bowditch, .. were endowed with a 1Iharpn_
of Tision, and a power of penetrating into space, almost unexampled in
the history of utronomy."
S. W. of Ca&tor and Pollux, and in a Une nearly parallel
with thilM,;' a row of stare 30 or 40 apart, chie1ly of the lid and 4th
magnitudes; -which distinguish the feet of the twins. The brightest of
theBe is Aihen4, 1'> in Pollux's upper foot; the next Bmall star S. of it, is
in hie other foot: the two upper IIIaJII in the line next above ,., mark
Castor's feet.
This row of feet is nearly two-thirds of the distance from Pollux to
Betelguese in Orion, and a line connecting them will through
A \hen&, the principal star in the feet. A bout two-thirds of the distance
from the two in the head to those in the feet, and nearly para11el with
them, there is another row of three IItarB about 6
0
apart, which IIlIIlk the
b_. .
There IU"8, in this C01llIteDation, two other reawbble parallel rows,
lying at right angles with the former; one, leading from the head to the
foot of Castor, the brighteat star being in the middle, and in the knee; the
88 GEOGR.\PHY OF THE HEAVENS.
other, leading from the head to the foot of Pollux, the brightest star"caUed
Waaat, I, being in the body, and C, next below it, in the knee.
Waaat is in the ecliptic, and very near the center of the constellation.
The two sta.ra, fA and Tejat, ., in the northern foot, are also very near
the ecliptic: 'rejat is a IIIIIBIi star of between the 4th and lith magnitude.,
2
0
W. of fA, and deserea to be notU;ed becau.e it marks the spot of the
summer solstice, in the tropic of Cancer, just where the sun is, on the
longest day of the year, and is moreover, the dividing limit between the
torrid and the N. temperate zone.
Propua, also in the ecliptic, W. of 0, is a star of only the 5th
magnitude, but rendered memorable as being the star which served for
many years to determine the position of the planet Herschel, after its firat
discovery. .
Thus as we pursue the study of the stars, we .hall find continually new
and more wonderful developments to engage our feelings and reward our
labor. We shall have the peculiar satisl8ction of reading the same volume
that was spread out to the patriarchs and poets of other ages, of admiring
what they admired, and of being led as they were led, to look upon these
lofty mansions of being as having, above them all, a common Father with
ourselves, " who ruleth in the armies of heaven, and bringeth forth their
hOllta by number."
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
A RICH CLURTK .. -A. R. = II h. 69 m. 01 So Dec. = 24
0
21' 8".
Near' Castor'. right foot. A very fine object; consiMing of a crowd 01
.tars from the 9th to the 16th magnitudeL
Discovered by Messier, 1764.
A C,.USTER.-A . R. = 6 h. 45 m. 56 So Dec. = + ISO 10' "".
On the calf of the right leg of Pollux; consists of minute stars of the
12th and 16th magnitudes, arranged IIOIDeWhat in the shape 01 a lim, as
described by fonner ohserven.
Discovered by Sir W. Herschel, 1783.
1. GZlI(INORlJlI(.-A. R. = 7 h. OS m. '1i4 So Dec. = + 16
0
49' 5".
A fine double star on the left thigh of PoUux. A 4i, white; B 12,
yellowish.
Discovered by StrUve, and thus measured.
Poe, 300 65' Dist. 9".56 Epoch 1829.86
I GElI(INORUJII'.-A. R. = 7h. 10 m. 34 So Dec. = + 22
0
Iii' 3.
A double star on the right hip of Pollux. A " pale white; " B 9,
"purple.
If
.
Discovered by Henchel, 1781.
Poe. 196
0
M' DiaL 7".15 Epoch 1829.72 Strc.ve
.. R. = 7 h. 34 m. 47.. Dec. = + 24
0
46' I;
A double star on the left shoulder of Pollux. A 4, orange; B 10, pale
blue. The minute companion of this star was pointed out as one of a
CONSTELLATION or GEMINL
89
f8w which Sir John HeracbeI thought deaerved attention, to
determine whether it might not be a BGtellite Minmg by reJleeUtlIigM
.,piacovered by Henchel, with his twenty feet re1Iector.
Poe. 231
0
9' DilL 6".0 Epoch 1838.98 Smyth.
61 GJ:Jllr.oau -A. R..= 7 h. 17 m. 31 .. Dec. = +20034! 3".
A coarse double and close double alar, making a quadrup)e set in the
loins of Pollux. A 7i. deep yellow; B 9, yellowish; C 8, blue; D 9,
bluish.
DC Poe. = 42
0
24' Diat. = 6".6 Epoch Smyth.
... GJ:.Il!IoalJ . -A. R. = 7 h. 24 m. 23.. Dec. = + no 14'.
A beautiful double Itar in the head of Cu'tor, and ll8llleel Castor. A 3,
B 3i. magnitude. This is one of the inteJeating 1Jinary tdGr.. The
earIieet position on record is by Bradly anti Pound.
Poe. 35f)D 68' Epoch 1719.84
This is deduced from the recorded position of the line joining the_ter
of the components of Castor, with re1enmce to a third IItar of the I I th
magnitude; distant abeut 72", In 1800, Sir W. Hemchel made the
poe. = 2930 03', ainoe then we lind, amOllg others, these measures.
Poe. 261
0
01' DilL 4". :'158 Epoch 1828.89 ve.
256 07 6 .280 \836.88 Encke, Galle.
252 49 4 .886 1841.11 M;;.dler.
M .. dler has the elements of the orbit of this star, and found
fur a probable Period 232 years. There are, however, yet many difficulties
in the way of reliable reaullB, and computers differ. More obaervati0n8
are to complete the examinati01l8 of this iriteresting binary
system.
!'I8 GII.r.oalJx;......A. R. = 6 h. 45 m. 37.. Dec. - + 130 22' 6".
A double star 011 the left instep of Pollux. A 5j, B 8. magnitude. The
large .tar yellow, the mnaII one purple.
Discovered by Henchel in 1781.
Poe. 1790 54' . Diat. 7".95 Epoch 1781.99 HeracbeI.
174 '53 5 .73 1829.24 Struve.
172 02 6 .42 1841.27 M;;.dler.
)I:i.dler thinka this ""stem may be binary. in which _ its periodiI:
time cannot fall much below 3000 years.
4 CJ,USTKR.-A. R. = 7 h. 28 m. 57.. Dec. = + 210 66' 7"
On me left sboulder of Pollux.
Discovered by HerolChel in 1783,' and desciibed as .. a beautiful ciUlla
oCmany large and small stara, abeut IS' in diameter."
82
GEOGRAPHV 01<' THE HEA VEJ. ... s.
THE C:EL'!,'!,
sign of
between
contains
4th
ANUER. ,
fifth constella.tiuH
It is situated
E. and Gemini
stars, of which
Beta a star of the 4th magnitude, in the south-
wester.I claw, 10 N.E. of Procyon,G Canis Minoris,
and may be known from the fact that it stands alone,
or a.t least has no star of thn same magnitude near
it. It is midway between Procyon and Acubens.
of the 5th tbe
10 N. E. of Beta,
a st.raight it and Procymt.
otherwise! by its' standing
two verg close by it in
\e in the back,
small star, of between the 5th and
Sio in a northerly direction from Beta. It. is a
treble star, and to be distinctly seen, requires very
favorable circumstances. Two of them are so near
together that it requires a telescopic power of 300
to separate them.
About t\E;nEitErlly
10us cluEinE
Cancer,
naked eyn.
with
Dog, W. of each.
wi8e be discovered by means of two conspicuous
stars of the 4th magnitude lying one on either side
of it, at the distance of about 2, called the rwrthcrn
and southern Aselli. By some of the Orientalists,
this cluster was denominated Pr(Z$cpe, the Manger,
a. contrivance which their fanty fitted up for the
CONSTELLATION ciF CANCER.
91
accommodation. of the .Aaelli or Asses; and it is so
called by modern ftstronomers. The appearance
of this nebula to the unassisted eye, is not unlike
the nucleus of a comet, aud it was repeatedly
mistaken for the comet of 1832, which, in the
month of November, passed in its neighborhood.
The southern Asellus, marked 6, is situated in the
line of the ecliptic, and in conneotion with 6 and
Gemini, 'I, mark.s the course of the earth's orbit tilr
a space ot 36 from the solstitial colure.
There are several other double and nebulous
stars in this constellfttion, most of which are too
small to be seen; and indeed, the whole constella-
tion is less remarkable for the brilliancy of its stars
than any other in the Zodiao.
The sun arrives at the sign Cancer about the 21st
of June, but does not reach the constellation until the
23d of July.
The mea.n right aBcenllion of Cancer is 128. It
is consequently on the meridian the 3d of Maroh.
A few degrees S. of Cancer, and about 170 E. of Procyon, are four
ltam of the 4th magnitude, SO or 4 apart, which 'mark the head of
B ~ beginning of the BIgn Cancer (not the constellation) is called the
Tropic of Canur, and when the BUD arrives at this point, It has reach"d
its utmOllt limit of north declination, where it seems to remain stationary
a few days, before it begin8 to decline again to the 8OUth. This etation-
ary attitude of the BUn is called the BUmmer MJilltice; Iiom two Latin
words signifying the sun', Btanding .tiiJ. The distance from the first
point of Cancer to the equinoctial, whlch at present, is 230 27!', is csllPd
the ob/iquit!( of the tt:liptie. It is a remarkable and well ascertained
iu::t, that this 18 continu8lly growing less and less. ,The tropics are
Rowly and steadily approaching the equinoctial, at the rate of about half
a IeCOnd every year; 80 that the sun dOllil not now come 80 far north of
the equator in summer, nor decline 10 far IIOUth in winter, iii! it m\l8t have
tIoae at the creation, by nearly a degree.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
11 Cnelll.-A. R. = 7 h. 69 m. 02 s. Dec. = + 270 116' 4".
A cloae double Itar between ~ head of Pollux and the preceding claw
.C-. A 7. B 12, D.
.92 GEOGRAPHY OF ITHE BEAVPS.
Diat. S".18 Epoch 1828.26 8trilve.
{ Cuc.I.-A .. R. = 8 b. OS m. 01 L Dec. = + 18
0
07' 6". A
fiue triple star just below the following claw of Cancer. A 6, yellow i
B 7, orange; C 7i, yellowish.
Discovered by the elder Hemchel.
A B Poe. 3028' Dist.= 1".00 Epoch 1781.901HelIICheL
A C 181 44 8 .06 1781.90 S
:!: Struve.
A BIOI 6" 1 .060 1841.31 l
A C 147 64 6 .008 1841.31SMidler.
'rhis is a very remarkable object. Captain Smyth deduced a period for
.It. and B of sixty years, while C performs its revolution about the other
two in 600 or 600 yeam Here is It ternary ayltem; three I\IJIII re-
volving about their common center of gravity, and clou_ each attended
by a retinue of planets. How wonderful must be the heavens to the in-
habitants of the planets attached to this triple Imagine a yellow
BUD rising, an orange one on the meridian, while a purple or blue, or red
one, DlDy be in the act of sinking below the horizon I Again, the powerfial
analysis with which man urges his way through the intricaciea of our
simple solar aylltem, woulcl utterly fail to trace the career of a planet sub-
jected to the contencling inftuenoea of three grand om. like the sun. May
we not infer, from this fRet. the existence of raeea of a higher order of
intellect in the planets of theae ternary aystemB!
2 CUCKJ.-A. R. = 8 h. 17 m. 6 L Dec. == + 17
0
17' r .
.It. cloae double star above the northern legs of Cancer. A 6, B 6j,
magnitude. Its position is probably fixed. .
POL 2120 01'. Diat. 4:'.563 Epoch 1829.46 Strilve.
,1 Cuc.I.-A. R. = 8 h. 17 m 08.. Dec. =+ 16
0
03' 3". A
double star on the crab's northern middle leg. A 7. B 7i.
Discovered by H8TIIl'hel. 1782. Measured by him u follows :
POL 670 tH' Epoch 17H:'1.07 Herschel.
In 1822. Sir James South and Sir John Herschel found the position to
be 37
0
47', whence a rapid retrograde motion 11'88 inferred, but aU su.
quent measures disprove this inference, and inclicate a clirect motion.
Poe. 390 04' Dial. 6".723 Epoch 1841.35 M;idler.
I R. = 8 h. 35 m. 35 8. Dec. = + 1 SO 44' 4" .. A
difficult double star under the crab's mouth. A 4j, B 15, magnitude.
,Cul'cJU.-A. R. = 8 b. 37 m. 00 . Dec. = ISO 20' 4". A
double star at the end of the crab'. aorthern claw. A 61, pale orIIIIp;
B 8, clear blue.. This is the tint double star I ever _11'. In July 1841,
I had the pleuure of examining it at the obaervatory of' Sir Jamea South,
Kensington. The colora were diatinet and beautifully contrasted
. POL 307 06' Diat. 80".46 Epoch 1828.04 Struve.
No material mange baa occurred in fifty-fOur yean, the time since ill
discovery by .HeJICheL
CONSTELLA TION OF CANCER. 93
67 ME811U, C.lIle.I.-A. R. = 8 h. 42 m. 211.. Dec. = + 12
23' 6". A rich but _ttemd cluster, at the root of the southern claw of
Cancer. It is readily I88Olved. and with a power of 167 He_hel counteJ
two hundml IIlara of various magnitudell, from the 9th to the smallest
magnitude. I have frecJuently examined this apIendid objP.t"t, and from
ita appearance suppose It to be one of the near .. island wuvemes. '
Discovered by Me.ier, 1780
.. 2 CneRI.-A. R. =8h. m. 28 a. Dec.=+31
0
10'9" . \
doae double star over the crab'. northem claw. A 6i. B 7 magnitude.
Diaoovered by Sir W. Herschel. 1782.
PO&. 333 18' DiaL = 1".61 Epoch 1829.71 &ruvt>.
There is little evidence of any change of position, though the meaaunlll
JeeOIded are far from coincidenL "
.. 4 C."e.I.-A. R. = 8 h. 61 m.36a. Dec. = + a:ao 62' 4". -'
cloae douhle star, following the crab's northern claw. A 6, white; B
9, blue.
Discovered by South, 1825.
PO&. 13747' DiaL 4",60 Epoch 1831.16 StrUve.
CANIS MINOR.
TUE Ln-rLB Doa,-This small constellation is
situated about 6 N. of the equinoctial, and mid-
way between Canis Mf\jor and the Twins. It
contains fourteen stars, of which two are very
brilliant. The brightest star is cfllled Procyon,
marked G. It is of the 1st magnitude, and is about
4 S. E. of the next brightest, GoTrwlm, marked 13,
wbich is of the 3d magnitude.
Tbese two stars resemble the two in the head of
the Twins. Procyon, in the Little Dog, is 23 S.
of Pollux in Gemini, and Gomelza is about the same
distance S. of Castor.
A great number of geometrical figures may be
formed of the principal stars in the vicinity of the
Little Dog. For example; Procyon is 23 S. of
Pollux, and 26 E. of Betelgues"e, and forms wHh
them a large right angled triangle. Again, Procyon
is equidistant from Betelguese and Sirius, and forms
with them an triangle whose sides al'8
94 GEOGRAPHY OF THE REA. VE,N8.
f'ach about 26
0
If a straight line,
Procyon and Sirius, be produced 23 farther, it will
point out Phaet, in the Dove. .
Procyon is often taken for the name of the Little
Dog, or for the whole constellation, as Sirius is for
the greater one; hence it is common to refer to
t>ither of these constellations by the name of its
pl'incipal star. Procyon comes to the meridian
fifty-three minutes 'after SiriUI, on the 24th of
February; although it rises, i,n this latitude, about
half an hour it. For this reason, it was called
Pl-ocyrm, from iwo Greek words which signify (Ante
Canis) " before the
" Canicula, fourteen thy atam; but fiIr
Above them all, illustriouB throUgh the skies,
Beams Proeyun: justly by Greece thUB called
The bright /fR'tlrUnmr of the greo.ter Dog."
From an irregularity in the annual proper motion
of Procyon, Bessel concluded that it was disturbed
by some invisible opaque body of vast size, snnk .in
space, near Procyon. StrUve has recently cast a
doubt on the reality of this irregularity, and thinks
it is due to imperfeot observations.
CONSTELLATION OF 05
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONBTF.I.l .. ATJON8 Ol'r
MAP NO. VIII.
MONOCEROS-THE UNICOaN.
CANIS MAJOR - THE GREAT DOG.
LEPUS-THE HARE.
TRE PaINTING Puss.
Favurably situated for examination in January, Febru-
ary aM Marek.
MONOCEROS.
THE UNICOBN.-This is a modern constellation,
which was made out of tbe unformed "tars of the
ancients that lay scattered ,\ver a large space of
the heavens between the two Dogs. It extends a
considerable distance on each "ide ofthf! equinoctial,
and its center is on the same meridian with Procyon.
. It contains thirty-one small stars, of which the
seven principal ones are of only the 5th magnitude.
Three of' these are situated in the hf'!ad, 3 or 4
U
agart, forming a straight line N. E. and S. W. about
9 E. of Betelguese, in Orion's shoulder, and about
same distance S. of Alhena, in the foot of the
Twins.
The remaining stars in this constellation are
scattered over a large space, and being very small,
are unworthy of particular notice;
TEl .. ESCOPIC OBJECTS.
104 P. VI,Molfoc .. arJ8.-A.R.=8h.I8m. 50 . Dec.=+
00 32' 6". A coaJ'IIe triple. 01' dose double star. A 7j. B and C, each
8j magnitude. As A and B are 66" apart, we ahalJ OII1y have to do
with B and C. This is ODe of Struve'. "vincinisseme" IItarB. Be
reporbI theE _
POI. 1680 48' DiIt. 0".78 Epoch IN.I'
11 M..-ocllaarll.-A. R. = I h. 21 m. "'.. Dec. = - 6 66' 1" .
96 OF THE HEAVENS.
A line triple star in the right fore leg of MonOOllJ'08. A 61, B 7, C 8,
magnitude.
Discovered by Sir W. Hencbel, and by him IBid to be one of the lIIOI&
beautiful Bights in the heavens.
A B Po.. 101
0
44' Dist. ::".41i3 Epoch 1831.23 Strilve.
A B 103 41 2 .657 18"2021 Mi>dler.
A C 310 00 7 .253 1831.23 StrUve.
A C 311 23 7 .205 1842.21 M::dler.
B C 304 40 9 .452 1842.21 M:<dler.
M::.dler thinks thia may proYe to be a triple system, in which cue the
obIervatiOIlII would indicate for A and B a period of nearly 17,000 yean,
and for B and C a period of more than 1,000 years.
14 MlIl'OCzalrrll.-A. R. = 6 h. 26 m. 06 I. Dec. = + 70 41'
6". A difficult double star in the eye of the Unicorn. A 6, B 16,
magnitude. Smyths estimates are follows:
POL 2100 0' Dist.. 10".0 Epoch 1833.87
16 MOl'OCzalrrI8.-A. R. = 6 h. 32 m. 10 B. Dec. = + 100 02'
t
H
A triple star between the 88111 of Monoceros. A 6," greeniah; "
B 9," pale grey;" C 15," blue.'" .
Discovered by Str .. ve.
Poe. A B 208
0
66' Dist. 2".76
A C 12 90 16 .58
Epoch 1831.37lStr"
183I.a75 Llve.
50 MS IJIR, MOlJOOll11Irr'B.-A. R. = 6 h. 65 m. 11 B. Dec. =-
SO 06' 7". A luge cluster in the Milky Way, on the Unicorn'. right
shoulder, composed of stars varying from the 8th to the 16th magnitwk>
Discovered by Me.ier, 1771. .
CANIS MAJOR.
TUE GIlJ!lAT DOG.-This interesting constellation
is situated southward and eastward of Orion, and
is universally known by the brilliancy of its prin-
ci pal star, Siriua, marked G, which is apparently the
largest and brightest in the heavens. It glows in
the winter hemisphere with a luster which is un-
equaled by any other star in the firmament.
Its distance from the earth, though computed at
twenty millions of millions of milet'l, has been con-
sidered less than that of any other star: a dit..tanoe,
however, !!IO great that a cannon ball, which fii'3s at
the rate of nineteen miles a minute, would be two
millions of years in over the mighty inter-
CONSTE1.LATION OF CANIS MAJOR. 97
val; while Bound, moving at the rate of thirteen
miles a minute, would reach Sirius in little les8
than three millions of years.
It Day be IIbown in the _ IDIUIDI!I', that a ray of light. which occu-
piM only eight minute. and tbirteen II8COIIda in coming to us from the
IUD, which is at the rate of nearly two hundred thouaand mi1ee a second,
would be three y_ and eighty-two day. in puaing through the VlIIJt
apace that Iiea between Sirius and the eazth. COJIII8Quently, were it
b/oUed from the heavellll, ita light would continua visible to us for B period
of three y_ and eighty-two daye after it had. ce.-l to be.
If the neare8t IItarII pve BUeb ~ l'8Iultl, what ahall we say m
thme which ue lituated a thou.nd timea u liar beyund th., u theae
uefrom us1
In the remote ages of the world, when every man
was his own astronomer, the rising and setting of
Sirius, or the Dog-star, as it is caned, was watched
with deep and various solicitude. The ancient
Thebans, who first cultivated astronomy hi Egypt,
determined the length of the year by thE" numbe'r
of its risings. The Egyptians watched its rising
with mingled apprehensions of hope and fear j as
it was ominous to them of agricultural prosperity
or blighting drought. It foretold to them the rising
of the Nile, which they called Siria, and admonish-
ed them when to sow. The Romans were accus-
tomed yeaJ;ly, to sacrifice a dog to Sirius to render
him propitious in his influence. upon their herds
and fields. The eastern nations generally believed
the rising .of Sirius would be productive of great
heat on the earth.
Thus V"ugil :
-.-" Tum IImilei _ Sirius apII:
Anlebant herbm, et ~ -sea IBIJI'B negabat. "
-" Pan:bed _ the irua, and blighted _ the com.
Nor '_1'8 the beuIa; for Sirius, from on high,
With l-tilimtial heat infileIa the *y."
. Accordingly, to that season of the year when
Sirius rose with the sun and seemed to blend its
own influence with the heat of that luminary, the
I
98 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
ancients gave the name of Dog-Jays, (Dies Canicu-
lares). At that remote period the Dog-days com-
menct'd on the 4th of August, or four days after the
summer solstice, and lasted forty days, or until the
14th of September. At present the Dog-days begin
on the 3d of July and continue to the 11 th of August,
being one day less than the ancients reckoned.
Hence, it is plain that the Dog-days of tlte mod-
erns have no 'reference whatever to the rising of
Sirius, or any other star, because the time of their
rising is perpetually accelerated by the precession
of the equinoxes: they have reference then, olJly
to the summer solstice, which never changes ita
position in respect to the seasons.
The time of Sirius' rising vane. with the latitude of the place, and in
the same latitude, is sensibly changed after a coune of yeara, on account
of the precesaion at the equinoUs. ThiS enables UB to determine with
approximate accuracy, the datea of many events of antiquity, which CBJl-
nol be well determined by other records. We do not know, for instance,
in what precise period of the world Heaiod flourished. Yet he tella
us, in his Opera et Diu, lib. ii. v. 185, that Arcturus in bis time rose
heJiacally. sixty days after the winter BOlatice, which then was in the 9th
degree of Aquarius, or 890 beyond itit present position. Now 89
0
: 54i
H
= 2794 years since the time of Heaiod, which corresponda very nearly
with bistory. '
Wben a star rose at sun_tting, or set at sun-rising, it was called the
.A.cltrrmieal rising or setting. When a planet or star appelll'lld, above the
borizon just before the sun, in the morning, it was called the
rising of the star; and when it sunk below the horizon immediatE'ly after
the sun, in the evening, it was calJed the Heliacal setting. Aceording
to Ptolemy, atara of the.fir" magnitude are seen rising and setting when
the sun is 12 below the horizon; &tara of the 2d magnitude require the
sun's depreMion to be 18
0
; &tara of the 3d magnitude, 140, and 80 on,
allowing one degree for each magnitude. The rising and setting of the
stars described in this way, IIinee this mode of description often oocura in
Heaiod, Virgil, Columella, Ovid, Pliny, &c., are called podia:Il rising and
setting. They served to mark the times of religious ceremonies, the
seasons aUoUed to the several departments of husbandry, and the ov_
flowing of the Nile.
The student be perplexed to understand how
the Dog-star, which he seldom sees till mid-winter,
should be associated with the most fervid heat of
mmme1'. This is explained by considerin(J' that'
CON8TELLA TION OF CAN18 MAJOR. 9Y
this star, in summer, is over our heads in the day-
time, and in the lower hemisphere lit night. As
" thick the floor of heaven is inlaid with patines of
bright gold," by day, as by night; but on account
of the superior splendor of the sun, we cannot see
them.
Sirius is easily recognised, being the brightest star
in the heavens, and is pointed out by the direction
of the Three Sta1'8 in the belt of Orion. Its distance
from them is ahout 23. It comes to the meridian
at 9 o'clock on the 11th of February.
Mi1'%lJm, marked /1, in the foot of the Dog, is a star
of the 2d magnitude, 5}0 W. of Sirius. A little
above, and 4 or 6 to the left, there are three stars
(If the 3d and 4th magnitudes, forming a triangular
tigul'e somewhat resembling a dog's head. The
brightest or them, on the left, is called M1dipken,
marked 'Y' It entirely disappeared in 1670, and
was not seen again for more than twenty years.
Since that time it has maintained a steady luster.
Wesen, marked is a star of the 3d magnitude,
in the back, 11 S. S. E. of Sirius, with which, and
Mirzam in the paw, it makes an elongated triangle.
The two hinder feet are marked by Naos and
Lambda, stars of the 3d and 4th situ-
ated about 3 apart, and 12 directly S. of the fore
foot. This constellation contains thirty-one visible
stars, including one of the lst magnitude, four of
the 2d, and two of the 3d; all of which are easily
traced out by the aid of the map.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
, 1 C.un. Muo.rl.-A. R. = 6 h. 29 m. lI3.. 'Dee, == - 180
32' 0". A double Itar in the Greater Dog's left knee, about 3':' aoutb- c
weill of SiriUII. A B 8, magnitude.
Poe. 2111
0
36' Die&. !r.M Epoeh 1842,82 Main.
.. C ... M ..... 01"&, SI.,uI.-A. R. = 6 h. 3R m. 06.. llee, =-
1H
Y
30' 1", A Itar of the fuat in the mouth of the Greater
100 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEA VEN&
Dog, the IDOIl briWant of all the fixed IItar8. The teleecopic appearance
of tbia oiject mUl& be _ to be IIJIllII!clated Long befOre it enters the field
of the teleacope, ita eoming ill indicated by a gradually brighteDing dawn,
which slowly increaEa in aplen.dor, until the IItar enters with ita full blue,
tj)() powerfu1 to be home by the light.
lIB entrance BDd diIappeuance .-bletbe riling mel Betting of
the IUD.
Siriua was long regarded aa the neamat of all the fixed '1IIuB, from ita
e:rceeding brilliancy. I.ong and delicate IDeII81ln!II have been made to
determine ilB paralla:r, but without aatDfiletory _Ita. Yet ibl proper
motion ill great, and readily deduced fiom a few yean of ot.erntionll.
On a comparison of the place of Sirius, aa laid down by the earliest Greek
utronomers, with ita preaent position, and computing the ehangee due to
the preaent rate of proper motion. ~ deducea the curiou filet that
the annual proper motion ill not ",ni/_! 'l'hiI ill true of a few other
Ii ,00 staJII. 1'0 account for thia .phenollK'llOll, H ~ ClOJICI!ivee that
Siriu is subJected to the influence of lOme vast body, which, from the
liact of ilB being non-luminous, haa never been diacovered. How wonder-
ful would it be, ifby a ripllICI'Utiny of the devistions of tbe proper motiOll8
of Sirius from uniformity, we should be led to a knowledge of the position
in space of this dark disturbing body, of whCllle place and exiltence,
indeed, the eight can reveal to us nothing.
The latest and best measures for parallax are by Henderson and
McLear, who found for the angle subtended by the radiu of the earth'.
orbit, at a distance equal to Sirius. OH .t3. or about one quarter of one
IIOOOnd of space. In eIIBe we adopt this aa the true paralla:r, the distance
of 8iriu must be nearly eighty million. of millions of miles, aDd from ita
splendor we are able to infer, with certainty, that ilB magnitude is very
much greater than that of our IUD. Indi!OO, Dr. Walliston, auuming
the diltance to be I;mt half the above, concludes fiom his photometrical
measures, that Sirius, if seen as near .. the sun, would present a diameter
four times greater than that of the BUD.
". CUIB MnollIs.-A. R. = 8 h. 48 m. 48 L Dec. = - ISO 60'
6
H
A double IItar on the Dog's right ear. A iii, yellow; B 91, grey.
Diacmered by Struve, who gives theBe ineaaurea.
POL 3430 31' Diet.. 3".22 Epoch 1831.30
14 HliIIlICR&L, VB Cu,s Mnollll.-A. R. = 6 h. 6' m. 10 ..
Dec. = - 13
0
29' ,H. A clueter of BtarI back of the Dog'. head, about
20' in diameter. The atara range from the 8th to the 11 th magnitude.
Discovered by HencheL
12 HSUCR ... , VB CUll MUO.IB.-A. R. = 7 h. 10 m. 35 L
Dec. =-16
0
21' 4
H
A clueter ofBtarl between the Dog and Unicorn;
and comiata principally of BtarI of the 16th magnitude.
Discovered by MilIa HencheL .
CONSTELLATION OF LEPUS. 101
LEPUS.
To HABE.-This constellation is direct-
ly south of Orion, and comel! to the meridian flt the
.,ame time; namely, on the 24th of January. It hae
a mean declination 18 S. and contains nineteen
small stars, of which, one is of the 2d, one of the 3d,
and six of the 4th magnitudes. It may be readily
distinguished by means of four stars of the 3d mag-
nitude, in the form of an irregulflr square, or
trapezium.
Zeta, of the 4th magnitude, is the first star, and
is situated in the back, 5 S. of Saiph, in Orion.
About the same distance below" are the four prin-
cipal stars, in the leg!'! and feet. These fOl'm the
square. They are marked A,j3, ,)" II. A and /3, other-
wise called Arneb, form the N. W. end of the tra-
pezium, and are about 3 apart. 'Y and II fOl'm the
S. E. end, and are about 21- apart. ,The upper
right' hand one, which is Arneb. is the brightest of
the four, and is near the center of the constellation.
Four or five degrees S. of Rigel are four very minute
stars, in the ears of the Hale.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
, LEPORls.-:\. R. = 5 h. 04 m. 50.. Dee. = - 120 03' 9". A
double star in the left ear of the Hare. A 4i, B U, magnitude.
Poe. :1,,9 31' DiaL 12".34 Epoch Herschel
3:17 39 12 .81 1832.25 Struve.
,. LXPORI -.o\. R. = Ii h. 5 m. 51.. Dee. = - lao 08' 0". A
douhle star at the rool of the ear. A 5. B 9, magnitude.
POI. .358" 68' Dis&. 3".053 Epoch 1832.23 Struve.
12
102 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
Dl&ECTlONS FOR TRACING THE CON8TELLATJONS ON
MAP NO. IX.
LBo M.uoR-TuB GREAT Lim .
SUTAN8-0 TUE SUTANT.
Favorohly rituoted for exmni7lD.ticm in Marek, AprU,
and May.
LEO
. THB LloN.-This is one of the most brilliant con-
stellations in the winter hemisphere, and contains
an unusual number of very bright stars. It is situ-
ated next E. of Cancer, and directly S. of Leo
Minor and the Great Bear.
The Hindoo AaIzonomer, Varaha says. " Certainly the IIklthern aoI-
,lice W1III once in the middle of .A8ieAa (Let,); the nonhern in the lint
degree of DIu.miII&tIJ" (.tquariU8). Since that time, the IOl.etitial, u
well .. the equinoctial pointa, have gone backwards on the ecliptic 7f,o.
1'bia divided by 5Oi", gi_ 6378 YeBlll; whicll carry us back to the
year of the world 464 . Sir W. JODeI, laY. that Varaba lived when the
IDIaticea were in the lint ~ of Cancer and Capricorn; or about 400
yeBlll befOre the ChriIIian era.
Leo is the fi.fth lign, and the ai:dll cQDsteIlation
of the Zodiac. The mean right ascension of this
extensive group is 150, or 10 hours. Its center is
therefore on the meridian the 6th of April. Its
western outline, however,comes to the meridian
on the 18th of March, while its eastern limit does
not reach it before the 3d of May.
This constellation contains ninety-five visible
stars, of which one is of the 1st magnitude, one of
the :.!d, six of the 3d, and fifteen of the 4th.
The principal star in this constellation is of the
1st magnitude, situated in the breast of the animal,
marked A, and named RegulU8, from the illustrious
Roman consul of that name.
CON8TELLA TION OF LEO.
. 103
It is situated almost exactly in the ecliptic, and
may be readily distinguished on account of its
superior brilliancy. It is the largest and lowest of
a group of five or six bright stars which' form a
figure somewhat resembling a sickle, in the neck
and shoulder of the Lion. There is a little star of
the 5th magnitude about f1' S. of it, and Olle of the
3d magnitude 5 N. of it, which will serve to point
it out. .
Regulus is t.he brightest star ill the constellation.
Great use is made of Regulus by nautical men, for
determining their longitude at sea. Its lolitude, or
.distance from the ecliptic, is less than 1; but its
dedi1lOJ.Um., or distance from the equi1llJCtiol is nearly
13 N.; 80 that its meridian altitude will be just
equal to that of the sun on the 19th of August. Its
right ascension is very nearly 1500. It therefore
about 9 o'clock on the 6th of April.
Wheu Regulus iI 011 die meridian, Cutor and Pollux aze _ about
400 N. W. of it, and the two atara in the Little Dog, are about the II8DIIl
diItance in a 8. w. diJectien; with which, and the two fOrmer, it makeII
alarp triangle whole iI 11& Beguhu.
The next considerable star, is 5 N. of Regulus,
marked'!, situated in the collar; it is of between
the 3d and 4th magnitudes, and, with Regulus,
constitutes the handle of the sickle. Those three
or four stars of the 3d magnitude, N. and W. of,!,
arching round with the neck of the animal, describe
the blade .
.Al Gieba, marked 'Y, is a bright star of the 3d
magnitude, situated in the shoulder, 4 in aN. E.
direction from,!, and may be easily distinguished
by its being the brightest and middle one of the
three stars lying in a semicircular form, curving
Lowards the west; and it is the first in the blade of
the sickle.
MJwjera, marked" is a star of the 4th
li.tuated in the neck,4 N. of.Al Gieba, and may be
104 . GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
known by a very minute star just below it. This
is the second star in the blade of the siokle.
Ro,s oJ Asad, marked /4, situated before the ear, is
a star of the 3d magnitude, 6 W. of Adhafera, and
is the third in the blade of the Bickle. The next
star, I, of the same magnitude, situated in the head,
is 2io s. W. of Ras al Asad, and a little within the
curve of the sickle. About midway between these,
and a little to the E., is a very small star, hardly visi-
ble to the naked eye. .
1AmJJda, situated in the mouth, is a star of the
4th magnitude, 3&-0 S. W. of I, and the last in the
sickle's point. Kappa, situated in t h ~ nose, is an-
other star of the same magnitude, and about as far
from,. as ,. I and. are about ai apart, and form
the longest side of a triangle, whose vertex is i.n .
Zosma, marked 3, situated above the back of the
Lion, is a star of the 3d magnitude,18 N. E. of Re-
gulus, and midway between it and Coma Berenices,
a fine cluster of small stars, 18 N. E. of Zozma.
Tketa, situated in the tail, is another star of' the
3d magnitude, 6 directly S. of Zozma, and so nearly
on the same meridian that it culminates but one
minute' after it. This star makes a right angled
triangle with Zozma on the N., Denebola on the E.,
the right angle beini at).
Nearly in a straight line with Zozma, and ), and
south of them, are three or four smaller stars, 4 or
6 apart, which mark one of the legs .
.1Jene/Jda, marked /J, is a bright star of the 2d mag-
nitude, in the brush of the tail, 10 S. E. of Zozma,
and may be distinguished by its great brilliancy. It
is 6 W. of the equinoctial colure, and comes to the
meridian one hour and forty-one minutes after He-
gulus, on the 3d of May; when its meridian altitude
is the same as the sun's at 12 o'clock the next day.
When Denebola is on the meridian, ReguJus is _ 250 W. of it, and
DUd, in die 1q1W8 of U. M.jor. beaD a90 N. of iL Ii m-. will
CON8TELLA TION 01' LEO.
105
tbeee two, _large right aJIIIed biaagle; the right angle bfing al Denebola.
It ill 80 nearly on the _ meridian witll had that it eulmiDatee only
tOur minutes befure it.
Denebola is 351 W. of Arctur1l8, and about the
same distance N. W. of Spica Virginis, and forms,
with them, a large equilateral tria.ngle OD the S. E.
It also forms with Arcturus and Cor Caroli a similar
figure, nearly as large on the N. E. These two
triangles, being joined at their base, constitute a
perfect geometrical figure of the form of a Rhom-
bus: called by some, the DIAMOND or VIllGO.
A line drawn from Denebola tbrougb RegulWl, and continued 70 or SO
fiuther in the _ direction, will peint out e and .. of the 4th and 6th
magnitudes, IIitua&ed in the fore cia.., and about so aput.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
. .. -A. R. = 9 b. 19 m. &a Dec. = + 90 W rY'. A
WJrf close double star on the Lion'. left fore fooL ThiI hu long beea
IDOIIt difficult test #d.
Diacovered by Heracbel, in 1782, who found the poa. = 1100 MI, and
eItimated tile distaw:e al one quarter the diameter of tile larger star;
magnitude ill 6i, tile IIID8lJer 7i.
POI. 15a<> 56' Di&. 0".970 Epoch 1825.21 8tril_
178 18 0 .800 1835.33 Struve.
194 00 0 .BOO 1841.35
In 1842 it WIllI .. _1IingIe atar, by Mad1er.
The elementa of the orbit haWl been computed by Kiidler, who finda
_ period of 82j yean. By hia computatiOll8 the a&ar8-were distant 1".45,
tIleir maxinm, in 1800. After _ lapae of fifty-two yeara they will reach
their Ieut diatance 0".2, which will -.reeIy be meuurable in tile IDOI&
powerful inatnunel)ta.
57 HJlRlcan I, LlIOlUI.-A. 1l. = 9 h. 23 m. 07.. Dec. = +
120 12' I". A double white nebula in the lower jaw of Leo. '!'here is
_ double nUIlI with the nebuloeiliee commingling.
,. LlIOlfll.-,\. R. = 10 b. II m. 08.. Dec. = +'100 39' 0". A
be8utiful double atar near the Lion'. mane. A 2, bright orange; B 4,
greenish yellow. _ Thia is doubtleaa _ binary ayatern, whoae period may
reach _ tlwulmld yearll ! I have repeatedly examined this splendid 0b-
ject, witll _ po_ of 600; the Cincinnati refractor ehOWl the cliab of
both the IItaI'I round and clear.
DUcovered by Herachel, 1781.
POI. 103" 22' nut. 2".60 Epoch 1831.51 StrUve.
106 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
67 P. X. LaoNI8.,....A. R. = 10 h. 17 m. 09 . Dec. =+ 90 86
2". A neat double star on the Lion's right shouldet. A S. B 9i, mag-
nitude. The measures indicate lhity in the componenlll.
Di.acovered by Herachel.
.Pos. 630 28' Dist. 4".110 Epoch 178l1.l3 Berachel.
65 54 3 .20 1832.66 Sur.ve.
49 LEO!us.-:-A. R. = 10 h. 26 m. 38 a. Dec. + 90 28' 5". A
close double star under the right shoulder of Leo. A 6, white; B 9,
pale blue. .
Discovered by SUC;ve.
POI. 161" 09' Dial. 2".37
158 01 2 .50
Epoch 1830.76 Struve.
1838.37 Smyth.
95 MESSIER, LEONII.-A. R. = 10 h. 35 m. 31 a. Dec. = 12<'
31' 09". A white nebula on the ribs of Leo.
Discovered by Mechain, 1771. One degree east, and following this
nebula, is another, lese bright, also ru.covered by Mecbain.
18 BaRBeRU I, L>:ONJs-A. R. = 10 h. 39 m. 49 I. Dec. = 130
28' 0". A pair of bright c1a88 neblllre, with a third faint one in company,
on the belly of Leo. This region of the heavens is filled with nebulous
clouds, a part of the great stream whit'h cncircles the entire heavens.
Discovered by Herschel in 1783.
54 LaONJa.-A. R. = 10 h. 46 m. 56 s. Dec. =+ 25
0
36' 0", A
double star over Leo'. back. A 4:6, B 7.
Discovered by Sir W. Herschel, 1781.
POlL 102
0
48' Dist. 6".18 Epoch 1830.35 Sur.ve.
229 P. X, LBONIS.-A. R. = 10 h. 56 m. 44 s. Dec. = + 40
30'. A close double star preceding the Lion's hind legs. A 8, B 8,
magnitude.
Discovered by StrUve, and by him measured .. fullOWB:
PO&. 276
0
48' DiaL 1".076 Epoch 1829.13
13 BERBCRBL I, LBOlnB.-A. R. = 10 h. 57 m. 37 a. Dec. = ()O
49' 6". A bright nebula preceding the Lion'. hind ~ Discovered by
Herachel, and one of a V88t number of aimilar objecta in this region.
N ear this object Sir William examined more than 150 square degrees of
diffused nebulosity, ~ extent 80 vast .. to defy the powers of arithmetic
to compute its dimensions. If we abandon the theory of the existence
of chaotic nebulous matter, and regard all these multitudinous stains of
light as consisting of myriads of IIUD8, the ex tent of these "island uni-
verses" here located, is almost infinitely greater than all that the human
eye can grasp on the brightest night. Herschel expresses himself thus.
" The high degree of rarefaction of nebulous matter, .hould not be COD*
Iidered an obstscle to the theory of its finally being condensed into a body
of the density of the sun; for supposing tfie nebula distant 320 billions
of miles, and i ~ diameter equal to 10', then must its magnitude uceed
that of the BUD more than two trillions (If times ! "
CONSTELLATION OF LEO.
107
What then must be the extent of a group of objects cmeriDg 160
equare degrees, and so remote that their milliOllll of Rggn>gated IlUDi pr0-
duce but a barely perceptible lltain of light on the deep blue ground of
the heavena!
239 P. X, LBOIU8.-A. R. = 10 h. 68 m. 17.. Dec. = t 7 69'
09". A double star c1011e to the Lion'. hind legs. A 8, B II ,magni-
tude. It is probably fixed in poaition.
POlIo 164
0
46' Diat. = 8".03 Epoch 1833.28 Strilye.
. 9. P. XI, LBOl'I'JI.- .... R. = II h. 06 m. 17.. Dec. = + 21
0
00' OS". A neat double star on Leo'. loina. A 7j, B 7j, magnitude.
DiscoveIed by Stru ve.
POlIo 287
0
48' Diat. 1".062 Epoch 1829.70 StrUve.
66 MBISIBR, LzmIl8.-A, R. = 11 h. 11 m. 48.. Dec. = + IlIO
52' 04". A large elongated nebula with a bright nucleus, preceded by
another of a similar shape. .
DiscoveIed by Michain, 1780, and regi8teIed No. 66 and 65 Meuier.
A third nebula follows on the AIDe parallel, 174 seconds of time.
, LBOl'I'Is.-A. R. = II h. 15 m. 35.. Dec. = + 11
0
24' 08". A
binary star on the Lion'. flank, 7
0
south-Wl'.st of Denebola. A 4, pa1e
yellow; B 7j, light blue.
Discovered by Str:'ve
POB. 9?D 00' Dial. 2".30 Epoch 1827.28
86 00 2 .60 1842.38 Smyth.
Other nebuhe and double stars will be found on the star mapa.
SEXTANS.
THE SEXTm, called also URANIA'S SEXTANT, is a
modern constellation that Hevelius made out of the
unformed stars of the ancients, which lay scattered
between the Lion, on the N., and Hydra, on the S.
It contains forty-one very small stars, including
only one as large as the 4th magnitude. This is
situated very near the equinoctial, 13
0
S. of Regu-
lus, and comes to the meridian about the same time
on the 6th of April. The other stars in this con-
stellation are too small to engage attention. A
few of the largest of them may be tra.ced out f r r ~
the map. .
108 GEOGRAPHY or THK HEAVENS.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
161 P. IX, SII:U.llfTIa.-A. R. = 9 h. 36 m. 09 .. Dec. = 30
II' ()4.... A double .au OIl the old Lion'. leg, bat included in the DIIW
COIIICe11ation, the 8extBnt. A 8," yellowim white;" B 13," blue."
POll. 1460 00' DiBl 4".00 Epoch 18U.26 Smyth.
142 20 3 .317 1830.24 Struve.
163 H .. IICBU I, SUT.lKTII..-A. R. = 9 h. 57 m. 16.. Dec.=
- 60 66' 09". An elonpted bright nebula, OIl the limb of the 8extmt.
Liacovered by HemcbeI, 1787. .
" H IICBU I, SIIXTU'TII.-A. R. = 10 h. 06 m.1I8 .. Dec. =
+ 4
0
III' 01". A brightrolllld nebula on the &.me of the 8extBnt,'"
lowed by another at the diMance of twenty.mne II8IlOIId. of time.
Diacovered by HemcbeI, 1783; who\ ho_er, overlooked the fOllow-
ing one, which _ 8IlJ.quently diaccmIred by hilaon.
35 SIIXT.llfTIl.-A. R. = 10 h. 35 m. 02 .. Dec. = + 1135' or.
A double .au on the north extreme of the limb. A 7, B 8.
i'0I. 240" 47" Dis&. 6".76 Epoch 18211.20 StrUve.
DIREm'lONS FOR TRACING THB CON8TBt..LATION8 ON
MA.P NO. X.
HYDRA-THE WATD. SDPBIIT.
POCULA-TBE CuP'.
FELIS-THE CAT.
To COMPASS.
FatJOrtibly situated for examiMlion in MarcA, ~
ad May. ,
HYDRA AND THE CUP.
HYDIlA, THE W ATEIl SEJlPENT, is an extensive con-
stellation, winding from E. to W. in a serpentine
direction, over a space of more than one hundred
degrees in length. It lies south of Cancer, Leo, and
Virgo, and reaches almost from Canis Minor to
Libra. It contains sixty stars, including one of
CONSTELLATION 01' HYDRA. log
the 2d magniillde, three or the 8cJ, and tweive of
the 4th. .
.A1pkard, or Cor Hyd1'a, marked II, in the heart, i .
a lone star of the 2d magnitude, 23 S. S. W.of
Regulus, and comes the meridian at the same
time with a., in the point of the sickle, about twentY
minutes before 9 o'clock on the lit of April. There
is no other considerable star oeiLr it, for whieh it
can be mistaken. An iinaginary line drawft from
7 Leonis through Regulus, will point out Cor Hydrm,
at the distance of 23. .
The head of llydra may be distinguished by means
of four stars of the 4th magnitude, 2io and 4 apart,
and forming a rhomboidal figure. The three upper
stars in this cluster form a small Al'ch, and may be
known by two very small stars just below the
middle one, making with it. a very small triangle.
The three western stars in the head, also make a
beautiful little triangle. The euten star in this
group, marked " is about 6 directly S. of Acubens,
and culminates at the same time.
When Alphard.is on the meridian, .A1kc8, marked
II, of the 4th magnitude, situated in the bottom of
the Cup, may be seen 24 S.E. of it, and is
tinguished by its forming an equilateral triangle
with IJ and 7, stars of the same magnitude/6 S.
and E. of it. Alkes is both to Hydra and
the Cup. IJ, on the S., is in Hydra, and 7, the N.
E., is near the middle of the Cup. . A line drawn
from Zozma, through:. Leonis, and continued 3Blo
directly S. will reach IJ j it is therefore on the same
meridian, and will culminate at the same. time on
the 23d of April.
The Cup itself, called also the Crr.iter, ml).y be
e.asily distinguished by means of six stars of the 4th
magnitude, forming a beautiful crescent, or semi-
circle, opening to the W. The center of this group
is about 15 below the equinoctial, and directly S.
. K
110 G&OGRAPHY OF THE HEAVEN&.
of hioder feet of Leo. The form or
tJie stars in the Cup is so lItriking and well defined,
when the moon is absent, that no other descriptioll
is necessary to point them out. Its center comes to
the meridian about two hours after Alphard,-on the
same evening; and consequently, it colminates at
9 O'clock, on., month after Alphard does. The re-
mainder of the stars in this constellation may be
e8sily traced by aid of the' map.
When the head of Hydra is OD the meridian, its
other extremity is many degrees below the horizon,
80 that its whole length cannot be traced out in
the heavens until its center, or the Cup, is on the
meridian.
Near the equator roUe
The aputling H dra, proudly eminen&
To drink the refulgent _;
Nearly a encirling eune
Which girdI the ecliptic, his 'VlIIIt foIda inYOlve ;
Yet ten the Dumber ofbia IIIanI di1fu8ed
O'er the long track enormoua spires:
Chief beams bia heart, II1ll1l of the eecond ranlE,
But emuloua to gain the fiJIIL"-Eudoria.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
108 P. vm, Hnll&-A. R..= 8 h. 17 m. to.. Dec . = + 70
10' 06". A double IItar between the t-d of Hydra and Cancer. A e,
.. pale yellow;" B 7i, .. roee
Diaoovered by HeneheL .
Po.. 260 46' Diat.10".38 Epoeh . Struve.
17 Hn._A. R. == 8 h. 47 m. 39.. Dec. =-70 21' 08'". A
ebe double IItar between the Uail:om'. tail and Hydra'. heart. A aDd
B 7 magnitude
. Diacovered by Hencbel.
POL' 358 60' Dist. '''.33 Epoch 183l.1i9 StrUve.
27 HUBcau IV, HYD .... -A. R. = 10 h. 17 m. 01 L Dec. =
- 17 50' 08". A planetary nebula in the middle of Hydra'. body.
Diacovered by Henchel, 1786.
c C.ATJ:.II.-A.R, = 10 h. 62 m. 00 L Dec. = - 1 28'.09'". '
A .tar with two diataut companiona On the base of the Cup. 'n-_
remarkable for their color. A ., orange; B 8, blood red; C 9, pale blue.
DifIimmce between A and B 42".1
.. .. AandC .. .9
CONSTE1.LA.TION OF HYDRA.
III
89 P. XI, CIl.lTIIBI8.-A. R. == 11 b. 11 m. 88.. Dec. == - Q60
01' 1M". A...n double IItar between tba Cup aad tba Lion'. hiDd lee&.
A 8i. Bit, JllBgDitude.
DiacoveIed by Str .. ve.
POL 314
0
06' Dist. r.66 Epoch 1880.118 8Vilve:
,. CUTIIBI8.-A. R. = 11 h. 18 m. M.. Dec. == - 16
0
48' 08".
A close double IItar in She center of the goblet. A 4, B 14, JDBgDitude.
DiacoveIed by HIIl8CheL
POL IOS0 06' DiM. 3".00 Epoch 1838.116 Smyth.
17 CIl.lTIIBIB.-A.R.==lt h.II4m.III .. Dee.=-IIS028'OO".
A doUble IItar in tba boundary of the Cup. A 61, B 7; magnitude.
Diacovenld by HencheI, 1783.
POL lI070 08' Dist. 10".01 Jpoch 1833.111 Smyth.

CONSTELLATION 01' VIRGO. 113
CHAPTER III.
DIILECTlONtI FOil TlU.CING TUB OON8'l'BLLA.TIONB ON
MAP XI.
VmsD'.
COIlVt1&-TBB Caow.
Fa1JOro/Jl!l situilted for examination in April, May
and June. .
VIRGO.
Tn VmGIN.-This is the sixth sign, and seventh
constellation in the ecliptic. It is situated next
east of Leo, and about midway between. Coma
Berenices on the N. and Corvus aD the S. It oc-
cupies a eonsiderable space in the heavens, and
contains, according to Flamsted, one hundred and
ten stars, including one of the 1st, six of the 3d, and
ten of the 4th magnitudes. Its mean declination is
{;o N., and its mean right ascension is 195 .. Ita
center is therefore on the meridian about the 23d
of May.
TbuUD enters tblllign Virp, OIl the 13d or Aug., but doell' not
enter the corutelJation before the 16th or September. When the lUll
in thia Iign, the earth ia in Pi.ecee; and vice V8IIII, ,
Spica J7irginil, marked G, in the ear of corn which
the Virgin holdsin her left hand, is the most brilliant
star in this constellation, and situated nearly 15 E.
N. E. of Algorab, marked G, iii the Crow, about
S. E. of Denebola, and nearly as far S. S. W. of
Arcturus-three very brilliant stars of the 18t mag-
nitude, that form a large equilateral triangle, point-
E2
114 GEOGRAPHY 01' THE' HEAVENS.
iog to the S. Arcturus and Denebola, marked /J,
are also the base of a similar triangle on the north,
terminating in COl" Caroli, which, joined to the
former,' constitutes the Di.aTrum.d of Virgo. The
length of this figure, fro(ll Cor :Caroli on the north,
to Spica Virginis on the south, is 50. It. breadth,
or shorter diameter, extending from Arcturus on the
east, to Denebola on the west, is 351: Spica may
otherwise be known by its IOlitary splendor, there
being no visible'star near it, except one of the 5th
magnitude, situated 1 below it, on the left.
The' position oftbis star.in the heavens, has been
determined with great exactness for the benefit of
navigators. It is oDe of the stars. from which the
moon's distance is taken for determining the longi-
tude at sea. , Its. situation' is highly favorable for
this purpose, as it lies within the moon's path,and
little more than 2
0
below the earth's orbit.
Its right ascension being 199, it will come to oUr
meridian at 9 o'clock about the 28th of May, in tha.t
point of the heavens where the sun is at noon about
the 20th of October.
DWkecl .. ia a alar of the 3d magnitude, in the right ana,
III northern wing of Virgo, and ia situated nearly in a 1Itraiaht. tine with,
and midway between Coma Berenices, and SPica Virginia. It ill 1910
8. W. of Arcturus, and about the 8IIIIIe diBtance S. E. of Coma Berenice&,
and forma with thMe two alu!!e triangle, pointing to the IIOUth. It beaIII
a\so 180 S. S, E. of Denebola, and comes to the meridian aboat lwenly_
three minutes before Spica Virginia. ,
Zeta, ill a star of the 3d magnitude, 111
0
N. of Spica, and wrcy near
the equinoctial. Gamma, aituated near the left Bide, ia a\so a alar of the
'3d magnitude, and very near the equinoctial, It ia 130 due __ of with
whi .. h and Spica it forma a handsome triangle. Eta, ia a star of the 3d
magnitude, in the II01dbem wing, 60 W .. of ), and but 210 E. of the
autumnal equinox.
Bela, caDed also Zomij-., is a s&ar of the 3d magnitude, in the shoul-
der of the wing, 71
0
W. of a, with which and )-, it forma a line near the
earth's orbit, and para1Iel to it. a, ) and Spica, form the lower and
longer side of a large apberical triangle, whose vertex ia in The other
IItanI in this figure may be eaaily traced by means the map. About 130
E. of Spica, there are two stam of the 4th lII8IpIitude, 30 apart, which murk
die lOot of Virp., on- two ItanJ are on Deady the _ meridian with
CONSTELLA.TION or VIRGO.
115
keturua, aDd eulmiDate ~ at the_"- The l-. one marked
Lambda, is on the tIOUth, aDd bat SO W. the principal !dar in Libl1l.
Several other ItaJII of the 3d magnitude lie -uered about in tbiI_
IIeIJa&ioo, and may be traced out by the map..
.. Her 10YeIy tre.. glow with .", light;
Sian CJI'IWIBlt the bracelet on her band ;
Her -.. in ample fold, gtitten with ItaJII :
Beneath her mowy feet they shine; her eye.
Lighten, all gloriou, with the hea-ty ray..
Butfint the !dar which _ the golden.-"
.llIr.ron.-The &.moua zodiac DeI!dera, u we have alrMdy notieed,
I'X!I!!T!!eJ!C' with the eign Leo; but another zodiac, disecmnd among the
ruins at Estne, in Egypt, commencea with Virgo; and from tbia circuJD.
IIIarule, IIOIDf) have argued, that the regular preceIIion of the equinox.
eIIIabliIIbed a date to this at Ieut 2000 yeam older than that at Dendera.
The cJiIIcoTeriee. of Champollioa, however, render it probable that til
IIIJdent relic of utrology at EIID4I WIUI erected during the reign of the
Emperor Claudiu, and ~ t l y did not p.-le the _ at DeDdera
more than fourteen yeam.
Of this, however, we may be certain: the autumnal equinox DOW COl"
reaponda with the fimt degree of Vargo; and, COII8Bq1lllntly, if we find.
IOIfiac in which the 8WIIIIIel IIOIatice wu placed where the autumDal
equinox now ia, that zodiac carriea us back 90" on the ecliptic; til
divided by the annual precellion of 501", must Ih: the date at about 6460
,-.rs ago. This computation, according to the chronology of the Sacred
writings, carriea us back to the earliest agtl8 of the human specill8 on
earth, and pnmlII, at least, that utronomy _ among the fimt atudiea of
mankind. The ID08t rational way of accounting for this zodiac, .. y.
Jamieson, is to ucribe it to the family of Noah; or perhapa to the .patri-
arch himsel( who conatructed it for the benefit of those who mould live
after the deluge, and who preerved it u a IDollUlll,ellt to perpetuate d.e
-.:tua111tate of the heavena immediately mblequent to the enatioo.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
A N KaULA.-\. R. = 12 h. 06 m. 01.. Dec. = + 111
0
47' O S ~ .
This nebula is situated between Vug6' htwing and Leo'. tail.
Discovered by Measier, 1781, and.deacribed by him 88" a nebula with-
out a star, with an extremely ~ t light. . .
A LOl"G PUII-WRTTB NuULJ. . ..:....A..R.= 12 h. 07m. 87 . Dec.
+ 140 en' OS". On the upper part or Virgo'81eft 'Iring. Described in
the Bedford Catalogue u "a very curious object. resembling a weaver'a
Ibott\e,.and lying 8CfOIII the parallel. The upper branch is the faintest,
and exhibitB a palpable nucleua. " .
Discovered by Henchel, 1783. .
A Ln N vu.-A. R. .. II b. 18 m. ~ Dec. = + 06
0
.
118 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEA.VENS.
Il' 06". Tbie II8baIa ill IiIuated w-w- the Vilgin's IhouIden. Her-
ICbel reports " to have \wi) DflUdei about 90" apart.
DiBcmeredby M-ur, 1799. . .
17 Vraanns.!"'A. R. = 12 h. 14 m: 24.. Dee. = 060 11' OS".
A double BtIIr between the ih.oaldera of Virgo. !\ 6, B 9, lDIIgIlitude.
POB. 3360 46' Di.t. 19".32 Epodl 1829.26 8&ri:.ve.
The ClIIIIIpCIMIdIJ appear to be stationary.
A Rou'-D NnuL.L.-A. R. = 12 h. 14 m. 52 a. Dee. = + 180
. U' 06". It 8ppeu1I oII the upper put of the Vilgin'. left wing.
Diaoovered by Mechain, 1781.
It ill one rtf a multitude rtf nebulous _ forming a wonderfal moe,
and pBIIIIing round the heaveJIII in a direction nearly perpendicular to the
Milky Way. The diacovery of this great stratum, is the result of the
unwearied zeal and ~ of Sir William BeracheI.
A. BRran NaauL.L.-A. R. == 12 h. 2\ m. 36 .. Dee. + 08Q III'
09". 'I'bia nebula ill situated on Virgo'. left shoulder. .
DiIIcoYered by Orioni, 1771.
A Lolra ELI.rPrIuJ, NU1.Tl..-A; R. = 12 h. 23 m. 54 I. Dee. =
+ 1110 18' 011"9 Itappearl on theouter aide of Virgo'. left wing. In.
_ three detI- equare a large number of nebullll are found, whoe
relative poaitiona are exhibited in the diagram marked nebulm in Virgo. .
,. VrRar'-ls.-A. R. = 12 h. a3 m. 33.. Dee. = - 000 34' or.
A "'-kable binary BtIIr, OIl the Virgin's right side. A 4, B 4, magni-
tude. In COIIII8q11I!DCe rtfaome very early obaervatiOllIl, by Bradly. Pound,
u..ini, and Mayer. it was thought that thil star presented an admirable
opportunity of testing the inftuenee of gravilation among theae remote
o\:dectI. As early as 1718, the poeitions of the components seem to
have been approlimateiy obtained. M_ were again made in 1720,
17l1li, and by Sir W. Benched in 1780. Theae. combined wRh modern
obervatiOll8, fumiabed the data for the. computation cir the elements of the
orbits, deacribed by thee two auna about their common center of g r a ~ t y .
From the earlieat period of observation, the distance between the two
ltan oomposing " Virginia, had been on the decrease, while the angular
velocity ".. rapiclly increuing; following, in this lIl8peCt, the analogy of
the planets and comets, whOl!e angular velocity rapidly increases as their
diatance tiom the IUn decreaEa. toir John Berachel made the lint eftOrt
at a detenuDiation of the elements of the orbit, and tbund a period of
613.28 yeara by. the fint computed elements, and of .6:l8.90 yean by the
aecond set of elements. Theae results were greatly in elTOJ'. owing to
the fact, as Sir John Herachel .y8, to the use of Bradly's ObeerviJ.tiOll8
of 1718. In tbe _time M. M;;.dler, of Dorpat, had !'howll that the
periodic time could not weD exceed 157 yeara,.a result finally reached by
Berachel bimaelt: .
A fter much laborious ea1cu1ation, M. Mildler reached the conrlusion
tba& the peribe1ion 01' peaeutar ...... occuned 1836.31, and that the
CON8TELLATION
117
periodic time was 145.409 y-. With hil1aat IIIIl of eImnenta, he h.
computt>d an ephellK'ris. of this system, from which ..... copy uIoUow.:.
Poe. 3500 53' 06" DiaL OS".417 Epoch 1847
367 43 04 02 .1\66 .1848
355 56 06' 02 .689 1849
3M 13 03. Oil .816 1860
362 39 011 00 .939 18111
361 13 06 0:1 .057 18611
349 53 06 03 .170 1863.
During a part of the year 1836, the star was perfect\y round, even.
in the most powerful instruments. Objectll which had been 80 widely
eepuated, when filIIt discovered, were now 80 placed as that the one
edipud 1M otker. Towatds the close of 1836, the hidden star began to
emerge, and this double object was seen tlmtgaied. At the beginning
or 1837, the best telescopes again 88W the tuf() ,tar. aeparate and distinct.
From that time, to the the distance has been on the
while the anlllliar velocity bas bePn regularly diminiabipg. My.own
obaervations show the ephemeris computed by Kidler, to be pretty Be-
.curate, but even yet considerable discordance exists .between observation
and computation, showing that more accurate data are yet wanted to
complete this moat delicate and difficult investigation.
A filw measures are here given.
Poe. = 3190 07' . DiaL 07".49 Epoch 1720.31 Casaini.
310 04 . 1781.89 HerBCbal L.
285. 04 02 .86 1822.00 Str .. ve.
262 10 01 .68 1830.69 Bessel.
246 32 01 .05 1833.37 Striive.
077 65 QO .68 1837.4\ StrGve.
020 II 01 .7:J 1841.44
011 06 01 .90 1843.33 Smyth.
367 28 03.09' 1847.60 Mitchel.
By comparison of the I88t obaemd.iOllll with the ephemeris, it win be
IIleD that the angular velocity is greater than predicted, .. is also the in-
crease of distance between the components.
e VIBSUUI.,-A. R. = 13 h. 01 m. 40 a. Dec. =- 04
0
41' 00"
... _ tripl8 star em the lower part of the Virgin'. aoutham wing. A
fi. B 9, C \ 0, rDagJJi,tude. .
POL A B 344
0
02' Dist. 07".02 Epoch 1837.071. S--'
A C 295 00 65 .00 1831.15 5
A CLOAlI BnullY Sru.-A. R. = 13 b. 26 m. 01 a. Dec. = +
000 30' 04". This star is situated on V"ugo'll0"!Br gannent. A 8, })
II, DIIIgIIitude. . .
I>ia1overed by StrUve, 1825.
POL \00 00' DiaL 01'\600 Epoch 1826.37 JStrnve.
24 08 01 .690 1834.38 Struve.
36 02 01 .747 . \841.37 Madler.
The period of J8VIIbJt;ioa. is, probably, not liar fram18O y-.
81 VI_1lI18.-A.R.= 13Ja. 29m. 13 .. Dec. =-070 03' OS".
118 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
A cIoIe cioabIe liar OIl the right aide of the 10wer pnnent of the VUgiD.
8uIpedal of .!ow zetmgradalien.
POlL 'I" 07' DiM. 0i".82 Epoch IMl.39 M.,)dler.
M VIUIlfIl.-A. R. ~ 13 h. 35 m Oi.. Dee. = + 04
0
21' 00".
A cIoIe double It. OIl the lip of VirgO'lleft wing. A 6, B 9, magnitude.
POlL 2330 M' DiaL 03".6 Epoch 1839.37 Smyth.
J31 05 03 .a 1847.06 Mitchel.
\ ,
VIBIJIlIIL-A. R. = I' h. 19 m. 68.. Dec. = - 01 30' 04".
A delicate double liar in the corDer of Virgo'. akirt. A 6, yellow; B
13, blue.
Diacmered by Btrihe, 1829.
POI. 108
0
32' DiaL 03".73 Epoch 1829. n StrUve.
Other double 8taIB and' nebuhe will be tound on the chart.
A DoUBU NBB'aU.-A. R. ...:.. 12 h. 3 ~ m. 33 8. Dec. = + 12
0
26' 0 I". This nebul. is situated in the center of Virgo'8 left wing, with
two or three lIIDBIler ones in the immediate vincinity. In this object we
find 80me support to the celebrated nebular theory, which supposes the sun
and 8taIB to have been formed from the conciellBlltion of nebulous fluid ..
The object befure us auggestB the chaotic state of a binary star, andpOaai-
'bly these'two abadowy objects are perlOrming, even now, a revolution
round each other. Abandoning this theory, and having recourse to the
iclea that these dim stains are mighty univenea of shining stars, here we
have two such 80 loeated as poIIIIibly to be mutually operating upon 8IICh
otI!er. Should actual physical connection ellist, and one of these mighty
aystems be actually sweeping round the other, what a mpendoul period
mWlt mark the cycle of these "island universes." By such periods W8
might even l'IlCkon the hours of eternity itself! "
CORVUS.
TIfB Caow.-This small constellation is situated
on the eastern part of Hydra, Hi
O
E. of the Cup, and
is on the same meridian with Coma Berenices, but
as far S. of the equinoctial as C o m ~ Berenices is N ..
of it. It therefore culminates at the same time, on
the 12th of May. -It contains nine visible stars,
including three ,of the 3d magnitude, a ~ d two of
the 4th.
This constellation is readily distinguished by
means of three stars of the ad magnitude, and one
of the 4th, forming a trapezium or irregular square,
CONSTEI,LATION Qi' CORVUS. 119
ihe two ones being about 3i
o
apart, and the
two lower ones apart. .
. The brightest of the two upper stars, on the left,
is called .Algoroh, marked G, and is situated in the E.
wing of the Crow; it has nearly the same declina-
tion S. that the Dog-star has, and is on the meridian
about the 13th of May. It is 21tO E. of Alkes in
the. Cup, 141
0
S. W. of Spica Virginis, a brilliant
star of the 1st magnitude, to be described in the next
chapter:. .
Beta, on the back of Hydra and in the foot of the
Crow is a star of the 3d magnitude, nearly 7
0
S.
of Algorab. It is the brightest of the two lower
stars, and on the len. The right hand lower one
is a star of the 4th magnitude, situated in the neck,
marked Epailfm, about 6 W. of /J, and may be
known by a star of the same magnitude situated
2 below it, in the eye, and called . .AI Ohiha. is'
21io S. of the vernal equinox, and if a meridian
should be drawn from the pole through Megrez, and
produced to Com, it would mark the equinoctial
colure. .
Gamma in the W. wing, is a star of the 3d mag-
nitude, 3tOW. of Algorab, and is the upper. right
hand one in the square. It is but 1
0
E. of tbe equi-
noctial colure. .
lOoE. of is a star of the 3d magnitude, in the
tail of Hydra, marked "I; these two: with Algorab,
form nearly a right angled triangle, the right angle
being
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS

I CORVI.-A. R. = 12 h. 21 m. 96 .. Dec.=-16M'C)4". A
VIe double star on the Raven's right Wing. A 3, B 8i !DIIgDitude.
Discovered by Herschel, 1782.
Pos. 2100 54' . Dist. 23
H
.6 Epoch 1831.3(. Smyth.
120 GEOGRAPHY OJ' THE HEAVENB.
DlRBCTlON8 FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS" ON
MAP NO. XII.
URSA LOR-THE GWT BUR.
FavoroIJly litvated fQr ei:amiMtion in M"" J'IlM.
July, .Augut and 8eptemlJer.
tJRBA MAJOR.
THE GUAT BUR.-This great constellation is
situated between Ursa Minor on the north,aud Leo
Minor on the south. It is ODe of the most noted
and conspicuous in the northern hemisphere. It
has been an object of universal obsen'ation in all
ages of the world. The priests of Belus, and the
Magi of Persia; the shepherds of Chaldea, and the
Phamician navigators, seem to have been equally
struck with its peculiar And it is some-
what remarkable that a remote nation of American
aborigines, the Iroquois,. and the earliest .Arabs of
Asia., should have given to the very same constella-
tion the name of " Great Bear," when there had
probably never been any communication between
them; and when the name itself is so pm:fectly
arbitrary,. there being no resemblance whatever to
a bear, or to any other animal. " "
It is readily distinguished" from a11 others by
means of a remarkable cluster of seven bright
stars, forming what is familiarly termed the Dipper,
or Ladle. In "some parts of England it is called
'" Charles'. Wain," or wagon, from its fancied re-
semblance to a wagon drawn by three horses in a
line. Others call it the Plow. The cluster, how-
ever, is more frequently put for the whole cODstella-
tion, and called, simply, the Great Bear. But we
see no reason to reject the very appropriate appel-
CONSTELLATION or URSA MA.JOR. 121
lation of the . ahepherds, for the resemblance is
certainly.in favor of. the Dipper: the four sta1'8 in
the square forming the bowl, and the other three,
the handle.
When the Dipper is on the meridian, above the
pole, the bottQm lies towards UB, with the handle
00 the right.
. Benet:no.sch, marked 'I, is a bright star of the 2d
magnitude, and is the first in the handle. The'
secol).d, or middle star in the handle, is Mizar,
marked " 7 qistant from Benetnasch. It may be
known by means of a very minute star almost
touching it, called .Aicor, which appeal'8 to be double
when seen through a telescope, and of a silver
white. The third star in the handle is called.ALidA,
marked., and is' about 410 W. of Mizar. AJioth is
very nearly. opposite Shedir in Cassiopeia, and at
an equal distance from the pole. Benetnasch,
Mizar, and Alioth, constitute tht handle, while the
next four in the square form the bowl of the Dipper.
Five and a half degrees W. of Alioth is, the first
star in the top of the Dipper, at the junction of the
"handle, called Megre%, and marked a; it is the
smallest an.d middle of the eluster, and is UBed
in various observations .both on sea and land, for
important purposes. At the distance of.4l
o
s. W.
of Megrez, is Phad,marked 1, the first star in that
part of the bottom, whiQh is next the handle.
The &tan! in this clllster are 80 .... eD known. and may be 80 easily de-
acribed without Jefimmce to their Jelative bearings, that they would rather
eonfuae than II.I8iIIt the atudent, were they given with ever 80 much Be-
euracy. The aeveral bearings for this cluster were taken when
_ on the meridian, and wiD not apply at any other time, though their
Jellpective distancea will remain the aame.
At the distance of 8 W. of Phad, is. the western-
most st.ar in the bottom of the Djpper, called Merak,:
marked (3. The bright star 5 N. of it, towards the.
pole is called DuIihe, and marked Go; but these two,
L
122 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
"
Merak and Dubhe, are, by common consent, called
the Pointers,because ihey always point towards the .
pole; for, hit the line which joins them be continued
in the same direction 281 farther, it will just reach
the north pole.
The names, positions, and relative distances of
the stars in this cluster, should be. well remembered,
as they will be adverted to .. The dis-
tance of Dubhe, or the Pointer nearest to .the north
pole, is 281. The distance between the two upper
stars in the Dipper is 10; between the two lower
ones 8: the distance from the brim to the bottom
Bext the handle, is 41; between Megrez and Alioth
is 5f
0
; between Alioth and Mizar 41
0
, and between
Mi7;ar and Benetnasch, 7
0

The I'l".uon why it iI! important to have these distancea
in the mind is, that these star&, being always in 'View, and more ..
than any other, the student will never fail to have a standard measure
before him, which the eye canl.euily make use of in determining the
distances between other atara.
The position of Megrez Ursa Major, and of
Caph in Cassiopeia, is somewhat remarkable. They
are both in the equinoctial colure, almost exactly
opposite each other, and equally' distant from the
pole. Caph is in the. colure, which passes through
. the vernal equinox, and Megrez is in that which
epasses through the autumnal equinox .. The latter
passes the meridian at 9 O'clock, on the 10th of
May, and the former just six months afterwards, at
the same hour, on the lOth of November.
Psi, in the left leg of tTrsa Major, is a star of the
3d m.agnitude, in a straight line with Megrez and
Phad, distant from the later 121-.. A little out of
the same line, 3 farther, is another star of the 5th
marked . Omega, which may be dis-
tinguished from +,.from its forming a straight line
.with the two Pointers. . .
The right fore paw, and kinder one, are dis-
CONSTELLATION 01' URSA MAJOR. 123
tinguished by two stars of the 4th magnitude, be-
tween 1
0
and 2
0
apart. The. two stars of the left
hind paw are of the 3d magnitude. These three
duplicate stars are'nearly in a right line, 20
0
S. of,
and. in a direction nearly parallel with, Phad and
Dubhe, and are the only stars in this constellation
that ever Bet in this latitude.
There are few other stars of equal brightness
with those just described, but amidst the more
splendid and interesting group with which they
al'e clustered, they seldom engage our observation.
The whole number of visible stars in this constel-
lation is eighty-seven; of which six are of the 2d,
three of the 3d, and a.bOut twice as many 01" the
4th magnitude.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS. J.
286 H. I, U ... Muo.II.-A. R. = 09 h. 49 m. 30.. Dec. +
.69'" 30'. A round nebula, thus deacribed in the Bedford Catalogue.
"A bright claaa round.aebula at the baclr. of UlII8 Major'a left ear. It ia
lucid white, and Iightaup Ii the center. There are two linea, of three
ataJB eacli, acroM the field, of which the ooe preceding the nebula is of
the 7th magnitude, and that fOllowing of the 10th; between ~ _ the sky:
is intensely blaclr., and show. the nebula at if floating in awful and
illimitable apace at an inconceivable diatance. Dr.' Derham, whose
judgment led him to COIIIIider nebuba at vaat areaa of Iiglit," infiillibly
beyond the fixed atara," thought that some of them might be openings in
the opacity surrounding the visible ayatam, which chaama show us the
light of the empyrea1 sphere beyond it.
,"Discovered by Sir w. Herschel in November 1801, and he say.
that 'on the nOrth following aide there is a filint ray intarrupting the
roundness.' "
I have recently examined this ol!ject with care, but it had sunk too low
to be well seen. It appeared filinter than any of those whose descriptiona
fullow, and smaller. It occupiee an insignificant portion of the field of
view, and in caae we receive it .. a distinct globular cluster, an "ialand
universe," ita distance mWlt be enormous.
47 M. U aa. MUORI8.-.'I.. R. = 11 h.OIi m. 24 Dec. = +
650 52' 09". Is thus described in the Bedford Catalogtl1l. "A large
planetary nebula or globular collection of nebulous matter, on the Great
Bear's flank, with several stars in the field, one of which is pretty. close.
It lies 'about 20 8Outh-e8st of ~ e r a k . jWlt south of the line joining Mehlk
and Phad. Thia! very singular otUect is circular and ,uDiform, and after
124 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
a 100g inIpection Ioob like a eondenaed mll8ll of attenuated light, II8eIII
ingIy of the size of Jupiter. .8ir W. Herachel relllll1'ka: From the ob-
I8lYations of the twenty ilet telescope, it appears that the profunditj
of this ol!ject is beyond the guaging power of tha,t instrument; and as it
must be lIUfIiciently diaIaot to be ambiguoua it cannot be I.eM than tha&
of the 980th older '--or 980 times more remote than Sirius."
, Discovered by MIlIIIIier in 1781.
43 H. V, UB8. Muo.II.-A. R. = 12 h. 11 m.,04, I. =
+ 48 II'. This object was examined by myself on the e1>ening of the
2d July. '1847, when the following memoranda were made: ,
Magnifying poWer 260. . The nebula is elongated north and BOUth.
Btretching nearly IA:lCa the field of view. A faint star was _ near
each extremity. The nebulosity very faint on the right. gtadually fiIding
away at each extremity. The nucleua resembles a small star elongated
10 as to _ the Icmger axis of the nebula at angle of about 300. '
Power 500. ,
The nebula undergoea but little c:hanp. The nucleua I.eM perfectly
defined than with the lower power. .
'fhia object may be found by drawing a line from. through " UIIB
Majoria, and extending it about 71
0
beyond the last named star. A 1-
tlmgh 1Brge, it is faint, and requires a large aperture to give it much
intetest. In cUe it be a universe of fixed stars, its distance must be be-
yonil.the Btret.ch of imagination, and the clUstering of worlds at its center
must be fiIr pater than .in any other part of its vast extent. It may be
an immense annulua, or ring, _ obliquely; and, poaaibly, reaembIea.
_what our own sidereal &tratum in figure.
195 'R I, UBI. MuoBls.-A. R. = 11 h. 58 m. 51 I. Dec. ==
+ 57' 03". Deacribed in the Bedford catalOgue as a bright clll8ll
nebuhi. My own notes are in the foUowing language: A small, elon-
gated nebula, running nearly north and BOUth. The' length is four or
five timas the breadth. The nucleus is quite sharp. The entire length
doea not appear to exceed 30" or 40". Ii is by a eoarae double
star. Examined with a power of 260, and an aperture of 12 inches.
Discovered by Sir William 1JendleJ, 1778. Its shape is not unlike
the preceding nebula, but its brightnl!lll is much greater. It requirea
good instrument to bring it l\Iirly to view. .
194 H. I, UBI. MUOBIS.-:-A. R.= 11 h. 17m. 211. Dec. = t
44027' 09". This object waS examined by myself in July. 1847. t
is a faint nebula, elongated from .north to IOUth. There is a
star on the.right, equal in brighau. to the nuc1eua of the nebula. It is
followed by three telescopic stars, forming a flat i.oaceIes triangle, whose
yertalt points to the nebula. Its length is about 50". A ray from Reg.
ulus to" Unq, Majoris, reachea the nebula at about two4hirds the distance
, hetwilen the atara.
46 H. V, UB MUOBIB.-R. A. = 11 h. m. 02 L Dec. = +
116 81' 08": I nebula elongated in the direction of the paralleL
c;oN8TELLATION OF URSA MAJOR. 125
With. poWer "D, the nebnlolity exteDda half 8CJ'CB the field of new.
The nucleus ill certainly douIJle. The lIDaIler' point of light ill below,
and to the right, at a diatance of about 10". No mention ill made of the
double nucle\18 by either Henchel, by any astronomer whoae deecrip-
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ .
".2 UBSlB Muo.I A. R. = 8 h. 56 m. 13.. Dec. =+ 67 46'
07".. A double star, in the ~ . forehead, A 5j. B 9i. TIie color of
the principal Btu ill white, while ita companion is blue.
POll. 2830 00' Dist. 7
H
.95 Epoch l'18lU2 Heracbel.
263 33 4 .59 1831.14 Struve.
This would indicate OI:bi&ual motion; but, owing to the defecta in H.
achel'8 early obaerYations, it requireB CODfirmation.
g U RUI lIIUO.IB.-A. R. = It h. 09 m. 38 L Dec. = + 320 25"
08. A binary BtIIr. in the Bear'8 \eft hind paw, A 4; B 5j. magnitude.
Sir John Herachel finds fOr this system a period of revolution equal to
59 years. M. Savary givea 58* Ye&ra fOT ita period. In CUll these re-
mlts are reliable, a knowlroge of the diabince of this ayetem would give
to us the relative magnitude of the 8tarB, and their IDIIIIII, compared with
our sun.
POll. 1430 4'1' Dial '3".50 Epoeh 1780.33 Herschel.
229 30 1 .82 1827.26 Struve.
143 20 2.30, 1843.16 Smyth.
HeI'\l is ellhibited a complete revolution of the angle of position through
S6()0. from the epoch of the first observation to that of the last.
, U.SlB Muo.IS-A. R. = 11 h. 09 m. .9 L Dec. = + 380 58'.
A double star, on the Bear'. left hind foot,. A 4, B 12.
POll. 147
0
O ~ D- '1".8 Epoch 1834:31
(' U.BlB MuoRI8Mu .... .-A.R.=13.h.17m.28 Dec.=+
55
0
4. OS", A beeutiful double star, in the middle of the tail of the
Bear, A 3, B 5, magnitude. '
Pas. 1450 20' Dial 14".24 Epocli 1819.70 Struve.
147 24 14 .40 1839.a2 Smyth.
It is uncertain whether any physical connection exists between the ~ .
components, though an identity of proper motion would lead us to think
them united. In exhibiting this double alar to thOle. not familiar with
the heavellll, on taking the eye from the telescope, and looking at the
star with the unaided vision, many penions exclaim that they Bee the
1ID811 star with the naked eye. This is, however, a mistake. 1'he faint
star really seen is not the one shown by the teIeacope. but a mUM more
distant minute star, called AIt:or. Indeed, with the gieat refractor of the
Cincinnati Obeervatozy, Alcor, which to the eye appears I!'O vezy cloae to
Mizar, does not even fiill within that field of view of the teleacope, 'whiclI
, ill occupied by Mizar in ita center. ' .
From tbe fact that Alcor and Mizar have an ldentity of proper motion,
it haa been argued that they may constitute a binary system-two IIUIl8
revolving around their COIIIIIlOIl center of gravity. 8houJd this be true,
128 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
~ thclr distance be UIIlII*l .. pat .. that uIipIcI to IICuB of the
laDle magnitude, they caDDOt complete their _oIu&ioo in a period _
than 190,000 of our yearl! ! ' ,
In the Memoira of the Obaervatory of the CoUegio Romano, 11141,
iome aingUlar noticee of Mizar are 1118de. which I venture to translate.
I give the aubB&ance of the notices .. foUowa : "
On the 18th April, 11141, M. Madler comuiunicated to M. Arago the
UguIar filet that, at 9 o'clock and 8 minu .... on that evening, he had
_ Mizar witlwut (J tompanion. About 10 o'clock, the BlDaU star Ie-
appeal'\!Cl 'in aU ite brilliancy. He thinb be had ob8erved the .aUJilt
phenClmenon, with an ininior inatrnment, in 18M, and inters t h a ~ the '
8Inall star is variable, with a long period. The Italian utronOlll6lll report
the detection of four minute ~ t I I in the, _ field with Mizar, lOme _
all of which appear to be vanable.
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. XIII.
BoOTES-THIl BEAR ,'DRIVER.
CORONA BOREALIS--THE NORTHERN CROWN.
QUADJlAN&-THE QUAJ)RANT.
CANES VENATICl-THE GUY HOUNDS.
COMA 'BUJ!lNlCES--BERENICES' HAIJl.
FaviJrahl!l siJ:uoJ.ed for examinatitm in May, JU'M
and July., '
BOOTES:
THE BEAR DuvllJl is represented by the figure of a
huntsman in a I:unning postilre, grasping a club in
his right hand, and holding up in his left the leash
of his two grey hounds, Asterion and Chara, with
which he seems to be pursuing the Great Bear round
the pole of the heavens. He is thence called Areto-
phylax, or the Ie Bear Driver."
This constellation is situated between Corona
Borealis, on the east, and Cor Caroli, or the Grey-
hounds, on the west. It contains fifty-four stars
CONSTELLATION OF BOOTES. 127
including one of the 1st magnitude, seven ofthe 3d,
and ten of the' 4th. Its mean declination is 20
0
N., and mean right ascension is 212
0
; .its center is
therefore on the meridian the 9th of June.
Bootes may be easily distinguished by the position
and splendor of its principal star, ArcturUs, which
shines with a reddish luster, verymuoh resembling
that of the phmet Mars. .
Arcturus, marked G, is a star of the 1 st magnitude,
situated near the left knee, 26
0
S. E. of .Cor Caroli
and Coma Berenices, with which it forms an elon-
gated triangle, whose vertex is at Arct1l1'1is.
Five or aU: ctep,e. 8. W. of .4.rdurwI IU'8 three eIaJ1I of the 3d and
4tll magnitudea, lying in a curved line, about 20 apart, and a little below
the left knee of Bootee; and about 70 E. of. An;tulllll are tbtee or four
other &tar8 of tiimilar magnitude, aituated in the other leg, making a
larger curve N. and S.
. Mirac, DIIll'ked .. in the girdle, is a star of the 3d 1DIIIPlitude, loo N.
N. E. of Arct.UI'UI, and about 11
0
W. of Alpbacca, or. in the Northern
Crown. marked ,., in the west shoulder, is a Ilar of the ad
magnitude, nearly tOO E. of Cor Caroli, and about the IIIIDI8 distance N.
of Arct.Ulllll, and forms, with thee two, a rilht angled triangle, the right.
angle being at SeginU&' . .
.' . ..wudvr0p8, marked /A, situated in the top of the club, is a Ilar of the
4th magnitude, about 10jO in an easterly direction from ,., whicli
lies in tbeleft Ihoulder: and abouUjO S. of Alkaturope is anOther alar
of the 4th magnitude, in the club near the east shoulder, marked Delta
I is about 90 distant from MirIc, 7j
O
from Alphacca, and forms,.with
theBe two, a regular triangle. .
Neltkar, marked A is a.tar of the 3d magnitude, tituated in the bead,
and is about 6
0
N. E. of Seginu .. and 60 W. of Albturope; itCOlmI
with I and 8eginUt, nearly a right angled triangle. the right angle being
at N!Ikkar.
TheE are the principal stan in this COII8teIIation, except the tbtee IIIar8
.r the 4th magnitude aituated in the right band. Th_ ..... may Ije
known, by two of them being clc.e together, 'and about 6
0
beylRld
the. first star in handle of the Dipper. About 6
0
E. of
Benetnasch is another .tar of the 4th IDttgJIitude, mated in the I'JD,
which fonne, with Benetnuch and the three in the band, an equilaleral
IriaDgIe. .
Arcturus is mentioned by name in that beautiful
paSsage in Job, already referred to, whel'e the
128 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
Almighty Q.Dawers "out of ihe whirlwind," and
saya:.
" thou the sky'. restrain,
And callE the Pleiades to shine in vain!
Or, when Orion sparkles from his sphere,
Thaw thP cold eeasona and unbind the year!
Bid Mazzaroth his station know,
And teaCh the bright bduf'IIB where to glow ! .. .
. Young', Paraphrtw.
.
'fELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
, BoiiTIB.-A. R. = 14 h. Hj m. 30 s. Dee. = + 52
0
06' 04". A
delicate triple star in the right hand of Bootes. A 4i, B 4i, C 8, .
magnitude. . .
Discovered by Strr. ye.
A B POI. 149" 00'
AO 3309
Dist. 00".3
38.06
Epoch 1836.28 2. S ....
5 ..... \'9.
A WRITE Rou Nnuu...-14 h. 11 m. 44 s. Det-. = 370 14' 04"
Discovered by Herschel, un 1st May, 1785.
A N <AT DOUBT.E SrAB.-A. R. = 14 h. 15 m. 81 s. Dec. = +
090 10' .07". Between the left foot of Bootes and Virgo, on a line be-
. tween Spica, A 6, B white, B 71, bllH.';
Discovered by PI8ZZ1.
POI. 186
0
03' Dist. 06".26 Epoch 1825.40 StrUve.
'Ir BoOTIS.-A.R. = 14 h. 33 m. 12 s. Dec. = + 17
0
06' 05".
On the left leg. A 3i. B 6, magnitude
. POI. 990 03' Dist. 06".00 Epoch 1836.51 Smyth.
96 57 08 1847.60 Mitchel.
t BOOTIB.-A. R. = 14 h. 33 m. 31 s.. Dec. = + 14
0
25' 01 ....
A cloee double star on the left leg of Bootes. A 3i, B 41.
Discovered by Herschel, 1798.
POI. 1290 17' Dist. 05".190 Epoch 1830.47 StrilYe.
128 24 06 .924 1847.62 Mitchel.
. This reault, after an interval of aeventeen years, determines, it would
_m, the fixity of the' components, though from early obaervatioDl m0-
tion had been suspected.
R. = 14 h.a8 m. 00 .. Dec. =+ 270 45'Oln. A
finedouble staron the left hip of Botes. A 3, pale orange; B 7,_
green. This is cartainly one of the most beaut'.ful. among the double
stars. .
DiscoYered byHerscheI.
POI. 320
0
41' Dist.02".581
323 38 02 .917
3iO 50 02 .568
Epoct. lIi31.41 Struve.
. 1841.41 M;;.dler.
1846.66 Mitchel;
. CONSTELLATION OF BOOTES. 129
BOI'Tla.-A. R. = 14 h. 44 m. 00.. Dec, = + 19" 48' OIH. A
binary star OIl the left knee of BoIi_ A Si, oiange; B 6i, purple.
The orbit WBB computed by Sir John Henchel in t8as, but with lillie
auccess. Mii.dler thinks the periodic time eannot l>e nearly 80 short ..
that obtained by Henchel. It will probably exeeecl.400 yeara.
Discovered by Henehel, 17SG. .
Poca. 334
0
10' Diat. 07".22 Epoch 1829.46 Btr;,ve
. 3M 41 07 .09 ' 184l.48 M;;dler.
317 06 .482 1!l:l7.63 Mitchel.
A SKnt. NlIB11U.-A . R. = 14 h. 63 m. 63.. Dee.. ... + 64
0
32' 07". Between the right band of BoO ... and Draco. .
by Henehel, 1788. .
89 BoOTl8.-A. R. = 14 h. 44 m. IS.. Dee.. ... + 490 U' 08".
On the rjght wrist Of Bootes. A 6., B 6i, magnitude.' ..'
Poca. 44
0
12' Diat. 03".71 Epoch tH30.02 StrUve.
37 00 04 .00 . 1847.80 MitcheL
TheM _ show retrograde motioD, BB do all the previouB 0IlHtI
44 BoiiTIB.-A. R. = I( h. 68 m. 81.. Dee. = + 48
0
II,' OS".
A eloee double star in the apacelOllowing the right arm of Bo<;tea. A
5, B 8, ThiI star baa no little difficulty, owing
to the abrupt changes which have' occurred in the relative positions of the
eomponenta. . Mii.dler thinks Herschel's first obaervation is wrong by 180
degrees; an error euily committed, Clm8idering the neal equality of the
two stars. On this hypothelis the periodie time may not difl8r much
&om sixty or seventy years. A "" _ are added.
Poca. 600 06' Dist. 02".00 Epoch 1781.62 BeracheL
228 00 4)1 .60 1819.48 StriiYCI.
233 39 02 .66 Struve.
237 02 04 .068 1841.47 Miidler.
238 20 03 .788 1847.62 Mitchel.
fA 2 BoOTI8.-A. R. = 16 h. 18 m. 28.. Dei:. = 37 M' or.
A binary star on the tip of the stafF of"B0(;te8. A 8, B 8i, magnitude.
The eomponenta are preforming their revolution in retrograde order,
and in a period of 300 or 400 years.
1'hese IIlCl88ure8 will show the rate of motion. . ..
Poa. 3570 14' Dist. Epoch 1782.68 HeneheL
327 00 1826.77 StrUve.
. 3Ui 04 01 .080 1836.65 StrUve.
80843 06 .886 1841.46 M;odler .
13p GEOGRAPHY or THE HEAVENS.
DRACO.
THE DllAGON.-This constellation, which com-
passes a large circuit in the polar regions .by its
ample folds and contortions, contains many stars
which may be easily traced. .
From the head or the monster, which is under the
foot of Hercules, there is a complete coll tending
eastwar$lly, abou t 17 N. of Lyra; thence he winds
down northerly about 14 to'the second coil, where
he reaches almost to the girdle of Cepheus, thEm he
loops down somewhat in the shape of the letter U,
.... nd makea a third coil about ISO below the first.
From the third coil he holds a westerly course for
'. about 13, then goes directly dc.>wn, passing be-
tween the head of the Lesser the tail of the
Greater Bear.
This contains eighty stars, including'
four ofthe 2d magnitude, seven of the 3d, and twelve
of the 4th. .
... The bragm next. winds like a mighty stream ;
Within ita ample folds are eighty stara, .
Four oCtile second order. Faihe Wjives
His ample spires, involving either Bear."
The head of the Dragon is readily distinguished
by means of four stars, sq, 4, and SO apart, so situ.
ated as to form an irregular square; the two upper
ones being the brightest, and bothofthe 2d magni-
tude. The right hand upper one, called Etanin, has
been rendered very noted in modern astronomy from
its connection with the discovery of a new law in
physical science, called the .Aberration of Light.
The letter name of this star is Gamma, or Gamma
Draconis,' and by this appellation it is most fre-
quently called. The other bright star, about 4
from it on the left, is Ro.stahen, marked
See Map xvn for part of Draco.
CONSTELLATION OF DRACO. 131
About 4 W. of 13, a small star may, with close
attention, be discerned in the nose of. the Dragon,
which, with the irregular square before mentioned,
makes a figure somewhat resembling an Italic V,
with the point towards the west, and the open part
towards the east. The small star in the nose, is
. called Er Rakis, marked ",.
The two liliiii1 star. 1i0 or 1)0. S. fA Rutaben ani in the left foot of
Berc:uIea.
. .
Rastaben is on t.he meridian nearly at the same
moment with Rae Alhague. Etanin, 40 N. of it, is
on the meridian about the 4th of August, at the
same time with the three western stars in the face
of Taurus Poniatowski, or the V. It 'is situated
less than 2 west of the solstitial colure, and is
exactly in the zeDith of London. Its flWOJ'able
position has led English astronomers to watch its
appearance, for long periods, with the most exact
and unwearied scrutiny.
In the year 172.'1, Mr. Molyneux and Dr. Bradley fitald up a very
accurate and eoatly inIItrument, in Older to discover whether the fixed
I&ara had any aensible parallax, while the earth moved from one extremity
of its orbit to the other i or which is the same, to determine whether. the
nearest fixed IIIBrII ani Bituated at BUch an immense distaJice from the
earth, tbat any star which is _n this night directly north of us, will, lix
months bence, when we ahall have gone I 90 milliona of miles to th45
ealitward of the place we are now in, be then seen exactly north of UB
1IIill, without changing its position 80 mudl as the tbiclm- of a
spider'. web. . . . ..
These observationa were subsequently repeated, with but little inter-
mission, for twenty yt!anl, by the most acute obaerveia in Europe, and
with telescopes varying from twelve to thirty-aix feet in length. In the
meantime, Dr. Bradley bad the honor of announcing to the world the very
nice discovery, thet the motion of light, combined with the progrl!88iflf
motion oflhe tarlA in ill orbit, _ Ihe ~ } J bodiu to be Bte!I in
/I diJIerml poBition foam whllt Ihev would be, iJ the eye were lit rut.
Thus _ NtabIished the principle of the Aberraiion of light.
'I'hia principle, or law, now that it is ascertained, _ma not only very
plain, but ..,Il evidenl For if light be progressive, the position of the
teIeacope, in Older to receive the ray, mUBl be diftimmt from what it would
have been, if light had ~ inatantaDeowI, or if the earth stood IIIill.
132 GEOGRAPHY OF THE .HEAVENS.
Hence the place to which the teleIcope is directed, will be dift8rent from
.he true place of the object.' .. .
The quantity of aberration is determined by a simple proposition.
The earth deIcribea 69' of her orbit in a day = 3Ma", and a ray of
light'C0IDe8 from the II\IJI to U8 in 8' IS" = 493" : DOW twenty-fOur boum
or 86400" : 493'.' :: : whicb is the clwige in the 8&ar'8 place,
arising from the CR)IBIl above mentioned.
Of' the fiIUf IICarI fOrming the irregular square in the bead, the lower
and right band one i. N, of Etanin. It is caI\ed Gnsmillm. and ia
of the 4th .magnitude. A fiIw degrejlllE. of the squar\!, may be seen,"
with a liUIe. care, eigbt &tara of the 6th magnitude, 8nd OIIe of the 4th,
which.liea SO E. of Grumium. This group is in the firat coil of the
Dragon. '. .
The 8BCOIld coil is about 13 below the first, and may be IflCC!gJIiaed
by means of fuur &tara of tbe 3d an!1 4th magnitudea, 10 as to
form a amall square, about half the size of that in the bead.
The brigbtest of them ia on the left, and is marked Delta. A line
drawn from, Raataben through Grumium, and produced about 14
0
, will
point it out. A line iliawn from Lyra through Zi Draconis, and pr0-
duced 100 fiuther. will point out Zeta, a star of the magnitudt>,
in the third' may otherwise be known, by its being nearly in a
line with: and. midway, between, Etanin and Kochab. FlOD\? the re-
maining ..... in this constellation are easily traced. .
EttJ, Theta, and .Mich, come next; all atsra of the 3d magnitude, and
at the distance, severally, of 60, 40 and 60 At ABich, the third
star from tail of the Dragon makee a BUdden crook. Thuban,
Ko.ppa. follow and complete the tail.
TlruJJan, marked II, ill a bright- star of'the 3d mag-
nitude,11 from Asich, in a line with, "nd about
midway between, Mizar and the southernmost guard
in the Little Bear. By nautical men this star is
called the Dragon's Tail, and is considered of much
importance at sea. It is otherwise celebrated as
being formerly the 7Wrth polar star. About 2,300
years before the C\lristian era, Thuban was ten
times nearer the true pole of the heavens than
Cynosura now is. .
KaJI'I}(J is a lltar of the 3d magnitude, 100 from A lpba, between Megnoz
and the pole. Mizar and Megrez, in the tail of the Great Bear, form,
with 'I'buban and ", in the tail of the Dragon, a large quadrilatera16gme,
whoae 1000gwt aide ia frorp Megrea to ...
Giar&.r, the last .au in the tail, ia between the 3d and 4th magni-
tudee, and flO from ... The twp .poin\e1'8 will a1ao point out Gianear,
lying at the distaDce of little _ than SO fiorD them, and in the direction
fIl the .pole.
CONSTELLATION OF DRACO. 133
TELESCOPIC' OBJECTS.'
A. OnT. N8BllLA_A. R. = 16 b. 02 m..03 .. Dec. = + c;ao
13'. Under the body ofDraeo. .
Diacovered bY Herachel, 1789. 1t iB filint at the edgee. .
A SKUL RoUJrD N UULA.-A. R. =.16 h. 36 m. 6:J .. Dec. +
690 62'. In the eenter of Dtaco', body. .
DiIIootend by Henchel, 1788.
Thill oI;eet brightens at the center, pteElting nucIna Dot vmy.JI8I"
iBctIy defined. It is fOllowed in the __ field by much larger e1on-
gated nebula, which aeeme to have eacapeel all preceding oIMerve1'8, It
was discovered,4th July, It147, by Mre. Mitehe1, while ~ in a
eritical examination of the above object. It is taint, but 1l811ain, and bu
.. oval. or elIiptical1igun.
". DucoIlJI.-A. R. == 17 b. 02 m. 02 s" Dec.:"- MO 41' 02". A
fine bifttJry 1Itar, flIJ the tip of Draco'. tongue. A 4, B 4i. magnit\lde.
DiacoveJed by Heracbel, 1 781. Since which period mrograde JDOo
uonbae been in progreea, as is fully lUlltained by the reported _urea,
-.iz.- .
POL 2320 22' .Disl 4".31i Epocb 1781.7S H8lIJClleL
206 06 8 .23 . 1831.22 Str:.ve.
190 67 ".90 1847.70 MitcheL
..,. 1 Ducorrll.-A. R. = 17 b. 44 m. 47.. Dec. + 7'J;O 13'. A
double ltar, in the middle of Draco'. back. A 6i, B 6. Both wbit&
This distance is about 81"; the poIIition 160. No change ~ 1 l l 8 to
have taken place. See.Map; No xvn.
A DoUBLS inA_A. R. = 17b. 26 m. 07&. Dec. =+ 6QO 69'
OS". Between the right tbot of Hercules aDd Draco', eye. A 8, B 8j.
magnitUde; . .
POL 2660 !l8' DiIlS".17 Epoch 188US Stri.ve.
266 20 8 .03 1847.70 Mitchel

.' >
A PunTny Nn17u.-A. R.= 17b. &em. 39 . Dec. 68038.
Between the fih& twist Draco and biB bead.
Discovered by HI!ftICheI, in 1786. .
This singular object is described in the Bedford Catalogue, without
any mention of a rellilllkably bright but ImBU nucleui which occupies its
eenter. Thill point wail detected by myaelf, July, 1847. When the
. eye and att.entiou is attentiTeiyfixedon the eentral point, the Debu\a
fadu frum tAt view, and the moment the attention is withdrawn from
the nucleue, and CII8UIIl glance is directed to the nebula, the &tar fadee
and the nebula brightens, up in a most beautiful IDIUlIIeJ'. Thill curioua
phenomenoo was IIOticed by many JI8lIIOlIII ill my: company. No 0D8 .
can doubt the connection between this nebuloue _ and the IOlIIId
central point of light. It is unlike 1Itar, as it is round and clear, with
minute diIIk and no IIIIliatioDII. I have diIeovered but 0D8 other Clbjec& .
lib it. Here ill the COIlIl8CtiDg IiDk between pIaDIIIa1y D8bulaI BD4
M
134 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
, nebulous stars;, at leaoot, such would be the opinion of those who still
adhere to the nebuloUB tMr"'Y' ' ,
'fhis remarkable ol!led, 88 will be seen from the position,is in the pole
of 1M ecliptic. '
DUIlOIUS.--A. R. = 18 h. 48 m. 50 a. Dee. = + 590 II' 07".
A double star. on Draco'. neck. A 5, B 9. magnitude. M .. d1er thinks
the components phyaicall! connected. with il period of about 1600 y_
POB. '900 00' Dist. 28".37 Epoch 1781.68 HencheL
346 83 80 .26 1832.60 Stril_
344 51 32 .10 1841.48 l'tlii.dler
DB,A.ctnrIILI-A. R. == 19 II. 48 m. 41.. Dec; 690 51' 06". III the
bend of Draco'. back. ' A 6i. B magnitude.
Discovered by whose first measures are probably wrong in
8QD18 way. 88 they would indicate il great motion. between 1781 and
18M, "'Ich is not llUBtained by the later observations.
POB. 355
0
40' Dist. 2".69a Epoch 1841.66 M;idler
. COMA BERENICES.
BERENICE'S HAm.-This is a beautiful cluster of,
small stars, situated about 50 E. of the equinoctial
colur', and midway between CorCaroli on the north-
east, and Denebola on the southwest. If a straight
line be drawn from Benetnasch through Cor Caroli,
and produced to Denebola, it will pass thro.ugh it.
The principal stars are of between the 4th and ,5th
According to Flamsted, there, are thir-
of the 4th magnitude, and, according to others,
there are seven; but the student will find, agreeably
to his map, that there are but three stars in this
group entitled to that rank ..
Although it is not easy to mist.ake this group for
any other in the sanie region of the skies, yet the
stars which compose it are all 'so small as to be
rarely distinguished in the full presence of the
moon. ,The cpnfused luster of this assemblage of
stars, some\vhat resembles that of the Milky-
Way. It contains, besides the stars already alluded
to, a number of nebulm. ' .'
CONSTELLATION OF COMA BERENICES. 135'
The whole number of stars in' this constellation
i, 43; its mean right ascension is It, conse--
quently, is on the meridian the 13th of May.
____ --I'. Now behold
The gliUering maze of Bere1ua', Hajr I
Farly the &talII; bUt such .. seem to kill
rbe jlowiTlg e,_ with a lambeJU Ire:
Four to the teleacope alone are seen. ..
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
s6 Cox .. BUNJCEB.-A. R. = 12 h. 45 m!'25 II . Dec. =+ 22
0
(17', A triple ., between the 'rr- and Virgo'. northern wing.
A ll, B indistinct, C 10, Such are the magnitudes aaaigned by Captain
Smyth. I measured the components on the July, 1847, and found
the individual measures accord well with each other.
P08. A:O = 4()0 04' DilL = 1".316 Epoch .. above.
A to C 125 31
In 1830, Strl. ve gives the IIl8IIIIIIle8 of A to C .. illlowa :
Poe. A to C 124
0
43' Diat. 28".61 Epoch 1830.13,
Captain Smyth IDIIkea the diIance between A and B, in 1834, 1",00,
In 1843, 1",6.
64 MESIJER, COlIIB BERIHCElI.-A. R. = 12 h. 48 m. 52.. Dec.
+ 220 33' 02". A large elliptical nebula, between Bernice'. hair and
Virgo'. left ann.
Discovered by Me&Bier, 1780,
Sir J ohri Herachel considers this nebula resolvable, though not re-
solved. He _y.: "I am mllCb mistaken if the nucleus be not a double
star, in the genellll direction of the nucleus; 320 mQch increaseS this SUJlo
picion; 340 shows well a vacuity below the nucleus."
63 MUIII"&R, COX .. BUlflC"&S.-A. R. = 13 h. 05 m. 03.. Dec.
=t 19
0
01' 03". A globular cluster, between the Coma and Virgo'.
left and. A brilliant IDaIIII of minute stara, varying from the, 11 th 10
the 16th magnitudes.
Discovered by Mesaier, 1774. Resolved by Herschel, who finda.it
gready at the center. This is one of the many magnificent
" island univetBils." .
Sir John Herschel, with his 20 feet reflector, saw this object with
curved radiations of IItarB, IIOJIl8What resembling the claws of a crab.
-&2 Cox .. BUlflC"&S.-A. R. = 13 h. 02.m. 12.. Dec. = + 18
0
22' 06". A very cloee double star, between the Lady's hair and Virgo'.
left hand. A 4!, B 5, magnitude. Both abi.ra are said to be pale-yeJ-
low. It is No. 1728 of 8triive'. great catalogue, and is among bill
"vicinil!8imle," or very stara.
The meaaurea run thUB: . .
138 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
Pc-. 090 30' DiIt. . Epoch 1827.88 Stril ....
11 06 OH.649 1829.40
- -' lingle 1833.87
128 11 __ bat eIoapted 1834.48
191 11 1336.39
After this, the -.mel lUll made with IiUIe up to 1841.
when Madler, or Dorpat, 1Ii- theM :
POll. 183
0
1/1' Diat. Epoch 1841.46.
H_ is, a binary II)'8tem, but one of great difficulty. The
IIaIII being nearly equat in magnitude, it is diffieult to diatinguish the
angle or position from the IIUIIII, increued by 1800.
ASTERION ET CHA..RA; VEL VENATICI.
THB GUYHOUNDS. - This modem constellation,
embracing two in one, was made by Hevelius out
of the unformed stars of the ancients, which were
scattered between Bootes on the east, and Urea
Major on the west, and between the handle of the
Dipper on the north, and Coma Berenices on. the.
south.' . .
These Hounds are .represented on the celestial
sphe.re as being in pursuit of the Great Bear, which
Bootes is hunting round the pole of heaven, 'While
he holds in his hand the leash by which they are
together. The northern one is called .A.t-
terion, and the southern one Ohara,
The stai's in this group are considerably scatter-
ed, and are principally of the 5th and 6th magni-
tudes jOt' the twenty-five stars which it contains,
there is but one sufficiently large to engage our at-"
tention. Cor Daroli, marked Go, or Charles' 8 Heart,
so named by Sir Charles Scarborough, in memory \
of King Charles the First, is' a star of the 3d mag- .
nitude, in the.neck of Chara; the .southern Hound.
When on the meridian, Cor Caro1i ia 17 IO directly south or Alioth,
the third IItar in the hanclIe or the Dipper, and is 80 nearly on the same
meridian. that it culminatee only OIIe minute and a half after it. Thill \
0CCIIlII on the of May.
A line drawn from COl' Caro\i. through Alioth, will lead, to the north
polar 1Itar. This IItar may also be reacliIy by its being in a
CONSTELLATION OF THE HOUND!!. 137
IItraiPt line with, and midway between, Beuetnaaeb, tb/! filllt star in the
handle of the Dipper, ani Coma BenmiClel!: alld, also, by the fact that,
when Cor Caroli is 011 the meridian, DeneI!oIa bears illO S. W., and
ArctuI"Wl 26
0
S. E. of it, forming, with these two Btara, a very large tri-
angle, whose vertex is at the north. It is aI80 at the nm1hem es.tremily
of tlte large Diamond, already deacribed. . .
The Btal8 in this conatellation Bre too BJDa1l, and too. much
-uered, to excite' our interest.
TELESOOPIC OBJEOTS.
2 O.llWJ[VBlJATICORUJ[.-A. R. = i2 h. 08 m. 06.. Dee.":'" +
41
0
33' . A double liar, neB? Obara'. month. A 6, yellow;' B 9, blue.
Discovered byHencheJ, 1782.
1'0& 259
0
38' Diet. 11".42 Epoch 1832.16 Str'.ve.
Ita fixity seeD18 to be determined by a comparison of aU the recorded
ot-rvatiOll8. . .
., LAROE R. = 12 h. 4:1 m. 22 So llec.41
0
59'07".
Immediately preceding the Cl'OWIl, or Oharl .. s Heart.
Discovered by Mich!lin, in 1781. Described in the Bedford Cl!taIogue
as .. a fine pale white o1!ject, with evident aymptoJDB of being a com-
pressed cluster of small stan!. " .'
61 M. O.llfUlII Vn.lTIcQRux"":"A. R. = 13 h. 23 m. 06 s. Dec.
= + 48
0
01' or. A pair oflucid nebula. near the ear of Asterion.
Discovered by MMIi.er, 1712. Figured by Sir John HelllChel, 1830.
ReeoIved by Lord into onemagniticent cluster. in the abape of an
iJDDlt'use whirlpool, in 1847. . .
I have repeatedly examined this most wonderful object with the 12
inch reliactor of theOincinnati Obeervatory. 'rhe lIllY nebula is'seen
with a bright nucleuB, lIImOIJDIled by aring of hazy light, which is di-
vided, in a part of ita circumference, into two branches, which forcibly
remind me of the Milky-Way and ita division. 1'he smaller . nebula is
round, and ita light is seen nearly, if not quite, commingling with that of
the ring aurrounding the principal object. This o1!ject strongly resembled
our own great BteIIar syatem, 80 long as it was viewed at the distance
to whiril ordinary telescopes could carry the beholder. But, under the
gaze of Lord RoI!se' 8 stupendous reftector, the most bewildering o1!ject
buTBts upon the sight. A mighty center, where, in spiral curves, radiate
masses of light, 80 vast as to overwhelm the imagination ..
'rhe resolution of this most renlarkable nebula ia one. of the areat
achievementa of Lord Roa!e'8 telescope. .
3 MusnR, O.l.uJ[ VBlf.lTlCOIlUX.-A. R. = 13 h. 34 m. 46 ..
Dee. = + 29P 10' 06". A magnificent cluster, said to contain not Iesa
than a thousand sIarB, between the IIOIIthern Hound and the knee of
Bootes.
Discovered by MeBBier, 1764; and described as" a nebula without a
liar, brilliant and round." Resolved by Henchel, 1784, with his 20
.2 .
138 GEQGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS,'
ilet zefIedor, wbo calla it .. a beautiful e11Dter of IItanI, II' or tI in diame-
ter." , I haw repat.edJy examined this fine object. The _ of Man
k greedy compaded toptber at the renter, and spreM out in brilliant
nMliationa in aJi direetion.. The IargeIt radiations extend downward, ..
.. with m inverting eye-pieee.
COR 0 NAB 0 Kif A L 18.
TRE NoaTHEu CaoWN.-This beautiful constella-
tion may be easily known by means of its six prin-
cipal stars, which are so placed &8 to form a circular
. figure, very much resetpbling a wreath or crown.
It is situated -directly north of the Serpent's head,
between Bootes, on the west, and Hercules, on the
east.
Tbia _!mown to the Heb_ by the name of hhtarotA J
and by this Dame the IItaIII in <;:orona BOII!IIIM are in the East, to
.
Alpkacca, marked Go, of the 2d magnitude, is the
brightest and ,middle star in the diadem, and about
11 E. of Mirac, in BoOtes. It is very readily dis';
tinguished from the others, both on acMunt of its
position and superior brilliallcy. Alph8.cca, Arctu-
rus and Segiuus, form nearly an isoscelestriangJe,
the vertex of which is at Arcturus. .
This constellation contains twenty-one stars, of
which only six or eight are conspicuous; and most
of these are not larger than the third magnitude.
Its mean declination is 30 north, and its mean
right ascension 235. Its' center ie, therefore, on
the meridian about the last of June, and the -first
of July. .
... near to HeIi, eftbJgent ray.
Beam, .biatIne, from thy rb.rry crown:
7Wen'JI and one. her 1ItaIII; but eight alone
COD8pICUOII8; one doubtful, or to claim
The II!COnd emler, or accept the third."
CON8TEo..A TION OF LEO JlIN01l. 18V
DIRF.cTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATION' ON
'MAP NO. XIV.
LBO MnmR-TUE Ln-ru LION.
LYNx-TUE LYNX.
PavorolJly situatedfor ezomination in'Mareh, April
and 1f!ay.. . \ .
LEO MINOR.
THE LrrrLE UON.-This constellation was formed
by Heveliu!!, out of the Stella informelt, or unforpted
stars of the ancients, which lay scattered between
the zodiacal constellation Leo, on the south, and
Ursa MaJor, on the north; Its mean right ascension
is the with that of Regulus, and it comes to
the meridian at the same time, on the 6th of April:
The modem co1llJtellationa, or thOle which have been added to oar
celestial mapa, Since the adoption of the Greek in 1603, are
referred to by the (etteN of the English alphabet, instead of the Greek.
This ill the eaae in to Leo Minor, and an other co1IIItel\ationa
whOle origin ill subsequent to that period. .
Leo . Minor contains- fifty-three stars, including
only two' of the 4th magnitude. The star
is situated in the body of the animal, l:JOnorth of
Leonis, in a'straight line with Phad, and
may be known by a group of smaller stars, a little'
above it, on the northwest.
It forms an equilatem triangle with Gamma and Delta Leonia, the
yertex being in Leo M"mor. This star is marked with the letter.1, in
modern catalogues, and, being the principal repreaentative of the conete1-
Jation, ill itaelf sometimes called the Little Lion: SO E. of this atBr (the
Little Lion), are two stars of the 4th magnitude, in the Wt paw ofltra
Major; and about loo N. W. of it, are two other lIIUB"of the 3d mag-
nitude, in the first hind paw.. .
.. The 8maIler linn now 8IIeCeedl; a cohort
Of fifty &tara attends his IItep8 ; ,
And Uwee
i
to aipl UniIIDJe."
140 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAn:N8.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
100 HZ.'CRlCL I, Laona MI"ORJR ....... A. R.. = II 11. '2 m. ".
Dec. = + 34
0
00' 06". A bright oval nebula, between Lynx aud
Cancer. .
DiBcovered by Hei-achel, 1781; and registered _ a wsry beautiful no-
hula, 8' long and 3' broad. '.
Other llllbula will be found OIl the chart.
THE L ~ N X .
THB constellation of the Lynx, like that of the
Camelopard, exhibits no very interesting features,
by which it can be distinguished. It contains only
a moderate number of inferio.r (Jtars, scattered over
a large space, north of Gemini and between Auriga
and Ursa MBrjor. The whole number is fi)rty-four,
including only three tbat are so large as tbe 4th
magnitude. Tbe largest of these, in the nose,
is in the solstitial colure, 14nortb of Menkalina,
in tbe eaSt shoulder of Auriga. The other two
principal stars are in the brush of tbe tail, 31
0
south-
west of another star, of the same brightness, in the
mouth of the Lesser Lion, with which it makes a
small triangle. Its center is on the meridian at 9
o'clock, on the 23d,or, at half-past 7, on the 1st, of
February . .
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS .
. ,LTlfcll.-A. R. = 8 11. 07 m. IH B. Dee. = + 590 26' 08".
A close double star, in the nose of the Lynx. A 6, B 71.
J>iaccmnld !7 StriiYe.
POL 880 68 DiBt. 0".816 Epoch 1830. ~ 8trii Ye.
174 P. VI, LTlfcrl.-A. R. = 611. 30 m. 'h. Dec. + 690 36'
06". A double 1Itar, under the eye of the Lynx. A 7., white, B 10.
lIlue. .
DiaccmIred by Btrilq. '
Poe. 1330 28' DiaL '''.197 Epoch 1830.68.
The compmion 8ppeara to be ftriabIe, 1'8DIing from 8i to the 12tb
magnitude.
l' LTlfcIB.-A. R. 611.38 m. 67.. Dec. = 690 37' 06" A"
CON8TELLATION OF THE LYNX. 141
double liar, uDder the eye of the I.ynx. A Ii. "goIdeu ye1Imr," B I,
MpwpIe." _ . .
DiacoveIed bv Strn ve.
}>OII. 500 61' Diat.' 0" 897 Epochl830.88
137. HKIIIICRKL I, L-nlcls.--A. R. = 09 h.14 m. 311.. Dec. +
3.0;0 II' 09". A bright nebula, on the be pa_ of Leo MiJ!or, bot iD-
duded within the IimiI8 of the Lynx.
Discovered by Hel'llCheI, in 1786, who dellcribes it u nIUDd, pale white,
and sparlding in the center, with an IIdditionalliint nebulOBity BUrrOUDd-
iDg the Some 3' diameter.

mRECnONS FORTRACJNG THE cONSTELLATION ON
MAP N'O. XV.
LmllA-TJiE ScALES.
Favoralily situated for emmination. in May, Ju:u
41Id JvJy. .
- \ - ,
LIB RA.
THE BALANCE.- is the seventh sign, and eighth
constellation, from the vernal equinox, and is situ-
ated in the Zodiac, next east of Virgo.
The sun enters this sign,.at the autumnal equi-
nox, on the of September; but does not reach
the c.Tm8tellotwn before the .27th of October.
Virgo was the goddess of justice, and Libra, the
scales, which she- is usually represented as holding
in her left hand, are the appropriate emblems of
her office. When the sun enters the sign Libra, the
days and nights are equal aU over the _ world, and
seem to observe a kind of equilibrium, like a balance .
. When, however, it .is said that the vernal and
autumnal equinoxes are in Aries and Libra, and the
tropics in Cancer and Capricorn, it must be remem,.
bered that the sign8, Aries and Libra, Cancer and
142 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
Capricom,and not the constellations of these nanes,
are for the equinoxes are now in c;on-
siellatioDs Pisces and .Virgo, and the tropics in Ge-
mini and Sagittarius; each constellatian ho.vjng gone
forward tme sign in the ecliptic.
About twenty-two centuries ago, the C01UJtellation
Libra coincided with the sign Libra; but, having
advanced 30
0
, or more, in the ecliptic, it is now in
the sign Scorpio, and the constellation Scorpio is in
the sign Sagittarius, and so on. .
While Aries is now advanced a whole sign above
the equinoctial point, into north declinati9n, Libra.
has descended as far below it, into sQuth declination.
Libra contains fifty-one including two of
. the 2d magnitude, and several of the 4th. Its mean
declination is 8
0
south, and. its mean right ascension
226
0
Its center is, therefore, on the meridian about
the 22d of June.
It may be known by means of its four principal
stars, forming a quadrilateral figure, lying north-
east and southwest, and having its upper and lower
corners nearly in a line running north and south.
The two stars which form the northeast side of the
square are situated about 7 apart, and distinguish
the northern scale. The two stars which form the
1!I0uthwest side 'of the square are situated about 6
0
apart, and distinguish the southern scale.
Zubeneschamali, marked the northern scale, about 21
0
E. of
Spica, and 8
0
E. of Lambda Virginia, ill a &tar of the 2d inagnitude, and
ill situated very near the ecliptic, about 42io E. of t)le autumnal equinox.
The distance from this.tar clown to Theta. Centauri, is about 2).J0, with
which, and Spica Virginia, it forms a large triangle, on the right.
ZltberWgemabi, markl'd ri, is a)w, of the 2d magnitude, below
Zubeneachamali, tqwanJ& the southwest, and it comes to the meridian
about twenty.six minutes after it, on the:t&l of June. Zubenelgemahi
is the of the four bright stars in this figure, and is exactly
opposite the lower one, which is I lOS. of it
The star marked 1'. i. a star of the 3d magnitude, in the north-
ern acaIe. 7
0
S. E. of Zl1oont!lgemabi, and nearly opposite to ZUlJellt ...
cbamali, at the distance of I lOon the east. 'fheae two make lbe
diagonal of the equare east and weaL
CONSTELLA.TION OF LIBRA..
143
rota is a &tar of the 4th magnitude. and COJIIItituleli the IllUthemlllOllt
Ct Der of the square. It is about 6" S. E. of Zubeneschamali, md 11
0
S of Zubenelgemabi, with which it tOrDIB the diagonal, north and
80 Ith.
Zubmelgvbi is a .tar of the 2d magnitGde, aituaied below the rputhem
acale, at the distance of 6, from lola, and marks the IOUthero limit of the
Zodiac. It is situated in a right line with, and nearly midway between,
Spca Virginia and Beta Scorpii; -and comes to the meridian nearly
at the _ IIIOIIIIIIlt with Nekkar, in the head ofBo;;tea.
'!'he remaining &Iar& in the eoostelIatiCID are too stnaIl to engage
attention. '
The aeholar, in tracing out this eooateJlation in the heaVeDB, will per-
ceive that Lambda and Mu, which lie in the filet of Virgo, on the weat,
fonn, with Zubenesebama1i and Zubenelgemabi, almoat B8 bandaome and
perfiect a figure as the otber two.stars in die Balance do. on the east.
T EJ,E SCOPIC 0 BJ ECTS.
'A DovBLE STu . ....:A. R. = 14 h. 14 III; 11 Ii. Dec. = - ()70 01'
07".-160, east by north, from Bpica Vuginia The ItalII are equa1, and
of the 8th magnitude
POll. 166
0
0t!' DiaL 5".02 Epoch IS36.44 SIIIyth.
A CLOSE DOUBLE BUB.-A. R. = 14h. 11\ m. 06.. Dec. 100
56' o:r.-cioee to thebeel of the Virgin. A 7!, yellow, B greeniab.
Dieeovered by Str:.ve. 1827. '
POll. 326
0
87' Dist. .".41 Epoch 1828.83.
A CJ.OIIi:LY COMPACTED CL'UIITEB.-A. R. = 111 h. 10 m. 26 ..
Dec. = + 020 41' 03". ' Over the Balance. ,
Discovetedby Mesaiet, 1764, who regiaterB it _,a round nebula, in
which, he is confident, not a star exista; '8Ild yet, in May, 1791, Bir
William Herachel, by the aid of his 40 filet re8eetor, counted in this ob-
ject no '- than 200 8&anI, ,
This is one of the great c\uslel1l comparatively near our IIidereal Btra:-
bnn, and somewhat resembling that in flercules, hereafter described and
figured. The drawing WB8 made under a power of 280, and 12 inches-'
aptll1Ure; the ot;ect WB8 thUII described.' ,
f OB III LIBIUII.-A. R. = 15 h. 68 m. 35 .. Dec. = - 1oo 55
06. A lIIOIIt elegant triple 1ItaT, between the upper BCaIe of Libra and
the right leg of Ophiuchua. A. 4!. B II, magnitude.
Poe. A B 187
0
56' DiaL 1" .50 Epoch 1782.361HeracheL
A C 88 37 6 .38 1780.39 5 '
! :: 1825.4&} StrUve.
! :
A B 24 52 0 .97 1846.48 1. Mitchel.
A C 74 42 7 .16 - S.
The disks are per(ed, with a power of 600 timea.
1 GEOGRAPHY 01" TIlE HEAVENS.
A LJ.... eo.. ...... CI.V8'na..-A. R. = 15 h. 08, IlL G6 ..
Dec. = -100 te' or.
by HeI1dIeI, 1786. It hIM 110ft of IlCJIIIII!I.\ti link '-
tween the c:ouaen- of IIaJa aDIl the ditltet nebula.
---

DIRECTIONS FOR TJlACINGTHE CONSTELLATION ON
)fA P, NO. XVI.
ScolU'Io-THE ScOIlPIOl'f. ,
Favorohlg aituated fur " ezamina#on in June, July,
and August.
8CORPIO.
THE Sea.PION.-This is the eighth sign, and nint.h
constellation, in the order of the Zodiac; It 'pre-
sents one of. the moat interesting groups of Btars,
for the, pupil to trace out, the:t is be found in the
hemisphere. , It is sltuated southward a.nd
eastward of Libra, and is on the meridian the 10th
pC July. ' ..
The IUD enters this Iign on the 23d of October, but not reach
the ctmBteJlotion befOTe the 20th of November. When astronomy _
fint cultivated in the East, the two eolstices and the two equino"ea took
place when the IUD WII8 in 'Aquarius and Leo, 1'aurua ,and Scorpio,
'respeCtively.
, Scorpio containe,aceording to Flamsted, forty-
four stars; including one of the 1st magnitude, one
of the and eleven of the 3d. It is readily dis-
tinguished from all others, by the peculiar ,luster
and the position of its stars.
Antares, marked a., is the principal star, and ia
situated in the heart 01\ the Scorpion, about 19 E.
of Zuhenelgubi, the southernmost star in the Balance.
Anwes is the most brilliant star in that region of
CONSTELLATION OF SCORPIO. 145
the skies, and may be otherwise distinguished by
its remarkably red appearance. Its declination is
about 26 S. It comes to the meridian about three
hours after Spica Virginis, or fifty minutes after
Corona Borealis, on the lOth of July. It is one of
the stars from which the moon's distance is reck-
oned, for computing the longitude at sea.
There are iJur great tltatll in the _-. FtJ'IIIIJIMuI, AJdelIarrm,
&gulw, and ArItInI. which fOrmerly anawen!d to th. IOl8titial and
equinoctial pointa, and which were much noticed by the uIronomen of
&he Eat.
About S!0 N. W. of Antares, is a star of the 2d
magnitude, in the head of the Scorpion, called
GrajJiaa, It is but 1 N. of the earth's
orbit. It may be recognized by means of a small
star, situated about 1 N. E. of it, and also by its
forming a slight curve with two other stars of the
3d ,magnitude, situated below it, each about 3
apart. The broad part of the constellation near
Graffias is powdered with numerous small st"rs,
converging down to a point at Antares, and rellp.m-
bling in figure a boy's kite. .
As you proceed from Antares, there are ten con-
spicuous stars, chiefly of the 3d magnitude, which
mark the tail of the kite, extending down, first in
. a south-southeasterly direction, about 17, thence
easterly, about 8 further, when they turn, and ad-
vance about 8 towards the north, forming a curve,
like a shepberd's crook, or the bottom part of the
letter S. This crooked line of stars, forming the
tail of the ScorpioIl, is very conspicuous, and may
be easily traced.
The first star below A ntarea, which is the last in the back, is of only
the 4th magnitude. It is about 20 S. E. of Antarea, and is marked '1".
Epailor., of the 3d magnitude, is the aecond star from Antarea, and the
fiDt in the tail. It is aituated about 70 below the star '1", but inclihing
IiUIe to the eat.
. Afi.f, of the 3d magnitude, ia the 3d star from AnI.ue8. It is aituated
N '
146 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
4j0 beloW Epilon. It may o&henriI8 be known by __ of -n
IItar clOle by it, on the left.
Zeta, of about the BaDle magnitude, and situated about 88 fill below
Mu, ill the fuurth atar tiom Antarea. Here the fine tumB lUIIdImly to
the tIIIIt.
Eta, also of the 3d magnitude, is W, fifth IItar &om Anw., IDIl abom
310 eaat of Zeta.
71Ida, of the lJIIIIle magnitude, ill the sixth star &om Anw., and
.bout .10 E. of Eta. Here the line tumB epin, cumug to the nOltb,
and terminates in a couple of stars.
Iota, ill the eeventh star tiom Antarell, 310 above The&a, cuniDg a
lie to the left. It ill a star of the 3d magnitude, and may be known by
JDeaIIII of a 8IIIIIIl1itar aIJDOIIt touching it, on the east.
Kappa, a star of equal brightness, is leu than 20 above Iota, uad a
IiUIe to the right. .
Le8utk, of the 3d magnitude, ill the brightest of the two Iaat in the tail,
and ill situated about 30 above Kappa, still further to the right. It may
readily be known by meaua of a 8IIIIIIler star close by it, on the welt.
This is a very beautiful group of stars, and easily
traced out in the heavens. It furnishes striking
evidence of the facility with which most of the con-
stellations may be so accurately delineated as to
preclude every thing like in the knowl-
edge of their relative situation .
.. The hean, with IUBter of amaziog Mree,
Refulgent vibrates; faint the other)llllt8. .
And iIHlefinedby stars of meaner note."
TEL E 800 PIG 0 B J E 01' 8.
AlJTRBI, OR " ScORPII.-A. R. = 16 h. 19 m. 36 .. Dee. = - .
260 C)4,' 03". .
Diacovered to be double, at the Cincinnati Obeervatory, July, IM5.
A I, orange, B 12, blue. The oontrut of color ill diatinetly marked.
The small star follows the principal one. on the aame parallel. Distance
2".6. 'rhe principal star W88 pronounced to be double, by the Wuh-
ington obeerven, in August, 1846, but &hill error baa been BUbsequendy
corrected. This furms the IIIOIIt nmwkabIe tlouble IItar now on the ca ....
loguee,-there being no star of the 1st magnitude known, having 80 minute
a companion, at 10 mort a distance.
It was lint divided with a power of 260, and aperture of 12 inchea.
The best power for measures is 500, with an aperture reducedto 9
inehea. My measures indicate a alight increue in the diatance betwesl
the MQ components. This, however, requires confirmation.
, ScoRPn.=A. R. = 16 h. 02 m . ,.. Dee. = - 190 02' Olr.
Reptered 88. double 1Itar. DiIcovered to be triple, at the Cincinmdi
CONSTELLATION 0)' SCORPIO.
147
O'-natory, UI46. A and B Dearly equal, and of the 8th JIIIIiIitude;
C 7, magnitude.
Diatance from A to B = 1".2 From A + B to C W'.oo
POL A+BtoC=338029'
--2-
FromAtoB= 37 67
-:1-
This liar __ tint _n double by Hencbel, in 1779; but itII great
w.JUthem declination brought it too near the horizon, in the latitude of his
oilBervatory, to _ the close mal'll. The same may be aaid of Antares.
I have JeCeIltly received inteUigenl'B, that measures of A ntarea have been
lDoIde in England, 1847
.. &oa.II..-A. R. = 18 h. 11 m. 28.. Dee. = - 150 12' or.
A delicate double liar, 2<l W. by N. from Anlan!B. A 4, B 9i. IJIIII.
POI. 271
0
06' Dis&. 20".04
Diaco...-ed by Henehel, 1783. There i. no mdence of any change
in the relative poaition of the components.
POI. 271
0
06' DiIIt.. 22".34 Epoch 1847.80 Mitchel.
/d Beoa.n.-A. R. = 15 h. 66 m. 08.. Dee. = - 190 21' 07".
A ECODd rate Greenwich liar. Diaeo...-ed to be double by Herechel,
1779. A 2, B 5;, magnitude. Madler thinks thiI a binary aylltem of
long period. The measures are .. fOllow :
POL 250 09' DiaL 14".37 Epoch 1779.72 Henehel.
26 30 13 .66 1823.28 Her. & South.
My own measures are:
POL 26
0
is' DiIIt. 13".68 Epoch 1846.60. Agreeing nearly
with Henehel and South.
The Bedford Catalogue givee:
POI. 24
0
09' Dist. 13".01 Epoch 1836.39.
From theee IDBII8UleII, there ie very litt1e evidence of any change, either
in diBtaDee or, angle of poaiti\lll.
A L.a.a&. dB BalLUlfT CLVITU.-A. R. = 18 h. 07 m. 28 ..
Dee. - ~ 36' 04".
Dieeovered by MeIIier, in 1780. who describee it .. Je8BmblinlJ the
nucleus of a comet. It ie 4
0
E. of I S. .. orpii. and midway between "
and /d. It is remarkable .. being located on the weetern edge of an im-
menae openinIJ. or vacant 8pOt, in the heavens, of 4
0
in breadth, in which
the mOlt powerful telescopes reveal no stara ! The center of this cluster
is very brilliant. and the 8urrouncling points of light profuaely acattered
Herachel regards it as one of the richest and most condensed massee of
iItaJ'II yet dilloovered in the heavens. Examined and figured, 2d AUgust,
1847.
AS_ALL COMPR.RRJ:D CLV8TEB.-A. R. = 18 h. 013 m. 61 ..
Dee. = - 2&0 07' 05". It precedee Antares 1i
o
on the same parallel
Discovered by Messier. .Reeolved by Herachel; who I5timaIeB iw
profundity of the 344th order.
148 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
Tbia eoodeIIlIed groapis aIao on the western edge of the opening
above referred to, and baa given rise to the following remarks by A rago.
referring to the idea ex...-J by Henchel. that, wherever chasms in the
heaYeII8 are found, near by, exteDBive clWlterll and ,nebula will be
discovered.
" Let UIJ," _18 M. A rago, "connect these fuets with fhe observe.tion
which baa shown that the stars are greatly coudel1!led toward the center
fA the spherlcdl cllJlllerll, and. with that which bas afforded the proof that
these stars sensibly obey a certain power of conden8llti.on (or clustering
power). and we shall feel disposed to admit, with Hel'IIChel, that nebube
are formed sometimes. by the m-nt operation of a great number of
apa, at the expense of the acattered. stars which originally occupied the
IUrrounWng regions; and the existence of empty or ratxtged spaoos-to
JUIl the picturelque expresBioo of the great astronomer, will no longer
present any thing which will coofound the imagination."
A L.uun: RUOLY'A.BU R. = 16 h. 51 m. 04.. Dec.
_29
0
50' OS".
Discovered by Messier. Resolved by Henchel; who estimatea its dill-
lance to be of the order. It resembles a comet, and baa been
reported as such, at least once, in a very public manner. .
All the reponed cl\lllterl in this constellation are readily detected by
any ordinary telescope. Their resolution does not require a high pt'wer.
But to show them in all their and brilliancy, a powerful instru-

---
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONS'I'ELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. XVII.
URSA MINOR-THE LEsSER BEAR.
CEPHEUS .
CAMELOPARDUS-THE CAMELOPARD.
Favorohl!l situated for examination in Marck, April,
mul Mfl!J.
URSA MINOR. '
THE LITTLE BEAR.-This constellation, though not
remarkable in its appearance, and containing but
few conspicuous stars, is, nevertheless, justly dis-
tinguished from all others, for the peculiar advan-
tages which its position in the heavens is well
known to afford to nautical astronomy, and espe-
cially to navigation and surveying.
CONBTELLA TION OF uaSA. MINOa. 14"
The stars in this group being situated near the
celestial pole, appear to revolve about it, very
slowly, and in circles so small as never to descend
below the horizon.
In all ages of the world, this constellation has
been mOI'e universally observed, and more carefully
noticed than any other, on account of the import-
ance which mankind early attached to the position
of its prillcipal star.
This star, which is so near the true pole of the
heavens, has from time immemorial, been denomi-
nated the NORTH POLA& SUB. By the Greeks it is
called Cy7llJ3'ltre,' by the Romans, Oynoaura, and by
othe", nations, .AJ7'1J.C'COiJak. ' .
It is of the 3d magnitude, or between the 2d and
3d, and situated a little more than a degree and a
half from the true pole of the heavens, on that side
of it which is towards Cassiopeia, and opposite to
Ursa Major. Its position is pointed out by the
direction of the two Pointers, Merak and Dubhe,
which lie in the square of Ursa Major. A line join-
ing ~ Cassiopeia, which lies at the distance of 32
on one side, and Megrez, which lies at the same dis-
tance on the other side, will pass through the polar
star. .
So general is the poplliar notion, that the North
Polar Rtar is the true pole of the world, that even
surveyors and navigators, who have acquia'ed con-
siderable dexterity in the use of the compass and the
quadrant, are not aware that it ever had any devia-
til;)O, and consequently never make allowance for
any. All calculations derived from the observed
position of this star, which are founded upon the
idea that its bearing is always due north of any
place, are necessarily erroneous, since it is in this
position only twice in twenty-four hours; once
when above, and once when below the pole.
According to the Nautical Almanac, the mean dis-
x2
150
OF THE HEA \' li':l'4L
tance of fl'1tsm the true pole
for the is 1
0
29' 28", and
ascension is 1 h. 5 m. and 10.66 s. Consequently.
when the right ascension of the meridian of allY
place is 1 h. 5 m. and 10.66 s. the star will be
exactly on the meridian at that time and place, but
JO 28" olmJe the true pole. Six hours after, when
the right ascension of the meridian is 7 h. 5 ffi. and
10.66 s. be at its greatLt
or 1
0
29" west of the tr04.'
allel to to the horifsEl
the right the meridian if
10.66 s. will be again OS2
but at d 1 29' 28"
pole.
In like manner, when the right ascension of the
meridian is 19 h. 5 m. and 10.66 s. the star will
be at its greatest eastern elongation, or 1 29' 28"
east of the true pole; and when it has finished its
revolution, and the right ascension of the meridian
is 25 h. 0.668'. or, whitt
thing, 1 0.66 s. the stElr
on the 1 20' 28" ahnvv
N. H. Th53 of the meridian or is
the {if A riCO! from the and
place of 5'fht ascension of the "''' RIme,
J>; found, hy n.kling to the given time the SUll'S right ascension at the IllUDe
time, ami deducting 24 houl'lI, when the sum exceeds 24 hours.
From the fOl'egoing facts we learn, that from the
time the star is on the meljdian, above the pole, it
dedates farther and fiuther from the true meridian,
every hour, as it moves to the west, for the space of
si x hOURRl
R
L55"i "es at its great53Y
west, f?iI?proaches the
below Rhzfmng the next siRl
then agvin n5tnridian; being
half thn {if the meridiali':,
time eaft
CONSTELLATIO:'i OF URSA MINOR. 151
Hence, it is evident that the surveyor who regu-
la.es his compass by the North Polar Stat, must
take his observation when the star is on the merid-
ian, either above or below the pole, or make allow-
ance for its altered position in every other situation.
For the same reason must the navigator, who ap-
plies his quadrant to this star for the purpose of
determining the latitude he is in, make a similar
allowance, a.ooording as its altitude is greater or
less than the true pole of the heavens; fur we have
seen that it is alternately half the time oJxme and
half the time below the pole.
The method of finding the latitude of a place
from the altitude of the polar star, as it is quite sim-
ple, is very often resorted to. Indeed, in northern
latitudes, the situation of this star is more favorable
for this purpose than that of any other of the heav-
enly bodies, because a single observation, taken at
any hour of the night, with a good instrument, will
give the true latitude, without any calculation or
correction, except that of its polar aberration.
If the polar liar always occupied that point in the heavens which ill
directly opposite to the north pole of the earth, it would be easy to under-
Ibmd how Iatitudecould be determined from it in the northern hemisphere ;
fOr in this cue. to a penon on the equator, the polm of the world would
be aeen in the horizon. Consequently, the Star would appear just viaibIe
in the northern horizon, without any elevation. Should the person now
travel one degree towards the north. be would see one degree below the
liar, and be would think it had risen one degree.
And since we, always see the whole of the upper bemiapbere at Ode
Wlw, wben there is nothing in the horizon to obstruct, our vision, it f0l-
lows that if we should travel 100 north of the equator, we should see
~ 100 below the pole, which would then appear to bave rn.en 100;
and should we stop at the 4211 degree of north latitude, we should, in like
manner, bave our norizon just 42
0
below the pole, or the pole would ap-
pear to bave an elevation of 420. Whence we derive this general truth:
7Y&e ekvatjqn of tM [)Ok of 1M equatur, ill aiwaY8 equal to tM latitude
of 1M plat:e of obBeriIatimi.
A ny instrument, then, which will give us the altitude of the north
pole, will give us also the latitude of the place.
The method of illuatrating this phenomenon, as given in most treatisee
OIl the globe, and as adopted by teacben generally, is to tell the scholar
'152 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVEN8.
that the north pole ria. higher ~ higher, IS he travels fiutber and
farther towards it. In other words, whatever number of degrees he ad-
vances tuward8 the north pole, 80 many degrees will it rise above his
horizon. '1'hiII is not only an oImOUB errtIr in principle. but it misleads
the apprehension of the pupil It is not that the pole ill eJemted, but
that our Iwrizem u deprwJed as we advance towards the north. 'fbe
. lIIIIle objection lies againat the artificial globe; for it ought to be 80 filled
that the Iwriztm might be rBiIed or depreM8d, and the pole remain in ita
own invariable JIOIIUioD.
Ursa Minor contains twenty-four stars, including
three of the 3d magnitude and four of the 4th.
The seven principal stars ,are so situated as to form
a figure very much resembling that in the Grea.t
Bear, only that the Dipper is reversed, and about
one half as large as the one in that constellation.
The first star in the handle, called Cyrwsura, or
AlruccohoJt., is the polar star, around which the rest
constantly revolve. The two last in the bowl of
the Dipper, corresponding to the Pointers in the
Great Bear, are of the 3d magnitude, and situated
about 15 from the pole. The brightest of them
, is called Kochab, which signifies an axle or hinge,
probahly in reference to its moving' so near the
axis of the earth.
Kochoh may be easily known hy its being the
brightest and middle one of three conspicuous stars
forming a row, one of which is about 2, and the
other 3, from Kochab. The two brightest of these
are situated in the breast and shoulder of the
animal, about 3 apart, and are called the Guard8
or Pointers of Ursa Minor. They are on the meri-
dian about the 20th of June, but may be seen at all
hours of the night, when the sky is clear.
Of the four stars which form the bowl of the
Dipper, one is so small as hardly to be seen. They
lie in a direction towards Gamma in Cepheus; but
as they are continually changing their position in
the heavens, they ma.y be much better traced out
t'J:om the map, than from description.
CONSTELLATION OF URSA MINOR. 158
Kochab is ahout 25
0
distantfl'om Benetnasch,
and about 24
0
from Dubhe, and hence forms with
them a very; nearly equilateral triangle.
---" The t-r Bear
Leads from \be pole the lucid band; the stan
Which tiJrm this oonatellation, fiUntly 1Ibine,
Twice twelve in number; only one beame fOrIh
Conspieuoua in high splendor, named by Greece
The c ~ ; by ua the POUR BTu."
The following stars have small telescopic com-
panions: G or the pole star. IS or Kochab, the
right hand upper star in the bowl of the little
dipper. C The left. hand upper star in the bowl.
The companion discovered 1841, by Prof. Challis,
with the Northumberland equatorial, at Cambridge,
England. I The star near the root of the tail.
Companion 12th magnitude, pale blue. a The star
next but one to Polaris, in the tail. The principal
star is of a greenish t i ~ e , while the companion .is
grey. There are a few faint nebuIm in this con-
l!ltellation.
CEPHEUS.
CEPHEUS is represented on the map as a king, in
his royal robe, with a scepter in his left. hand, and
a crown of stars upon his head. He stands in a
commanding posture, with his left. foot over the
pole, and his scepter extended towardl!l Cassiopeia.
as if for favor and defense of the queen.
---" Cepheua illumes
The Deigbboring _vena; IItiIl fiUtbfuI to hiI queen,
With tbirty-4ive taint luminariee madr.'d."
. This constellation is about 25
0
N. W. of Cas..
siopeia, near the 2d coil of Draco, and is on the
meridian at 8 o'clock the 3d of November; but it
will linger near it for many days. Like Cassiopeia,
it may be seen at all hours of the night, when the
sky is clear, for to us it never sets.
154 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
By re&mmee to the n- IHl the map, wbicll all meet in the pole, it
will be evident that a liar, near the pole, moves over a much lull &paUl
in ODe hour, than ODe at the equinoctial; aDd generally, the nearer the
pole, the narrower the Ip8CB, and the BIoweJ' the motion.
The atam that are 10 near the pole, may be be&ter described by their
polar distatu:e, than by their decliDatioo. By polar diatance, ia meant-
the distatu:e from the pole; aDd ill what the decliD!.ti1Hl wanta of 900.
In this constellation there are 35 stars visible to
the naked eye; of these, there glitters on the
shoulder, a star of the 3d magnitude, called Alder-
allrin, marked '" which with two others of the same
brightness,8 and 12 degrees apart, form a slightly
curved line towards the N. E. Tfle last, whose letter
name is Kappa, is in the right knee, 19 N. of Caph,
_ Cassiopeia. The middle one in the line, is
Alphirk, marked 1', in the girdle. This star is ooe-
third of the distance from Alderamin to the pole,
and nearly in the same right line.
It cannot be too well undemtood that the bearinga, 'or directions of
one .tar from another, BB given in thia treatil!B, are strictly app1icable only
wbeo the ~ one ill on, or near the meridian. The bearings given,
in many ca-,'are the leut approximations to what appeaIB to be theif
relative poeition; and in IOIIIe, if relied upon, will lead to elTOl'll. For
example :-It is aaid, in the preceding paragraph, that Kappa, in
Cepheils, bears 19o N. of Caph in Cllllliopeia. This is true, when
Cilph is OIl the meridian, but at thia very moment, while the author is
writing thia line, Kappa appear_ to be 1 go due wW of Caph; and six
months hellCl/t will appear to be the same ~ . etIIt of it. The
reuon is obvious; the circle which Cepheus appears to describe aboul
the pole, is within that of CassIopeia, and consequently when IHl the
eut of the pole, will be within, or betW1l Clllllliopeis and the td-
that is, weat of CBBIIiopeia. And for the _ reason, when Cephef
is on the west side of the pole, it is between that and Clllllliopeia, or
et.IBt of it
J.et i ~ also be remembered, that in BpeBking of the pole, which ..
shaD have frequent occasion to do, in the COUIIIe of thia work, the NorlA
Polar StilI', or an imaginary point very near it. is a1_ys meant; and
not BB some will vaguely apprehend, a point in the horizon, direl:tJy N.
of us. The true pole of the heavens, is alway. elevated just BB many
degrees above our horizon, BB we are ntrrlA of the Equator. If we live
in 420 N. latitude, the N. pole will be 420 above our horizon. (See
Nurlh Polar Star.)
There are also two smaller stars about 9 E. of
CONSTELLATION OF CEPHEUS. 155
Alderamin and Alphirk, with which they form a
square; Alderamin being the upper, and Alphirk
the lower one on the W. 8 apart. In the center
of this square there is a bright dot, or semi-
visible star.
The heoJ. of Cepheus, is in the Milky-Way, and
may be known by three stars of the 4th magnitude'
in the crown, which form a small acute triangle,
about 9
0
to the right of Aldelamin. The mean
polar distance of the constellation is 25, while that
of Alderamin is 28 10'. The right ascension of
the former is 338
0
; consequently, it is 22 E. of
the equinoctial colore.
'l'ELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
& C" I.-A. R. = 20 h. 1. m. 08.. Dec. = + 170 13' 06".
A line double liar QJl the right knee, about baJt:.way frwD ~ Cepbei to
Ura Minoris. A .1, while, B 8t, blue. The colol'8 well defined.
Paa.. 1260 1" DiaL 07".08 Epoc:h 182Q.l8 StrUve.
123 08 01 .60 1838.88 Smyth.
There is little evidence of any change in the position of the componeD'"
~ C .. nl.-A. R. = 21 h.26 m. 31.. Dec. = + 690 51' 07".
A fine double liar, on the left aide of the girdle. A 3, b 8, magnitude.
POL 251
0
00' Diat. 13".01 Epoc:h 1843.16 Smyth.
CAMELOPARDUS.
THE CAMELOPABD.-This constellation was made
by Hevelius out 9f the unformed stars which lay
scattered between Perseus, Auriga, the head of Ursa
Major, and the Pole Star. It is situated directly
N. of Auriga and the head of the Lynx, and occu-
pies nearly all the space between these and the
pole. It contains nearly 58 small stars; the five
largest of which are only of the 4th magnitude.
The princi!lal star lies in the thigh, and is about
200 from Capella, in a northerly direction. It marks
the northern boundary of the temperate zone; being
less than one degree S. of the Arctic circle. There
are two other stars of the 4th magnitude near the
156 GIWGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
right knee, l ~ N. E. of the first mentioned. They
may be known' by their standing 1 apalt and
alone.
The other stars in this constellation are too
s!Dall, and too much scattered to invite observation.
TELESCOPIC OBJE CTS.
A BRIGHT Pr..ur.UBT Nnm.....-A. R. = 03 h. 63 m. li9 ..
Dec. 6()o 23' 06". On the ftank of the Camelopard. See map, No. VL
Di8covtnd by HemcbeI, 1787.
1 C.uIKLOI'4BDl.-A. R. = 04 h. 19 m. 23'. Dec. = + 5:1
0
8:1
03". !t. double I&ar between the hind boo&. A 7 ~ , .. wbite," B 8i,
blue." See map, No. VL
POL 3070 06' Dist. 10".13 Epoch 1830.57 Struye.
t C41ULOPUDl.-A. R. = 04 h. t7 m. 18 I. Dec. 6:1
0
09' CKr.
A elOlle double Itar, near the preceding one, and between the hind boor...
A 5 ~ , yellow, B 71, pale blue. See map, No. VI.
Discovered by StrUve, and thus meuured by him :
POlL ;111 0 40' Dill&. 1".686 Epoch 1829.79.
A DoUBo STu.-A. R. = 04h. 56 m. 191. Dec. =+ 790 01'
OS". Over the lower put of the badt of the Camelopard. A 51, B 9,
magnitude.
P08. a16
0
23' Dill&. 37".01 Epoch 1836.10 South.
349 01 83 SO 1836.29 Smyth.
CONSTELLATION OF SAGI'tTARlUS 1m.
CHAPTER IV.
DIRECTIONS FOR' TRACING THE CONSTELLATION,S ON
, MAP NO. XVIII.'
SAGlTl'ARIV'S-THE ARCHER.
SoQroIlf SoBIESKI-Tn 5mBLD OF SoBIESKI,
Fo:vorahlJ situat.e4 fur ezami7UJtiot& in' J'IIly, August,
mul Septemher. ,
, ,
SAGITTAR'IUS.
TBE ABCBER.-This is the ninth sign and the
tenth constellation of the Zodiac. It is situated
next east of Scorpio, with' a mean declination of
35 S. or 12 below the ecliptic. '
The sun enters this sign on the 22d of Novem-
ber, but does not reach the C01I.8tellatio1l. before the
7th of December.
It occupies a considerable in the southern
hemisphere, and contains a number of subordinate,
very conspicuous stars. The whole num-
ber of its visible stars is sixty-nine, including five
of the 3d magnitude, and ten of the 4th.
It may be readily distinguished by means of five
stars of the ad and 4th magnitudes, forming a figure
, resembling a little, short, Iltraight-handled Dipper,
turned nearly bottom upwards, with the to
the west, familiarly called the -MiJk-Dipper, beCaUl!8
it is partly in the Milky-Way.
'Ilhis little figure is so conspicuous that it cannot
easilY be mistaken., It is situated about Sao E. of
Antares, and comes to the meridian a few minutes '
after Lyra, on the 17th of August. Of the four
o
168 GEOGJU,PHY OF THE HEAVENS.
!!tars formin;g the bowl of the Dipper, the tWOllp-
per oneil are only 3
0
apart, and the lower ones 5.
The two lDI8Iler ltars'(orming the handle, and extending weetwanJly
about 4io, and the .eutemmoat 0118 in the bowl are all
of the 4th magnitude. 'the liar in the mid o( the handle, is marked
A, and is placed in the bow of Sagittariu .. just within the Milky Way.
Lambda ma,Y otherwise be Imown by ita being neaily in a line with two
otheJ: stars about 4io apart, extending towards the 8. E. It is also
equidiatimt from and I, witli which it ahandsome triangle, with
the vertex in A. 'About 6 above I., and a little to the welt. are two
&tars close together. in the end of the bow. the .brightest of which is .of
the 4th magnitude, and marked p.. 'J'bill ltar aerves to point out tIM.
winter 1OIatice, being about 2 North of the tropic of Capricorn, aDd
Ie. than 0118 degree east of the aolltitial eqlure.
If a 1inebe drawn from .. through .. and prQduced about 8 IBrther
to the west. it will point out I, and produced about 3" from I, it will
point out)-; &tars of the 3d magnitude, in the arrow, The latter is in
the point of the arrow, and may be known by means oC a small slar
just above'it. on the right. This &tar is 80 nearly on the IIIIJII8 meridian
with Etanin, in the head of Draco, that it olily two minulM
afterit. . ,
A few. other conapicuoul liars in this constellation. forunng a variety
oC geometrical fipre-. may be easily traced (rom the map.
,TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
A CLU8'R"-A. R. = 17 h. 56 m. 01.. Dec.:;: - 22 '30' 6".
Near the upper part oC the bow of the Archer. It, is a coarse cluster oC
_II ltara, (orming a cil'\'ular figure. It ill 2, S. E. of p. Sagittarii.
Discovered by Messier. 1784.
p. 848ITT.l.llll.-A. R.= 18 h. 04 !Do Ill. Dec. - 21
0
06' 7".
A quadruple ltar on the north end o( the Archer's bow. Registered aa
triple by the elder Herschel. Diacover!ld to be qllllllruple by hie BOIl.
A. 3i; B. 18; C. 9,; D. 10, magnitude.
POI. A. B = 260
0
0 Dist.
A C = 3lli 0 ' 40. 0 Estimation ..
A D = 114 I) .. 46. 0
A GLOBl1L.1.11 CLUBTER.-A. R. = 18 h. 14 m. 41.. Dec. _240
66' II". Discovered by MeMier, 1764. Resolved by t!it w; HeracbeI.
It it not very bright. but censtitU\lee a good -test (or IJI8C8 'penetrating
power. It is between the Head and Bow of the Archer. and it midway
bt!tween fA Ophiuchi and' /A Lyrm.
A Load CLl1ftSa.-A. R. == 18 h. fim. 14.. Dec. - 190 10'
2". Between the Archer's head and the .meld of Sobeiski. "The
gathering portion of the group l1118umes an arched form, and is thickly
Itrewn in the upper part of the field, where a pretty knot of minulll
CONSTELLATION'OF SAGITTARIUS. 159
alimmereJ'll OCCIJpis the _tel, with III1ICb atar d\l8t anRIDIl." It ia 60
N. K. of fA 8agittarii. ,
A 6'LOB17U. CL1IITU.-A. R. == IS h. 28 m. 25 .. Dec. _ 240
01' 4". In the speca between : the head -.nd bow ot: Sagiuariua, midway
between fA and r ISagittariL Drawn by LeGentil in August, 1774.
Daeribed by Me.ier, 1764, u a "nebula without.a alar."
Sir W. Hencbel, and estimated u of the 344th order of dislance&.
M S.l.8JTrUII_A. 1t. == 19 II. 81 m. 83.. Dec. -18
0
211' 'I'.
A delicate triple.tar in the IIJIIlC8 betWeen the heacla of Capricom and
the Archer. A 5i; It 8; C 18; mapitude.
Discovered by Sir John HI!IalbeI
POlo A B == 420 8 Diat. i8/ /J l E tim ted 1837 6B
A C == 280 0 20.1)..5 I a "
A P.l.U BL1IB PL.a.l ... T.l.Bi NBB1IL.t..-A. R. == 19 h. 34 m, 58 ..
J)ee. = - 14
0
31' 6". Between the beads of Capricorn and BagiUa-
riu.. Diaeovered by Sir W.Henchel, 1787. I examined this object
7th July. IM7. It is a little eIonaated. very sharply illuminated, and
well defined. . Them are 18urallllJlllll stan in the ield of vie.. The
bluish lint of the pJanl,lary nebula is well marked, and oft'en. anoLher
pointof analogy with the planets. Hel'llCbel and Neptune are marked
by their blue tint, and indeed I am confident that Neptune wu .eD at
the Cincinnati ObIervatory .. year before ita discovery. It wu thought
to be a planelary nebula. and was 100 from tile 4e1d of view by accident
before ita position wu taken. But the region of Ipace wa. well_
benld, and the I IBW the planet it looked Iiuniliar.
A GLOB1IL.t.. CL1Im .-A., R. == 19 h. 56 m. 38 8. Dec. = _
220 22' 0". Between the left arm of Sagittarius and the head of Capo
ricorn, 7io S. Weat of fA Capricorni. Discovered by Mechain. 1780.
Reeolved by HBI'IIIlheI. and located by him in the 734th order of dito\aDo
c.. It is a Wnt clullar, and ooly I'8IOlved with powerful inlllrumenta.
SCUTUM SOBIESKI.
SoBIESKI'S SmELD.-A small conJltelIation north of
the Bow and Arrow of Ragittariu8, only remarka-
ble for its telescopic objects.
TELESCOPIO OBJECTS.
A LU8B NBBJ7LA_A. R. == IS h. 11 m. 23.. Dec. == - 160
15' 8". Just below t:!obieaki's Shield, discovered by MlHIIIier, 1764, and
registered a8 a train of light without stara. Sir VI. Heracbel deecnbea
the objec:t a8 follow8: .. A wonderful extensive nebuloaity of the milky
kind. Th,re are _raIl1larB visible, but can have DO connecIion
t 60 . GEOGRAPHY OF THE REA YENS.
trith tile nebulOllity, and are doutKJe. belonging to our own syatem and
are _ttered before it." Hill lOll .YI: .. The eb,ief peculiarities which I
have observed bl it are, the reaolvable knot in the foUowing portion of
the right brauch, which i.e in a considerable degree isolated from the
lurrounding nebula, atrongly suggeating the idea of an ab!lorptiOll of
the nebulous matter; and aecondly, the much smaller and feebler knot
at the north precedinlt end of the .. me brauch, where the nebula mum
a ludden bend at an acute angle." I have examined this object with
great attenti()o, and do not find Its appearance sa figured in the Bedford
Catalogue. We are not informed by the author, whether Ilia drawing is
original or copied. The horae Ihoe, or Greek Omega n ahape given to
it by Capt. Smyth, diMppears under the 1 i inch retiactor.
A GRE&T CloUST&R.-A. R. = 18 h. 09 m. 49 I. Dec. = 18
0
i7'.
Discovered by Messier. 1764, a rich and :x,autiful object in a dense
portion of the Milky Way, northeaat 70 from ,.. Sagittari!. Thill object,
although surrounded by a vast multitude .of stan, seems to be separate
and distinct from them, and forming a univene of itelf. There ill
large star near the center, and two predominant ones in the north pre-
ceding edge of the cluater. Thill eluater lIMes with more as&oniahment,
as all its stan are distinct and comparatively large. It ill "ell shown
by a te\e8COpe of moderate power:
A FUrB FIUoD OP BT.lu.-A. R. = III h.OIl /Do 49.. Dec. - 180
27' 05". Below tbe 1!d\ hue of the Shield of Sobieaki, ~ a rich porIioD
of the Milky Way.
Discovered by Messier, 1764; and described by him sa". _ cl
__ great nebulosity, of which the light ill divided intoseveralparta."
The object is readily resolved with powerful illl&mmenlll. .
A TnKscoPIc Dovan BT.l .-A. R.'= 18 h. 07 m. 87 m. Dec.
. == - 190 55' 05". A 8t; B 10; magnitude.
DiIICovtired by Sir John Henchel, and described a. being placed in
Wilt nllbula, of an elliptical form, and 60" in diameter. It may be fouDd
1 to northeut of,.. Sagittarii.
Tbill COII8Iellation waa formed by HeveliuB, and Ilea bet"een Antinou..
a.nd the Serpent's taiL Having no very bright stars, it is difficult to
trace. A line drawn from;t in the knee of Antinoila, to ~ in the left
bee of Ophiochoe, p.- througb several amalllllara in the Shield.
CONSTELLATION 01' HERCULES. 161
DIRECTIONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATION ON
MAP .NO. XIX.
HERCULES .
Favorably situat8d for eZa1ni7UJtion. in May, June mu.l
. July. . '
HERCULES is represented on tbe map, invested
with the skin of the Nemman Lioh, holding a
massy club in his right hand, and the three-headed
dog Cerberus in his left. . ..
He occupies a large space in the northern hemis-
phere, with one foot resting on the head of Draco,
on the north, and his head nearly touching that of
Ophiuchus, on the south. This constellation extends
from 12 to 50 north declination, and its mean right
ascension is 255; consequently its center is on the
meridian about the 21st of July.
It is bounded by Draco on the north, Lyra
on the east, Ophiuchus or the Serpent-Bearer on
the south, and the Serpent and the Crown on the
west.
It containlll one hundred and thirteen stars, inclu-
ding one of the 2d, or of between the 2d and 3d
magnitudes, nine of the 3d magnitude, and nine-
teen of the 4th. . The principal star is Bo3 Algethi,
marked a., is situated in the head, about 25 south-
east of Corona Borealis. It may be readily known
by means of another bright star of equal magni-
tude, 5 east, or southeaSt of it, called Ras Alhague.
Ras Alhague marks the head of Ophiuchus, and
Rae Algethi that of Hercules. These two'. stars
are always ~ e e n together, like the bright pairs in
Aries, Gemini, the Little Dog, &e. Tqey come to
our meridian about the 28th of July, near where
02
162 GEOGRAPHY OF 'l'ItE HEAVENS.
the sun does, the last of April, or the middle or
August.
About midway betw_Ru AJgethi on the southeast. and the Northern
on the northwiet, may,be _n atld i, two 8tare of the 3d
magnitude, situated in the weat shoulder, about 3
0
aparL The norUl-
ernmOllt of thee two are called Rutiliew.
Tbo.e four standn the shape of a diaJDOnd, 8
0
(Jr 100 southwest of
&be two in. the moulder of BeJ'OUlea, are .. situllted in the head of the
.8erpenL ' .
bout 120 E. N . E. of RntilicUB, and HijO directly north of Baa
AIgetbi, are two atan of the 4th 'magnitude, in the east shoulder. They
may be known by two very minute Btare a little above them on the left.
The two . .wa in NCb of Hercules . with Hatr Algathi in the
head, form a regular triangle. , .
The left, 0'1 east arm of Hercules, ,,hich fI'IIIIpB the triple-beadrd
mOntrter may be traced by mean8 of Ihree or four Btare of the
4th magnitude, situated in a row 30 and 4
0
B'pBrt, extending from the
lIhoulder, in a northeaaterly direction. That smaIl cluster, situated in
triangular form, about 14
0
northeast of Ras Algethi, and 1 SO e8IIto
IOUtbeaBt, of the left shOUlder, diatinguiRh the head of Cerberus.
Eighteen or 2()0 northeast of the Urown. are four are of the 3d and
4th magnitudes. marlled .... , I, formi", an irrelfUlar "quare, of whirJa.
thl' two southern ones are about 4
0
a part. anti in a line 6
0
or 7
0
south
of the two northern ones, which are ntarly 7
0
aparL
Pi, in the northeast oorner, may be known by means of one or two
other BlDall stare. close by it, on the easL Etfl. in lhe IIOrthweat comer,
may be known by its being in a row with two IIIDBIler Il\arI, eXlenclin,
the northwest, and about 40 apart, The stars of the 4th mar
mtude, JU8t south of the Dragon', head,pomt out the left foot and aucle
of Hercules. , '
Several other stars, of the 3d and 4th magnitudes. may be traced ou&
in thill constellation, .by reference to the map.,
TELESCOPIO OBJEOTS.
DoVBLJ: AND BJN AItT STA1t8.-R". ALBBTIII or BBRCULJ&, A. R.
= 17 h.07 m, 21 s. .Dec, = + 14
0
34' 05". A beautiful double star
on the bead of Hereules. DiaL = 4".6. Pas. 118
0
08'. 'file compo..
nenta are of the magnitudee 3! ,and 6!. the largest liar orange, the
8maller one greenieh. There ill no reason to that these etars .....
physically united. although the opinion _ml to have prevailed among
utronomere that BUcb a union would be found to exist among all the
colored double 8IarII.
,Pas. 1170 36' ' DiaL 4n.92 Ep, 1847.62 MitcheL
,. HBItcULI..-A. R . = 16 h. 14 m.1i8 s. Dec. =+ 190 32' 00".
A double liar on the left arm. DiaL 38".7. POlL 242
0
03'. A
al white, B 10 lilac. No change in distance or position bas been
detected. except what may be imputed to erron of observatiou.
CONSTELLATION OF HERCULES. 163
. ,
I HBRCULIL-A; R. = 16 h. 35 m.lIS.. '.Dec. = + 310 53' ()7".
A cl08e Uirw.ry star, over the left hip. A &l magnitude,:O 8 magnitude.
Di8COvered by Sir W. Henchel, Juty, 1782. '
'rhe compsnion was subtlequently milllOlld by the dil!Coverer,' aa be
bfolieved, in consequence of its heing hid by the larger star. He makes
th .. fo\lowing remark, the interest of which is greatly enhanCed by 8Ub-
aequent discoveries: II My obaervationl of thi, atar furnish us with a
phenomenon which is new in RStronomy; it is tilt of om .tar
by another. This epoch, whatever be the cause of it, will Le equally
remarkable, whether owing to 80lar paraDax, proper molio", or motion in
an orbit. whose plaQe is nearly coincident with the vi_I ray.
The star WlI8 seen single, up to 1828, when a few meaeures were made
by Struve. It again became single in 18,28, and 80 continued up to 1832,
.nce which time ita double s.haracter ha, been followed. In 1842 the
distance had increaaed to l' .177, according to Mildler, who computed
the elemenle of the orbit of this ,wiftly revolving binary eyatem. III
periodic time is about 31 years. On the evening of the 15th of Sept.,
1847, the following meaeuree were made with the Cincinnati Refractor.
Poe. 109
0
12' Diet. 1".078
HUCl1LII.-A.,. R. = 16 b. 87 m. tIS L Dec: =+ 890 13' 08",
an exceedingly cw.e double star, on the left thigh.
Discovered by 1827, and rank.ed among bis objects.
It became BingJe, and finv if any reliable meaeuree have 8ince been
Obtained. It 'haa been many times attentively examined b,y mYil8lf, anel
8tlpPCilllly 011 the evening of the 27th Jllly, 1847, when a power of 1200
WdS employed. My aasietant and myself agreet! tliat the star was slightly
elongaled nllBrly alOng the Jl:Brallel, but it was very uncertain. '
, I HnccLI8.--A. R. =17 h. 08 m. 288. Dec. + 25
0
01' 09". A
presumed binary star, on the right ahoulder. A 4. 11 8i mllgnitude,
on the foUowing evidence: '
Poe. = 162' 28' Die. 33",75 Ep. 1779.61 Herschel.
.. 173 42 .. 26 .11 1829.,7 SUuve.
.. 175 01 .. 24 .05' 1839.62 Smyth,.
Otber double stan wiD he round by an of the stllr map.
Among them .. on the left elbow, , on the tight thigh, on the right
_, and p. in the bend of tbe left arm, are the brightest.
GBUTCLl1ITU_A.R.=15 h. 35 m. 58s. Dee.=+ 36?4IS' 08".
Ijo from Hereulia, and on the line joining _ with e.
, rl'bia object was diaeovered by Halley' in 1714, 'and W88 deaenbe.t a.I
a' .. liuJe patch of light." ,
It was rei!xamined by Meaaier in 1764, but its true character waR still
1IIUevea1ed. M_ier was uncertain whetke! IIn.v nor was within the
nebula. Under the power of Sir William Herschel', great rdlector.
tm. object, 80 faintly _n by Meaaier. bunt into ten thou8Bnd sturs. It
certainly one of the IDOIIt magnificent objects in the heavens, nd iK
ever _ for the first time without ucla_tiona of a","nish-
-'- The drawing will be found to agree with the following ,
164 GEOGRAPHY OF THE
tion, written while the object ... y.nder the eye, on the evenin, ot 13th
July. 1847, in the Cincinnati Observatory. '
.. A brilliant cluater. nearlY glo,bular. A spur of bright .tars runs oft'
to the Iel\, terminating in a sharp poinL Then lollows in going round
the center, ftoaa north to east, a dark apace; at 90
0
Irom'the first spur or
ray. another i. seen I_perfectly formed. and more broken at the
extremity, containing a Jl8ir of double stars near the end. The next
90
0
pretty well filled with stars out to the circumference, pBs.ing throllB'h
the extremities of the radiation. of stars. Then another imperfectly
formed spui of sian, B pair of double stars midway betweeu.
the cenier and the extremity Of the spur. The lIl&ce next following
rather vacant, especially near the double ater ; then followa B bent radia-
tion of bright stara curving to the right, and causing the upper part of
.the cluster to assume a Haltened figure."
This is doublleaa one of the many matnificent "island unive .......
recently revealed by the great instrumenta of modem times. In 1718
it constituted one of Bi:1: known nebula. In 1766. the number had
inc..ea.oo to 103, and is now ,above 3,000 ! The, elu.toring of SUIlS at
the center of this grand astral system, is greater than is rairly attributable
to thl/' optical eft"ect in piercing by the visaal ray through a globular
duatar of equally distribull!d .tan. There aeema to lit a condensing
power, which b .. exeRed itaal( to draw th" centrll suns into
preximity.
A GLOBUL.tB CLu8Taa.-A. R. 17 12 14.. Dec. = +
f3" 18'. OliO nQrtheast of Herculia. ' '
Discoveflld by Meaeier in seen by him .. a nebula without
liars. ,
With fine instrumenta it proves to be B brilliant objt-ct, some 7' or 8'
in diameter. surrounded "ith many straggling stars. A group of brighter
stan forma an inverted figure six around and sbove tbe nucleus of the
chister. It is of the 88me charactar as the preceding object, but is I_
ntensive, II.IId probably much more remote. 80tb thr.88 clusterR may
be resolved with a 4 incb gla ... and a power of 100 to 200 times. They
tOrm objecta for examination. '
A FINB PUNBTAU Nuuu,-,-A. R. = 16 h. 411m. 23 L Dec.
= 1- 47049'. 4
0
east by north from 'I' Herculia.
Discovered in May. 1787., .
It is a large, round, pale blue nebula, and has been mistaken for a
comet. Tbe aize of these objecllO, in ,case we regard them as remote ..
tbe fixed stars, muet be vast beyond comprebension. If an I'bject baYing
diameter of 95 million. of'miles. can only be seen as a mere point oC
IIgbt. wbat must be tbe actual dimenaions of these planetary nebule,
presenting as tbey do, in many instances, measurable liiamelen of from
03" to 20". Such atQpendouB globes favor the idea that these are vasl
collections of nebulous maUer, slowly coooellaing under the power of
the attraction of gravitation. Such objecta 118 the one now under exam-
ination, may present an appearance like that,presented by our own 8un,
wben, aOOurding to the nehuloUII ita expanded dimeDHiou
CONSTELLATION OF JlERCULES. 165
tmbraced the graod citcumfeteuee r4 the Orbit of Neptnnl'. T I!xaminecl
the object on the lit of Au ... under 'fery .,rable cimulllltallceOlj
'J'be disk-lilte character which usually iI INn on plBllelary nebu .. ill
not well defined on this object. Indeed \here illIII much n .. OOloul baze
lllnounding the nucle.., that it. appea_ iI "ery like a dillt.Dt
clll8ter. The haze fades away .... from tile nucleus, and iI finally
Iost. . . , .
'rbere are three 7th magnitude alan in the Beld of view. Tbe Dr-bula
iI aome 7" or S" in diameter.
A SMALL PUJl'.-r Y NU17U.-A.R. == 18 bo87 m. '" .. Dec.
= + 24
0
05'. Tbil object iI bright and wen deftJllld. I nami"ed il
clOtIely on the lit of AUlLult. 1847. It. diIk iI aboilt 8" in. dilrneler.
aud a little eloopled in one directigp.
Discovered by Stril va. .
,.,
DIRECTlON8 FOR THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. XX.
CYGJf1Jft--.o TUE SWAJI.
LYllA-TUE HARP.
LACERTA-THE LIZAllD.
Favorohl'!J situated for e:rtU1Iinatitm in' .Augu, Sep-
tember and 0ctdJer. -- .
CYGNUS.
THE remarkable constellation is
situated in the Milky Way, directly east of Lyra,.
and nearly on the same meridian with the Dolphin.
It is represented on outspread wings, flying down
the Milky Way, towards the southwest.' ,
The principal' stars which mark the wings, the
body and the bill of Cygnus, are so arranged, as to
form a large and regular Cross; the piece.
lying along the Milky Way from northeast to south-
west, while the cross piece, representing the wings,
crosses the other at right angles, from southeast to
northwest.
166 GEOGBAPBY OJ' THE BU,VENS.
:AriJed, 'or DetuJIJ Cygni, marked a., in the body
of the Swan, i8 a atar of the' 2d magnitude, 24
0
e8.llt-northe8.llt of Lyra, and 30
0
directly north of
the Dolphin. It is the most brilliant star in the
constellation, and ill situated at the upper end of
the CrollS, and comes to the m:eridian at 9 o'clock,
,on the 16th of September. .
. Sad'r., marked ,.. is a liar Gf the 3d DI8gIlitude, 6
0
southwest Gf
Deneb, IIitualed Bactly in the ell*, Gr where the upright piece iDter-
IECt8 the _ piece, atJd ie about 200 eat of Lyra.
Iklto., the priDcipai alar in the west wing, Gr arm Gf the croaa, is
aituated northwest Gf s.d'r, at the distance of liule mGre than 8, and
is of the 4th magnitude. Beyood I foward. the es:Iremity Gf the wing
are twG IIII&ller Item about 6
0
aJlll1. and incIinibg a IiUle obliquely 10
the nGrth; the Jut Gf which T8ICheI nearly to the finIt coil of Draco.
Th_ atarI mark the well wing; the .. wiDg may be tnIced by __
of IIIar8 very IIimilarlylituated, .
GimGk, marked .. ia a alar of the 4th magnitude, in the aut wing,
jlHt II far aut of Sad'r in the _ter of the era.,.. I ia W8Bl of it.
Thia row of three equal ItarI, I', ,.. and .. form the bar of the CfOIII, and
8ft! equidilllant &om each Gther, being about so apart. Beyond Gn the
aut, at the distance Gf 6
0
Gr 7
0
there are tWG Gther atarI; one of the 3d,
the other "of the 4th magnitude; the Ia.iI. GCwhich maru the es:tremity Gf
the eUtern wiD,.
The alam in the neck are aU too amaH to be noticed, There is Gne,
ho'lrever, in the beak Gf the Swan, at the fbot of the _, called Albireo,
marked /d, which ia of the 3d magnitude, and can be _n very plainly.
It ia about UP IOUth_t Gf Sed'r, and about the .me distance 1Ontb-
eut of Lyra, with which it mak81 nearly a right anIle.
w In the IIII8ll apace between s.d'r and Albireo. .y. Dr, Herschel,
CO the alam in the Milky Way _ to be clu8tering into tWG separate
divisiGns; each divilion eontainin, more than one Aundnd G1Id N:ty-
fiDe tlwwand Ilan," ,
AlbireG beam northerly frGm Altair about 20
0
, Immediately IOUth
and lOutheut of Albireo, may be _n the FGX aDd Goose..: and about
midway between Albireo and Altair, there 'RlBY betraced a line of four
Gr five minuta ala,., called the A __ ; the held Gf which ie on the
IOUthW8It, and Can be dielinguiehed by III88DI Gf tWG atarI .. tuated cloee
together. .
Acconling tG the Britieh eatalogue, thia eonetellatiGn cantaine e i g h t y ~
ODeltar8, incIndinr ODe Gf the lilt and 2d magnituda, m Gf the ScI, and
12 Gf the 4th.
TELEscopic OBJECT8.
/d C1'91'1 -A.' R. = 19 h. 24 JD, 16.. Dec. + 270 37' OT', A
large and brilliant colored dGuble I!lar Gn the bIll Gf the Mwan. 13i
o
IOUtheut G! Veaa, or .. Lyl'8l. A 3, B 7, magnitude. The principal
CONSTELLATION OF CYGNUS.
167
alar is orange, while the companion is a, blue, a lue CODtJ:aot
in color. Bradley meaeured, the componenta in' 1766, Iince which 110
aenaible baa occurred. ,
Poa. 570 34! Die. 34".20 Epoch 1765.00
The bl!at JIOIIition iii 64,0 40", u about a merm between thoae 'If'
Herschel, PlBZZi, Strii.Ye, South, Dawe., and Smyth, none 01' whom
differ Iiom the others in their reaulta by a whole d.-, This atllr
ft'rJD8 one of a group of five in the ahape of a cross, and point out the
body of the Swan. They may readily be found OD the map; i. at
the extremity of &be longer pert of the principal piece in the ,CfOlS.
, Cy .. ,.-A. R. = 19 h. 89 m. 68. Dec. + 0 ' 06". A
delicate double 8taJ in the middle of the left wing of the SWan, preceding
Cygni by ISO, and OIl the IBme parallel. A 3j, pale Jellov.;. B 9,
--green.
by Herschel, who made th.- meuutell.
POR. 71
0
39' Diet. 2".60 Epoch 1783.82. '
This alar hu occuioned no little difficulty, in consequence of the dis-
appearanee of the lIIDail companion during the years from 1802 up to
1823. SinCe that tilJlf! it hal been regularly followed. Herschel's
dilolanee seems to have been in error, u the followin, JDellsurea
,.iII.Mw:
PO&. 400 39' Di .. 1".91 Epoch 1826.65
" 1I6 42 .. I .67 .. 1831.73 ..
.. 31 63 "'I .80 .. 1836.62" _
Mii.dler thinks the !ltars may perform a ""olution about their common
of gravity in about 675 yean of our time,
;t OyowI.-A. R. = 19 h. 40 u,. 2h. Dec. +'330 21' 07". A fine
double atar on the Swan', lIeck. 7jO distant from ill a nllrthnortbr
eaII\ direction. A 1\ mag., B. 9, pale blue. .'
by Herechel. in 1781.
Since good meuurea have been obtained, no reliable rhange indl&-
lance IIr positiOn hu been .
Poa. 720 88' 06" Di .. 26
n
.821 Epoch Ukl.49 ,M!Wler.'
..,. GTlfw,.-A. R. = 19 h. 61 m. SO .. Dee. +62
0
4)\' . A double
etar, between the tip of the Swan 'I wing snd the tail. A 6j,
bright white, B 8. lilac. '
Poa. 184
0
82' Dis. 3".06' Epoch 1837.68 Smyth.
No change hu bMJ perceived iIi this beautifulaet of IIlaI'II.
A Cys.,.-A. R. = 20 b. 41 m. 11.. Dee. + 36Q M' 03", act..,
double etar, on the Swan'. \ower or right wing. 1)0 IOUtIHu& ,. Oyg.
iii. A 6, B 6 mag.
POL 1300 00' Dis. CY',07 Epoch 1848.71 Strii'fe.
61 Gun-A. R. = 20 h. 69 m. 43 L Dec. + 370 68'. A bina-
ry etar. on the inner tip of the Swan'. Jirbt wing. A 61, B ,6 _ani-
tude, both yellow. Thill sylllem c1uatera round it more 01 intereat thall
any other in the heaYllll.. Ita binary charac&er, 8WUU- of iii
168 GEOGRAPHY OF THE
'proper motion, the determination of ita annual parallax and dislanee, the
eomputation of ita'-. and ita influence on Madler's woooerf\lJ.theory
of the Central Sun, aD combine to make it an object of great impar-
IaDca. Piuzi _ tile firat to announce the rapid and equable proper
motion of the componeuU of this system, to 5".02, in A. R-
and 3".02 in declidation. auch a propt'r motion, and the approxi-
mate dillaiJce' firat obtained by MM. Arago ami Mathieu, it is easily
monstrated that these two IUIIB are sweeping tblough.apace with lOch an
, amazing .... Iocity that it exceedl the lWiftness of Mercury 60,000 tim_
E'I'BD thie lIIIounding ramlt "' .. luhlequently found to faU far below the
truth. After the Konmgaburgh ObBer-
fttory, M. B-1 determiDed to examine thiB double ater, with .. view to
the exact determillBaon of i\8 annual parallax. After a long aeries of
elaborate and delicate obaerYationa, his efforts with BUcce..
and in 1838 he writes to Sir John F. W. Herschel, as tOllows:
.. , selected among the aIara which IUrround 6l OyIPli. two between
the 9th and lOth'magnitudes, of which one (a) is Rearly,perpendil'Ular
to the Iioe joinbig the two atan, and the other nearly in the direction
of this Iinf,. I have measured the distance. of these aIara from the
point which bisecta the aame distahce between the two stara of 61
Cygni. I haye COIIIIDonly repeated the obaerYatiop timee every
night." ,
From th., obaenatioM, it was discovered that the central point be-
tween the corqponenta of 6l did not remain at the same disience from
tIIe.ra of reforence, but was more than 0",6 ful1ber from the alar (0)
in aummerthan in winter. After ptoper reduc:tion, the parallax -"' ..
found to !If! 0",3l36, with refen>nee to which we recol'll Bease1'a rellllU'u,
in Ibe IOtlowing language:
"As the_n error of the aanual parallax 'Of 61 Cygni is !IDly
0".0202, and COJl88qull\ltly not one-fif\r.enth of ita computed value, 8Dd
as these compariaona abow that the progre&. of the influence of the pal-
allu, which the observations indicates, followl the theory a8 nearly as
can be expected, conaidering ita lmallne.I, we can, no .longer doubt
&IIatthis parallax U lIMlaiblt\- Aasumiag it 0" 3136, we find tbe distance
of the ltar 61 CylJlli tiom the lun 657,'00 times the milan diatanee of
tbe earth from the lun. Light employs 10,3 yean to traverse the dis-
Aa the annual prcIpIIr _<111 of III Cygni amounta to 6",123
of a great circle, the relati'fe 1J!O&i0ll of this., and the 8un muat be
Considerably IDOI8 than sixteen aemi.oJametera of the eal1b', orbit, and
the Itar mUBt baye a conatant of abemtinn of more than 52", When we
"hall have IUcceeded in !leterminin, the elementa of Cbe motion of both
the stara fonning tlia double ltar round their common center of gravity,
welhall be a)lle In detHmin8the lum of their..... ,have attenti'fely
considered _ obeer .. tinneof the 1'('lative poaitiOll8, but I cou-
aider them u yet W"t'J inadequate to aft'ord the elementa of the mbi&.
I onlyaufticient to abow that the annual angular motion
ia BOm_here about two-thirdl of one degree; and thai the distance at
die beginning of this century had a minimum of about l5". We ara
_bled, hence, to conclude that the time of a re'folution is more tban
NO yean, and that the semi-major axis of the orbit is 88M under an
CONSTELLA. TION 01' CYGNUS. ]69
angle of more than 16" of apace. If, howrrer, we proeeed from "-
numbe.... which are merely limite, w. find tIHo um of the _ of
both stars '- tban balf lb. Run'. _"
TheIle extraordinary detaila bad alftllllly rendored thiB ltar of extftmJe
intere8l, wben M. MiOdler publiehed to the worid biB great theory of the
Central Sun. and releN to tbe rapid annual proper motion of 61 CYgDi,
.. ODe of tIHo l'BMIIta deducible from biB theory; and further employ. ilB
parallax and diltanee in .. limating the diBtence to Alcyone, in the Plei-
adell, the ltar &xed upon Ill! the preeent center of our Adral 8YUm.
Poe. 96003' Dill. 16",3 Epoch 1839.69. Smyth.
.. 101 02 .. 17.3 .. 174-7.60 Milchel.
Other double and mul\iple ItarB will be bind upon the cbarla.
A CuaJOV8 NnvL.t..-A. R. = 19 h. 40 01.86.. Dee. + 500
07' 06". It ill thlll delcribed in the Bedtord estalogue:
.. A very singular oh,ject. In my teleacope it iB email, aDd somewhat
_mbles a ater out of (OC\lll; but both tbe Henchel. agree, 011 viewing
it throngh their powerful inetrumenla, that it appears to conatitute a con-
necting liok ""tween the planetary oebuIe and tbenebuloaa atan. It
w .. diHcovered Sep ... mber. 1793."
I bave repeated Iy examined thil remarkable object with a 12 ioch apEll'-
tore. Ita diameter ill about 6" or 8", and when the gaze is attentively
fixed upon the center, tbe nebulOlll matter gradually f ~ ./rYm till
.;gilt, and a eImr, bright, round 6Iar u __ in lbe tenter. 'l'bis Mar
mow. no radiation, Buch U udally a-)llDy aters viewed with tbe
fuU opening, but baa a clean litlle disk, lOch II the teIMcope shows on
other stars with a reduced aperture, under the moat fiavonble ci reum-
ltances. By throwing oft' the eye from the center, and looking carere-
Iy 0..,.. the field of view, the nebula mums in all itl beauty, and the
central ater il no looger _no Tbi. is, doubtieM, opticaJ. yet it is no&
_Iyexplicable. Tbat the faint n e b u l ~ Ihould be beuer _n tJUt of till
tuM of vision, is easily undel'>ltood, buttbia should be true, also, Of the
central atar, and wben the nehula hrillbten8 up onder the eye, the &tar
mould increaee in brilliaDcy in the like propprtion.
In esse W8 abandon the nebular bypothesis, this object, and one or two
other. of like cbaracter, ber.ome utterly inexplicabl... If we .. y that each
particle of nebuloue light is a BUn or otar, and that tbe mas of hazy ligbt,
.., uniform in ita brigbtn_, is but the cludering of million. of sun. in
a aat aDnulus. how etupelldon. mUJlt be the eize of that lucid point
which occupied the center of this wonderful object, and is ao distinctly
_aled by the telescope t The old idea of a migbty predomiDftnt cen-
tral globe would, on lucb an hypothesis, ~ to be well fuunded, for il
would require miIliOlll of nebulouB pointa to constitute a blaze of light
equal to this central ater. Tbis object is found 011 the tip of the pre-
ceding wing of ,be Swan, and 610 nol'll\ of I Cygni.
A J.opaa SX.""L CLvnBR_A. R. =!IO h. 18 m. 17.. Dec. +
37
0
69' 09".
Discovered by Maier, 17M.
Near the roo& of the Swan'. neck [counted bat twenty ItaIII in the
IeId 01 VIew, July, 184.7. and th __ much_&*red.
170 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
A hALL CLU.,.. .. 011 RU'K FrnD.-A. R. = II h. 26 m. 29 ..
Dec. + 470 W 08". It. between the Swan'. tail and thf! I.izanl.
Many other cluatera and nehul. will be found on the chan, from
which their JIIa- in the beav_ may be ~ i 1 y found.
LYRA.
THE HARP.-This constellation is distinguished by
one of the most brilliant stars in the nortbern hem-
isphere. It. is situated directly south of ' the first
coil of Draco, between the Swan, on the east. and
Hercules, on the west; and, when on the meridian,
is almost directly overhead. .
It contains twenty-one stars, including one of
the 1st magnitude, two of. the 3d, and as many of
the 4th .
.. There Lyra, for the brightn-. of her Ilam,
Mont than their number, eminent; thriee seven
She counta, and _ of thaae iIIuminataa
The heaveD far round, bluing imperial,
In the jitYt order ...
This star, of " the first order, blazing with impe-
rial" luster, is called Vega, marked Ci, and sometimes
Wega; but more frequently it is called Lyra, after
the name of the constellation.
There is no possibility of mistaking this star for
any otber. It is situated 14! S. E. of 'Y Draconis.
It may be certainly known by means of two
small, yet conspicuous stars, of the 5th and 6th
magnitude, situated about 2 apart,.on the east of
it, and making with it a beautiful little triangle,
with the angular point at Lyra.
'rhe northemmoA of 111_ two _1I1lara marked .. and the soath-
""lOne, {. About SO S. E. of " and in a line with Lyra, it atar of
the 4th magnitude, marked I. in the middle of the Harp; and 40 or 50
8. of I. are Iwo.1lara 01 the.3d magnitpc)e, about 2 apart, in the pr\aDd
of the Harp, formiDs uother triangle, wbo.le YBrWx. in I. T ~ Ilar
CON8TELLATION 01' L YIlA.
171
on the east is marked ,.; that on the west. If a line be drawn from
,. Draconia through Lyra, and produced 6 farther, it will
'rhis is a variable atar, changing from the 3d to nearly the 5th magni-
tude in the space of a week. It is supposed to have spols on ita 8urface
and to tum on ils axis, like our flun.
Gamma COIMS to the meridian 21 minut .. s after Lyra. and predae!y
at the same moment with .. in the tail of the Eagle, 17i
o
S. of it.
The declination of Lyra is about 38io N.; conse-
quently, when on the meridian, it is but 2
0
S. of the
zenith of Hartford. It culminates at 9 o'clock,
about the of August. It is as favorably situ.
ated to an observatory at Washington, as Rastaheu
is to those in the vicinity of London.
Its surpassing brightness has attracted the at-
tention of' astronomers in all ages. Manlius,
who wrote in the age of Augustus, thus alludes
to it:
\
.. OIn, placed in front above the rest, diBpla,.
A vigoroualialH, and darta aurpriaing ray .. '
.htronomicon, B. i, po 15.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
VMA, OB '" LYB.l.-A. R. = 18 h. 31 m. 30 s. Dec. = + 38
u
38' 01", the moat brilliant star in the northern hemisphere, attended by a
companion of the t 1 th magnitude, distant 43".
Poa. 140 Epoch 1843
There is no reaaon to believe that the relation between these two sian
is other than optical. The proper motion of Vefia .oooallioDB a change in
the diatance and angle of poIIition of the Imall companion. Many ef-
forte have been made to obtain the annual parallax of this star. 1n
1836, M. Struve concluded the value of the parallax to be 0".12;', with
a probable error of 0".055. This result lielda a distance of one lmd a
half millions of times the aemidiameter a the earth's orbit. The apo
peatanC8 of '" I.yne in large telescopes is Imly magnificent. Before the
IIblr enters the field of view, its cominB is announced by a dawn of light
like that of the early morning, which groWl brighter and brighter, until
the alar, like the Bun, enters the field, with a brilliancy which the eye
can bear. By artificial occultation, at the Oincinnati Obeerva-
tory, no 1_ than rizteen minute stan have bean.counted within the
limits of this dawn surroundinB Vega.
By the revolution of the pole of the equator around the pole of the
ecliptic, in about 10,000,_ this brilliant object will becolDfl the puk
.tar.
172 GEOGIlAPHY or THE HEAVENS.
1'hf! ItUpendOUI distauee or Vega, as roughly ascertained by Struft,
pve .;,., to hia ingeniou8 theory u to the probable relative positions of
the sta,. of ditf"rent magnitudetl. He considered the mra of tbe fiM
magnitude dialaot about two millions of times the radius of the.earth'l
orbit, thoee of the 6th magnitude lIizteen millions, thOll8 or the 12th
.i4:ty millioll8 of times the _ unit. '
. ~ Ln -A. Ii. = ISO 44' u9". Dec. + 3S" 10'. OS", a COSI1l8,
qlladruple star. or the three componenl8. A ia of the 3d, B of the 8th,
U of the 8ith, and D of the 9th IDllgllitude. '('hiB alar ia ranked amoog
the vari"blll onea, and' baa a period of 6 days, 10 hou .... 86 minute!!,
changing from the 3d to the Otb magnitude.
I un 6 LUB.-A. R. = 18 h. 89 m. ot.. Dec. = + 39
0
30'
03", a double etar. One of the mOBt remarkable objects In the heavf'JJII,
.\ of the Oth. B of the 61th magnitude. 'I'be following DleUUreB abow
a retrograde motion.
P08, 330 66'
116 06 .
110 25
1I,,,ul. A B
Die. 3".44 Epoch 1779.83
3 .03 1831.44
t .46 1847.60
6 1.1'Il.B. 0 D
HerscheL
tltrilv ..
Mitcbel.
P08, 1730 t8'
. 155 10
Dio. 3".110 Epoch 1779.83 HersdleL
II .67 1831.44 . Str4ve.
149 10 II .66 1847.60 Mitchel.
There ia Itroog evid"oC8 that .ch of these aeI8 ia bifUJl'Y. A revot..
Ing about B In about:WOO years, while C and D complete their revolu-
tion in about half that periCld.
From the equality of proper motions In tbe four alara, it is iofetftd
that a phyaical union may exist among the two peira, In which r.aae tbe
one pair will perform a revolution. about the .other In about ODt! millioo
ofy.ral .
1'hia ltar ia 1 i
O
north.1t of I,YnB. and may be readily divided Into
two stars with the smallest optical power. 'I'be quadruple character ie
made out with a power of 150 or!WO. s..veral minute pointa of light
are seen tJetween the pain.
{ L"alB.-A. R. =18 h. 39 m. 15.. Dec. + 370 26' 00", a coane
double 1ItRr. A Oth. B 6ith maguitude.
P08, 114 9
0
06' Die. 43".08
1/ L"a -A. R. 18 h. 4S m. 48R. Dt,c. + 311" 38' 0", a OOBIW
quadruple star, jult south of ~ , euily divided.
r 1,,,alB.-A. R. 19 h. 08 m.r 18.. Det-. == + ISO 52' 66", a fine
double .tar; compoaenta of the magnitudes 6 Bnd 9.
Pos. 84
0
08' niB. =lI8".3 .
A FIn CLVITBR or S.uJ. Sr.l._A. R. = 19 h. 10 IDo 19 ..
Dec. = + 290 M' Oil".
CONSTELLA.TION OF LYRA..
173
Diecovered by Meaaier, 1778, but by him a. a fiaint nebul ..
Rrsolyed by 8ir William Henchel in 17M. and located in the 844th
onI"r of distances. 'rhere i. a great clu8wrillg about the center, and a
ricb profusion of stan in the field of view. It may be found on a line
joining fA Lyllll with fA Cygni, aboul 6i
o
from the fint star. This object
is one of the many inagnificent aRral AyBteDll, wbich are BCBUered 10
profuoely through the boundleaa region8 of apace. Ita light requires
more than a thouaand yean to reaeh our BYstem. .
Tn AlIlIVL ..... NBB1IL.t.-A. R. = 18 h.47 m. 37 8. Dec. ""'" +
82
0
50', midway between fA and,. on the crOl8-piece of the Lyre.
This wonderful object _ firll noted by Darquier, in 1779, 8B dim
by Sir WOllam it proved to be in the form
of a perforated ring or annulua. . With powe""ul inatrumenta tile dark
interior ia fiDed with faint gauzy ligbt. 'rhe figure is not exacdy
circular, the diameten being iB about the ralio of 4 and 6. Many
penontl bave declared their conviclion thet they BlW the minule lItan
which it ia believed compoae tbia lingular objtod. I have never be<-n
able to Blliefy myaelf that it hili been 1Birly retIOlved. l.ord H._'.
great &eleaeope h .. changed ita figure B1igbtly. by liDding 8l1li&11 fUarnenta
of light, extending within and without the ring, in the direction of the
larger axia. Benchel estimates the profundity of tbia object to be of the
950th order. Sueb an amazing distance absolutely overwbelms th.
imaginalion. A thoulllllld w- the diatanee of the DealMt fixed 8&an ;
Ita magnitude mull be immel188, .. ita diameter ia lOme 6" or 6", even
wb __ at 8Ueb aD immeuurable distance.
It I'l'quirea a 4 or 6 ineb refractor to yield ita figUre distinctly .0
the eye.
It ia viaib\e in amaIIer inatnunenw, but would be miataken for a .tar,
by aDY other tban a practiced eye.
p2
174 GEOGM.PHY OF THg HEAVENS.
'.
FOR TRACiNG THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. XXI.
AQUILA ET ANTJNOUS-THE .EAGLE .\NO .ANnNous.
DELPiIlNUS--THE DOLPHIN. .
TAuRus PONIATOWSKI-PONIATOWSKI'S BULL.
ANsn ET V ULPECULA-THE Fox AND GOOSE.
'FtiwrolJly Bituoted for examination in August, Sep-
i6nher, and October. .
. AQUILA ET ANTIN()U8.
THE EAGLE AND ANTIl!fous.-This double con-
stellation is situated directly lIouth of the Fox
and Goose, and between TaurUs Poniatowski on
the west, and the Dolphin on the east. It contains
seventy-one stars, including one-of the Ist magni-
tude, nine of the 3d, and seven of the 4th. It may
be readily distinguished by the position and supe-
rior brilliancy of its principal star .
.Altmr, marked G, the principa! star in the Eagle,
is of the 1st, or between the 1st and 2d magnitudes.
It is situated about 14 southwest of Dolphin. It
may be known by its being the largest and middle
one of the three bright stars which are arranged
in a line bearing northwest and southeast. The
stars on each side of Altair are of the 3dmagni-
tude, and distant from it about 2. This row of
stars very much resembles that in the guards of the
Lesser Bear.
Altair is one .of the stars from which the moon's
distance is taken for computing longitude at sea.
Ite mean declination is nearly 8io n(\rth, and when
on the meridian, it occupies nearly the same place
in the heavens that the sun does noon on the
12th day of April. It . culminates about 6 minutel
CONSTELLATION OF AQUILA ET ANTINOtTS. 175
beforeOo'c1ock, on the last day of August. It rises
acron.!lcall!l about the beginning of June.
Ovid alludes to the Mng of thill conll&elJat10n; or, more properly, 10
that of the principalatar, Altair:-
--" Now view the skies,
. And you'D behold Jove's hook'd-bill bini ariae."

--" Among thy .plendid group
Ow. dubious whether of the IKCONJI .,A,NIt,
Or to the rrRST entitled; bot whOll8 cleim
Seems to deserve the PIUT." Eudnai4.
The nortbemlllOlt sta,r in the line, next above Altair, is called
Taraud, marked,.. In the wing of the Eagle, there is anotber row
composed of three stare, situated 4,0 or fiO apart, ex lending down
towanls the IOOthwest, the middle one in this Ii..,e is the smallest,
only of the 4th magnitude, marked ,..; thenext i. of the 4th mag-
nitude, marked Delta, alld Rtuated SO lIOuthwest of Altair.
As you proceed from 1. there is snother line of three a1are, of the 4th
magnitude, betwaen 50 and 11
0
apart, extending fIOutherly, but curving a
little to th" west, which mark the youill Antinor... The northern wing
of the Eagle is not distinguished by any conspicuous
Zeta of the ad magnitude, and Epai/tm, of .the 4th magnitude, are
DeBr the to,1 of the lea wing.
From I to 8, in the wri.t of Antinon .. may be traced a long line
of etano, of the 3d magnitude, wbOll8 letter names are 8, .,,.., ?,
and t. The direction of tbia line is from southeast to northwest, and
its is ahout t50.
Eta iK remarkable for its cl&angeahle appearaftce. Its greateat bright-
_ contillUCI! but 40 hours; it thpn gradually diminish ... (or 66 hours,
w h"n it.. lu."r remains Ptalionary for 30 hours. It then waxes brighter
and brill';htpr. unlil it arrear. al{8in u a slar of the 3d magnitude.
From thf'&6 phenomf'nll, it is inferred that it not only ha pota on its
...nace, like our sun, but tbat it al.., turno on ita axis.
Similar phenomena are observed in Algol, S. in the Hare, I, in
Cepht!u&, and G, in tbe Whale, and many others.
--" Aquila the next,
Divid ... the ether with her ardent wing;
Beneath the S_, nor far from PegatJII8,
POliTIC E,A,9L ....
TEI.ESCOPIC OBJECT8.
A Fnrll CLUBTER.-A. R.=18 h. 42 m. 82. Dec. 60 27' 02". It
preeedes the left foot of Antinou&, and is on the Shield of Sobieski.
DPcovered by Kirch in 1681, and described u" a small obacure spot
with a atar shining through."
It was resolved by Dr. Durham in 1733. This was' one of the iii:
176 GEOGIlAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
clutelW or nebula delcribed by Halley in t 7 t 6. wbo to J)l'PCtir.t
tbat more would be' found. This object is figured in tht' BetlforJ Cata-
logue, but is very different &om tbat pr_nted in thi. volume.
A TIlIPLB s-r .. B.-A. R. = 18 b. 54 m. 81.. Dec. - 0
0
55'
09". Known to PiltZZi sa double, subdivided by Struve. A 9,H 9, C
16, magnitude.
Poe. A B 1480 0' Dis. 25".61 E b 1888 59 S Smytb. '
B C 115 0 2 .0 5 poc '?' Estimations.
B C 76 0 1 .676 IS47.60 MitcheL
The object,may be found between the Eagle'. wing and the left buel
of Antinoue.
A TRIPLB STAR.-A, R. =19 h. 28 /II. 01 .. Dec. = - 100 46'
ClS
n
On the right knee of Antinous. A 9, B 10, C 12, magnitude&.
Poe. A B 83S
o
04' Dis.8".02 EpochtlS85.58 Smyth.
A C 168 05 S .00 .. ..
AB 819 04 2 .54 IS47.60 Mitchel.
169 17
Some suspicion exists witb reference to the Pouible binary cbarac:tv
of the set.
A DoUBLB BUB.-A. R. - 18 h. 57 m. 59.. Dec. + 6 IS' OR",
on the edge of the Eagle'. wing. A B 9 magnitude.
Poa. 1114
0
38' Dis. Epoch IS81.70
" 152 28 "9 .492 ..' 1847.65 Mitchel.
A SI .... LL .... 1'1' I.ooeB CLUlITIIB.-A. R. 19 h. 08 /II. 86 s. Dec.-
1 11' 09", between the lower wing of the Eagle and the thigh of Aa-
tinoWl, consisting of fifteen or twenty ala .... with indication. of .tar-duat.
Examined 16th July, 1847.
A STBLL.t.R NBBUU.-A. R. = 19 h. 2:1 m. 55.. Dec. + SO M'
01", on the Eagle's b.ck, 50 east of AllIlir, or" Aquilal.
Discovered by Sir W. HI.'J'1IChel, and estimated at the 900th Older al
diBtancea. Examined on the 16th July. IS47.
The ohject is very amall, brightening at a vertex, and running oft' iD
the shape of a fan. Several elars in the field; a bright one above, aod
one below the nehula. Sir John Hel'1lChel aaya, "It i.like a nebula well
resolved, and is a curious objecL"
A Dulc .... TB DouBLt ST.t.R.-A. R. = t9 h. 85 m. 02 .. Dec. =
80 00' 05", on the Eagle's back, 2 eut of Altair, and a little muth of
the parallel. A B 9! magnitude.
Poe. 2620 82' Dis. 82".12 Epoch IS25.52 Strnve.
11' AII.I1IL -A. R. == 19 h. 41/11. 10 .. Dec. = + 1I
0
26''''''.
A cJoaa double 1Ilar, u.r wing of Aquila. A 6. B 7 mac.
Poa. 122
0
00' Dis. 1".50 Epoch 1831.70 Smyth.
" ISS 09 "1 .10 "1847.66 MiIcheL
CONSTELLATION OF AQUILA ET ANTINOUS. 177
A41uIUl.-A. R. = 19 h. 42 m. 8. Dec. = + 80 26' 0;'''.
A first magnitude 1IIar; with a 10th u .... gnitude c<ompanioo, auspected 10
be phySIcally united,
POll. 334
0
' Dis. 143".40 Epoch 178158 HeracheL
.. 326 08 'lIi8 .71 . ,. 1821.86 Struve.
.. 3'13 06 "162 .60 .. 18a4.tll BOlith.
The ('hange may be due to a dUfertmre of proper motion in the two
tIIars. 'J'be annu,,1 proper motion of Altair hlll5 Men fixed at rather
more tban half a second ip A. R., and aboot one third of Ii MICOOO io'
decliuation.
23 R. = 19 IL 10m. 24 .. Dec. = + 0 48' 00".
A "'oee dooble alar, onder the Eagle's lIOuthem wing
.Di8covered by Herachel, who appears to have made a mistake in en-
wring hill __ HI. IJOBitioll is 1620, disUnce 3".1>0, epoch
178l.68. ;.
The BedfOrd. Catalogue marks the position more than 1800 dif.
"rent, and' tbinb Herachel wrote BOUt" for nortn, in recording his
m-naUooll.
This IIIar _ earefuUy Jlleuured on the 4th of Auglllt, 1847, and
gave theae resulta:
POL 120 09' Dis. 3".67.
Bedford .CaI. Pos.= 12
0
06' Di.I. 8".1 Epoch 1838.68.
A DouBLa SUlI_A. R = 19 h. 37 m. 21.. Dec. + 100 28' 06",
on the Eagle's head. A 8, B 10 magnitude.
POL 2780 18' Dis. 8".00 Epoch 1783.60 Herachel .
276 27 8 .99 1826.66 Bouth.
278 SO 4 .00 1836.76 Smyth.
278 38 4 .33 1847.72 Mitchel.
The distance between the componenta _UIII to be on the ipcreue,
wbile the angle of position remain" nearly if not quite the same.
DELPHINUS.
To DOLPBIlf.-This beautiful little cluster of
stars is situated 13 or 14
0
northeast of the Eagle.
It consists of eighteen stars, including two of the 3d
magnitude, and' three of the 4th, but none larger.
It is easily distinguished from all others, by means
of four principal stars i'n the head, which are so
arranged as to form the figure of a diamond, point-
ing northeast and southwest. To many, this clus-
ter is known by the narrie of Job's Ct!ffin; but from
whom, or from what fancy, it first ob.tained this
appellatiol;', is not known.
liS GEOGRAPHY OF TEE HEAVENS.
There is 8. star of the 4th magnitude, situated in
the body of the Dolphin, about 3 southwest of the
Diamond, and marked Epsilun. The other four al'e
marked .Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta. Between
these are several smaller stars, too small to be seell
in presence of the moon.
. The mean declination of the Dolphin is about
15 north. It comes to the meridian the same
moment with Deneb Cygni, and about 50 minutes
after Altair, on the 16th of September.
" Thee I behold. majeetic CygtaUII.
On the marge dancing of the heavenly -.
Arion'. friend; eighteen thy .1'11 appear-
One teleecopic."
TELEscoptC OBJE.CT8.
A PLAN.TART NUULA.-A. R. = 20 h. 15 m. 15.. Dec; 190
36' 06". Betweom the Dolphin's pectorul fin and the arroW's head.
Discovered by Sir William Hel'llCbel, 1782-
This is a large though faint planetary nebula, the surface being eYenly
itluminated. Sir John Hel'llChel suggests that the minute stars in doee
proximity to the nebula, may be Bate/litu, He remarks "that the
enormous magnitude of their bodies, and consequent probable mass (if
they be not bollow sheila); may give them a gl'llvitating energy. which.
however large "e may conceive them to be, may yet be capable of retain-
ing in orbits three or four times their own diameter. and in period. of
,reat length, small bodies of stellarchal'llcter."
Should this suggeartion ever be verified, we might be led to attribute
BOrne of the anomalous motions (a. yet unaccounted for), among some
of the fixed atarB, to the diaturbin, inlluenee of an invisible body of this
cbBl'llcter. In cue any such faint body were situated near Siriue, for
example, the hrilliancy of thia star wonld entirely hide the nebula. Ar1i-
ficial oocuItation may detect IIOme of theN unknown objects.
A S.ALL CLU8ftR.-A. R. = 2() h. 26 m. 21.. Dec. + 060
53', near the Dolphin'. tail. .
Discovered by Sir W. Herschel, 1785.
. It is a mB811 of small ..... with _ral larger .1'11 in the field
~ D.LPRll1'l_A. R, 20 h. 30 m. 03 .. Dec. + 140 02' 06". A
delicate triple .r, in the Dolphin's body. A 4, B 12, magnitude. The
minute star B, was added to the previously discovered pair by Sir John
Hel'llChel. It bad escaped his father and Striive. .
POL A B 1050 00' DiM. 16".0 Epoch 1734.79
A C lHl 08 30 .0 ..
CONSTELLATION OF DELPHINU& 179
,.. DKUHI.I_A. R. 20 h. 39 m. Ui.. Dec. + 111
0
38' ot". A
beHuUful double .... on the Dolphin" held. A 4, y"Uow; 8 7, light
green. No change hu been deleeted.
Pee. 173003' 00" Dill. 12".0 Epoch. 1830
. VULPECUL'A E'r ANSER.
THE Fox.AND THE GOOSE.-This is a modem con-
stellation, introduced by Hevelius, into a space
between the Arrow and the Swan. "I wished,"
remarked Hevelius," to place a Fox with a Goose
in this space of sky well fitted to it,. b e c ~ u s e such
an animal is very cunning, voracious, and fierce.
Aquila and V ultur are of the same nature, rapa-
cious and greedy." In 1672, while examining this
new constellation, Hevelius discovered a star in the
head of the Fox, which he had never before seen.
This star remained visible for the space of about
two years, after which period it disappeared, and,
has never since been recognized.
This new constellation has been pretty fairly
8.llopted by astl'onomera, and may now. be said to
be pretty firmly fixed in the heavens. Its author
counted .27 stal"8 within its limits. The number
has been successively increased by later astrono-
mers, until finally, Bode has fixed the places of 126 .
stars in thil!t small space.
The intrusions or additions of Hevelius to the
old constellations have been better received by
astronomers than those of any other modern inno-
vator, probably because his constellations were
placed where they seemed to be actually required
for convenience of reference.
TELESCOPIC OBJEOTS.
A DUIC.t.TK novBn Sr.t. .-A. R. = 29 h. 00 m. 10 ..
+ 20
0
38' 07". Close to the AllOW, under the Fox'. &boulder.
Ii 10, nagnitude.
DiIcovered by Sir Jamea South in 1828.
POlIo 3400 06 Di& 11",6 Epoch 1839.70
n.-
AI
180 GEOGllAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
AS.ULDoIl'at.. ttr .. -A.R. SOh. IIi m. 47 .. Dec.=+ go
M' 02". On the FOl['. loins. A 8, B 14, indigu blue.
About a minute of time p.-Jing tbja object. and 20' _th of it,.
a minute e10118 dooble .... , di8emered by &rUve. and No. 2872 of hill
great catalOgue.
DOlCR-a.LL N"Il'L.t..-A. R. 19 h. 62 m. 39 .. 'Dec. Ito 17' 01".
Diacovered bJ MeMier, I')'". .
This Ie _ of the large and magnilicent nebule, located in ODe of
the rieheat Jl8rU of 'the heaven.. A. fint _n, it re.mbled two balla
joined together like a dumb-bell, or double headed abot. and hence ita
name. A. more powerful inatrumenta bave' been directed to ita uam-
inalion. ita form baa become more wonderful and myaterioua. The
drawinlf rep_ta this object .. _n with the Cincinnati Refractor,
July, 1847, at wbieb time it w .. deacribtocl wbile under the eye, u
follow.: ,
.. The abape of the nebula Ie an oval or ellipse, wbOllll larger uIaI
occupies fOUT-fifths of the field of view, with a power of 260. 'J'he
imperfect to the left of tbe lower vertex. The right hand ball of
ligbt rather the largea&, the round figure being brokenbJ two blunt
poinl8. 1'he upper .. r ia _n a liule oulllide the outline. The leA
hand rn .. of ligbt takea the aame form u that on the right, only th.
light does not exteDd u.p or down quite a. far. At each extremity a alar
ulocated. The verIIcea of the great or general outline comparatively
faint. Several atara are visible on the nebula. One diatinctly seen in
the center of the right hand mall! of light, one in the center of the
principal a:ri .. fainter than the fim mentioned; one still more faint
midway between the. two. Anotbet Ie _ bJ below, and to
the right of the one fint mentioned. There are beaidea many alan in
the .. me field of view." '
Lord a.-'a great teleacope b .. produced no great c,hange in the
figure, it baa revealed more light in the comp-.l parte of the
nebula. Nichol deecribea it .s having" no longer diatincm_ of c0m-
pletion of form. but a atrange ma811 internally moat irregular. cluster-
mg apparently around two principal or knolll of slM ..... and pre-
III!IIling, where it merges into the dark, the utin08& indefiniten_ of
ontline," and yet tha figure baa an oUlline quile .. well defined .. tboae
usu811y in drawings of this objecL
J Obi. objecl is doubll_ the union of tW.l mighly c\U8tel'll IIf myriad.
of auna, and al the double stan' are _ttered profusely through space,
we occuionally find what may be july trrmed double nebula and
durlbk r.iUllters. 'rhe distance of this object muat be abaolutely over-
whelming, and ita dimensions beyond the POWerR of e.omputalion.
It may be picked up on a line joining Cygni and the Dolphin, and
alK)Ut 70 BOulheaat of the first named star. The angle of JXMilion of
the line joining the cenrera of the nebulous _, ia3lo 08' ...
_ured by Capt, Smyth. '
8ERPENTARIUS, nL OPHIUCUS. 181
FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATION ON
MAP NO. XXII.
SBIlPENTAlUUS, VEL .oPHIUCBUB-TuE SUPENT-BEAIlEB.
F(Jf)(Jrably 8ituated for exomi7llltitm in ill/ne, Jv1y,
and August.
RIU8, VEL OPHIUCUH.
THE SUPENT-BEA:RE:a is also called 1Esculapius,
or the god of medicine. He is represented as a
man having both hands clenched in the folds of a
prodigious serpent, which is writhing in his grasp.
The constellation occupies a space
in the mid heavens, directly sou th of Hercules, and
west of Taurus PoniatowskL Its center is very
nearly oyer the eqUft.tor, opposite to Orion, and
comes to the meridian the 26th of July. It con-
tains seventy-four stars, including one of the 2d
magnitude, five of the 3d, and ten of the 4th.
The principal star in Serpent.arius is called Baa
Alhague, marked G. It is of the 2d magnitude, and
situated in the head, about 50 east-southeast of
Ras Algethi, marked G, in the head of Hercules.
Rae Alhague is nearly 13
0
north of the equinoctial,
while RJw, in the southern foot, is about 25
0
south
of the equinoctial. These two stars serve to point
out the extent of the constellation from north to
south. Rae Alhague comes to the meridian on the
28th of July, about 21 minutes after Ras Algethi.
About JOO IOUthweat of Baa Alhague are two smaU IIW'8, one of the
8d, &be other of the -ith magnitude, aearoely more than degrer. apart.
They diatinguh the left or weat moulder. The northern ODe is marked
Iota, and the other Kappa.
EI_ or 'weI.., degreM IOUth-Ioutheut or au Albague, are two
other .. III of the 3d magnitude, in the east moulder, and about 20 apart.
The upper one ill called Che/eb, or fd, and the low. one Gamma.
Q
182 GEOGRAPHY 01' TIlE HEAVENS.
n-.tala ia the he.d and Ihoalden of 8erpentariu. form a CriaDJIe,
with the vertex ia Rae AIhIgue, and pointin, towa.rd. the IlOI1beut.
About 4
0
east of -/t is a remarkable cluster of
four or five stars, in the form of the letter V, with
the open part to the north. It very much resembles
the Hyades. This beautiful little group marks the
face of TAURUS PONIATOWSKI. The solstitial colure
passes through the equinoctial about 2
0
east of the
lower star in the vertex of the V. The letter
name of this star is k. There is something
remarkable in its central position. It is situated
almost exactly in the mid heavens, being ne8l'1y
equidistant from the poles, and midway between
the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. It is, how-
ever, about one and a third degrees nearer the
north than the south pole, and about two degrees
nearer the autumnal than the vernal equinox,
being about two degrees west of the solstitial colure
. DirectlYlOuth of U1e V, at the diIWIoe of about 12<', ue two VfIlJ
lilian IIIIrB, about 2
0
apart, situated in the right band, where it grupe
the _pent. About" balfway between. and nearly in line with the
two in the hand and the ,wo in the ehouIder, iI another star of the 3d
magnitude, marked Zeta, &ituat.ed in the Serpent,. oppoaitB the right
elbow. It may be !mown by meana of a minute .tar jll8t under it.
Manic, marked A, in the left arm, iI atar of the 4th magnitude,
about U)O IOUthWest of I and ... About 70 farther in the __ cJireo.
tWn, ue two ItBra of the 3d magnitude, &ituated near the band, aDd
little more than a degree apart. The npper one of the two, which
about 16
0
north of Grafliaa in Scorpio, iI eaIled Yed, marked I, the
other iI marked f. T ~ two ItarI mark the other point in the folda or
the monater where it iI,ruped by 8erpentariua.
The left arm of SerpentariUl may be euily traced by mean. of the
two atara in the .houlder, the one (A) near the elbow, and the other
two in the hand; all Iyin, nearly in a line nortb-northeut, and IOUth-
IOUthWeat. In the _ manner may the right arm be traced, by 8&aIa
.ery &imilarly &ituated; thet is to. "y, firat by the two in the ..
houlder, jUlt weat of the V, thence 8
0
in a lOutherly direction inc1in-
illg a little to the eat, by " (known by a little star right under it), and
then by thl! two small ones in the right hand, situated about 6
0
below (-
About 120 from Antarea, in an eaalel'ly direction, are two ItBra in the
right foot, about 20 apart. The largeat and lower of the two, is on the
left hand. It is of between the 3d and 4th mqnitudea, and marked ,.
There ue leYeral other ItBrI in thiI conateIlation, of the 3d and "il
aaguitudea They may be traced out &om the mapIo
SDPENTAllIU8, VEL OPHlUCHVS. 183
T ELE SCOPIC OBJECTS.
, OPBnJCKI.-A. R. = 18 h. 18 m. 00.. Dec. = - sao 04' OS".
A fine double ur, on the Serpent Bearer's foot. A 6, B 7i msgnitude.
Pos. SO 01' Ina. 8".08 Epoch 1832.88
Discovered by Sir W. Henebel, 1780. 'rhere ie but little ewidence of
ally phyllical connection between the componenta.
A OPBI1JCBI, a binary ur.-A. R. = 18 b. 2J m. 61.. Dec. + SO
_ 04". A 4. B 8, mBlflitude. The following _au_ are recon1ed:
Pos. 760 30' Di.. 0".50 Epoch 1788.18 Henchel.
881 48 .0 .84 1826.61 Struve,
866 05 I .00 1889.87 Smyth.
I 47 8" 1 . ~ 9 1841.69 . Mildler.
3 42 1 .42 1847.85 Mitchel.
Frcm th_ obaervationa, it ie evident that the un are revolving about
their common center ofgravity, in a period ofabaut 120 years.
'I' OPBI1JCaJ.-A. R. = 17 h. M m. 2J.. Dec. = -- SO 10' 04".
A WIrf do. biDaJy liar, OD the right IwId of Opbiuchu, the clo.at of
Benchel', double lIBra.
Diacoyered, April, 1788. A 6, B 8, a.gnitude. A third liar, dia-
1eD& 88", in the lame field of viaw.
The foIlo"ing _u_ will ohibit the progreEq changee :
Po-. 8810 36' rn .. elongMed Epoch 1783.n Henchel.
11/9 M 0".438 1836.82 Struve.
116 38 0 .771 1841.67 Mil.dler.
Itt H 0 .779 1846.61 Mitchel.
Mii.dler I'IIID8I"U. with re"rence to thia .,1Item, u 10110".: of The ~
riodic time mU8t be aSout 110 years. The inclination and eccentriCIty
appear to be considerable. 'rile diatance .. a miwmum in 1816, or a
8hurt time befOre. It bu regularly inc:reued _ since. It ie hoped ,
that oo.natioDi further auutb than Derpat may foUow thia binary aye-
t.em with atteotion."
Combining all the obaervationa, a aborter period _me to be indicated.
perhaps not exceeding 90 years. The yearly chanp in the angle of
po.itioa, from 1817 to 1848, amonnll ,to 4
0
33'.
70, or P OP.I1JCBI.-A. R. = 17h.67m.11s. Dec. = + 10 31' 08"
A swiftly revolving binary system. . A 4i, B 7, magnitude.
Thia liar has engaged tbe attention of many distinguiebed IUItronOo
DI8No The rapidity of ita motion excited the notice of ita diacoverer,
aud caused the following rl'COrd : .. Tbe alteration of the Ingle of p0si-
tion that h .. taken place in the angle of position of thie double III.ar ie
I't!III8I'kable. October 7. 1779, the stare were exactly in the 1IIIIIIII paral-
lel, the preceding star being largest. &ptember H. 178 I, it wu \10 14',
P f; and, May 29, 18M, it wu 48
0
01', n p; which gives a change
of 181
0
69', in 24 yean and 264 day.... The orbit hu been computed
by several utronomera; bat with tbe greatest care, recently, by M.
Midler, who bu reached the otraordiDary couclulion, that th_ I'll-
184 GEOGRAPRl' OJ' 'liRE REA VUH.
yolYillI iliai'll 81'8 moYblg uDder the diBhubinr inlll1enCII of _ tbinJ
body, aa ,et undiaconred.
Miidler'a elements 81'8 the "'lowing:
Perlaatre r--ae, 'r = 1812.73
Periodic time, P = 92.869 yean.
The angle between the maj. UiB and
line of nod.., ~ = 142'l 05' 08"
Eccentricity, e = 0.4438
Mean annual a. of motion, m = 23U84-
Angle of posilion, - - on. = 126 47 02
Inclination of the plane, of the orbit, I = 64 61 04-
The following meuuree will8how the che,ngea which han occurred'
POll. 90000' Die. 3".59 Epoch 1779.77 HeJ'BChel.
157 36 3 .79 1821.74 Struve.
137 20 5 .53 1830.57 Dawes.
178 54 6 .44 1837.62 Be_L
175 26 6 .38 1841.53 M;;dler.
120 45 5 .53 1847.55 Mitchel.
The diacrepanCII between computation and ot-rvation, IUlCribed bJ
Mlidler to the inIluenoa of IOID8 unknown disturbing bod" have '-a
recently aUributed to aberTalion, prodnced b'l the motion of the BtarII in
their orbita. This matter ill yet in a BtBte 0 uncertainty .
There are many double BtarII in this conatellation, which will be readilJ
fonnd on the charta, diatinguiahed, .. OBual, by their round f",..m,-n
other stal'll being angnlar, or ltar-ehaped. Under fayorBble circum&taDcell,
all iliai'll appear round, and disk-like, in large and perfect inatrumenta.
A RrcK GLOBVL4R ClovITEB.-A. R. = 16h. 38m. 66.. Dec.
= - 1
0
40' 08". This object J haYe repeatedly examined. It nearly
filta the field of yjew. with a power of 21i0. its diameter being from 7 10
8 minutes of apace. There . are three bright Itar8 in the cluater, with
.-oy amaller but prominent onea scattered in the field.
M-a diaroyered it, in 1764, but .. w no BtBn. Henchellocates it at
the distance 186. It may be found nearly on the1ine joining. and /l,
and fItO diatant from the fil'lll star. It is rep_ted in the Bedford
Catalogue .. rn-eaUy contkrwd at the center. I find thia remark
ICal'CBly applica'b\e to its appearance, .. _ with the 12 inch refractor.
The resolution is complete.
A CLUBTJlR OF 001 ..... 11.0 SUBB.-A. R. = 16'b, 48 m. 45 ..
Dec. = - 3 61' OS". Discoyered b, MMBier, 1764, and by him de-
ICribed .. a beautiful round nebula. It is euily resolved, and, under
full aperture of 12 inches, is noble object. 'rhere 81'8 three pretty m..
tinct etar-like radiations, running out from the center, and fuur or 8 ..
little patches of aeparate atBra in the .. me 8eld of view. It foIlOWll
Ophiuchi, on the aame parallel nearly, and about SO diatanL Sir W
He_hel makes its profundity of the 243d order. '
, ,
A L .... er GLOBVLAR CLVII'I'JIJI.-A. R. = 17 h. 29 m. 18 L Dec.
= - 3 00' 09". Sa William H8I'IIChel delCribea thia object .. foOowa:
SERPENTARIUS, VEL OPWUCUS. 185
ExtnJmely bright, round, euUy resolvable. With a power of 600, I
am _ the 1IIa\'ll, The heavena are pretty rich in IIIarI of a certain _.
but they are Jarpi' than thoae in the eluat.er, and euily to be diatinguiahed
from them. This cluat.er ill considerably behind the _tteJed eta.... u
lIOme of them are projected on iL From the ot.ervaUons of the 20
feet' eeleaeope, which had the power of dillceming objects 76,08 ~ u
tar u the eye, the profundity of thiII clUlltl'.r must be of the 900th order."
This cluster msy be found 6jO IOUth by weat from ,. Ophiuchi, nearly
midway from ~ Scorpii and the &ail of Aquila. It ill a JiBe object,
la.rge and weD deJined.
A L ...... .uD E .... JLy RuoLv.n CLl1IT ... -A. R. = 17 h. 47 m.
32 So Dec. = - ISO 68' 02". betWeeD the left leg of OphiUchUl ud
the bow of 8qittari... .
Dia:o'I'ered by M_er, 1764. It ill OIl a line north",.t from po 8r.o
giUarii, and dillcaDt about 60.
A OLD.. Donu 8T ..... -A. R. 16 h. M m. 18.. Dec. = +
80 41' OS". On the right shoulder. A 7, B 8.
Poe. 185
0
40' Dill. 1".34 Epoch 1880.97 StrO.Ye.
187 00 1 .60 1882.41 8 m y ~
148 67 0 .826 184.7.'10 MitcheL
T'- Iut meuuJel would indb&e binary charader, and I am coa
fident that they wen weU made.
36 OPBJ11CBI.-A. R. = 17 h. 06 m. 29 .. Dec. = - 26 11' 06"
A double, or rather, multiple, star, betweeD the, left foot and. the 8cor
pioll's,&aiL A 4i. B 6j, magnitude.
Poe. 2130 20 Die. 5".82 Epoch 1848.61 Airy.
216 49 4 .27 1847.61 MitcheL
73 OI'BI11ClBJ.-A. R. = 18 h. 01 m. 87.. Dec. = + SO 68' OS"
8etweeD the left ahouIderof Opbiachua and the Serpent'l taiL A 8, B
7;. magnitude.
DiIIcovered by HencheL
Poe. 2670 II' Die. 0".90 Epoch 1788.82 HencheL
267 87 1 .98 1822,46 Her. & South.
269. 1 .M 1831.011 8trO.ve.
265 00 1 .4U 1842.00 Smyth..
163 00 1 .2'14 1841.66 MitcheL
Here ill cerlainly a binary 1IYstem. The early -.res of 8i1 W.
Herschel, u well u those by Henche\ and South, are dillcordant with
the later measures. From 1881 to ]847, a period oU6 years, therehu
'-n a chaage of 8
0
The JDOtioI1 ill retrograde.
A Donu 8T ..... -.'. R. = 17h.17 m. 21 .. Dec. =+ 16041"
04". Between the heads of OphiuchUI and Herewee. A 7, B 13.
DiIcoYend by Striive.
POI. 61
0
M' Die. 4".078 Epoch 1880.28 8trO.ve.
62 SS 8.6M 1847.60 MitcheL
The. oblervalioua imply bity ill thiII ...
186
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
88 P. XIV, OPBI17CBl.--A. R. = 16 h. 20 m. 10.. Dec. = - 70
46' 09". A delicate double star. near the right thigh of Opbiuch\lllo
A 7 i, B 12. Reck.oned a difficult object, from the small size of B.
Poa. 302
0
44' Dis. 4" .687 Epoch 1831.48 Stri've.
3Op. 00 6 .000 1833.47 Smyth.
~ 14 Ii .292 1847.70 L. M.
There is strong evidence of fixity in theBe> meaaurea, and there is little
reaaon to believe that th_ elar8 are otherwise than oplically related.
---
DIRECl'IONS FOR TRACING THE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO. XXIII.
PTwAsus-Tu FLYING HORSE.
}'.QUULUS-THB HO:aSE'S HEAD.
Favorohly situaJ.ed tor exo:mi:n4tiun in September, Dc-
Idler, NuvemlJer.cmd 1JecemJJeT. .
PEGASUS.
THE FLYING H O R S E . ~ This constellation is repre'-
sented in an inverted posture, with wings. It occu-
pies a large space in the heavens, between the
Swan, the Dolphin and the Eagle, on the west;
and the Northern Fish and Andromeda, on the east.
Its mean right ascension is 340, or, it is situated
20 W. of the prime meridian. It extends from the
equinoctial N. 35. Its mean length, E. and W., is
about 40, aod it is six weeb in passing our meri-
dian, viz. from the 1st of October to the lOth of
November.
We see but a part of Pegasus, the rest of the ani-
mal being, as the poets imagined, hid in the clouds.
It is readily distinguished .from all other constel-
lations by means of four remarkable stars, a.bout
15 apart, forming the figure of a.square,called the
8qwre of Pega8U8. The two western stars in this
square come to the meridian about the tad of
l
I
'1
I
!
CONSTELLATION OJ' 187
October, and are about 13 apart. The northern
one, which is the brightest of three triangular stara
in the martingale, is of the second magnitude, and is
called &heat, marked jJ. Its declination is 26!. N.
Markoh, marked ., also of the second magnitude,
. in the head of the wing, is 13 S. of Scheat,
and passes the meridian 11 minutes after it.
The two stars which form the eastern side of the
square, come to the meridian about 'an hour after
those in the western. The northern one has al-
ready been described as .Alpkerat%, ora, inthe head
of Andromeda; but 'it also belongs to this constel-
lation, and is 14 E. of Scheat. 14 S. of Alphe-
ratz, is .Algmib, a Persei (see Map No. I), the last
star in the wing, situated 6io E. of Markab .
in Peguut, .tlpMratZ, in and cap", in Ca ..
IIiopeta. are situated on lbe pri_ and point out .its direclion
through the pole. For thiS reaaon, they are aometimes called the tJuu
They fonn an arc at that greatcirele in the heavena from which
iIuI didanees of all lbe heavenly bodies are _ured. It is an arc at
the equinocti.al colure, which lbrough the vernal equinox, and
wbich the BUn _ about the Slat at March. It is, in astronomy,
what the meridian of Greenwich is iu geography. H the 811n, or a
planet, or a Btar, be said to have 80 many degrees of right 1UCtlfl8iou, it
mean. that the auu or p1anIIt ha. -wm so many degrees from this
prime meridian. .
Emf, marked .. 80metimea called Enir, is a atar of the third magni.
tude, m the nose of Pegasus, about tOO w. S. W. of Markab, and half
way between it and the Dolphiu. About one-third of the distance from
Markab toward. Enit; but a little to the S. there is a Btar of the 3d mag-
Ditude, in the neck, whose letter name is Zeta. The loose cluster c1i-
JeCtly S. of line joining Ellif and Zeta, forlll8 the bfIIUI of Pegasul.
In this constellation, there are stars
visible to the naked eye, of which three are of the
second magnitude, and three of the third.
TELESCOPIC OBJECTS.
A DouaLa STn.-A. R. = sfh. 14 m. 41.. Dec. = 19 or
04", between the head at Pegasus and the bind 1 ... of the FOL A 4,
conaidered variable; B 9, magnitude. .
POI. 3100 08' Dis. 36".4 Epoch 1333.96
188 GBOGlL\PHY,ov THli: IIli:A VUS.
Altbo. DO 18D11,'b1e cbanp hu yet been cIiIcoYend in tbi8,llet
common proper motion would iodicate IIIIDe phyeical wUon.
A L.6.BIJ_ .6.11'11 B.'LLU.T CL17I1'n __ A. R. == 21 h. 22 m. IS ..
Dec. == + 110 27' 04". betwl!BD tbe months of Pegaaua and Equulua.
DiacoYefed by Meraldi, and deacribed !7 him u" a nebuloua
IIlar, quite brigbt, and compoaed of l18Veral 8t!l .... '
It wu fully reaolved by Sir William Herschel, 1783, and placed by
him in the wtd order of dilllaDC& Thia object greatly condensed III
the center, and hu maDy radiatiODa.
There great- cond_uon at the center, and even a brilliant
nueleua, around which the IIlan are _ttered in rich' profusion for.
diIIlance of about 2' in diameter. Beyond til. the chialer I_rich in
Itara. '!'be BpaC8 p.-ling the clu" .'nearly ftCaDt. The 'follow-
ing apace tolerably well filled with Btara. '
A SXUL DooBL_ BTu_A. R. == U h. 06 m 87 .. Dec. ':+
16
0
24' OS",belwl!BD the head and lap of Peguua. A 7i, B IO!.
The fint yellow, the BeClODd grem. ,
Discovered by 8tril. .,e.
POI. 816
0
24' Dis. 7".68 Epoch 1828.96 Strii.,e.
381 29 8 .os 1847.66 MiLcheI;
This certainly binary system.
37 P .. ut_A. R. == 22 h. 21 lD. 68.. Dec. == + OSO 37' or,
binary Ita!' on the maDe and near the head of Peguus. A 6, B 7i-
DiacoYered by Strii.,e.
Poe. H2 86' Die. 1".86 Epoch 1881.\2 Struve.
118 M \ .10 1889.66 gmyth.
121 46 0 .98 lSU.70 Mitchel.
Here is IItrDDg II'rideDce of, binary cham:ter,u the angular velocity
hu been on the increase, and the distance certainly diminishing. .
. 66 H. I.
t
P .. Ul.-.... R. == 22 h. 66 m. 58.. Dt.c. == + 11
0
27'
09", an elongated nebula in tbe Horae's mane.
DiB!:o.,ered by Herschel in 1784.
This is an exceedingly faint and difficult object. I examined it_
fuOy in September, 1847, and although it wu readily found, it required
very c\0II8 guiIlg to makll any thing out of it. It atretcbes between two
IIara. the upper one of which is not touched by the nebulous ma&ter.
A minute t81eaeopic star just precedes the upper extremity of the nebu-
lou. matter, which to have been overlooked by preceding ot....
era. There is iomethiDg of a glow at the center after long gazing, and
under a side glance.
'!'his object ill to be a S.t ring _ obliquely. It is 0118 of
the most difficult oJliects in the heav8Jl8, and requires a powerful irlIlruo
ment for I\8tiafactory examination. ,
. EQUULU8, VEL EQUI BECTIO. 180
EQUULUS, VEL EQUI SECTIO.
THE Lrrn.B HORSB, OR TRB HORSE'S HEAD.-This
Asterism, or small cluster of stars, is situated about
7 west of Enif, in the head of Pegasus, and about
halfway between it and the Dolphin. It is on the
meridian at 8 o'clock on the 11th of Oetober. It
contains ten stars, of which the two principal are
only of t1!.e 4th magnitude. These may be readily
distinguished by means of the long irregular square
which they form. The two in the nose, are much
nearer together than the two in the eyes; the
former being 1 apart, and the latter 2io. Those
in the nose are uppermost, being 4 north of those
in the eyes. This figure also is in an intJeTted posi-
tion. These four stars are situated 10 or 12
southeast of the diamond in .the Dolphin's head.
Both of these clustel'8 are noticeable on account of
ibeir figure father than their brilliancy.
TELESCOPIC OBJE eTS.
376 P. XX, E4I.VVLIIl.-A. R. = 20 h. 47 m. 40.. Dec. = +
030 fifi' 06", a close double star between the Hone', head and the boW
cl Antinons. A 6, B 8, magDitude.
Diacovered by StrCt.ve.
POI. 289 10' Dis. 1".8 Epoch 1829.48 Striive.
287 45 1 .874 1847.6fi Mitchel.
Th_ may pouibly indicate a .1ow retrograde motion, a
ebanp of 20 about in 18 years. 1'hia would give an annua
10 the .ystem of more t.han 4000 years.
R. = 20 h. 111 m. 011.. Dee. = 09" 4\' 01", a
delicate triple star, preceding the Hone'. forehead. A B
Diacovered to be double by Herachel; eubdivided by Struve.
POlo A B 29()O 00' Di .. 0".50 Epoch 1838.88 Smyth.
288 06 0 .1174 1847.60 Mitchel.
A e 84 21 9 .87 Herachel.
79 21 12 .37 1823.511 Her. & 8oatb.
78 01 11 .20 1838.88 Smyth.
76 25 1\ .08 1847.60 Mitchel.
TheRe meaeurea determine the binary cbal8cter of A and e, which ia
llkewiae rendered more eerlaiD by the eg.uality of tbeir proper motioD.
190 GEloGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
H_ Wfl an preaented with a magnificent IIJetem. Thl'ftl nos NYO'"
ill, about their common center of pvity. aDd sweeping. toptber with
their lI'aiM of planet. and comets, throDgb the regioOll of BpIlC80
A EQ,Ul1UI.-A. R. = 20 II. M m. 19.. Dec. = + 06
0
33' 03
H

A fine double star precedinJ the Hone's nll8ll. A 6. B 6 magnitude.
Discovered by 8tru ve. . .
Poe. 2250 311' Dis. 2".6 Epocb 1833.72
"2 I .9 1847.60 Mitcllel.
'rhele are not 801llc:ien& to determine the binary chaJ'IdIL
1_-
DIRECTIONS FOa TRACING TilE CONSTELLATIONS ON
MAP NO.XXIV.
AQUABJUS"""':TuE W ATEa-BEABEB.
CAPBICOIlNUS-Tn GOAT.
FavoroiJly situated for examination in 8qJtem/Jer,
NtnJeTllher and DecerriJer.
AQUARIUS.
THE constellation is rep-
resented by the figure of a man, pouring out water
from an um. It is situated in the Zodiac; immedi-
ately south of the equinoctial, and bounded by the
Little Horse, Pegasus, and the Western Fish on the
nortli, the Whale on the east, the southern Fish on
the south, and the Goat on the west. It is now
the 12th in order, or last of the Zodiacal cODstella-
tions; and is the name of the 11 th sign in the
ecliptic. Its mean declination is 14 souih, and its
mean right ascension 335, or 22 hours, 20 min.; it
being 1 hour and 40 min. west of the equinoctial
colure; its center is, therefore, on the meridian the
15th of October.
It contains one hundred and eight stars; of which
the four largest are all of the 3d magnitude.
CONSTELLATION OF AQUARIUS. un
.. Hia head, hill shoulden, and hi, lucid breMt,
Glisten with 1IlIl1'8 ; and where his urn inclines,
Ri"era of ligbt brighten tbe wat'ry track."
The northeastern limit of Aquarius may be
readily distinguished by means of three I!Itars of
the 4th, and one of the 5th magnitdde, in the hand
and handle of the urn, so placed as to form the
letter Y, very plainly to be seen, 15
0
southeast of
Emf, or , Equulei, or 18
0
S. S. W. of Markab, in
Pegasus; making with the two latter nearly a right
angle.
A bout 4jO west of thia figure is El Jkli1t, marked .. a liar of the
3d magnitude, in the aut ahol,1lder, and the principal ODe in this con-
&tellaaOD. loo BOUthWest of 4, ia anotber' etar of the same magnitude,
&ituated in the weat moulder, called Sad u.$lud, marked ~
.dncAa, marked 8, of the 6th magnitude, is in the right aide, SO BOUth
of.. 90 eeat of 8, is another alar of the 4th magnitude, whose letter
Dame is Lomhda..
&Ileal, marked I, of the 3d magnitude, lying below the Imea, II
sitnated 81
0
BOOth of A; and 14 BOUth of I. the brilJiant liar Fomalhaut,
of the lat magnimde, terminatea the caacade in the mouth of the
&utbem Fish. This star ia common to both theae eoMtaeIIalion., and
is one of those from wbich the lunar dietance is computed fur.-
laining the longimde at _. It culminates at 9 o'clock on tbe 22d of
October.
Fomalhaut. Deneb KaItoa, and Alpha in the head of Phamb:, malle
a large triangle, whose vertex is iD Deneb Kaitoa. Those ''''0 0la1'8 of the
4th magnitude, aimated 0&0 BOUth of ~ and Dearly thl' eallle dietance
from 8 , are in the tail of Capricorn. 'fhey are about 20 apart. 'l'he
weatern one is called Dtmb AIgtdi.
The !'Nt of the IIal'8 in the caacade are quite lUI.n; they may be
traced from the letter Y, in the urn, in a aoutheaaterly direction toward.
the tail of Ceme, from which the _de iUddenly bend. oft' near I,
in an oppoaite courae, and finally disappears in the mouth of the South-
ern Fish,3()O BOUth of Y.
TELE8COPIC OBJECT8.
4 Atluun.-A. R. = ~ h. 41 m. 67.. Dec. = - 8 13' or.
A cIoae binary star, betweea Aquariua and EquuJeua. A 8, yellow; B
8, purple.
Diaco"ered by Sir W. Hencbel.
The fullowing measures are the 0II1y 0lI8l which I ba"e l*D abII
to find.
Poa. 8610 30'
26 07
,. 88
Dia. 00".80
00 .81
00.8
Epoch 178t.88 HtlI'IIChei.
. 18:aU9 BtriI._
184l.61 Mildler.
192 GEOGBAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
A PU1U'U.Y .... .-A. It = laO h, 66 m, 27 s, Dpc. = -
11
0
69' 00", In the middle of the Scarf of Aquarius. It may be
found nearly on the parallel of" Caprieomi, and 120 east of it.
Diacovered by Sir William Herachel in 1782,
Ita diameter amount. 10 no '- than 20", The surface evenly tinted
aDd of a delicate pale blue. It. diIk iscomparatively _11 de6noo, and tbe
tint of Uranu and Neptune. Ita distance most be equal
10 that of the fixed stan, u it hu no annual parallax. Its diameter
&/Ierefore. cannot be Ie. than three thouaaJJd milliona of mile&. I have
hquently uamined this wonderful +1, and on tbe 91b of i4eptember.
1847. found it. diameter 10 be about 9" or 10". 'fhe uppt:r part is
wanting in roulldu-. giviDg it the appearance of an obtuse crescent.
12 Aq,u .... lI_A. R. = 20 h, 65 m. 87 s. Dec. = -1)60 27' or.
A cia. double alar in the apace bet-. the 8earf of Aquarius, and &be
head of Equuleua. A Iii. white; B Bi. light blue.
Diacovered by Strihe.
POlo 1890 86' Dis. 02".66 Epoch 1831.31 8trUve.
191 00 02 .80 1831.82 Smyth.
191 80 08 .28 1847.63 Mitchel.
There is aome&hing extraordinary about tbis star. The
oIItained by ... y _rea is nearly fi>ur limo.. u great .. tbat in the
boob ; and the alar B inatead of being of the 8j magnitude, is
.. low 88 the 16th. I aatiefied myself of this by turning the in&trumell&
on Aquarii, wha. companion is of the 16th magnitude. The liar
may be variable, but the in_ of distance is unaccountable.
Aq,UARIJ-A. R. = II h. t8 m. 07. Dec. = - 06
0
16' 00".
OD the right shoulder at Aquarius. A 8. yeU&w; Bill, hlue.
Discovered by Henchel, who gave the -
POlo 826
0
48' Dis. unoartaiu. Epoch 1781
3VO tIO 02".00 18d3 Smyth.
This lut i8 'a mere eatlmation.
19 Aq,u .... n.-A. R. = 21 h. 63 m.41 L Dec. = - 17
0
(9'
09". A beautifUl double alar on the .tail of Capricorn. A 6, B 8.
magnitude.
POlo 2480 84' Dis. 04".60 Epoch 1i128.19 Strlive.
242 08 04 .468 1847.70 Mitchel.
These _rea cJecide the character of the alar. The componenta
mlllt be optically united.
A Fnn Gr.oBUL .... CL17 ...... _A. It = 11 b. 16 m. 10.. Dec.
=- 010 St' 0\", on thenecltof Aquarius.
DUcovered by Mp.raldi in 1746, mere thaD a hundred yean ago, ana
amOll, the 81'11 known nebula. ,
It _ fully re.olved by Sir William Henchel, with his 40 iIe&
n8ector, When the entire ma.. W88 found 10 00IIlIist of myriada of
...... ranpl in a colllJll'l*ed form, and c1a.ly clustering about the
-*aI. . He IIIItimated ita profuodilJ .. of. the 243d order. This object
CONSTELLATION OF AQUARIUS. 193
_ n:amined with a POWIII' of 250, aDd a 12 inch aperture, on the
_Ding of the 9th of September, 1846, and dncribed aa follow.. 'rbl
dueter (,Dtera the field in great beauty. II is distinctly JeIIOived, though
the atara compGlling it are very miDute, with gl'4!8t condenaalion at and
lII'OUod the center. The diameter of the brighteat Portion is about 2' by
wtimation. A coane doable star foIIowe above the eluater. Several
bright alare iu the field. There are DO radiationa of atara. the _
being neady globular. with an outline IOmewhat broken.
'1 AQ.lI.t.an_A. R. = 22 h. 06 !D. 27 L Dec. =-21
0
Iii' 00".
A double alar betw_ the Water-t-lIIJ' and the SouthllJ'n Fish. A 6.
B 8i, magnitude.
])iacovered by Heraclael, but regiBlered by him without meaaureL
Poe. 1200 4 ~ Dis. 05".17 Epoch 1828.78 Herschel & South.
120 22 04 .326 1847.70 Mitchel & L.
An interval of 24 yeara between th_ meaaun!ll, indica\ell the fixity
of the componenla of m- atara.
~ AQ.u .... II.-A. R. = It Ii. 20 m. 36 e. Dec. = - 000 110' U2".
A binary Blar OD the left wriat of AquariUL A 4, B 'i, magnitucIaB.
Discovered by Herachel in 1779, and found to be binary u early ..
1804.
Poe. 3.'j60 14' DiL 03".626 Epoch 1S30.98 BesseL
352 4.1 03 .389 1836.06 i:!lriive.
352 10 04 .123 1841.48 Midler.
34A M M .:10 1842.59 Smyth.
346 42 03 .948 1847.70 Mitchel.
The lut meaaurea but one _m to be in error both in diBlance and
position. Midler thinks the period of thia system may be about 780
year&. My own measurea were confirmed by thoae of my ... ialan&, the
_dings agreeing admirably with each otblll'.
A CLOD Doun. Sr ..... -A. R. = It h. 34 m. 40.. Dt'eo ==
- 9
0
OS' 08". near the atream iaauing from the _ and near the
,,_'a mouth. A 7. B 8i, magnitude.
DillCOvered by HeracheL
Poe. 311" 12' Dis. 03".00 Epoch 178t.74 HeracheL
;H 7 22 U121.92 StrUve.
313 08 02 .7 1838.67 Smyth.
314 36 01 .82 1847.70 Mitchel.
The diBlance in this II8t _ to be diminillbing. and a revolution in
an orbit whoaa plane is oearIy coincident with the visual ray appean
probable.
'T AlI.lI.t.lIn.-A. R.= 22 h. 89 m. 13.. Dec. =- 140 68' 09
H
,
Above the left knee of Aquarius. A 6, B 9i. magnitnde.
Dillcovered by Herachel in 1782.
A TalPLK Sr .... .-A. R. = 22 h. 89 m. 3& L Dec. = -60 03'
05". In the mouth of the vue. A 7i. B 8. V 8. mapitude.
R
194 GEOGRAPHY 01' THE HEAVENS.
04 AlI.u .... n_A. R. =",8 II. 10 m.41 .. ' Dec.=_14
0
19' 07.
In the space between the IItream and the left knee of Aquari\l& A 6,
B 8i. owpitude.
DiacO't'ered by PiaI1Ii.
107 AlI.unn.-A. R. = lI8 II. 87 m. 41.. Dec. = - 190 84'
01". Near the eenter of the IItream flowiug &om the IUD. A 6, white;
B 7i, blue.
Diacovered by Henehel in 1780.
OAPRIOORNU8.
THB GOAT.-Thii is the tenth sign, and eleventh
in the order of the Zodiac, and iB
situated south of the Dolphin, and next east of
Sagittarius. Its mean declination is 20 Bouth,
and its mean right ascension, 810. It il therefore
on the meridian about the 18th of September. It
is to be observed that the first point of the sign
Capricorn, not the constellation, marks the southern
tropic, or winter solstice. The sun, therefore,
arrives at this point of its orbit the 21st of Decem-
ber, but does not reach the C01I8tellal.irm of Capricorn
until the 16th of January. .
The lunhaving now attained itsutmost declina-
tion south, after remaining a few days apparently
stationary, begins once more to retrace its progress
northwardly, affording to the wintry latitudes of
the north, a grateful presage of returning spring.
At the period ef the winter fJolstice, the sun is
vertical to the tropic of Capricorn, and the south-
ern hemisphere enjoys the same light and heat
which the northern hemisphere enjoys on the 21st
of June, when the fJlID is vertical to the tropic of
Cancer. It is at this period, mid day at the south
pole, and midnight at the north pole ..
The whole number of stars in this constellation
is fifty one; none of which are very conspicuous.
The three largest are only of the 3d magnitude.
There is an equal number of the 4th. '
CONSTELLA.TION OF CA.PJUCORNUS. 195
The head of Caprioom may be recognized by
means of two stars of the 3d magnitude, situated
a little more than 2
0
apart, called Giedi, marked G,
.and Dobih, marked ~ . Tbey are 28
0
from the Dol-
phin, in a southerly direction.
Giedi i8 the most northern star of the two, and
is double. If a line be drawn from Lyra through
Altair, and produced about 23
0
farther,it will point
out the head of Capricorn. These two stars come
to the meridian the 9th of September, a few minutes
after Sad'r, in Cygnus. . .
A few other stars, of inferior note, may be traced
out by reference to the mapa.
The sign of the Goat was called by the ancient
orientalists the "Southern Gate of the Sun," u
Cancer was denominated the" Northern gate."
The ten stars in the sign Capricorn, known to the
ancients ~ y the Ilame of the" Tower of Gad," are
probably flOW in the constellation Aquarius.
TEI.ESOOPIO OBJEO'rs
- CURUIOQI.-A. R. 20 b.09 m. lO.. Dec. = - 13 OS' 01".
f,. dQuble star 01 apecla,intereaL A 3, B 16.lJIIIjJnitude.
This minute ,r.oint of light was regarded by Bir John Henchel "
poasibly a IJQteJJite, and ,hining by a rejlecletl light. On a cursory
review of this region of the heavlUlll, in september, 1846, I turned the
illlltrumeDt on 01- Oaprieomi in the preaenoe of nearly a fun moon, and
inlltantly deteeled the IIIIIIU companion. I had forgotten that this was
one at the IItar8 to which Henrehel had directed attention, and euppot<ecl
dIa& I might be the 6nt who had ... the companion. A alight reterenCf
\II the catalogue. mowed this tD be WfOIIg. It do. DOt appear Oft
Striive'. great catalogue, neither do I find BDy measures, except a few of
position by Sir John Henchel, in SepL 26th, 183t.
Pos. 1410 42' No dilltanee g19l1O.
I meuured this object in August and September. 1846, and foUild
Pos. 144
0
11' Dis. 8".36
This atar is really quintuple, .the mOlt diMant star of the fiYe beiQa.
373" from the principal.
, CURJCORl'I'I.-A. R. = 20 h. 19 m. 44. .. Dee. = - 18" 2ct
01". A double BlBr with a distant companion. A 6, B 9, 0 7!, mag.
Pos. A B 1760 42' Die. 3".8 Epoch 1830.73 Smyth.
176 66 3 .094 1847.70 Mitchel.
This object is follJlCl on the rigb, ear of Capricorn.
196 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
.
02 CAPRlcoa.I.-A. It = 20 b. 20 m. (3 s. Dec. = -, 190 06'
>''' . A double liar between the right I!IU and the eye of the auum.L
A 6. B 7. magnitude.
POI. 239
0
09' Dis. 21".8 Epoch 18M.59 Smyth.
'rhe conneDou ia merely optical ... _me to be ehown by the recorded

A GLoBuua OLulTn_A. R. = SO b. m. 39.. Dec. = -
13
0
07' 06". Between Aquarius and tbe neck of Oapricorn. due eallt
of " Oapricomi.
Diacovered by Meaier in 1780.
Resolved by Henchel. and prononnced to be in the 2(3d order IIf
distance .. and dellCribed by him .. followa. "It ia a clueter of aIarII 01
a round figure, but the very faint sian on the outside of globular c\uetenl
are generally a little dispereed. 80 .. to deviate from a perfectly circular
fOrm. 'rhere are many Blan in the .. me field of view. but
tbey are of seveJal magnitndee, tolally diftinnt from tbe exceesively
BlDall ones whicb com",*, the cluster . It is not )I08'ible to form aD
idea of the number of Blan which fOrm such a cluater, but we are not.
to.estimate them by hundreda." .
A Fun: OLUSTBB_A. It = 21 h. 31 m. 16.. Dec. = - I3D
62' 0(". Under the caudal fin of the animal.
Diacovered b,. Messier in 1764, who .. w it circular, and without
'.
Resolved by Sir William Henchel in 1783. Examined by myself in
September. 1847, and described .. follows. An inegular cluster. It
brightens at the center, and throw. out three distinct radiations of stars.
All are directed downwards, or towards the north. An 8th magnitude
ltar precedes the c1U1fer by about 5 minutes of arc. Several slanl lIN
in the field.
---
In closing our review of the constellations, we
present the following table, exhibiting, for each
month in the year, the rising, culminating, arrd set-
ting of the visible constellations.
Ruing.
Hercules,
Corona Boreali8,
Boates,
Virgo,
Crater,
Py;ds N autica,
Argo Navi8.
JANUARY.
Culmil'Udillg.
Draco,
Polaris,
Camelopardus,
Lynx,
Gemini,
Monoceros,
Canis Major.
I
Belting.
Cygnus, the neck,
Pegasus, the hoofs,
! Pisces, the ribbon,
Cetus, the body.
I Eridanus,
Columba Noachi.
I
TABLI'. OF CONSTELLATIONS. 19'7'
.. ;
FEBRUARY.
Riring. CulmimJI' &ItiJw;
Lyra, Cygnus. the :l . Pisees. 1M a: Ji4,
Hereules,........,Aould Cepheus. the "'-. Aries f0r6
Serpens. Ute head, Polaris, Cetus._the Mall,
Virgo. t1te.fed. . Ursa Major .[0r6 kg"i Eridaaue,
Corvus. Lynx, the tail, Lepus. Ute f0r6legs.
lIydra,1he lenDer fda. Cancer, Canis Maj.,hind.
Hydra, 1M ,.. Argo NavHI.
MARCH.
(Jygnusr-fo1l'g wing Lacerta. the back. Andromeda,UteOOdy.
Lyra. Cepheus. the aNA, Triangulum.
Hereules. the 1Iead, Polaris, MusCA.
Ophiuehus,. lIead. Ursa Major, hiftd legs. Taurus.
Serpens f1tiddle. Leo. the flank, Orion.
Libra, Crater. Canis Ma,j the TretItl.
Hydra, tail. Hydra, 1M body.
APRIL.
Lacerta, Andromeda. the body. Andromeda. Ute foel.
Vulpeeula, Cusiopeia, waiBt. Medusa'. Head,
Sagitta, Polaris, Ta.urus. the Aorm.
Aquila, t1ie tail, Ursa Major, 1M tail, Ori&n,the lIead,
Ophiuehus, ". __ , Canis Venatiei, Monoeeros,
j'OT'6 legs,
Scorpio, ". __ , Vergo, the tIJdiBt, Pyxis N autiea.
Centaurus, ., lwrId. COlYUS, the tail. Antlia Pneumatiea.
MAY.
Andromeda, tAe.fed, Perseus, the head,
Peguus,. f0r6 kg., Cusiopeia, the lea.
Equulus, the IIOIII!I, Polaris,
Delphinus,. botIg. Draco, the tail,
Antinous, Bootes, 1M boily,
Scorpio, the tail, Libra,
Lupus, the 1aeacL Centaurus, the hall.
JUNE.
Medusa'S Head, Auriga, kiM.
Triangulum, Camelopardus.
Pisces. IJ&e N. fish. Polaris,
Pegasus 1Ding. Draco. 1M botJv.
Aquarius, .1&ouldBr" Hereules. the 1Jack,
Capricornull lIead. Opbiuehus.
boily. SeorpiQ. tile 1tIil.
Aur1r. tile legs.
GemIni, the legs.
Caneer.
Hydra, tile "-'I.,
Crater.
COI'VUII.
Centaurull, lite 1IetMl.
Gemini. the 1aeGd.
Cancer,. boily.
Leo, tile f0r6
Sex. Uranile.
COI'VIIII.
Hydra, tile tail.
LUpus. the 6eM.
198 GEOGRApHG OF THG
U Y
RUi"'4!. C"lminaJi Setting
Auriga, Vir; wavt, Lynx. the Mad, Lynx, the hind k!J3.
l'erseus, C"mek,p;,r<ius, neck, Len Glinoe, the
Musca, Polaris, Leo, the tail,
tM head, Dracn, Virgo, z1le
Pisces, the tail, Lyra, Libra,
,Gqup:"ius, ike lrg8, Srutum Snbie;qi, S,ezzrpit, t,zi;iJ lxx!.y.
Sagittarius, the hipt. the
AUGUST.
Lynx, the body, . Ursa Maj., the head, Leo Minor,
itemiei,it,;eto;'.za,'m Pdarie, Cpma geruice;,
Auriga, the lmeu, Cepheus, the sceptre, Bootes, the feet,
hexed, Cggnn;, tlzf lx71y, Lilra,
Cetus, mnuth, Vulpecula, Serpentaries,-,
Sagitta:riws,thewailrl.
Leo Minor, the head,
itlnx, !.he 1im legii,
Gemini, the bodies,
itrion, the ;/ur.ilder"
Eridanus,
Cetus, the In!l8,
Cculptotie.
SEPTEMkE
Ursa Major, the bodv, Canes Venatici,
Draco, the tail, 'BoZZteo, the krwi;:;,
Polaris, S,rrpens, he.'!.1"
CepheuB,liilad q'body Ophiuchus, the 'IIXJirI,
Peg8l!ils, SentUTn Suqie;Gi,
Aquarius, Sagittarius,
Pi;chz Auutrali,. PAcis9,u;tualie.
T B R
Leo Minor,the body, Ursa Major,the tail, BoateB,
Czs1lce" t7n' OOr-PG, Aeaeo, the fail, Corona Borealis,
Canis Minor,-laead, P"laril, ,Hercll!ls, ,'lWl11zT.en,
n'Zf,n,ee,rr'niii. tfilt 1UiCk, Cassiopeia, the head, Ophiuchus, the het.ul,
Orion, the Andr,rmerlii, bn'ast Tnuree Poniat'fwsnT,
!!epus, the,. Pisces, the ribbon, Capricorn us, the head
n'ferUiii( Cnem,,ga. CBtu, the ','il, Pi,ci, itus'rali.
Canes Venatici,
f;;<Jra,
G',''nuern,
Canis Maior ,-wd,
Lepuiii, body,
EridanuB.
o E B R
Draco. the last ('.oil. Heroules, the kls,
Ursa fbiin'Jt, tke head, Ceebems, et
Polaris, Sagittf,
Perseus, S}iO'Ultitr8, Aquila, the body,
Aries, fhe Eluulu,
Cetus, the mouth, Aquarius,
Fornnt Chnmioa. AhP. Geulltori,
TABLE OF CONSTELLATIONS. 199
DECEMBER.
RUing. Cu?minating. 8dting.
BoOte8, Draco, "" midille, Lyra,
Coma Bernieea, Ur8a Minor, haunch, Cygnus, t1Je hb.ul,
Leo, Polari8,' Vulpecula, t1Je legl,
Sextan8 Uranial, CamelopardUB, body, Peg&BU8, t1Je hb.ul,
Hydra, Taurus, t1Je hb.ul. ,Pisce8, t1Je W.fisk,
Argo Navi8. Eridanu8. Cetus, t1Je tail,
Canis Major. Fornu Chemica.
N. B. The risings are taken alOlig the horizon,
from the north, round by the east, to the south;
the culminations from the north horizpn, over the
pole and zenith, and thence down to the south hori-
zon; the settings are reckoned from the north, by
the west, roqnd to the south. Polaris, though not
always precisely on the meridian, is included in
every month as a guide.
THE FIXED STARS. 201
CHAPTER V.
'rUE FIXED STARS-THEIR DISTANCE AND MOTIONS-TIIB
,MILKY WAY - CLUSTERS - NEBU1..&
TRus far in our examination of the constellations, the stars
have only bp.en considered in their relations of apparent magni-
tude or brilliancy and position. Their absolute magnitudes,
distances. motions, and positions, have Dot been regarded, except
as notices have been taken of a few among the telescopic object".
We propoee to conaider. now, the discoveries which have
recently been made in sidereal astronomy; and we commence
with the puralla of the fixed stars. '
DUllrITloN.-The parallaz of an, heavenly body is the ap-
parent change in its position, occasIOned by any real change In
the position of the Spp.ctstor.
Thus, if a person on the earth's surface should, while looking al
the mOOI\ just rising. be suddenly transported down to the earth's
center, as he descended the moon would appear to ascend, and
this seeming change in the moon's place is a parallal:tic change.
The rapid apparent whirling of the rorest trees, occasioned by fly-
ing swinty past them in a coach or car, ia a similar effect from a
like cauee. More accurately, the moon's parallax is the angle
formed at the moon's center by two lines, the one drawn tangent
to the earth's surface, the other drawn to the earth's center. In
case a spectator could be transported to the moon's center, at the
instant she is risin/r above the horizon of any place, and could
S88 the earth's radIUS drawn to this place, the two visual rays
drawn to the extremities of this radius would form an angle a'
the eye of the observer, which would be the moon's Iwrizootal
para1la:J:. These two visual rays and the earth's radius form a
triangle, in which one side {the esrth's radius) is known, the
angles are readily measured. and hence it becomes pOllsible to
learn the value ofthe remaining sides, either of which measures
the moon's distsnce from the flarth.
When, therefore. the parallax of any heavenly body is once
determined. it is an easy matter to compute its distance. If one
could be transported to a fixfld stsr. when rising, and view from
this position the earth's radius. the angle formed by the visual
rays drawn to the two extremities of this radius, would be the
. star's parallax. In consequence of the vast distance of the fixed
stars, this angle, thus formed, is too minute to be sppreciable ;
DO instruments devised by humlln skill or science, can be OOD-
202 GEOGRAPHY 0:" THE HEAVENS.
struoted 80 a8 to mea8ure SO minute a quantity. We are, there-
fore, obliged to re80rt to some other method to determine the
parallax of 'he 8tar.. In case the earth were at rest in the
universe, there would be no possibility of eyer meaeuring the
distance of the fixed stars; but its aDnual sweep around the SUD
in an orbit wbose radius is sbout ninety.five millions of miles,
transports the as'ronomlOr through space, around an orbit wbose
longeet diameter i, neasly two hundred millions of miles. If,
now, the obl8"er send up a visual ray to a fixed star, wbeD
at one extremit1 of thl! 10Dgeat diameter of the earth's orbit, and
at the end of SIX months, when he IIhall haye reacbed tbe othlll
extremity of the same diameter, be send np a second yisual ray
to the same star. these two rays will stand upon a bli8e Wb088
length ia nep.rly two hundred. million. of miles, and the aDJ.le
formed by them. at the fixed 8tar. will be its paralIare. )'0
render this plainer. suppose a globe bright as the sun, and of a
diameter equal to that of the earth's Olbit, filled this grand cif.
cumferellC8 ; the apparent diameter of such a globe, 88 seen
from the ,tar in queation, would be its parallax.
At first yiew it would seem almost irupouible to remOYe a
.pectator so far, that a globe of two hundred millions of milea
in diameter should IIhrilik to aloint almo.t Qr that
by di.tanC(l he diameter shoul become scarcely perceptible with
the moet powerful iDitrumente; yet this is literally trlle. To
measure this appareJlldiameter, or to .blain Ibe ...,le Of Ihe yuual
rays draw. from ill ext.remiti88 to a fixed lltar, has for more thaal
hundred years, called into requisitioQ Ibe highest tlkill, pniua,
and patience, eyer put forth by maD. The problem ia no Ie ... thu
the determination of the distances of the fixed litera. Three proo
C8IIIIeIl have employed hi..lbe investigation. of thi' probl8lDt
each of which. ancl its reaullll, we Hall succinotly preaem.
1. BIlADLU'S MITBOD.-SUPpoae a telescope bolted firmly &0
a solid rock, hewn in the fOlID of a yertical abaft. 'I'his rool!
is absolutely immovable, and the teleacope ia 80 .ituaied tha'
ita axia ia exactly vertical. and ia pedeelly immovable. In the
focus of the eye piece of the teleacope. let two spider's webe of
the finelt telttnre cro.. each other at right angles, and by tbeir
intersection fortn a point of almoat mathematical minutellH8,
precisely in the axis of the telescope. Withlhi. inatrumeDl &be
utronomer ia prepared to commence hia research of the parallax
of a fixed atar. Placing hia eye to the inatrumen" he watobea
until a cenaia hed star entera the field of the telescope. It
actually threads like a bead of Ugh" the apider's line drawn I
parallel &0. the direction of the atar'. ap(MU8Dt diurnal motion; ia
moyes DB, and the precise instant when It reachea the intel'tleetion
of the spider'a linea i. noted and recorded, and thua the tint
is terminated. Now Ihe telescope, ita rocky but.
THE FIXED STARS.
203
and the obaerver, are earned by the earth round the sun, and in
ease any change in the apparent place of the star is occasioned
by the revolution of the earth in its orbit, as the star is watched
night aner night, throollhoot the ,ear, it will be found slowly
to leave the spider's hne which It at first threaded, and ll1'8Ciu-
ally to move eIther towards the north or south, while it tails to
cross the center at the exact instsnt of time first recorded. A
little thought will render clear this heautiful and silllple method
of aacen,aininf the parallax, or apparent change of place, of the
fixed stsrs. Such was mainly the method employed by Bradley,
the great !Inglish astronomer. lts accuracy was wonderful, hili
it failed to detect any parallax. Buried in depths almost iDliDite.
the stars .escaped from thil Ii ... t 80rutinizing p'roceaa.
2. HERSCHEL'S METHOD:-lu the outset Ot'Herschel'sexplora-
tions among the double stars, he believed them to be only
related; that is, their proximity was occasioned by
the fact that the visual ray drswn by the obse"er to one ltar,
passed almost exactly through the other. In case then, two
lltars could be found nr:j near to each other, ot whose compo-
nents the one was about double the other, it wal fair to conclude
that the smaller was twice as remote as the larger, and if
properly chosen, the annual revolution of the earth in its orbil
could hardly fail to cause some change in the relative pOBitions
of these stars. 'Suppose that on tbe first ot January the email
star is seen exactly on the right of the large one; at tbe end of
three montbs it ia seen.a little to the south and jUlt undE'r the
large one; at the .,)oae of six month a it is to l.he left; at
tbe of nine montb.a it is just above and a little north of the
large star; and when the year closes it COID8II to resume ita
primitive position. In case Such changes are repeated from
1ear to year, and in the Bame order, and in maD' double atan,
It is impossible to resist the COIIolu8ion. that it IS parallactic
change. Such was the method prsctised by Herecbel, but ..
discovery destrOJed tbe hope of detecting the parallax
in this way. 1t was found that these double stars, in many
instances at least, were not merely related by accidental position,
but were actually united by the great law. of univerl8l gravita-
tion; one star or Bun revolving ahollt the' other, or rather the two
aonl revolving ahout their common center of gravity. The actnal
motionl! became,:in tbis way, so involyed in these only apparent or
parallactic motions, that to distinguish them became impossible.
These methods then failed to reveal the distances of the stars,
although they were not without result!!' of the most important
character, and without a knowledge of which, the problem of the
paral1ax could never have been r8aolve4. Bradley ifiscovered the
flfllGtiOfi and aberration of the fixed stars, while Herschel reached
U1e grand fact of the bifllJf7l character of the double ltars.
GEOGRAPHY O}' THE HEAVENS.
3. BESSIIL'S MIITHoD.-At\er mouDting a large teleacope call-
ed II heliometer, reculiarly adapted Cor the micrometrical measure
oC large as wei as minute d18iancea among the double stare,
BeBRel Blliected 61 Cygni as the object on which he determined
to concentrate hiB entire attention. This double siar was eligi-
bly situated in the heavens, and could be observed nearly eTery
month in the year. It had near it several minute Btars which
could be uaed as {,oints oC reCerence, and finally the rapidity oC
its proper motion Indicated its probable nearneBS to our sun and
.ystem. Bessel selected two minute stars as points oC reference,
the one in a line nearly perpendicular to the middle point of the
line joining the components of 61 Cygm, the other in the db'ec-
tion of this line. With the heliometer he me8lured the distance
of the middle point oC the line Joining the components oC 61
eygoi, Crom each of the points of reference, 16 times each night,
and finally detected a change in these distances which eeemed
to depend on the orbitual revolution of the earth. Some three
years of observation confirmed the accuracy of the first results,
and gave the parallax of this double star equal to 0".3480, or only
, about three-tenths of one second of arc, 80 that if a globe of
100,000,000 of miles in diameter, could be seen from this fixed
ltar, its diameter would not appear greater than about the six-
thou8andth part of the sun's diameter. The parallax
once obtained, the distance is readily deduced, and is found to be
657,700 times greater than the earth's distance from the sun, or
Sl) remote that the light of the star oo1y reaches us after a jour-
ney of more than ten year" although it fties at the rate oftwel ve
millions of miles in every minute. .
The distance of the double star being known, observation
gives us about 540 years for tbe period in which the components
revolve around their common center of gravity in an orbit whose
diameter is about ninety times the diameter of the earth's orbit,
while the amount of matter in these two stars i. a little le88 than
half that contained in our sun.
Since BelHI determined the parallax of 61 Cygoi, other
88tronomers have pursued the investigation with IUccesS. The
following have been deduced by the RUHian astronomer M.
Peters, and announced in a recent work by M. Struve, oC
Pulkova.
Absolute parallax of 61 Cygni + 00".349.
,. " .. LytIB + 00 .103.
" "Polaris + 00 .067.
" " Groombridp No. 1830 + 00 .226.
" " .. Aurige or Copella + 00 .016.
" " , Ursa,. Major + 00 .133.
" B06Us, Arcturis + 00 .127.
THE FIXED ST A.U. 205
the table it is readily seen tbat 61 Cygni islbe nearest
. of all the fixed stars whose distanoes have been discovered.
M. StriiYe, b'y a beautiful trsin of reasoning, deduotll the rela-
tive distances of the. stars of the various magnitudes, from the
let to the 6th magnitude inclusive, and finds them to constitute
a geometrical progression whose common ratio is 1 di vided by
thp square root or i. Calling lbe distance oC the 6th magni-
tude stara 10.000 he finds
Mapitude.
6
5
4
3
2
1
Dill. determlDed.
1.0000
0.6998
0.5001
0.3609
0.2413
0.1424
ComJlu .. d.
10000.
O.itm.
0.5000:
0.3536.
0.2500.
0.1768.
It will be seen lbat the numbers in the two columns scarcely
ditrer, except in the case oC stars of the 1st magnitude, and here
too few eXist to furnish M. Struve with the requisite data Cor
his computations. So that this most cnrious law of distances
would seem to be founded in nature. Every even terlD is half
the preceding even one, and the same of every odd term.
If it were now possible to determine the absolute mean
distance oC the stars of anyone mBNnitude, the diatances
of all other magnitudes would readJly be derived from this
remarkable law. 'fbi. haa been approximately accomplished
by the Russian astronomers. Frolp the actual parallax of about
thirty stars of the 2d magnitude, the value of the mean parsllax
of all the stars of that magnitude haa been derived, and we
are now able to present lbefollowing table:
App. mag. !'arallax.
1 00".166
2 00 .098
3 00 .065
4 00 .047
5 00 .034
6 00 .024
7 00 .014
8 00 .008
9 00 .006
Henchel's lao 00092
_allelt ltar. S
J Distance (radiu of
l Earlla'I orbit ... 1). S
1,216.000
2,111.000
3,151.000
4,375.000
6,121.000
8,746.000
14,230.000
. 24,490.000

224,500.000
S Time lbr li"'110 l
1"olDt'I JIl ),t-:. n. S
19.6
33.3
49.7
69.0
96.6
137.9
22U
386.3
686.5
364l0
It is not pretended that these i'eBults are absolute. These
Yaluea are only approximate, but the errors are comparatively
amall; and ahow. to us clearly, lba Yaatneaa of lbe UDiva ....
of God.
S
206 GEOGR.APHY OF THE HEAVDS.
Having learned in this way the distances of the fixed atars,
the inquiry arises. how are these objects distributed throughout
apace' Are they scattered inditrerently in all directions, and at
distances nearly equal from each other. or is their diatribution
governed by any attainable law? The bright circle of light
called the Milley W:1Jf' which sweeps round the entire circuit of
the .heavens, aud to t,he naked eye only
luminous, when exaJDlDed With the telescope, III found to consist
of millions of stars, crowded and condellB8d together with the
moat extraordinary richnees profusion. Herschel conceived
the idea of measuriDg the to which the stars extended in
the Milkf Way, and by reselling out beyond hs extreme limite.
aacertainlDg the figure which would be formed by cutting this
vat bed of stars by a plane drawn perpendicularly to ita surface.
lt is manifeet, that if the stare are all at equal distances, and
finit.e in number, that wherever the stratum extends deepest
into space, there will we be enabled to count the greatest
lIumber of stars iD' the field of a given telescope. And indeed,
the number counted in any two direetiona, by the same teleacope,
will give the relative depth to which the stara extend at these
two points. Soch wa Herschel's plan of lOUfIIling the Milky
Way, and of learning its figure. With the full f.ower of his
twenty feet reftecting telescope, he thought it pOSSible to pierce
through even the deepeBt portionll of the Milky Way, and to
send the visua\. ray far beyond. Tbis idea. so long maintained
by the followers of Herschel, hal recently been attacked by
Prof. Strftve of Pulkovs. who maintaiDs that it was abandont'id
by Herschel himself in his. later papers. Sir John Herschel
does not accord with the views of Str6ve, but maintains the
original opinions of his father.
From the investigations of the two Herschels, the vast strs-
tum of stars, called the Milky Way, appears to be arranged
under the fiJ!tre of a ftat ring, whose thickness is small when
compared wuh ita diameter. The central' parts of the ring are
not so thickly strewn with stars as the outer portioDs or circum-
ference. - The rim is divided iDto two branchea, or streams of
stars. which diverge from each other for a certain but
finally re-unite aDd ftow on together. The two Herschels have
made a sufticient number of observationB to determine the figure
cut from this bed of stars by a plane perpendicular to its surface,
and cutting acroaa the porti.on where the two streams are most
distant from each other. There are portions of the Milky Way
iDcluded in this IIBtltion, in which it is said,' the stars extend 80
deep in space that the seriea in a right line, from the sun out to
the e1treme limit, cannot number leBs than jltJe hundred. Btars.
each as remote from thl10ther as 61 Cygni is from our sun. lu
case we admit thill statement, there are stars belonging to ow
THE MILKY WAY. 5107
Milky Way 80 widely eepuated, that their light will require
mon thlUl ten thouslind yeare to pa.. from one kI the other, or
to sweep across abe longest diameter of abis mighty nniveree
of stars.
If Struve's idea of Lbe absolute u":!'atJunnabk challlcter of the
Milky Way be adopted, it only incre&88s the sw.eep or IBlilfe of
SUDS and systems, grouping tbem inkl subordmate clu'stermgs,
and uniting them inkl one unbounded, immeasurablt', innuDl",r.
able, whole. In whatever way,. under whatever IIspeet, we
eont.!mplate Lbis vast constellation of constellations; this mag-
nificent cluster of clusters; the number, distance, magnitude, aud
brilliancy, of its components, cannot fail to fill the mind with
wonder and uklnishmenL
Admhtillg that the telescopic vision sweeps beyond die limits
of the Milky Way, it may be asked, what does the eye eoooun""r
in these remote regions? Many objects lying in these far distaDt
portions of apace, have already been noticed among the tale-
&Copic objects of Lbe dUrerent constellations. Tbese are tbe
cluaUr. MIIlMbuJI& By a careful examination of these wonder-
ful objects, Herschel finally reached the conclWlion, that all tbe
elualere, and many of the aebuhe, were immense aggf')gatiolll
of stars, forming"separ8te univerees, as extensive and rich as tbe
Milky Way iteelf. He even ventured to attempt the measure of
the relative depths of these remote objects. His method is
simple, and mal be readily comprehended. The naked eye can
discern stsn 0 the sixtb magnitude, or thoae twelve times as
remote al Sirius, the largest and brightest star in the heavens.
In case the pupil of the eye could be expimded kI twice its present
dimensiona, it could then penetrate twice as deep inkl space as
it now can, or would see Sirius if it were removed backward
twenty-four times deeper into space. Now, although the pupil
of the eye cannot literally be expanded kI twice or thrice iilt
preeent size, the telescope comes in kI accomplish precisely ti,e
same effects; and admitting that an object glasa permits all the
lillht which falls on it kI pasa through, itsrowerkl p'enetrate space
Will be in the ratio of its surface to that 0 the pupal of the human
e:re. By covering a large object gla .. with circular coverings,
pierced with aperturea of one inch, two inches, &0., diameter in
tbe center, we may give kI it, at pleasure, different space penetra-
ting powers. Fixing the relation 'of these to the eye, we are pre-
pared kI examine any object, and determine, approximately, its
distance. Suppose a nebula is seen faintly VISible, with three
inches of aperture kI the object gla... We expand the aper-
ture to four ineh_it appears brighter, but no stars are seen.
We increase the aperture kI five inches, the nebula grows still
brighter at the center, but as yet no point-like stan are vieible ;
a farther increase kI six inches, however, shows the objt'Ct kI
lOS GEOGRAPHY 09 THE HEA. VENS.
eo ... t of millioDl of minote .... Jnt IeDdered visible to the
eye. Now thelengah of the nIDal ray of the teleecope. com-
pared with that of the unaided "' .. is readily de&ennined; and
knowing this, we learn, approXImately. the distance of' thil
cluster of stare. In thil way Sir W. Herachel de&ennined the
profundity of all the principal clua&erl.
Some of the Debul., coald not, by an, lpace penetrating power
of his. great teleecopes, be reeolved Into etara. Their shapee
were irlegular. aDd their outlines ill defined. Some were
easily visible to the naked ey.. and yet DO telescopic power
could resolve them into stars. Others were found to contain
occasional stars, with oentera of more or 1 ... condensed light;
finally, stars were found lurrounded by a nebulous baze of vut
flxtent, wbose center waa occupied by the star. Examining aod
comparing aU the.. pbenomena, Herachel finally reaohed the
conclusion, that while v'" nombera' of appareot nebol., were
real closters of stars, yet there were some In which the material
composing tbem was a kind of luminous mist, like that forming
the tails of comete. He conjectured that this chaotic matter
might po .. ibly furnish the material out of which, by condenaa-
tion, stars inight be forming. The nebuioul seare, as well ..
the planetary nebula, .. emed to accord very perfectly with thie
hypothesis. Dooble and triple nahul., were found, from which
the double and triple stars might eventually spring. and thul
grew up, imperceptibly, the outlines of a magnificent theory, a
eoft of sublime cosmogony of the oniverse. Thf1118 speculation.,
enlarged by La Place, .. we shaH see hereafter, were made to
lender an accoont of the sun and planets, and the pecnliar
arrangement of the solar s1.stem. The nebolar theory, as it is
termed, had for a long whIle its ardent supponers, aDd if not
absolutely adopted by distinguished astronomers, at least, it was
received by them with no inconsiderable favor. The resolution
of the nebola in Opon, by Lord Roa ... and by Prof. Bond, of
Cambridge, has in some degree shaken the faith of some in thil
lemarkable hypo"'esis, while it i,s justly remarked, that Herachel
only adopted it after the relolution of hundreds of nebolll8.
, In case we abandon the idea of chaotic matter existing in
Ipace, and adopt the notion that the filmy, almost spiritual,
objects, which barely stain with light the blue of the heavenl,
are immen .. congeries of stars, it only expands our knowlMp
of the illimitable elltent oflhe universe of God. Some of theaa
objects are so remote, that a hundred thousand years moat roll
away. before the light which they emit could traverae the di ..
tance by whieh we are separated from tham.
Many of thEl clusters of stara appear under globular forma, and
from the manifest condensadon about thAir cenwrs, 8eem to in-
dicate the aistence of 80me active energetic power,like gravita-
THE MlLIY WAY.
lioo. which ill eurting ita inftaence on tile individual ltare 01
theee grand ayatema. The ex&enlion of the law of univereal
gravitation to the region of the fixed ltare. waa long believed,
before it could be pOli,ively demonltrated. By the diseovt!l7 of
the binary or revolving lunl, thil conjecture became a pOBuive
fact. In a large number ofinatancea, the orbita deecribed by theae
bodies around their common cen&ere of gravity, have been com-
puted according to the law of and in every instance
the predictionl have been venfied. That stara do attract each
other ia now poaitively demODIlratecl. and the law of attractioD
ia the jnverae ratio of the aquare of the dietance, or that of gravita-
tion. If two or three atara, grouped together, are sabject to thil
law, it is reaeonable to conclude that larger collectionl, such al
the Pleiades, or Coma Berenieea, may be under the controlling
power of the ame foroe. And if thil be trae, why not extend ita
operation to the mighty clas&er of clal&era, the Milky Way itaelf.
'fhi. haa beeD done recently by M. Mldler, of Dorpat, Russia,
and he thinks he haa determined, approximately, the center of the
atratum of atare. or uIrGll1J.tem, compoling the Milky Way.
By comparing the ab8Ola&e placel of the fixed stare, at intervala
of one or two hundred/eare, it ja found that a large numbf'r of
\hem are in motion, an with an appreciable velocity. 1'his il
not merely apparent, but in many lnstanC1!8 mast be absolute
change of place in space. Some stare are moving very swiftly,
and exhibit their progresaive changes in a few months; while
othere, again, mo.,e with IUch extreme alowness, that nen
bundreda of y81r8 are neceuary to render their change appre-
ciable. It seems quite as rea80nable to suppoae that thelle com-
plex and jn.,ol,ed motiona of the distant ltare, Bhould be
go.,emed by Bome Bimple and beautiful law, al that the planeta,
whoBe apparent motioDI were far more eomplicatf'd, should be
reduced to order aud simplicity. This great task of unre,eling
the complicated phenomena of the proper motion of the fixed
etare, haa been attempted by the RUBsian aatronomer.
It had long been conjectured that the analogy exiating in the
eolar aYltem would bold among the sys&ema ohtare. And that
.. the Iun wal valtly larger than hil re,olving planeta, and sa
each p,nma,.,. planet wal much luperior to his re,ol'ing moonll,
eo there miJht exist in lpace 80me _gAt, Ufltral nm, whOle
T88t proportions would far exceed all the stan lubject to ita non-
trolling inftuence. 'rhis analogy wal broken by the diecovery
of the binary ltare. Here we find many inltances in which the
componenta are exactly equal in magnitude; othera, afain iD
which the one il llightly auperior to the other; in Ihort, al pOIII-
ble relatioDI of magnitude. Thil deea not interfere with the IIta-
bility and perfection of the The componenta mol,e
'about their common center of graTity aa though it were filled
. '
2JO GF.OGRAPHY OF THE. HEAVENS.
with a mall 0(. 101icl matter. Mldler rejec&8 &be idea, thea, of
the es.istence of any VBSt. central globe, alld srgUes thllt in case
it. existed, it would be impo88ible to preveotit8discovt<ry. 1'he
8tars in i&8 immediate neighborhood would reveal h by their swift.
er proper mouons; as no 8uch motions are known, or have ever
been discovered, it is fair to conclude that none 8ucb exist, and
"'at therA i8 no. central predominant orb, but a mere CMtcr rf
gravity, which .. hould be the object of researeh. By a train of
beautiCul and ingenious reasoning. he demonstratea to his own'
latisfaction, tbat this central poinL IUUSt be found 80mewhere in
the Milky Way, and finally locates it in. the closter called the
Pleiade.. The brigb&est star of the grOBp is called Alcyone or
'faori. and the star at present. occopies the center of gravity
of the grand strat.om of stare compoling the Milky Way, and
around .thil center all the millions of stare are slowly performing
their vaat revolutioDs.
Among theae oor own SOD and system is comprehended, and
Midler estimates that ODe single revolution of the SUD aroond
this distant center reqoires flO Iaa tAlI,. eigAtun miUiOflll two A_
tlred tlaoueaflll yearS. The distance of Alcyone from oor SOD
cannot be less than thirty-four millione of times the redius of
the earth's Should the univeree endure so long, at the end
of nine or ten million8 of yeare, the revolution of the 80n in hs
orbit will cause a change in the apparent relative p08itions
of the fixed stare. Tbe present well known conatellatlon8 will
bave bean swept. from the heaven8, and new configurations of
the stara will bave usurped the places of t.be old onea. No
new creation will cause these changes, but corne aa .the in-
evitable p.onaequences of the motion of tbe solar systllm. When
we shall have examined .the construction of thi8 system, we shall
then preBent. the evidences of i&8 swiftlranslation through 'paca.
It . seams next to imp08sible to eatimate tbe number of fixed
,tara I'onstitoting oor own astral system. Catalogues of all the
brighter stare have been formed. Some of theae contain even fifty
thousand stare, ohae"ed by a single individual. St.riive reaches
the conclusion, that Herschel's twenty feet reftector cooler reach
110 le8s than twenty millions three hundred and.,Beventy.foor
thousand Btare in the celeatial sphere; and it bas been eatimated
"'at the forty feet instrument would carry the nomber up to at
least one AfMItlred flliUiOflll.
Let it be remembered that these stars compoee but a siDfls
astrel system, or aa the Germans term them" Island Universes."
More than tlaree tAoultmd oftheae systems bave been di800vered,
lome of them doubtless far more magnificent and popolous in
ltara thsn our own; and yet all these innumerable worlds and
lonl and Iystems have been brought within the range of human
vilion by the powers of the teleacope.
MILKY WAY.
1
The p01#WzYf "11,
eq.ualed by The
mlcromete'. now In use, 1Lngle
inch into eighty thousand equal parts! Ilnd should two close fixed
stars commence to separate from each other by so small a quan-
tity that eyen three millions of years would be required for a
complete reyolution in the heaven" these delicate instruments
would detect the motion in a single year. With such instru-
ments, it is not wonderful that human geniul dares the most dif-
ficu} t researches.
ttl GEOGRAPHY OJ' THE HEAVENS.
CHAPTER VI.
GENERAL PHENOMENA. 01' THE SOLAR SYSTEM.
'rHUS far our attention has been directed to the phenomena of
the sidereal helnens. Tbe names, positions, and relative mag
nitudes of the stars; their ch,anges of light, proper motion, and
physical association into systems of greater or less'complexity,
have heen considered and explained. The mind has penetrate<!
but a oomparstively short distance in its invBfltigations of the
starry hea\'8ns, and a great !;Dany mysterious pointa yet renlain
to be explained. The phenomena of the DeW atars, of the lost
stars, of the nebulous stars, of the variable Btars, all remain
without aatisfactory explanation. AdnDces are constantly
making; and reasoning from past suooess, the future may be
looked forward to with the highest anticipations. The confir-
lI.ation or disproof of the nebular theory. and of Miiedler's
hypothesis of the oentrsl Inn, will probably in a few yeara
reward the diligent and unremitting rell'llrches of Jihiloaophera.
Leaving the region of the fixed atara, there now remain to be
considered certain other oeleltial bodies, all of which, from their
remarkable appearance and changes, and lome of them from
their intimate connection with the comfort, convenience, and
even existenoo of man, muit hue always attraoted eapecial
obse"ation, and been objecta of the most intense contemplation
and the despest intereat. Most of these bodies are altuated
within 'he limita of the Zodiac. Thfl m09t important of them
are, the Sun, so superior to all the heavenly bodies for itl
apparent magnitude, for the light and heat which it implrta, fc>r
the marked efFecta of ita changes of pOlition in regard to the
Earth; and the Moon, so conspicuous among the bodies which
J[ive light by night, and from ber soft. and lilYery brightnels. 80
pleasing to behold; remarksble not 'only for ohanges of position,
but for the varied phasel! or appearances which she presents,
as she waxes from her crescent form through all her difFerent
stages of increase to a full orb, and wanes back again to her
former distinguished figure.
The partial or total obscuration of these two bodiPII, whil'h
sometimf!s occurs,--darkness taking place even at mid-day. and
the face of night, before lighted up by the moon'. beaml, being
suddenly Ihaded by their ahaence,-haye always beell among
THE SOL'R SYSTEM. 213
the mOlt atriking astronomical phenolDena; and so powerful in
their in8ueRC8 upon the beholdeR, al to fill them with perplexity
and fear. If we observe these two boeliel, we Ihall find, that,
besides their appaRnt diurnal motion acrOl1 the heavenl, they
exhibit other phenomena, which mUlt be the elfec' of motion.
'rhe Illn. during one part of the year. will bll >llIen to tile livery
day fnrther and further toward the north, to continue longer and
longer above the horizon, to be more and more elevated at mid-
day, until he arrives at a certain limit; and thpn, during 'he
other part, the order il entirely reveRed. The moon sometirnel
is not a88n at all; and then. when she first becornps visihle,
appears in the west, not far from the setting lun, with a slenllpr
crescent form. Every night she appears at a grtIlIwr distance
from the setting sun, increasing in lize. until at leugth she il
found in the eaat, just aa the lun is linking below the horizon
in the wes1,
The IOn, if his motions be attentively observed, will be fnllnd
to have another motion, opposite to his apparent diurnal motion
from east to wes1, Thil may be perceived distinctly, if we no-
tice, OD any clear evening, any bright star, which i8 fir8t vi8ible
after Bunset, near the place where he lIunk below the horizon.
The following evening, the atar will not be visible on account
of the approach of the sun, and all the stara on thE' east of it
will be sUCC888ively eclip8ed by hi8 raY8, until he shall have
made a complete apparent revolution in the heaven8. Theseare
the most obvions phenomena exhibited by these two bodie8.
There are, a180, aituated within the limits of the zodiac. CE'I'-
win other bodies, which, at first view, and on a superficial exa-
mination, are scarcely distingui8hable from the fixed 8tars.
But observed more attentively, they will be seen to 8hine with
a milder and lteadier light; and be8ides being carried round
with the 8tars, in the apparent revolution of the great celestial
concave, they will 888m to cbange their place8 in the concave
itself. Sometimel they are 8tationary; 8ometime8 ther apppar
to be moving from we8t to eaat, and sometime8 to be gomg back
again from ea8t to we8t; being seen at 8un8et 80metimes in the
ealt, and 80metimes in the we8t, and always apparently chang-
ing their p08ition with rej[ard to the earth, each other, and the
other heavenly bodies. From their wandering. as it were, in
thi8 mal/ner, through the heaven8, they were called by the Greeks
" . ~ "."'''', planets. which 8ignifies wanderer
There al80 sometimes appear in the heaven8 bodie8 of a very
extraordinary aspect, which continue yi8ible for a con8iderable pe-
riod, and tbeedi8appear from our view; and nothing more i8 seen
of them, it may be for years, when the, again present themselves,
and take their place among the bodIes of the cell'stial sphere.
They are distinguished from the planets by a dull and cloudy
214 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEA'ENS.
appearance. and by a train of light. As they approach the 8un.
however, their faint and nebulous light becomes more and more
brilliant, and their train increases in length, until, they arrive at
their Dearest point of approximation. when they sbine with their
greateilt brilliancy. As tbey recede from the sun. they gradually
lose their sp,lendor. reaume their faint 'and nebulous appearance.
and tbeir train diminishes. until tbey entirely disappear. Thf'y
line no well defined figure; they seem to mo,e in e,ery possible
diret'uon, and are found in every part of the heavens. From
their train, they were called by the Greeks ....... -r .. ,. comets,
which signifies haYing long hair.
Tbe caules of these Yarions phenomena must have. early con-
stituted a very natural subject of inquiry. Accordingly. we
shall find. if we examine the history of the. science. that in very
early times there were many specUlations upon this subject, and
. that different theories were adopted to account for these celestial
appearances.
'I'he Egyptians, Chaldeans, Indians, and Chine.e, early ~ .
many astronomical facts, many ohll8"atiollll of important phenomena,
and many rules and methods of utronomical calculation; and it h ..
been imagined, that they had the ruillll of a great system of utronomical
science. which. in the earliest ages of the world, had been carried to a
great degree of perfection, and that. while the principles and explanatiollll
of the phenomena were 100, the isolated, unconnected raet., rules of cal-
culation, and phenomena theDllllllyell, remained. Thus, the Chin-.
who, it is generally agreed, JKIIIII888 the 01d1!8t authentic obserYatiOlls OIl
record. hIIve recorded in their annals a conjunction of aye planets at the
same time, which happened 2461 years before Christ, or 100 years be-
fore the flood. By mathematical calculation, it i. aacertained that thi8
conjunction really occurred at that time; The first obIIervation of a BOlar
eclipse, of which the world h .. any knowledge, w .. made by the Chi-
neee, 2128 years before Christ, or 220 years after the deluge. It.-ne,
al80. thRt the Chinese understood the method of calculating eclipaea; lOr,
it is said that the emperor wu 80 irritated against the great officers of
state for neglecting to predict the eclipse, that he cauEd them to be put
to death.- The utronomical epoch of the Chinese, according to Bailly,
commenced with Fom, their. first emperor, who flourished 2952 yeara
before' the Christian era, or about 350 years before the deluge.
If it be .. ked how the knowledge of this antf'diluvian utronomy was
preee"ed and transmitted. it is 88id that the columns on which it was
regisrered haye sumyed the deluge, and that t h ~ of Egypt are only
copies, which haye becom" originals, now that the othlll'll have been fo ....
gutten. The Indians, al80, prof_ tn haye many ce1eBtial OOoefYBtiona
of a Yery early date. The (}haldeans baY8 been justly celebratl'd in all
agee for their astronomicalobt!erYatiool. . When Alexander took Baby-
It i, wen known that the Chine .... hRVe, from lime immemorial. cnnoi""rett
their 80lar eclipses and conjunctionI' oflbe planets al' prognostics of importanee
10 the empire, and thallhev haYe been predicted .. a mailer oC stale policy.
THE IIOLAR IIY8TEM.
215
Ion. hi .. Calliothellflll, foulld a aeries of UhaJ.letln obserVation ..
made in that city, and extending back, with litlle interruptioll. through a
period of 1903 yeaN that evpnt. This would carry us back
to at leut 2234. years before the birth of Uhriat, or to about the time of
the dispenioa of mankind by the confusion of tongues. Though it be
conceded that, upon this whole period in the history of the sci"nCt', the
ohscurity of very remote antiquity must nece.arily rest, still it will remain
evideut that the phenomena of the beavenly hodiea had t-n oboerved
with great attention, and had been a SUbject of no ordinary interest.
But, however numerous or important were the observation. of oriental
antiquity, they were never reduced to the shape and sy ouuetry of a regu-
lar .,lI&8m.
The Greeks, in all probability, derived many notions in regard to this
acience, and many facti and obaervatioll8, from Egypt, the great filUlitIlin
of ancient learning and wisdom. alld many were the apeculatioll8 alid
hypothaM of their philulI"pbers. In the fabulous period of Grtlcian
history, Atlu, Hercules, Linus and Orpbeu .. are mentioned a8 persons
di"tinguiahed for their k Ilowledge of astronomy, and for the improvementl
which tbey made in Ih" science. Bilt, in regard to tbia period, little
is known with certainty, and it must be tonBidered, III it is termed,
fabulow. .
t The firet of the Grep,k philosophers who taught astronomy,
W88 Thales. of Miletus. He flourished abont 640 years before
the Christian ere. Then followed Anaximander, Anaximenes,
Anaxagoras, Pythagoras, Plato. Some of the doctrines main-
tained by these philosophers were-that the earth was round;
that it had two motions, a diurnal motion on its axis. and an an-
nllal motion around the SUn; that the sun was a globe of fire;
that the 1D00n received her ,light from the sun; that she W88
habitable, contained mountains, spas, &c.; that her eclipses were
caused by the earth's shadow; that the planets were not de-
eigned merely to adorn our heaven .. ; that they were worlds of
themselves; and that the fixed stars w!lre centers of distant
systems. Some of them, however, maintained that the earth
W88 flat; and others, that, though round, it was at rest in the
eenter of the universe.
When that distinguished school of philo8tJphy was established
at Alexandria, in Egypt, by the munificence of the sovereigns to
whom that portion of Alexander's empire had fallen. astronomy
received a new impulse. It was now, in the second century
after Christ, that the first complete system or treatise of astro-
nomy, of which we have any knowledge, was formP.CI. All be-
fore bad been unconnected and incomplete. Ptolemy, with the
opinions of all antiquity, and of all the philosophprs who had
preceded him, spread oat before him, composed a work. in thir-
teen books, called the M.,.&A. Eun"t", or Great SystP-m. Re-
jecting the doctrine of Pythagoras. who tlIulfht that the sun wa.
the center of the uni verse, and that the earth had a diurnal tDO
216 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
tion on h. axis and aD annual motion around the 8un, as contrary
to the evidence of the sen888, Ptolemy endenored to account for
the celestial phenomena, by supposing the earth to be the center
of the universe, and all the heuenly bodies to revolve around h.
He seems to have entertained an idea, in retrBrd to the "upposi-
tion that the earth revolved on ita axis, SImilar to one which
somt" entertain even at the present day. "If," says he, .. there
were any motion of the earth, common to it and all other heav-
enly bodies, it would certainly precede them all, by the exceBs
of ita maBS being so great; and animalB, and a certain portioo
of heavy bodies, would be left behind, riding upon the air, aod
the earth itself would very Boon be completely carried out of the
heavens."
. In explaining the ceJestiaI phenomena, however, upon his hypathesit,
he met with a difficulty in the apparently atBtionary attitude and ~
grade motions which he 1811' the planets 80meUIJIIlII bave. To explain
this, however, he auwc-l the pbmeta to revolve in amaII c:iroles, which
he called epicycles, which were, at the I8me time, carried around the
earth in larger cin:Iea, which be called ditTerenlB, or carrying circles. In
following out biB theory. and applying it to the explanation of different
phenomena, it became n-.ry to add new epicycles, and to have reo
COUJ'18 to other expedients, until the ayatem became unwieldy, cumbroue,
and complicated. This theory, although, astronomical obeenatioua c0n-
tinued to be made, and 80me diatinguisbed as&rooomerB, appeared from
time to time, W88 the prevailing theory until the middle of -the fifteenth
century. It W88 not, however, alway' received with implicit confidence;
Dor were its difficulties alwa.! entirety unappreciated. '
Aiphon8O X, king ofCutile, who ftourished in the thirteenth century,
when contemplating the doctrine of the epicycles, exclaimed ... were the
nni_ thus conlltructed, if the Deity bad called me to biB counsels at
the creation of the world, I could have given him good advice." He did
Dot, however, mean any impiety or irreverenoe, except what W88 directed _
apinst the ayatem of Ptolemy.
About thll middle of the fifteenth century, Copernicus, a native
of Thorn, in PruBsia, conceiving a passionate attachment to ,the
8tudy of astronomy, quitted the profession of medicine, and de-
voted himself, with the mOBt intanse ardor, to the study of this
science. .. His mind," it is said, .. had long been imbued with
the idea that simplicity and harmony should characteriZe ilIe ar-
rangementa or the planetary system. In the'complication and
dillorder which, he Baw, r e i ~ e d in the hypothesis of Ptolemy,
he perceiVed insuperable ebJ8Ctions to ita being considf'red as a
representation of nature... , .
In the opinions of the Egyptian sages, in those of Pythagoras.
Philolans, Arilltarchus and Nicetas, he recognised hi" own ear-
liest conviction that the lIarth was not the center of the universe.
Hia attenr.i.on was much occnpied with ~ e speculation of Mar-
THE SOLAR SYSTEM.
217
unaa Capella, who placed tbe sun between Mal'8 and tbe moon,
ad made'Mercury and Venus revoln atoulIlI him as a center;
and with &he systl!1Il of Appollonius Perpul, who made !ill the
planets revolve around'tm. sun, ""bile the sun and moon were
C81Tied around the eanh. in the center,of the universe.' , ",
The examination. however, of these bypothese" gradually ex-
JM'lled thfl difficulties with which the subjflClt was beset. and,
afler th6 labor of more tban thiny yeal'8, be was permitted to see
the true system of the univtorse. The sun he considered as im-
mo.able, In ,the center of the systelil, while thll earth revolved
around him, between the orbits of Venus and Mars, and p,ro-
duced, by i,ts rotation about its axis all the diurnal
of the eeleati\11 The' otber planflts lie considered 'lis re-
volving about the sun, in orbits extflrior to that of the earth.
Thus the stations and retrogradations of the planeta were tbe
necessary consequence of their own motions. 'Combined with that
of the earth about the sun. He said that ... by long observation,
hfl discovered, that, if the motions of the planets be compared
with that of tbe eartb, and be estimated according to the times
in' wbicb they perform 'their revolutions. not only their several
appearances would follow from this hypothesis. but that it
would so connj!Ct &he order of the pldnets. ,their orbits. magni-
tudea, and distances. and even the apparent motion of the fixed
, 8t.a,ra, that it would be impossible to remove one of these bodies
out of its 'place without disordering the rest, and even the whole
of the universe also." , ,
Soon after the death of CopE'rnicus; arose Tyeho Brahe, born
at Knudstorp, in Norway. in 1546. Such was the distinctioll
which be had attained as an astronomer, that. when dissatisfi"d
with his residence in Denmark, he had resolved to remove. the
king of Denmark, learning his intentions. detained him in tbe
kingdom. by presenting bim with the ",anonry of Rothschild,
with an income of 2000 crowns per annulD. He added to this
sum a pension of 1000 crowns. gave bim the island of HUl'n,
and established for him an observatory. at an eJ:pense of about
200.000 crowns. HfOre Tycho continued. for twenty-one years,
to enrich astronomy with his obsflrvations. His obBervations
upon the OIoon Well' important. and IIpon the planflts. numerous
and pl'tlCise. and have formed the data of the preBflllt generaliza-
tions in alltronomy. He. however. rejl'ctfld the system of Coper-
nicus; considering the earth as immovable, in the center of the
system; while the lun. with all the planets and comets revolving
around him. 'performed hiR revolution around the earth; and. in
the course of twenty-four houl'll, the stars also revolved about the
central body. This theory was not as Rimple as that of COpfll'-
nicus, and involved the absurdity of making the sun, planets,
&c., revolve around a body comparatively insignificant.
T
218 GEOGRAPHY OF THB HEAVENS.
Near the cloae, of .the 16th century. atoee two, lOin, who
wrought most importapt in the science, Kepler B.Dd
Galileo; the former a German. the latter an Italian. ,
Previoua to Kepler, all investigations proceeded,upon the aup-
position that the p\an8ts lD!Jved in circular orbits, which had
been a apurce of much error. This aupposiuoD Kepler showed
to be false. He discovered that their orbits emplles. 'Phe
orbits uf their secondariea, or he also found to be the same
curve. He n.ext determined the dimensiona of the Qrbits of the
planets. and found' to what their velocities ip their motions
through their orbits, and the times of thflir revoluuons, were
proportioned; all truths ofthe greatest importance to the science.
While Kepler was, making these discQveries of facta, very
essential for tbe explsnation of many phenomena, Galileo was
discovering wopders in the heavena never before by the eye
oflDan. Having improved the telescope, and applied it to the
heavens, he obse"ed mquntains and valleys upon the.surface of
our moon; satellites or secondaries were revolving
abuut Jupiteq and Venus, as Copernicus had predieted, wal
seen exhibiting all the different phaaea of the moon,:waxing and
waninl{ as does, through various forms. Many minQte stars,
not viSible to the naked eye, were,descried in the Milky Way;
and the largest fixed stars, instead of being magnified, appeared
to be Rmall brilliant points, an incon.trovertible argument in
favor of their immense distance from U8. All his diacoveriea
\ served to confirm the Copernican theory, and to show the ab-
surdity of the hyp.othesis of Ptolemy. , . .
Although the general arrangement and motions oft}le planetary
bodies, together with the figure of their orbits, had been thul
determined, the foree or power which, carries them around in
their orbits, was as yet unknown. The diacovery of this wal
reserved for the illustrious Newton.- By reflecung on the
nature of gravity-that power which causes bodies to descend
towards the eenter of the earth-ainee it poes not sensibly
diminish at the greatest diatance from the center of the earth to'
which we can attain, being as powerful on the loftieat mountaina
liS it is in the deepest cave.rns-he wss led to imagine that it
might extend to the moon, and that it might be the power whiCh
kept her in her orbit, and caused her to revolve around the eerth.
HI! was next led to luppole that perhaps the same powel carried
the primary planets around the sun. By a series of calcfdationa,
he was enabled at length to establish .the fsct, that the aame
force which determines the fall of ab apple to the earth, carries
the moona in their orbits around the Illp.
The diecovery or Newton ... ill 80JIle l118uure antloipaled by Copemic1ll,
,""pJer and Hooke, .
THE SOLA.R SYSTEM 219
To recapitulate brietly: the system (not hypothesis, for mucb
of it bas been by mathematical demonstration), by
wbich we are now enabled to explain with a beautiful simpficity
the different phenomena of the sun, planets, moons, and comets,
is, that the sun is tbe central body in' tbe system; that the
planeta and CGmets mGve rGund him in elliptical orbits, whose
planes are more Gr. le88 inclined to eaoh other, with velocities
bearing to each other,. a certain ascertained relatiGn, and in
times related to their distances; that the mOGns, Qr secondaries,
revolve in like manner, abGut their primaries, and at the Sllmli
time accompany them in their mGtion arGund the sun: all
meanwhile revolving on axes of their own; and that these revo-
lutioDll in their orhits, are produced by the mysteriGus power of
attraction. The particular mGde in which this system ill ap-
plied to the explanation of the different phenomena, will be ex-
hibited as we proceed to consider, one by one, the several bodies
abo .. mentioned.
'rhese bodies, thus arranged and thus revGlving, cGnstitute
what is termed tbe sGlar system. The planets have been divid"d
into tWG classes, primaries and secondaries. The latter are also
termed mGGns, and sGmetimes satellites. The secGndaries ara
those which resGlve abGut the primaries. Thera have been dis-
cGvered sixteen primaries; namely. Mercury, Venus, the Earth,
Mare, Vesta, Juno, Ceres, Pallas, Astraa, Hebe, Iris, Flora,
Melia. Jupiter, Saturn, Urauns, Neptune. Mercury ill the planet
nearest to tbe sun, then fGllow .the others in the order in which
thl'y are named. The nine small planets between Mars and
Jupitl'r ara telescopic, and have been termed lIsteroids. There
have been discovered nineteen secondaries, Gr mGGns. Of these,
the Earth has one, Jupiter fGur, Saturn seven, Uranus six, and
Neptune one. None Gf these, except our moon, are visible
without telescopic aid.
We proceed to examine the objects constituting the solar
system, in detail. .
The orbits or path. of the planet " ........ ocover.d by tracing Ibe course
of pllUlel by me .... of !be lind a.arl

220 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAENS.
CHAPTER VII.
THE SUN.
THE sun is a vast globa, in the center of the solar system,
dispensin, l i g h ~ and heat to al1 the planets, and governing all
their mollons. '
It is the !freat parent of vegetable life, giving warmth to the
seasons, and color to the landscape. hs rays are the cause of
various vicissitudes on the surface of the earth and in the at-
mosphere. By' their agency, al1 winds aTe produced, and the
waters of the sea are made to circulate in vapor thro.ugh the air,
and irrigate the land, producing springs and rivers.
The sun is by far the largest of the heavenly bodies whoss
dimensions havs been ascertained. Its diameter is somt'thinl[
mort' than 883,000 miles. Consflquently,it contaills a volume
of matter equal to /QfM'teen hundred tlwwand globes of thfl size of
the earth. Of a body so vast in its dimensions, the' human
mind, with all ita eiJ'orta, can form no adequate conception.
The whole distance between the earth and the moon would not
suffice to embrsce one-third of its diameter.
Were the lIun a hollow sphere, perforated with a thousand
openings to admit the twinkhng of .thfl luminous atmosphere
around it--and were a globe as large as the earth placed at its
center, with a satellite as large as our 1II00n, and at the .ame
distance from it as she is from tbe eartb, there would be present
to the eye of a spectstor on the interior globe, a universe as
splendid as that which ROW .appears to the uninstructed ey-.
universe as large and extenaive as the whole creation was con-
ceived to be, in the infancy of astronomy.
The next ,thing which fills tbe mind w.,ith wonder, is lh, dil-
lame at wnich so great a body must be placed, to occupy, ap-
parently, so small a place in the firmament. Tbe sun's mean
distance from the earth is twelve thousand times tba earth's
diameter, or a little more than ninety.five millions of miles.
We may derive some faint conception of such a ilistance, by
considering that the swiftest steamboats, whicb ply our waters
at the rate of two hundred miles a day, would not traverse it in.
thirteen /t"ndred year.; and, that a cannon ball, flying night and
day, at the rate of sixteen miles a minute, would not reach it in
tie_yean. .
THE SUN. 221
The Sun, when viewed through a' telescope, presents the ap-
pearance of an enormous globe of fire, frequenLly in a state of
:violent or ebullition; dark spots of irregular form,
rarely viSible to the naked eye, sometimes pall over his disk,
from eallt to west, in the period of nearly fourteen day
These spots are usually surrounded by a penumbre, and that,
by a margin of light, more brilliant than that of the sun. A spot
when tirst seen on the eastern edge of the sun" appearll likl! a
line wbich progressively extends in breadth, till it reaches the
middle, when it begins to contrset, and ultimately
at the western edge. In some rare instsncea, the same spots
re-appear on the east side. and are permanent for two or tbree.
revolutions. But, as a general thing, the spots on the sun are
neither permuient nor uniform. Sometimes several small onea
unite into a large one; and. again, a large one separates into
numerous amaH oneil. Some continue several days, wel'ks, and
eTen montha, together; while others, appear and disappear,
,in the course' of a few houre. Those spots that are formed
gradually, are; for the most part, as gradually dillolved; wbilat
tbose that are sudd .. nly formed, generally vanish as quickly.
It is tbe general opinion. that spots on the sun were first dis-
covered by Galileo, In the bel{inning of the year 1611 ; though
Scheiner, Harriot, and FabriCiUS. observed them about the 8ame
time. During a period of eighteen years from this time, the sun
was never found entirely clear of spots, excepting a few days in
December, 1624; at other times, they Wjlre frequently seen,
. twenty or thirty at a time, and in 1625, upwards of tifty were
seen at once. From 1650 to 1670, scarcely any spots were to
be seen; and, from 1676 to 1684, the orb of the Bun presentAd
'unspotted disk. Since the beginning of the century
scarcely a year has passed, in which spots have not been visi-
ble, and frequently in great numbars. In 1799, Dr. Herschel
observed .one nearly 30,000 miles in breadth.
A single III!COnd of angular IJI888Ure, on the aun's disk, 88 seen from
the earth, corresponds to 462 miles; and a circle of this diameter (con-
taining therefore nearly 220,000 square miles) is the least space which
can be distinctly discerned on the IUD 88 a fliai61e tlrell, even by the mOlt
poWerful gluaes. Spots have been obaerved,however, whOlle m-r
diameter has been more than 44,000 D1i1al; aDd, if IIOJD8 records are to
be trusted of even ltill greater extent ,
Dr. rnA, in a letter to the author, says, "I have for maDy years ax-
amined the solar spots with and have several
times seen spots which were not less than the one-twenty-fifth part of the
diameter, which would make them about 22,192 miles in diameter,
yet they were visible neither to the naked eye, nor through an opera
gl88ll, magnifying about three times. And, therefore, if any spots have
been visible to the naked eye-which we must believ.e. unI_ we refuse
T
222 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
respectable testimony-they could not have been much 1_ than 50,000
miles in diamel\ll'." .
The afparent motion of these sPlit!! over the son's surface, i8
continua ly varying in ill direction. Sometimes they seem to
move acros, it in 'traigAt lines. at others in CUnH! lines. These
phpnomena may be familiatly iIIu8trated in the following
manner.
Fig. 1. PIg. I.
. $'
. ___ __ _ : . _ .... 1 __ .__ .'
Wi ! -
!. M. i
LeI E E repreeenl Ihe ecliplic j N S, il. north aDd 100lb pOlea,' M the poiDI
wbere Ihe .POI enlen, and m Ibe poinl wbere illeave. Ibe lun'l dilt. AI the
end of November,. and lhe beginning of December, Ibe lII!0t will appear 10
IIlOve downwardl, acroa the 1110'. di.k, from left to right, deocribillll the
.traight line. M .... Fig 1 j IIOOn allur thi. period, tbeoe line. begin gradu.Jly
to be inftected toward. tbe north, till ahout Ihe end of February, or the begin-
ning of March, wben they delCribe the CUNe Iinp. refr.eenlrd in Fig. II. After
Ibe of March, the curvature deere ........ til the latter end of May, 0,
Ihe beginning of June, wben they again de.cribe .I,Bigbt line. lending op-
"""ntl. as in Fig. 3. By and hy the"" Itraigbt line. begin to be infteeled ""'"""
",ar"'. liII aboul the heginning of September, wben they lake ,be lorm of a
curve, baving ill convel[ aide toward. Ibe lOull1 pole of the lon, BI in Fig ...
Fig. a Fig. 4.


i :
It I
-_. .. _.u .' :.,.. 7 ... i ..... ..
MI I
.II I ..
As these phenomena are repeated eyery year, in the same
order, and belong to all the spots that have been perceived upon
the sun's disk, it is concluded, with good reason, that these
spots adhere to the sorfa('.8 of the 80n, and revolve with it, upon
an axis, inclined a little to the plane of the ecliptic. The ap-
parent revolution of a 8pot, from any particular of the
80n's disk, to the aame point again, is accomplished lD 27 days,
7 hours, 26 minutes, aDd 24 second8; bllt during that time, the
apot has, in fact, gone through one revolotion, torther with aD
arc. equal to that described by the sun, in his orbit, in the 8ame
time, which reduces the time of the sun's actual rotation on hi'
axie, to 25 days, 9 hours, and 36 minutes.
THE SUN.
223
, Th!! part of the lon'8 di8k not occopied by lpot&, il far from
bei ng uniformly brigbt. Itl ground ia finely mouled' with an
appearance of minute. dark dota, or p""",' Beracbel remarka
t.l\at theae pores, when attentively wawhed, are found to be in a
constant atate of chaolle. This ia certainly an error, if the change
spoken of ia one visible under the eye; for I have watched theae
minute pores with the greatest serotiny, but nner found while
UDder the eye, the alightelt change.
The elder BeJ'tIChel CODceiveO that the ann'a body waa dark
or opake, and that it waa 8urrounded by' a luminou8 ocean or
atmosphere of vaat extent. Beneath thil and above the aun'l
surface he thought there might exiat a atratum of clouds, and
with thia constitution he proceeds to account for the phenomena
of the epoU. Tbe black core of the spot he rel(8rds 81 the solid
opake body of the lun, _n through an opening in the lumio-
008 atmosphere and ift .the SoatinJ. cloud I below. it, wbile the
parual 'shade or penumbra he attnbntes to the hght reSected
from the cloudy atratum. ' ,
I have watched the lolar spoll for three years with great a&o
tention, and find it quite imposlible to reconcile the phenomena
with any theory which IUpPOseS extreme mohility in th!! particlee
composinlf the exterior surface. The outline of tbe penumbra
is aeen sharp, keenly defined and cutting directly acrolls tb.
small mottlinga or pores, aa though the exterior were a crust,
hard and solid. melted out from under by some internal agent.
Again. the outline of the dark core of the spot eate jnto the penum-
bra sharp and sudden. sometimes in long black filam!!nta of ir-
regular shape, but always without any s'uch gradual shading off'
as might be anticipated in case great mobility existed among the
partieles of matter composing the exterior coating of the lun.
The German astronomer Schwabe, of Dessau, haa discovered
the remarkable fact, that there is a periodical return of the solar
spota. In 1828 a very large number of spota were observed.
Then for five years the number decrl'a8ed regularly. until in 1833
the apota counted reached a minimum; an increase now com-
menctld, and continued yearly up to 1838, when a maximum
Dumh!!r was reacbed. Then a decline commenced, and continued
to 1843, when but few 8pota were 8een. Since tbatlear the
Dumber visible has been gradually on the increase; an during
tbis year. 1848, I have never seen the 8un wilhou,t 8pota. anel
many groups bave been very large.
In exaniining the sun. I have occasionally seen that eurious phe-
nomenon. called by the Germans" Lichtftacken .. lumi_jlalu
They are brilliant points of swiftly moving light seen nellr the
lun. and apparently as bright or even brighter tban the sun its!!lf.
Some auppose them to be motea Soating in the upper regioDs 01
224 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
the air; while othera resist this without propounding
any more satisfactory one. . ' '
We append, the foltowing table, exhibiting the elements of the
sun as determined for the lst of January, 1801.
Mean longitude,
Longitude of p8figee, , .
Greatest equation of center, -
lbular diminution of center,
Inclination of axis , -
Motiol! in a mean solar day,
Motion of perigee in 366 daya,
Apparent semidiameter, ,
t8()o 39' 10". t
279 30 06.0
16517.3
17 .s
7 3000.0
69 08 .3
1 01 .9
16 00 .0
, 8,8 Mean horizmital parallax, -
Rotation on its axis in sidereal' days,
Time of pBIIIing one degree of mean 'longitude,
. - 25d . 01154
lMh.20m.58&.14
Eccentricity of orbit (radius unity)" '-
Volume earth .. unity, .' - ,;,
M888earth .. unity, - - -
Mean diatanee (96,000,000 miles), earth', rad. unity,
of_ to yolume, - -
True . (883,000 miles), in diametenofeartb,
.01681131
1.384,471
364,938
23,91M
0.2548
11l.454
Arcompanying the sun, there is an extraordinary luminous
appearance, Called the zodiflClJl light, which is seen at certain
seasons ,of the year after su'nset, or before sunrise, like the fainl
tsil of a comet, extending upward from the sun, in the plane of
the ecliptic. Dr. Herschel this phenomenon to be a
nebulous atmosphere, yet uncondensed, and the sun,
whose lenticular shape aroile from its rotary motion. There is
great difficulty in explaining this phenomenon, on the theol)' of
gravitation alone, for gravity will not permit material partlc/ea
to remain' at so a distance from the sun as the extreme
particles constitutmg the zodiacal light.
May not the same power which operates (as we shan here-
after see) to produce the tails or comets, on their near approacb
to the sun, be active in supporting, by repulsion, the particles
of the zodiacal tight in their great elevation above the IIUO'S
lunacel We shall again refer to this subject, whl'o we corol!
to treat of tbe comets.
The direct light of the Bun is greatly diminished by the atmo-
sphere hy which it is surrounded. This is manifest from the
fact that the edJ{8 or disk is far less luminous than the central
portion, which is directly the reverse of what ought to be exbib-
lted in case no cause operates to absorb thp. light.
The Iig-ht of the Run has been estimated to be more than
300.000 timl's greater than that of the moon. 'fhe most inllloRII
artificial light yet discovered, when seeh against the sun, loob
like a black IIpot on its surface,
MEIlCUBY.
MERCURY.
McacuRY ia the neareat planet to tbe aun that haa )'Ilt been dill-
covered; and, with theexceptioD of the .. teroide, IS the' small.
68t. Its diameter is only 3140 miles. Ita bulk, therefore, i,
about 17 timee less than that ,of the earth. It would require
lOore than twenty millions of auoh globea to compose a body
ftJ Ilal to the ,
It revolves .on ita uia, from west to esst, in 24 houre, 5- mi-
outes; and 98 IIeCOnd8; which make8 ita day about 10 minutea
longer than oura. It performa ita revolution about the sun in a
f.w minutes Ie" than 88 day .. and at a mean distance of nearly
thirty-seven millioDl of milea. The length of Mercury'a year,
tberefore, is equal to about three of our montha.
The rntatiou of planet on it aD CODBIitutea its day; its revolutioA
about the BUn COII8titutea itB year.
Mercury ia not only the moat den88 of all the planeta, but J&o
mves frolll the a\ln 88ven time8 aa much light and heat as the
earth. The truth of thi8 88timate, of course, depend8 upou the
npposilion that the intenaity of aolar light and beat, at the
planets, varies inversely .. the &quarea of their distances from
the suu. .
Thialaw of analogy, did it exiat with rigorous identity at all
the planets, would be DO argument against their being inhabited:
because we are bound to preaume tliat the Allwise Creator haa
.ttempered every dwelling-place in his empire to the physical
8ODstitutiou of the beings which he haa placed in it.
From a variety of facta which have been obaerved in relation to the
production of caIoriI:, it dOIlII not appear probable that the degree of Mat
OIl the surfiJoe of the di1Iilrent p1aneta depends on their respective m..
tancea from the BUD. It is more probable that it depends cbietly on the
diatn1>utiou of the IUlMtantt of calorie on the IIIIl'fiIce8, and throughout
the atmospheres of these bodiea, in different quantities, aceording to the
different lituationa which they occupy in the BOlar system; and that these
different quantities of caloric are put into action. by the of the
IOIar rays, sO as to produce that degree of Ie118ibk heat l8qWBIte to the
wants, anil to the greateat benefit of each of the planet&. On this hypo-
theeis, which is corroborated by a great variety of facta and experiments,
there may be no more sensible heat expenenced on the planet Mercury
than on the BUrface of Herschel, which ,is fifty times furthtir removed from
the BUD.
Owing to the dazzling brightness of Mercury, the 8wiftness
ita motion, and ita nearness to the 8un, astronomera have
made bot comparatively few discoveries respecting: it.' When
viewed through a telescope of considerable magolfying power,
226 GEOGRAPHY OF TilE HEA VUH.
it exhibits, at dUrerent periods, all the various phases of the
moon; except that it never appeare quite full, because its tIn-
lightened hemisphere is never turned directly toward the earth,
only when it is beAmd the sun, or eo near to it as to be hidden by
the splendor of its beams. Its enlightened hemisphere being
thus always turned toward the sun, and the opposite one being
always dark, prove that it il an opake body, limilar to the
earth, shining only in the light whieh it reCeives from the sun.
'rhe rotatiop of Mercury on its axls was determined, from the
daily position of its horns, by M. Schroeter, who not onl1 dis-
covered spots upon its surface, bui leveral mountains In its
southern hemisphere, onll ofwhieh was lot miles high-nearly
three times as high as Chimborazo, in South America.
It is worthy of obeervaUon. that the highest mountains which hue
been discovered in Mercury, Vanus, the moon, and, perhepe, we may
add, the earth, are all situated in their _them hemispheres.
During a few days in March and April, and Septem-
ber, Mercury may.be seen fot several minutes, In the morning or
evening twilight, 'when its greatellt happen in those
months; In all other parts of its orbit, .It is too near the sun to
be seen by the nakeel eye. The greatest diStance that it. ever
derarts from the son, on either side, varieB from ISO 12' to 28
48 , alternately.
The revolution of Mercury about the Bun, like that of all the
planets, is performed from weBt to eaBt, in an orbit whil'h is
nearly circular. Its apparent motion, aB Been froUl the earth, is.
alternately. froiD west to eaBt, and from east to west. nearly in
atraight lines; sometimes, directly across the face of the sun,
but at all other times either a little above or a little below iL
Being commonly immersed in the-Bun'B rayB in the evening,
and thus continuing invisible until it emerges from them in the
morning, it Bppeared to the ancients like two distinct stsrs. A
long series of obse"ations was requisite hefore they recognized
the identity of the star which was seen to recede from the sun
in the morning with that which aprroacht'd it in the evening.
But as the one was never seenunti the other dissppeared, both
were at last found to be the lame planet, which thus oscillated
on ear.h side of the sun.
Mercury's oscillation from west to east, or from east to west,
is really accomplished in just half the time of its revolution.
which is about 44 days; but as the earth. in the meantime. fol-
low8 the 8un in the same dirpction. the apparent elongations will
be proionltPd to between 55 and 65 days.
The passage of Mercury over the sun's disk is denominated a
transit. This would happen in every revolution. it'the orbit lay
in the same plane with the orbit of the earth. But it dOt!s Dot;
MERCURY. 227
it cute the earth'. orbit in two opposite pointa, u eellpdc
doee the equa&or, but at.an angle three times 1888.
These pointB of intersection are called tbe raodu of the orbit.
Meteury's aacending nodI! ia in the 16th degreelloC Tauru.; ita
dll8Cending node in the 16th degree of Scorpio. As the earth
passee theae nodes in Novem6er and May, the tranaitB of
Mercury must happen, for many agel &0 come, in Gne of these
montha. .
The fuIlowiug ill a Iiat of all the tranaita of Meroury, &om the time the
firBt was obaerved, by a-ndi, November 6,1631, to the end of the
preEDt
1631 Nov. 6.
1644 Nov. II.
1651 Nov. 2-
1661 May 3.
1664 Nov. 4.
1674 May 6.
1677 Nov. 7.
1690 Nov. 9.
1697 No .. I.
,1707 May 6.
1710 Nov. 6.
1123 Nov. 9.
1736 Nov. 10.
1740 Nov. 2.
1743 Nov. 4.
1753 May S.
17M Nov. 6
1769 Nov. 9.
1776 Nov. 2-
1782 Nov. 12.
1786 May 3.
1789 Nov. 6.
1799 May 7.
1802 Nov. 8.
1815 Nov. 11.
1822 Nov. 4.
1832 May 5.
1835 Nov. 7.
1845 May 8.
1848 Nov. 9.
1861 Nov. B.
1868 Nov. 4.
1878 May 6.
1881 Nov: 7.
1891 M;ay 9.
1894 Nov. 10.
By eomparing the mean motion of any of the pIaneIa With the_
motion of the earth, we may, in like manner, determine the perioda in
which theBe bodies will return to tbe same pointa of their orbit, and the
IBme positions With respect to the slln. The knowledge of these periods
will enable us to detennine the hour when the planeta rille, let, and pus
the meridian, and. in general, all the pbenomena dependent. upon the reo-
lative position of the earth, the planet, and the sun; for at the end of
one of these periodlo they commence again, and all racur in the _ or-
'der. We have only to find a number of sidereal in which the
planet oompIete. exactly, or very nearly, a certain number of revolutious;
that is, to find snell a number of planetary revo1utiona ... wben &aken
together. aball be elladly equal to one, or any number of revolutious of
the earth. In the CIIII8 of Mercury, this ratio will be .. 87.969 ill to
866.166. Whence we find, that-
7 periodical revolutions of the earth are equal to 19 of Mercury :
13 periodical revolutiona of the earth are equal to 54 of Mercury :
33 revoiutious of the earth are equal to 137 of Mercury :
46 periodical revolutions of the earth are eq" to 191 of Mercury.
TherefOre. tranaiIII of Mercury, at the _ node, may happen at interva18
of 7. 13,33.46, &0., years. Transita of Venus, .. well .. eclipsea of
the IIUII and moon, are calculated upon the _ principle.
l'be 8iIkreuI revolution of a planet reapecta ita lIhIoIfM motion, and 18
_ured by the time the p1anet takes to revolve &om aDy fixed liar to
the _ liar again.
The revolutiOR of a planet n!8p8Cla ita reIatit!e motion, and
illDN8Ured by the time that a planet occupi. in coming hack to the
_ position, 'With respect to the earth and the sun.
The Iidereal revolution 'Jl Mercury 18 87 ,d. 23 h. I Ii m. 44 s. Ita
228 OF THE REA VRN8.
reYoIution ia Ceund by dividing the wholecircumfimmce of
8600 by it. reIalitJe motion in teapect to the earth. Thus, the meaD
daily moIioD of Mercury ia 14' .656; that of the earth ia 3548".318;
and their diIlimmA it 11184".237, being Mercury'. relari"., motion, or
what it gam. on the earth every day . Now, by aimple proportion,
11184";237 ia to 1 clay .. 3600 iI to 115 d. 21 h. 3 Ill. 25 ... the period
, a ofMereury. I
The MIlO/ute motion of Mercury in itll orbit, is 109,757 milM
an hour; that of the earth, is 68,288 miles: the difference.
41,469 is the mean reitJtiflfl motion of Mereury. witb
respect to the earth. The transit of Mercury acroll!l the disk of
the sun, which occurred on the 8th of May, 1846. was observed
st the Cincinnati observatory. By the new tables of Levemer.
ita place was predicted. so that the various contacts with the
sun took place to within sixteen seconda df the computed time.
The planet was seen very diatinctly as a round black spot on
the bright aurface of the Bun. The density of the planet, and
its absolute diameter, enable uS to determine the force of gravi-
tation at ita surfallea. A heavy body would fall through 17.7
fpet per second on Mercury. snd a pound of matter removed
from the earth to the planet would weigh 1,106 pounds
. These are the elements of Mercury for mean, noon, Gn>eQo
wicht 1st Jan. 1801.
Mean BidetealreYolution, -
Mean longitude,
Longitude of perihelion,
Annoalmotion of the line of apaid ...
Vitto, referred to the ecliptic,
Longitude of the aacending node,
Motion of ditto, west per annum,
Ditto, east. referred to the ecliptic,
Mean orbital motion in a aolar day,
Inclination of orbit.
Eccentricity of orbit, half major, axis unity
Decrease of ditto, in a century, -
Greatest equation of center,
Increase of ditto, in a century,
A "ieal rotation.
Mean apparent diameter,
True diameter (3140 miles) earth .. unity,
Minimum elongation, - -
Maximum ditto,
Volume earth a8 unity,
)1_ BOn as unity,
87 d. 23 h. 15 m. 43 a. .9
1660 00' 48
H
.6
7421 46.9
5.8
55.9
- 450 37' 30 .9
7.8
4t.8
405' 32.8
- 7 00 10 .0
0.210,5IH.41K
0,000,003,868
23039' 61".0
1.8
14 h. 05 Ill. 28 B. .3
6".9
, - o .398
160 12' 00"
28 48 00
. 0,01\.1
Mean distance (36, 000,000 mi1ea) earthsuonity,
0,000,000,4936
\ Q,387088 I
229
VENUS.
-THII;RJ: are but -few perllonl who have not observed a beauti-
ful elar in the welt, a little -after aunset, called the etJening ,'ar.
Tbis atar" Venua. It ia the aecond planet from the aun. It il
tbe brightelt .. tar in the firmament, and on this account easily
distinguilhed from the other planeta.
_ If we obll8l'V8 thia planet for several daya, we Ihall fi'od that
it doea not remain conltantly at the 88me distance from the lun,
but that it appeara to approach, or recede from him, at the rate
of about three-fifths of a degree enry day; and that it il lome-
times on the 88It aide of him, and eometimea on the weat, thue
continually oecillating backward and forward between certain
limite.. . _
As Venul never depal1ll quite 48 from the lun, it ia never
teen at midnight, nor In oppolition to that luminary; being viai.
ble only about three hourII after aunset, and 88 long before IUn-
riee, accordiug as ita right aacension ia greater or leea thau that
of the SUIl. At first we behold it onfy a few minutea after
sunset; the next evening we hardly diecover any aensible
change in ita position; but after a few days, we perceive that it
haa (allen considerably behind the aun, and that it continues to
depart farther and farther from him, setting later and later every
evening, ontil the diatance between it and the son, is eqoal to
- a little more than half the apace from the horizon to the zenith,
or aboot 46.
It now begine to retum toward the Iun, making the same
daily progrese that it did in separating from him, and to set
earlier and earlier every suoceechng eVl'ning, on til it finally Beta
witb the sun, and is lost in the spfendor of his light.
A few days after the phenomena we have now described, we
perceivp., in the morning, near the eastern horizon, a
itar which was not visible before. This also is Venus, whIch
is now called the momi'!!f atar. It departs farther and farther
from the sun, riaing a hule earlier every day, ontil it is BeP-n
about 46 west of bim, where it appearll ltationary for a few
days; then it reaumes ita course toward I the Bon, appearing
later and later every morning, ontil it risea with the Bon, and
we cease to behold it. In a few days, the eVflning star again
appears in the weet, very near the setting son, and the same
phenomena are again exhibited. Such are the visible appeaJ'oo
anoel of Venol.
Venus revolvel about the lun from west to east in 924f days,
at the distance of about of milee, moving in her
V
230 GEOGRAPHY 010' THE HEAVENS.
orbit at the rate of eighty thousand miles an hour. She tume
around on her axis once in 23 hours, 21 minutes, and 7 seconda.
'l'hus her day is about 25 Jninutes shorter than ours, while her
year i. equal to 7' of our months, or 32 weeks.
The mean di8tance of the esrth from the 8un, i. estimated at
95,000.000 of miles, and that of Venull being 68,000,000, the
diameter of the 8un, all lleen from VenulI, will be to hill diame-
ter a8 aeenfrom the earth, all 95 to 68, and the surface of biB
disk 811 the lICJuare of 95 to tbe lIquare of 68, drst ill, all 9025 to
4626, or 88 2 to 1 nearly. The intensity of light and heat being
, inversely as the aquare. of their distances from tbe aun, VenUl
receives twice aa mucb light and beat 88 the esrth.
Her orbit is within the orbit of the earth; for if it were not,
8he would be seen 811 ot'tt!n in opposition to the lIun, as in con-
Junction with him; but she W811 never lleen rising in the ea.t,
whilll the sun was setting in, the weat. Nor wa, she ever
I88n in quadrature, or on the meridian,. when the 8un waa
either rislng or setting. Mercury being about 230 from the
8un, and Venus 4&0, the orbit of VeDns must be outaide of the
orbit of Mercury. ' .
The true diameter of Venus ia 7700 miles; but her afllJflf'tfll
diameter and brightneas are conatantly varying, accoMing to
ber diatance from the earth. When Venua and the earth are
on tbe aame aide of the 8un, her diatance from the earth ia only
1l6,OOO,000 ()f miles; when they are on opposite sides of the
8un, ber diatance ia 164,000,000 of miles. Were the whole of
ber enlightened hemisphere turned towarda ua, when ahe i,
nearest, ahe would exhibit a light and brilliancy twenty-fin
times greater than abe generally does, and appear IilLe a amall
brilliant moon; but, at that time, ber dark hemisphere ia turned
towards the earth.
When Venus approaches ne8lllllt to the earth, her appart:nl or ,
observed diameter, is 61".2; when lIloat remote it i. only 9".6: _
61".2+11".6==6,. hence when neareet the earth, her apparent diameter
is 6, times greater than when most distant, and the swfaee of her diak
(6,)l or nearly 41 times greater. In this work, the apparent size of the '
Jieavenly bodies ia eatim"ted from the apparent IUrface of tbeir disks, whieb
is alWlY. proportional to the aqUare8 of their apparent diamete ....
When Venua'a right ascension is less than that of the aun, .h.
riaes before him; when greater, ahe aP:reara a&r his aelling.
She continues alternately morning an evening atar, for a
period of 292 dava, each time.
To thoae who are but Iitd" acquainted with astronomy, it will
aeem atrange, at first, that Venua should apparently continue
longer OD the eaat or west e,ide of the aUD, than the whole time
VENUS.
231
of her periodical revolution around him. But it may be eaaity
undellltood, when it ia considered, that while Venua movee
around the auo, at the rate of about 1
0
36' of !ingular motion
per day, the eartb followil at the rate of 59'; so tbat Venua
actually gaina on the eartb, only 37' in a day. .
N ow it is evident that both plaDete will appear to keep OD
the same aide of the IlUD. until Venus hu gain8il balf her orbit,
or 180
0
in advance of the ear;th; and thill at a mean rate, will
require 299 daYlI, since, 292X37'=10804', or lSOO neatly.
Mercury and Venus are In/mar. planets, because
their orbits alii within the earth's orbit, or between it and the
BUD. 'The other, planets are denom,inated Buperiar, because their'
orbits are without or beyond the orbit of the earth. AI the
orhite of Mercury and Venus lie within the earth'l orbit, it ia
plain, that onee in every aynodical revolution, each of these
pll!>oets will be in conjunction on the aame side of the lun. 10
the former case, the planet ia said to be in its irferiar cOfIj_
lion, and in the latter cue, in its auperiar COfIjtmdiOfl; aa io the
following figure.
CO"IU"CTIOJf AND OPPOSITIOJf or TH& PLAJfl:T8.
In almost all works on astronomy, Mercury and Vennl are denominated
fftferi&r planetB. ltnd auplrior. But as the"" are employed,
not to expre the rei alive .. zc of the planeta. but to md,cate tbeir ,""ali""
:;apect to tbe earth, it would be beller to adopt Ibe term. i,,1Mior aud
'232 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
The pt'riod of VenUll'. Iynodical revolution, is found in the same iDaD-
net 88 that of Mercury; namely, by dividing the whole circumference of
her orbit by her mean relatiw: motion in a day. ThUll, VenUll's abBoiute
mean ,daily motion, is 1
0
86'7".S, the if 69' and their
dilfereuce 36' 69".6. Divide 3600 by 86' 69".6, and 'it gives 683.920;
or nearly 684 days, fill' V mus's synodical revolution, 111 the period in
which abe is twice in cenjunctioo with the IlIlrth. '
Venus pasBes froRl inrenor to ber conjDnction in
about 290J days. At her inferior conjunction, she is i6,OOO,OOO of
miles from the earth; at her superior conjunction, 164,000,000
of miles.
It might be expected that ber brilliancy would be proportion-
ally increased, iD the case, and diminished, in the other; and
so it would be, were it not that her enlightened hemisphere is
turned more and more from DS, as she the earth, and
comes more and more into view as sbe recedes from it. It is to
this cause alone tbat we must attributfl the uniformity of ber
splendor as it usually appears to the naked eye.
Mercury and Venus present to us, successively, tbe varioDs
shapes and appearances of the moon; waxing and waning
through different pha8e8, from tbe beaDtifUl crescent to tbe full
rounded orb. This fact ahows, tbat they revolve around the
8un, and between the sun and the eartb. Let the pupil endeavor
to explain thele phaees on any other suppoaition, and he will be
convinced that the system of Ptolemy ia enoneous, wbile that
of Copernicua ia confirmed.
It should be remarked. however, that Venul is never _ wben she is
entirely full, except once or twice in a century, when she JlIIM5 directly
over the sun'. disk. At every other conjunction, abe is either behind tile
sun, or so near him 88 to be hidden by the splendor of his light.
From ber inferior to ber auperior conjunction, Venus appeall
on the west side of the aun, and is tben our morning star; from
ber superior to her inferior conjunction ahe appears on tbe east
side of the aun, and is tben our evening star.
Like Mercury, she sometimes seems to be stationary. Her
apparent motion, like his, is sometimes rapid; at one time,
direct, and at another, retrograde..; vibrating alterriatelv back.
wards and forwards, from west to east, and from east to west.
These vibrations appear to extend from 45 to 47, on each side
of the sun. '
Consequently abe never appears in the eastern borizon, more than
three hours befi>re sunrise, nor continues longer in the western horizon,
after sunset. A ny star nr planet, therefore, however brilliant it may ap-
pear. which is seen earlier or later than this, cannot be VenUll.
VENUS.
I
. In paNing from her western to her eastern elongation; ber
motion i. from we.t to east. in tile ",.tIer rf'lIe .ip I it is !.hentie
called dirtt:' motion. In paNing from her eastern to her w88terD
elongation. her motion with respect to !.he earth, i. from east to
west, COfIJrary to the order of !.he signs; it is !.hence denominated
retrograde motion. Her motion appears quickest about the time
of her conjunctiona. and she _ma stationary, at her elonga-
tions. She is brightest about thirty.six days before and after
her inferior conjunction. when her light i. so great as to projeel
a visible shadow in the night, and sometimes she is visible eveD
at nooHay.
DIRKCT .urn UTII08UDK MOTIOK.
fa the forqoi .... linre, the outer circle repre ... nta the eanh'a orbit. and the
inner circle, Ihatof V"nue, while abe movea around the aun. in the order o{Ihe
lenera ... b. c, tl, &e. Wben Vellua ia at ... Ihe il in ber inferior conjunction,
belWp.en the earth and lun; and il in a situation umiler to that of lhtl moon al
ber chanp, being tben invilible, becau ... her dark is towards the
earth. At c, abe. appeara half enlightened to the earth. Ioke the moon in her
Ir.t quarter; at d, she appears almolt full, her enlightened aide being then
almoat directly towards llie earth; at . Ihe is in her luperlor conjunction. and
would appear quite full, sbe not dirtctly hAillil Ibe aun, or 00 near him
.. to be bIdden by tbe Iplendor of hia light; atf, ahe appears to be on the de-
ere .... ; and at 6, only half enlightened, like tbe moon in her laBt quarter i .tn,
abe diIBppeara again between the earth and the ann. I .. moving from 6 to ..
Me _rna to go """""'.... in the he. vena, beeau ... ahe movea contrary to the
order of the aigna. In torni .... the arc of the circle from retrograde to direct
motion, or from direct to retrograde) ahe appea,. nearlT atation&ry for a fe ...
oIafs i l>"c81118, in the former c ..... aDe ia goiDg almoat cliJeetly j'rrJIA the earth,
v2
234 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
and ill lhe latter coming 111-* iL As she describes a Dinah la'll"r portion
or her orbit in SOing from to " than from, to c, she appears much lonll"f
dir-cl Ihan retrograde. At a melLD rate, her relrorrada1ionl are accomplialled
in fonytwo daYI.
Ifthe orbit or Venus lay exactly in the plane of the earth's
orbit, she would pass centrally ailross the sun's disk, like a dark
round lipot. at e'f'fl1 inferior conjunction; but as one half of hf!r
orbit lies about 31 abo'f'e the ecliptic, and the other half as far
below it, she will always J?ass the sun a very little abo'f'e or
below it, except when her lDferior conjunction happens in, or
. near. one of ber nodes; in which case she will make a transit.
This phenomenon, thf!refore, is of 'f'ery rare CK'oCurrence: it
can happen only twioe ill a eentury; because it IS only twice in
that time that any number of complete revolutions or Venus, are
just or nearly equal to a certain number or the earth's revol.u tions.
The principle which W8I i1lutrat.ed in predicting the &ranIIita of Mercmy
spplies equally wen to thoae of Venus; that is, we must find such seIII
of numbers, (representing complete revolutions of the earth and Venus).
as shall be to each other in the ratio of theit periodical times, pr as 365.266
is to 224.7. - Thus; the motion of Venus, in one Julian year, ill
11106591".62. that of the earth fpr the same period being h9627"'45,
the ratio will be HUtV".H. A. the two terms ofthia fraction cannot
be reduced by a common divlaor, we must multiply them by BUch num-
bers as will make one a multiple of the other; accordingly, thirteen tinIIlII
tbe denominator.will be nearly equal to eight times the numerator; and
475 times the denominator will equal 291 times the numerator.
By combining these two periods and their multiples by addition and
aubtrsction, we shall obtain the period of aU the transits that have ever
happened. ThUll: 291--8X7-235. another period; and 291-6Xe
=243. another period. and 10 on. Whence we find that,
8 periodical revolutions of the earth, sre equal to 13 ofVenuL
2311 periodical revolutions of the earth, are equal to 382 of Venus.
243 periodical revolutions of the earth, are equal to 395 of Venus.
211 I periodical revolutions of the earth, are equal to 408 of Venu
291 periodical revolutions.of the earth, sre equal to 476 of Venus.
Hence a transit of Venus may happen at the IIIIJII8 node. after an in-
terval of eight years; but if- it do not happen then, it cannot take place
again. at the same node, in Ie88 than 236 yesra. The orbit of Venus
Cl'0II8ea the ecliptic near the middle of Gemini and Sagittarius; and these
points mark the position of her nodes. At present her ascending node is
m the 14th degree of Gemini, and her descending node, in the same
degree of Sagittarius.
The earth passes her ascending node in the be-ginning of
December, and her descending node. in the beginning of June.
Hence, the transits of VellUS, for ages to "ome, will happen in
December and June. The first transit ever known to have been
Been by any homan being, took plaee at the ascending uode,
rHE SOLAR
. ' .. '
23b
December 4th,!639.. leto this date; we .add 235 years, we
Bhall have the time of the next transit at the 'liamenode, which
will accord!ngly happen in 1874. There will another at the
Bame node In 1882, eight years afterwarda. It IS not more cer-
tain tbat this phenomenon will recur, than that the event itself
w ill engross the attention of all the astronomers then living
upon tbe earth. It will be anticipated, and provided for, and
observed, in every inhabited quarter of the globe, with an in-
tensity of solicitude which no natursl phenomenon since the
creation, has ever excited. "
Thfl reason why a transit of Venus should excite so great an
interest, is, because it may be expected t,o sol ve an important
problem in astronomy, which has never yet been satisfactorily
done:_ problem whose solution wi\) make known to us the
lIlagnitudes and masses of all the planets, the true dimensiona
of their orbits, their rates of motion around the Bun, arid their
respective distances from the Bon, and from each other. b may
be expected, in short, to furnish a universal standard of astro-
nomical measure. Another consideration will render the oh-
servation of tbis transit peculiarly favorable; and tltat is,
astronomers will be supplied with better instruments, and more
lICCurate means of obll8rvstioD, than on former ocoaaion.
This pheaomenoa was In. witneued by HoMOz, a yoang genlleman aboat
yean of age livingl in an obscure village fifteea mile. north of
Liverpool. The tablel ol Kepler, conllruCled upon llie oboervalionl of Tycho
Drabe, indicated a lranlil of Venul in utll. bUI aone WBI oboerved. Horroz,
withoul much Blliltanee from boob and .nllrnmenlll, leI himoelf 10 inquire
inlO the error of the lable., and found thai oaeh a I!henomenoa mighl be ez-
pecled 10 happea in 1639. He repealed hil calcwauonl daring thil inlerval,
with 'all the cafefulnell and enlhulium of a echolar ambiliDul of being the
Irst 10 prediCI and ob .. rve a celeltial phenomenon, which, from the creation
oflhe world, had never been wilnelled. Confidenl of Ihe reoall, he communi-
caled hil e:.:pecled lriumph 10 a confidential friend residing in Mancheller, and
delired him 10 walch tilr the evenl, and to take ob .. rvation.. 80 anltioul WBI
Borroz DOl 10 fail ofwitneuiDg il himoelf,lhal he COJ1Imenced hiB oblervallonl
the day before il was ezpecte<f, and reBamed them al the rilinr of Ibe Ion 00
the morrow. Bul the "'" "tIUf' when his calcnlationl led hiin 10 ezpecl Ihe
yiaible appearance of Venus upon the lun'l dilk. """' ."" /he 1IJII'Oi""" hour
fiw /he 1IUblu. tIIOJ'IAip 'II GoD ... /he 8GoIIIlGM. The delay of a- few minules
mighl Deprive him forever of an opponunilY of oblerving the tranlil. If itl
yery commeacemeat were nol aoticed, cloudl millhl interven., and conceal it
9I1tillhe lun lliould 181: and nearly a cenlury ana a half would elaple betilre
another 0p\K>rtunity would occur. He had been wailing tilr the evenl with th"
Iboal ardenl anticipation tilr eight yearo, and the ... ull promiled lIIuch benefil
10 the ocience. .u lliu, III1mtz 1Ieiec....,.....,." Au oN"""';""',
.. ntl.wit:e rep ..... 10 1ft. """". God,the Greal Aothor of Ihe b' I worldl he
delighted 10 conlemplale. en h.B duty WBI IItnI perform:t and he bad
relurned 10 hi. chamber,lhe oecond time! hiB love of oeieace was rratiAed with
fnil BUCcellj and he law whal no mortal eye had ob .. rved before !
Ii any Ihinr can add inlerell 10 \hiB incidenl, it illhe modeBly with which
the yoong Bllronomer apolDlrizes 10 the world, tilr ",.....u ... hil oblelvBtionl
at all
I observed il," oayl he
t
" from IUUri ... till nine o'clock, agaia a little betilre
len, and IBllly al noon, anC! from one 10 Iwo o'clock; Ihe rell oilhe day beina
devoted 10 higher dutie .. wblch mipl nol be aeglected for theI8 putimea.-
236 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
So important, aay. Sir John He1'8Chel, have these obaenationa appeated
to utronomell, that at the last transit of Venus, in 1769, etpeditioDB _
fitted out, on the most efficient acale, by the British, French. RIIfIIian, and
other governments, to the remotest corners of the globe, for the
'purpoee of making them. 'fbe celebrated expedition of Captain Cook 110
Otaheite, WIllI one of them. The general result of all the observations
III8de on this IIlOIlt memorable' OIlC8IIion, giveS for the BUD'.
horizontal parallax.
The phenomena of the Beasons, of each of tbe planete, like
those of the earth, depend' upon the inclination of the axiB of
the planet. to the plane of ils orbiL The inclination of the axis
of V f'nUB to the plane of her orbit, though Dot precisely known,
iB commonly estimated at 75: 'wbich is more than tbree times
as great as the inclination of the eartb's axis to the plane of the
ecliptic., The north pole of Venus'R axis inclines towards the
SlOth degree' of Aq uarlUII; the eartb's, towards the beginning of
Cancer; consequently, the northern parts of Venus bave summer
in tbe signs where those of the earth have winter, and vice versa.
The declination of the sun on each side of her equator, must
be equal to the inclination of ber axis; and if this extends to
'15, her tropics are only 15 from her poles, and her polar
circles 15 from her eq uator. It follows, also, that the sun
must change his declination more in one day at Venus, than in
fi,ve days on the earth; and consequently, tbat he never shines
vertically on the same places for two days in succellsion. This
may perhaps be providentially ordered, to pre,vent too great effect
of tbe sun's heat, which, on the supposition that it is in inverse
proportion to the square flf the distance, is twice as great on this
planet as it is on the earth. . .
At each pole, 'the sun nontinues half a year. without setting
in .,ummer, and as long without rising in winter; consequently,
the polar inhabitants of Venus, like those of the earth, have only
one day and one night in the year; with this difference, that the
polar days and nights of Venus are not quite two-thirds as long
as ours,
Between ber polar circles, which are but 15 from her f>quator.
there are two winters, two summers, two springs, and two
autumns, every year. But because the sun stays for some time
near 'the tropics, and pasHes BO quickly over the equator, the
winters in tbat zone will be almosl twice as long as the
summers.
When viewed through a good telescope, Venus exhibits not
only all the moon-like phases of Mercury, but al80 a variety of
inequalities on her, snrface; dark spots, and brilliant shades,
bills, and valleys, and elevated mountains. But on account of
8That ia, MV 'II v".",',,-, or aiXIeeD week .. ,
VENU8.
237
the great density of her atmosphere, these inequalities are per-
. ceived with more diJIiculty than those upon the other planets.
The mountains of Venus, like those of Mercury and the moon.
are highest in the southern hemisphere. Aeeording to M.
Schroeter, a celebrated German astronomer, who spent more
than ten yeare in observation upon this planet. some of her
mountains rise to the enormous hight o( from ten to twenty-two
miles. The observations of Dr. Hersehel do not indioate so
great an altitude; and he thinks, that in general they are con-
Biderabll overrated. He estimates the diameter of Venus at
8,649 miles; making ber bulk more than one-aixth larger than
that of the esrtb. Several eminent astronomere affirm, that they
have repeatedly Been Venus attended by Il satellite, and they
have given circumstantial dataila of ita size and ita
periodical revolutiou and ita distance from her. It ia said to re-
eemble our moon in ita phases, ita distance, and ita magnitude.
Other astronomers deny the existence of such a body. becaus8
it was not seen with Venus ,ou the sun's disk, at the transits of
1761, and 1769.
The general elememe ohbis planet (or the epoch lat January.
1801, are as follows: . ,
,Mean sidereal revolution, 224 d. 16 b. 49 m. 081.00
Mean synodical revolution in BOlar day.. - 683.92
Mean'longitude, - - - 11
0
33' 03".110
Mean daily motion in orbit, 1 36 07 .80
, Longitude of perihelion, 128 43 63 .10
W. motion ofapaides per annum, " ' 02 .70
E. .. .. referred to the ecliptic, 47 .40
Inclination of orbit, 8 sa 28 .6
increue of do., 00 .6
Longitude of ucending node, 74 64 12 .9
W. motion of do. per annum, 17 .6'
E. .. "referred to the ecliptic, - 32 .5
Eccentricity of orbit, half maj. axis 88 unity, ' 0.00686074
.Decrease of do. in a century, 0.000062711
Greatest equation of center, 47' 10".00
Annual decreue of do., 00 .25
Rotation on axis, 23 b. 21 m. 07s.2
Mean apparent diameter, - 16".9
Diameter at superior conjunction, (I" .6
Diameter at inferior conjunction, l' 0 I ".2
True diameter (7700 miles) earth'. 88 unity, - o. r,7e
Volume earth'. ft. unity. 0.927
)fa. suo's 88 unity, - - O.o0000246:i8
Mean from the sun, (611,000,000 miles). earth'.? 0.723:1316
88 UDlty. 5,
let, I!U16 mile. j lid, 18.9'7 mile. j 3d, 11.44 mile. j 4th, 10.84 mile
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
THE EARTH.
Tn earth is the place from whicb all our observations of the
beavenly bodies must necessarily be made. The mo-
tions of these bodies being very considerably sffected by her
figure. motions, and dimensions, these bold an important place
in astronomical Icience. It will, therefore, be proper to consider,
fint, some of the methods by whicb tbey bave been determined.
If, atanding on the sea-shore, in a clear day, we view a Ihip
leaving the coast, in any direeiion, Ute bull, or body of tbe ves-
sel, lint disappean; afterward the rigging, and, lastly, the top
of the mut vanishes .from our sight. Those on board tbe ship
observe that the coast lirst linka below .the horizon, then tha
buildings, and, lutly, the tallest spirea of the city, which they
are lesving. Now these phenomena are evidently caused by
the convuity of the water which is between the eye and the
object; for, were the surface of the _ merely an extended
plain, the largest objectd would be viaible the longest, and the
amallest disappear fint. -
Again, navlpton have aailed quite around the earth, and thus
proved ita convexity.
Fentinaud Mage1Ian, a Portug\Jee, _ the ftnd who carried this eo-
terprise into execution. He embarked from Beville, in Spain, and
ted biB courae toward the west. .After a long voyage, he descried the
ClOIItinent of America. Nat finding an to enable him to continue
Ilia courae in a W8IIterly direction, be aaiIed along the coast toward the
1OUth, until, coming to ita IOUthem extremity, be aaiIed vound it, and
found himIeIf in the great Southern Ocean. He then reawned his COJII8B
toward the weal After aome time, be arrived at the Molucca Islands, in
the EfJlltem HemirpAere; and, BBiling continually toward the west, be
made Europe from the eut,-anmng at the place from which he set out.
The next who circumnavigated the earth, 11'88 Sir Francia Drake, who
ailed from Plymouth, December 13, 1677, with five smaIl veasels, and
arrived at the _ place, September 26,1680. Since that time, the
cireumnavigation of the earth baa been perlimned by Cavendish, Uord.,.,
N oort, Sharten, Heremitea, Dampier, Woodea, Rogers, Sehovten, Rogge-
.-ill, Lord AII8OII, Byron. Carteret, Wa\Iia, BouP,inville, Cook, KiDg.
Clerk. Vaneouver, and many otbeJa.
Magellan I&Iled 110m Se"iIIe. in Spain, Auguat 10, 1519, in a ahip called tile
Victory) accompanied by four olher "e .... I . 1n April. ISIll, he _a killed in
a .kirm,ah with Ibe nauve., al Ihe i.land of &lite. or Uv, 80metimea called
Malan, one or Ibe Philippine.. One of hia ve_l., however. arrived at 8t.
J Ilcar, near Seville, 7. 11!119.
THE EARTH.
These navigatore, by Bailing in a westerly direction, allow-
ance being made for promontories, &0., arrived at the country
they Baileil from. Hence, the earth muat be either cylindrical
or globular. It cannot be cylindrical, beQause,' if BO, the meri-
dian distances would all be equal to each other, which is COB-
trary to observation. The figure of the earth is, therefore,
.pherical.' "
The convexity of the earth, north and BOUth, is, proved by the
altitude of the pole, and of the circumpolar stare, which is
found uniformly to increase aa we approach them, while the in-
clination to the horizon, of the circles described by all the stara,
gradually While proceeding in a southerly dire.,.
tion, tbe reveree of this takes place. The altitude of the pole,
and of the circumpolar stare, continually decreaBes; and all the
stare describe circles whOle inclination to the horizon increases
with the distance. Whence we derive thiB general truth: TIN
altifude 'I. 0fIe pole, and tIN depreNion rf tIN otlNr, at any place OR
the earth , iB equal to lIN latitude rf that place.
Another proof of the convexity of tbe earth's surface ia, that
the higher the eye ia raised, the furtber is the view extended.
An obaerver may Bee the Betting SUD from the top of a house, or
any cODsiderable emhience, after he haa cealed to be visible to
those below.
The eurvatale of the earth for one mile is eight inches; and this cUr.
vature inc:re&E8 with the aquare of the distance. From this general law,
it will be easy to the distance at which any oi!ject, whoeehight
is given, may be -. or to determine the bight of an object, when the
,
1. To find the bight of an ol!iect when the distsace is given.
RULK. Find tIN MJ1.II1In of dW_ in mi/u, and talu two-tAiTd8
of that number for tIN higlat in fed.
Ell. 1. How high muat the eye of an obaerver be raised, to 888 the
IIUIface of the ocean, at the distance of 3 miles ! ,Ana. The square of 3
feet is 9 feet, and f of 9 feet is 6 k
Ell. 2. Suppose a penon can juat 888 the top of a spire, over an ell-
tended plain of 10 miles, how high is the ateeplel .Am. 'fhe square of
lOis 100, and ., of 100 is 661 feet.
2. To find the distance when the bight is given.
Run. Itu:rea.e tIN h!gh/, in fed 0M-h0Jj, and tIN MjfM1I"t root,
tIN rli8tan, in miIi6.
Ex. 1. How filr can a penon 888 the IIIU'fiIce of It plaintowhoae eye is
elevated 6 feet above it! .AM. 6, increased by ita is 9, and the
square root of 9 is :I: the distance is, then, 3 mil ...
Ell. 2. To what distance can a penon 888 a light-bouae wboee hight ill
96 feet &om the level of the ocean ! ,Ana. 96, increased ita ill
1, and the square root of 1 is 12: the distanceia, therefOre, 121Oilea.
3. To find the cumature of the earth when it exceeds a mile.
RULL Multiply the MjfM1I"t olllie dW_ by .000126.
240 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS .
Although it appears. from the preceding. facts. that the earth
is spherical. yet it is not a perfect sphell!. lC it were, the length
of the degrees of latitude. flom the equator to the poles, would
be uniformly tbe same; but it has heen found, by tbe most care-
ful . measurement, that, as we go from the equator toward the
pole8, the length increiJlu with the latitude.
TheIle measurements have been made by the IDOIIt eminent mathemll-
ticiaos of di8innt counIriee, _ in varioua pWiea, from the equator to
the arclil; circle. They have found that a ,degree of latitude at the aretic
circle WIUI nine 3i:.cIeentluJ of a . mile longer than a degne at the equator.
and that the ratio of inc:resse, Cor the ink!rmediate WIllI nearly
the squares of the sines of the latit]l@. Thus the theory of Sir ...
Newton WIUI confirmed, that the bod)' of the earth was more rounded
and convex between the tropics,. but. C9l18iderably ftattened toward tbe
poles.
ol.':::J!... lAIiIi..r.. i or-......
Peru, Equator j 68.732 Bouguer,
Pennsylvania, 390 12' 00" N. 68.896 M8IIOIl and Dixon,
Its1y, 43 01 00 ..i 68.898 Boeoovieh and LemsUe
France, 46 00 00 . I 6JMIM Delambre and Mechain
England, 51 29 Ii4I 69.146 Mudge,
Sweden. 66 20 10 69.292 Swamberg.
These measurements tbe earth to be an oblate .pl&eroitl,
whose longest or equ'tonal diameter i. 7924 milea, and the p0-
lar diameter. 7898 mil8ll. The mean diameter is. therefore,
about 7911. and their di1rerenee 26 miles. The French Academy
have determined that the mean diameter of the earth. from the
45th degree of north latitude. to the opposite degree of south la-
titude. is, tJCetWGtelY. 7919 miles. .
If !be earth were an exact sphere, ita diameIP.r mipl Fig 10 .
be determined by ita curvature, from a lin,le mea.ure- A B
menl. Tbn .. in the adjoininK Ipre. _ bave A B equal CllJ' D
to 1 mile, and B D equill to 8 incbe .. t.o find A or B Eo
which doe. nol oenliblf dill'er from A Eo lillce B D i.
only 8 inch.... Now, illl a pro{'O"ilion of Euclid, (B. 3,
prop. 38,) that, wben, from a poml wilhoul a circle, IWO
Iinel be drawn, one cutting and the other touching it, the .
line AI i. a mean proportioDal between the
ine ( EI and thaI part of it (B DI without the
B D: B A:: B A: BEor A Every nearly.
That il. I mile beiD equal to 63380 !nchel. E
8 : 63300 : ,63300 : 501811110 incbes. or 79UO mil ....
This is nearly what the ID08C elaborate ealculatioDB make the
earth's equatorial diameter.
The earth, conaidered as .a/lanet, occupies a favored rank in
the solar system. It plesse the all wise Creator to assign ita
poailion 8IJlong the heavenly bodies where nearly all the sisll'r
planets are visible to the naked eye. It is situated neXI 10
Venua, aDd is the third planet from the SIlD.
241
To the IICboIar who, for the lint time, taItea up a book 0Jl 1IIItronom1.
will doubt "Z?F?Fge md th" "?Frth ?FiSn the d:avekk&n
n"::,,llies. kk'or Wm" can "}dleBJ' un lin" th"" s"e wi", f,,;r
and seemingly immeasurable extent, and the stars, which appear but 118

change of place, as we view them at dilferellt hoUrs of the day or night,
or at dUli!rent __ of the year. '
It f"""es f'",md sun, ]'fOm ",est tQ }Ist, in 36n "aYI, 5
hours, 48 minutes. and 48 Becond" ; 'and turna. the same way,
its "dis, in ho"'14,56 m!kkutef"kknd 4 14",00"", '1'&'14 form"f
call'''l its ,fw,nual t14otiot" 14nd ""kkBeI t"e vicilsitudes of the
season8. The latter i8 called ita diurtUli motion, Iliid produces
8U""14t8iokk 14f da,1 14nd
The ",ean di"tan"" she sun i8 ahQUt 95,000,000
'of miles; it, consequflntly, moves in its orbit at the mean rete of
hd,OOO "ilAS hd"t, It" equr;t,;,rial diamew,,,r 79h,h
miles, turn" ;,n its uis at the rate of ltt40 miles an hour.
Thus, the earth, on which 1\'e stand, and which hal 8enred
aa"" ',;1 th" ;mshw,k"n {o,mdatioo rEf th:: firm::::: Itrueturss.
i evp.ry moment rurning swiftly on its center, and, at the same
time, moving onward with great rapidity through the empty
"t'ace.
, This compound motion il to be understood of tbe wlwk eariJa,
with all that it holds within it8lubstance, or sustains, upon ita
"mrfact;-->{)f lolid mast of tht; oem'Ll: whier:
around it, of the air that rl'sts upon and of the clouds which
float abovA it in the air.
Th;:; the kk';rth. comm::n with !Ill tr:e plEi;:ets, ,,,volvffi
around the sun as a center, is a fact which resta upon the clear-
est demonstrations of philosophy. That it revolves, like them,
d+,on own t,tis. it t tru,h ,,;hicr: every titing tttd seHi"g Sttt
iIlulltrates, and which very many phenomena concur to establish.
the earth around its axis every tJu
,;tttvertft movr;t aro,mrr It thA tm",. r ""re IS thlttil
opinion that can be formed on this point. Either the earth must
revolvA on its axis Avery 24 bours, to produce the alternate, SU,,=
,:ftSSiM' r,f dc'+, and ,fight, tht fLUn, mOOD, ,l"nets, tt,met"
fixed stars, and tbe whole freme of the uDivers!! itself, mUlt
movl' around the earth, in the same time, To thtt
!%tUer ;ttt,e tit r,e thft fact, ;t"tJuld to a "n tittil
wisdom of the Surreme Architect, whose laws are universal
harmony. As wei might the beetle, that in a moment t"ms
baH, ima"ine tht, r:eave;tEi aDd ea,,+' bad made
in the same It evident, that iD proportion to
distance of the celesual bod II'S from the earth, musi, t'D thAd
,mPPOtiiion, ilie "',pidity their mOvetdDts. The thett,
W
242 GEOGIlAPIIY OF 'l'IIE IlEA VD8.
woold moyeat the Jate of more tIwa roar hundred thousand mil.
in a minute; the DRrest B1ara, at the iDconcei .... ble velocity of
foorteen bundred milliOO8 of miletl ia a ___ ; ;mel the moet
distant luminaries., with a degree of .wiftness whicb DO numben
coold eJ:preu._d aU this to saTe tbe little globe we tread
opon from turning .fely OD hs uia 0_ ia M hCRDII.
The idea of Ibe heaveDtl revolriDg about die earda, ia eucom-
bprPd with innumerable other difficulties. We will meDtion
only 008 more. It is e81;imated on iood authority, that there
are risible, by __ c( gIaaaea. DO leIIII than one ItvndrctJ
.. Ili_ tf.,.., ICaUered at all poeaible diataDces in the beaRDS
above. beaeath, and around 118. Now. ia it in the least degree
probable, that the velocitietl of all th_ bodiea should be 80
,..golated. tha&, thoogh deacribing circlea so very diff'ereDt In
dim_ions, they .hootd complete their reYolutioD8 in enctly
the lame 1ime'
In short, there is DO more reaSOD to suppose that the heaRDS
r ~ v o l v e around the earth, thaa there is to 10Ppose that they
revoln around each of the other plaDell, separately, and at the
BalD& time; linee the same apparent revoluaoD is common liD
them all, for they all appear to revolve UPOD their axea, in
differeDt period ..
The rotatiOD of the earth determiDel the length of the day,
and may be regarded as ODe of the mOlt importaDt elementl iD
astronomical science. It serves as a uDivenai measure of time,
and forms the .tlDdard of comparisOD for the revolutioD of the
celetltial bodi8l, for all ages, past and to conie. Theory allll
observation CODcur in proving. that among the iDDumerabfe
vici.simdee that prevail throughout ereatioD, the period of tbe
earth'l diumat rotltion i. immutable.
The earth performs one complete revolutioD OD itl WI in
. 23 boun, 56 minuteB, and 4.09 secoDds, of lolar time. This is
called a ~ day. bl!('1luse, iD that time, the ltan appear to
complete ODe revolutioD Iround the eartb.
But as the earth advancee almOlt a degree ealtward iD im
orbit, iD lbe time tbat it tllrDl eutward arollnd itl axia, it i.
plain that jU11 ODe rotatioD Dever briDgs the lame meridian
arouDd from the lun to th(\ IUD agaiD; so that the earth r&o
quires as moch more than one comprete revolutioD OD itl nis to
complete a lOW day. as it bas gODe forward iD tbat time.
Hence in every natural or 101ar day, the earth performs one
complete revolution OD its axis, and the 365thpart of another
revolution. Consequently, in 365 dayl, the earth tuma 366
timel around itl axis. And as every revollltioD of the earth OD
itl axis completes a sidereal day. there mllSI be 366 sidel'f'lll
daya iD a year. And. gt'nerally, since the rotation oCany planE't
about itl axis il tbe leDgth of a sidereal day at that planet, the
THe EARTH
. number of sidereal day. will always exceed &he number of solII'
days, by one, let thllt number be wbatit may, one revolution
being lost in tbe course of lin annual revolution. Tbis difference
between the sidereal and solar days may be Uh,lstrated by
referring to a watch or clock. When botb hands eet out to-
getber, at 12 o'clock for instance, the minDte band muat trav!'l
more tban a wbole circle before it will overtake &he hour hand,
tbat is, before they will come into conjunction again.
In tbe same manner, if' a man travel around the earth. east-
wardly, no matter in what time, be will reckon one day more,
on his arrival at the place whence he aet out, than they do who
remain at rest; while tbe man who travel a around the earlll
fDeatwardly will have one day Ie... From whieh it is
that, if two persona start from the same at the same time,
but go in contrary directiona, the one traveling eaatward and
other westward, and eacb goes completely around the
although they ahould both arrive again at tbe v.ery same bour
at the same place from wbicb I.bey let out, yet Ihey will dill-
gree two whole days in their reckoning. Should the day of
their return, to tbe man who traveled westwardly, be Monday,
to t.he man who traveled it be
wbJle to those who remalDed at tbe place' Itself, It would, be
Tuesday.
Nor ia it neceeaary, in order to produce the gain or los8 of a
day, that the journey be performed either on tbe equator, or on
any parallel of latitude; It is sufficient for the purpose, that all
tbe meridians.of the eartb be passed through, ea8tward or west-
ward. The time, al80, occupied in the journey, is equally
unimportant; the gain or 108s of a day being tbe same, whetber
the eartb be traveled around in 24 years, or in as many bours.
h is al80 evident, tbat if the eartb turned around its axia
but once in a year, and if the revolution waa performed tbe
aame way a8 its revolution around tbe aun, there would be per-
petual day on one aide of. it, and perpetual night on the other.
From tbeae &eta the pupil will readily comprehend the principles in-
volved . in a curious problem which appeared a few ylllml ago: It W8I
gravely reported an American IIhip, that, in sailing over the ocean, it
chanced to find /lIZ Sundays in F elwulJry. The jw:t W88 insisted on,
and a solution demanded. -There is nothing abaurcl in this.-The man
who travels around the earth, eastwardly. will _ tbe sun go down 8
IiUle earlier every succeeding day, than if he bad remained at rest; or
earlier lhan they do who live at the place from which he let out. The
fuller he travels toward the rising sun, the sooner will it appear above the
horizon in the morning, 110 much the sooner will it set in the evening.
What he thUII in time, win bear the aame proportion to a solar dHY.
88 the distance traveled does to the' circumference of the earth.-A. the
Fobe is 3600 in circumference, the sun will appear to move over one
PU4 GEOGRAPHY OF ',.HE HEAn;!"!!.
t.rent:Y-bIrth put m ita '8Ulface, or 14
0
every hour, which is four
minutes to otAe ,the IUD will rise, come to the
meridian, and set, INr minutes BOOner,,, a pLace 10 east of us, than iI
"ill with ua; al .. clilltance of 20, the BUD will rUe and IBl eight min-
utes aocmar; altlle cIiBtIplce of a.o, twelve minutes BOOner, and 80 on.
Nqw tho! man who t .. "els one degree to U1e eaR, the lint day, wi.
have the .. un on bii lDeridian four minutea BOODeI' than we do who ...
at rest; Hnd the aecond day, eight minutea BOO'-, and on the third .y,
twelve .minutea aooner, and 80 on; each lucte..aive, dal being compleltd
i>ur minutes earlM-l' than the I'l'I'ceding, until he amvea again at the
place from which he etarted; w hen this ,,,-'D1inual gain of four minu ....
a day will have amounted to a whole day in advcmce of our timr; he
having "'en the SUn rUe and Bet once more than we have. Coosequently,
U1e day on Which he at holDf', day of the wet'k it may
be, is one day in ad'varice of 0Ul'B, and he must needs li"e that o,'er
.m. by calling that day by the same name, in order to make the
IIIlCOWlta hannoniIIr. '
If this eboold be the last day of Pebnmry in a biMenile year, it would
aJ.o be the __ day of the week that U1e Jir81 was, and be six timea
repeated; and if it ahould happen on Sunday, be would, under th_
cin:umtltlDcee, have .u in Pehruuy. ,
Again :-Wh __ the man who trayel. at lhe rate or one degreP to the
eut, will all biB daye four minutes Mort". tbaD oum, St.,' on the
contrary, the man who travels at the same rate toward the 'W"', will
ha\'8 all biB day. four minutea longer than 01lI'l, When he hu,finisbed
the circuit of U1e earth and arrived at the pL&ce iiom whirh he &st .. ,
oUt, be will have eeen the .un rUe and IBl onee _ than we have.
Comequently, the day he Fte home will be om day aft". the lillie of
that place: tOr which reuon,'if he amvee at home OD Saturday, actordo
ing to biB own account, he will have to call the next day Monday;
Sunday having gone by before he reached home. Thus, on whatever
day of the week JlIIluary should end, in commOD yeam, he would find
the __ day repeated only three timeII in Pebruary. It JlIIluary ended
OIl Sunday, he 'Would, under these cireumBlaDcea, find OIlly three &.
day. in Ftbruory. "
The earth's motion about its axis being perfectly equable and
lIIiform in e"fery part of its annual revolution, the sidereal, day.
are always of the .ame length, but the solar or natural day.
rarr very considerably at dltrerent times of the year. This
fllnation is owing to two distinct causes: the inclination of the
earth's axis to its orbit, and the inequality of its motion around
41e Bun. Prom these two causes it is, that the time ,shown by
well regulated clock, and that of a true sun-dial, are Bcarcely
,v .. r the same. The difference between them, which sometimllll
.Dlounts to minutes, is called the Equation rf Time, or the
"'iuation of solar days.
The difterence between _ and apparent time, or, in oUier word.,
Ifltween Equinoctial and Ediptil; may be further Ihown by the
245
Igure which repeaiuta the circle.of the &pbere. Let it be fiJBt premieed,
that tquinodial time is clock time; and that ecliptic ti me i, IIOIar or
apparent time. It appears that from Aries to Cancer, the SUD in the
ecliptic comes to the meridian before the equinoctial ."n; from CIUlCt'T
to Libra, after it; from Libra to Caprlcl.m be/we it; alld lrom Capricorn
to .-\ riN, after it. J f we what months the SUD.is in these oevenll
quarter&, we ehall 6nd that Ii'Om the of lJect'mher to the I lith of
April, and from the 16th of June to the lilt of September, the clock I.
fa.tUr than the lIIJIlodial; and that, from the 1 Ath of April to the 16th of
lune, and from the 1 lit of September to the 26th of Decemher, tbe "'No
dial is futer than the clock. .
EQUATION C!r TIME.
If
..
It is a universal fact, that, while nona of the planets are
perfect spheres. none of their orbits are perfect circles. The
planets all revolve about the sun. in ellipses of different deIJreea
of eccentricity; having the Bun, not in the center of the elhpse,
t, Ilt in one of its foci.
The figure AD B E is an",...,. Tbe line
A B i. called the trans.ene axis, and the
line drawn tbrougb the middle of this line,
and perpendicular to it, i. tbe conjDgate
axis. The point C. tbe middlr. of the Iran ..
B
verle axi .. \I tbe .... ,.,. of the ellipse. Tbe
A...L-_,...---C>--t""-t points F and f, equallr distant from C, are
called the fori. C F, the distance from tbe
eenter to one of the foci, is called the eccen-
tricity. The orbito of the plaueto beinl( el.
Ii ...... having the lun in one of the foCI, If
A B DEbe the orbit of a planet, with the
IU 10 the foelJ.l F, when the planet it ..
w2
246 GEOGRAPHY OF TJlE HEAVENS.
tIIe poiat A, it will be.m ile ,.;Aolioit, Or _ the _ j and .... lien lit tJie
point B, in ita qAJiool, e>r at ita greatelt diatance tiom the lall. The dil'el'8llat
in theoe ,liltancel il evidently equal to F f, tbat iL equal to twice tbe ecC811-
tricity o( ita orbit. In evel'J revolation, a planet paaoe. through ill perihelioD
and aphelion. The eccentricity of tbe eartb'l orbit i. about one and a half
millionl of milel: hence Ihe is three millionll of mile. Bearer the aun in hot
than in her aphelion.
Now, all Ihe lun remains fixed in the (OCUI of the earth'l orbit. it iI
.uy 10 pareeiTe that a line. paRling centrall)" through the lIun at right angle,
with the lon .... r axil o( the orbit. will divide it illto two \uleqnal aegrnenlL
PrteUtl, fA'" U .. divi40tJ ." tAr .. inocML J
That pol1iOD of the earth'. orbit which lies abooe the sun, or
nortA of the equinoctial, contains about 184 degrees; while that
portion of it which lies be/QW thll sun, or _tA of the equinoctial,
contains 176 degrees.. 'I'rus fact showl why the lun coo-
tinues about eight days longer on the north side of tbe equator
in sumaler, than it doea on the BOUth sidein wintar.
. .
The points of the eanh', oibit which correspond to its greatest and
least dietaDceiI from the BUn, are former, the and the
latter, the perigee; two Greek worda, the former of which lignifies.fn1m
1M eortA, and the latter, abtJut tile earlh. Tbeae points are also desig-
netad by the common liliiii8 of apridu.. .
The earth being in ita perihelion about the let of January, and
in its aphelion the 1st of July, we are three millioDs of miles
nearer tbe slln.in winter than in midsummer. The reason why
we have not, as might be expep.ted, the hottest weather WhPD
the earth is nearest the sun, is, becau.se tbe sun, at that time,
having retreated to the southern tropic, shines so obliquely 00
the nortbern hemisphere, that its rays have scarcely half the pf-
feet of tbe summer sun; and, continuing but a short time above
the horizon, less beat is accumulated by day than is dissipated
by night. .
As the earth performs ita annual rnolution around the IUn,
the position of Its axis remains invariably the same,-always
pointing to the north pole of the heavens, and always maintain-
mgthe same inclination to its orbit. This seems to be provi-
dentially ordered for the benefit Of mankind. If the axis of the
ea rth al ways pointed to the center of its orbit, all external obo
jp.ct8 would appear to whirl about our heads in an inexplicable
maze. N olhing would appear permanent. '.l'he mariner could
no longer direct hill Clourse by the stars, and every index in na-
ture would mislead uil.
The following is a summary of our knowledge of the earth,
as a planet; epoch, 1st January, 1801:
Mean dill$ance from the IUn (95,000,000 miles), itll radius U(lity, 239M
Distance at peribelion, mean distance unity, - . - 0.09832
Distance at aphelion, mean dietaDC!! unity, 1.0168
Mean aideml revolu&iDn, in IOIar day., 386.2663612
THE EARTH.
M.n troPaI J'imJlution, in
Mean a.nomalistic revOlution, in solar daya,
Entire revolution of the SUD '8 perigee, in solar day ..
Mean longitude, conected 20" fur aberration,
Motion in perihelion, in a mean solar day,
Mean in a mean solar day,
Mean motion in a sidereal day" -
Motion in aphelion, in a mean solar day,
Mean longitude of perihelion, -, '
E, motion of line of aptsides, per annum,
Ditto, refilned to the ecliptic,
Complete tropiclal revolution of apei.dea in years,
Obliquity of eeliptic,' _ -
Annual diminution ofdiUo,
Semi axis,major of nat,lion;
Annual lunHoIar pn!Cl8IIBion, -
Genera1 pMCeaion in 1ongitude,
revolution of equinoxes, in yeara,
Lunar nutation in longitude, , _
Solar nutation in longitude,
Eccentricity of orbit, semi axis major as unity,
Decrease of ditto in 100 yean, -
Diurnal acceleration of sidereal or mean solar time,
From the vernal equinox to the summer solstice,
From the summer sohttice to the autumnal equinox,
Prom the autumnal equinox to the winter solstice,
From the winter solstice to the vernal equinox,
MaE, sun as unity, - '
Volume,
Density, sun as unity,
847
886."124"
866.1696981
7.645,798
1000 89' 10".2
1 01 09 .9
o 1i9 08 .83
o 68 68 .64
o fl7 11 .5
99 30 05 .0
11 .8
1 01 .9
20,98.
ISO 27' 116".6
0;457
9.4
60 .
60 .1
2111!68
17".679
1 .137
0.016783588
, 0.00004163
S' 66".91
92 d. 21 h. 50 m.
9lt IS 44
89 16 44
89 01 33
Denllity, water as unity, - - -
Mean diameter (equatorial, 7924, polar, 7898), in miles,
Centrifugal 'fee at the equator,
0.0000028173
1.0
8.9326
6.6t47
7916
0.00346
8 m. lS ... 3
110".26
'I'ime of paaage of light from tbe sun,
Motiop of earth, in orbit, in the same time.
THE MOON.
THERe il no object within the'scope of astronomical oble"a-
lion which aWords greater variety of interesting .investigation
than the various phases and motions of th" moon. From them,
the astronomer ascertains the form of the earth, the vicissitudes
of the tides, the caURes of eclipses and the distance
of t\le sunf and, consequently, the magnitude of tpe solar, system.
l'hese phenomena, which are perfectly obvious 10 theuDllJsisted.
248 GEOGRAPHY 01' THE HEAVENS.
eye, Ben'ed as a ltandard of meaillrement to al nations, until
the adnoeement of science taught them the advantages of solar
ume. It is to these phpnomtina that the navigator is iudf!bied
for thatlrecision of knowledge which guides him with well-
grounde confidence through thll pathle8B ocean.
The Hebrews, the Greeks, the Romans, and, in general, all
the ancients, used to assemble at the t.ime of new or full moon.
to discharge the duties and gratitude, for her unwenried
attendance on die earth. Bnd all her manifold use
When the moon, after having been in oonjunotion with the
lun. emerges from his rays. she appears in the evening, a
little aner SUl\8et, lib a fine luminous crescent, wiili its convex
lide toward the sun. If we observe her ilie neltt evening, we
find her about 13 further east of ,the sun than on the preceding
evening. and her crescent of light eensiblyaulmented. Repeal-
ing thesll obsl'rvatioD8. we pl'reeive that sbe departs further and
further from the sun, liS her enlightened surface cornea more and
more Into view, u'ntil she arrivAs at her jlrJl quarter, and comes
to the meridian 'at sUlIset. She has then finished her COUfliS
from the new to the full, and half her enlightened hemisphere il
turned toward the earlh. -
After her first quarter, she appears more and more giblJou.,
as she recedes further and further from the sun, until she 'hal
completed just half her' revolution around the earth, and is seeD
rising in the east when the sun is setting in the west. Sba
then her enlightened orb full to our view, and is said
to be In oppositiOflI because she is then on the opposite side of
the earth with respect to the sun. ,
In the first half of her orbit, she appears to paIS over our
heads through the upper hemisphere; she now descends below
the I'8ltern horizon. to pass through that part of her orbil which
lie. in the lower hemisphere.
After her tOil, she wanes through the same chllnges of appear-
ance as before, but in an inverted order; and we _ her in the
morninlt like a fine thread of light, a little west of the rising
sun. For the next two or three days, she is lost to our view,
rising and setting in coojumtion with the sun; after which. she
passes over, by reason of her daily motinn, to the taBt side of the
sun, and- we bllhold her again a new moon, as before. In
changing sides with the slln. she changes al80 the direction of
her crescent. Before her conjunction, it was turned to thtl east;
it is now turned toward the west. '1'hese ditrerent appearances
of the moon are called her pluuta. They prove that she shines
nnt by any light of her own; if she did. being globular. WII
should always her a round, full orb. like the slln. _
The moon Is a satellite to the earth, about which she revolves,
in an elliptiCal orbit, in 29 days. 12 honrs, 44 minutes, and 3
TIlE MOON. 249
eeeonds: the tiDle which elapsetl between one new moon, and
anoth .. r. Thi8 i8 called her ayfllJdic revolution. Her revolution
from any fixed star to the same star again i8 called her periodit.
or "idereIJl revolution. It is accompli8hed in 27 daY8, 7 hoors,
43 minutes, and 111 seconds; but, in this tiJIle, the earth has
advanced nearly as .many degrCtl in hor orbit, con8equently, the
moon, at the end of one complete revolution, mUBt go al mall,.
df'grees further, before she will COUIII again into the same P,"",I-
tion with respect to the Ion Ind the earth.
'rhe moon i, the neuest of all thlheavenly bodies, being 30
times the diameter of the eartb, or 240,000 miles, distant from
Ull. Her mean daily molion, in her orbit, is nearly 14 times Sl
great as the earth'B; Bince she not only accompsnies the earth
around tbe 8un every year, bot, i ~ the Dleanlime, performs nearly
13 revolutions aboot the earth. '
Although the apparent motion of the moon, in her orbit, is greater
thlln that of any other heavenly body, since she pa.- over, .t a mean
rate, DO Ieee than ISO 10' 36
H
in day; ret this is to be understood ..
aI/gular motiort-motion in. ama1l orbit, and, therefon!, embracing a
great Dumber of tJesr-, and but comparatively few miles.
'rbe moon, though apparently as large a9 the 8un, is tbe
8malle8t of all the heavenly bodie8 that are visible to tbe naked
eye. Her diamettor is but2162 miles; consequently, ber surface
.is 13 time8 less than that of the earth, and her bulk 49 times
leas. It would require 70,000,000 of such bodies to eqoal the
volume of the sun. The reason why she appears as large a9
the sun, wben, in trotb, sbe is so much less, IS because sbe is
400 times nearer to us than the sun. '
The moon revolves onee on her axis, exactly in the time tbat
she performs ber revolution around the earth. 1'his is evident
from her always presenting the same Bide to the earth; for if
she bad no rotation upon an axitl, every part of her surface woold
be pre.ented to a Ipectator on the earth, in the course of her
synodical revolutiop. It follows, then, that there ia but 0fIe day
tmd fligAt in Aer year, containing, both together, 29 day., lla
hours, 44 minutes, and 3 seconds.
A. the moon, while revolving aboot the earth, is carried with
it at the 1Iame time around the sun, her path is extremely irregu-
lar, and very different from what it seems to be. Like a point
in the wheel of a c a r r i a ~ , moving over a convex road, the moon
will deacribe a succe8Slon of epicycloidal curves, which art' al-
ways concave toward the Bun, not very onlike their presentation
in the following figure. ,
~ l ) O GEOGRA PHY OF THE HEAVENS.
THII: MOON'S MOTIUN.
Lel.ltU B repre.eDI a portion of the earth ... orllil; and ell. tbe Inoar
orbiL Wheo Ih& earth ia a' t, Ibe now mooo il al .; and while \he earth .1
moviog from 10 illl"'"ilion .1 reprelODled in Ihe figure, the moon baa moved
through h.lf ber orbit, {rom. 10 e, where ohe io full; 10, while Ihe earth i.
moving {rom ita pre ... nl poaitioO.lo II, Ihe mooo describes lbe olber bal{ of ber
orbiL (rom e 10 .. wbere sbe i. agaio in conjunction.. .
As the moon turns on her axis only as sbe. moves around the .
earth, it is plain that the inhabitants of one balf of the lunar
world are totally deprived of the sight oftbe earth,.UDless they
traYel to the opposite hemispbere. This we may presume tbey
will do, were It only to view eo sublime a spectacle; for it ill
certain that, from the moon, tbe earth appears len lima larger
than any other body in the universe. .;
, As the moon enlighten!! the earth, by reftecting the liJ.bt of
the sun, 80 likewise the earth illuminates the moon, exhibiting
to her the same phases that she does to 08, only in a contrary
order. And, as the surface of the earth is 13 times as large as
tbe surface of the moon, the earth, when full to the moon, will
appear 13 times as large as the foil moon to os. 1'hat side of
thtl moon, therefore, which is toward the earth, may be said fo
have no darkness at all, the eartb constantly shining opon it
with extraordinary splendor when tbe sun is abeent; it therefore
enjoys successively two weeks of illumination from tbe sun,
and two weeks of !lartb-Iight from the 8ftrtb. The other side
of the moon bae ahemately a fortnigbt's light, and a fortnight's
darkness.
As the earth revolves on its axis, tbe several continents, spas,
'PID MOON.
251
aad iet.ad., appear &0 &he lanar inbabhauw like .0 many IPOtl,
of dilferent forlDa aod bllightlHlllt alternately moving over ita
.lurf4C8. being more I)r leal brilliant, as they are leen through
intervening cloudl. By thlllle Ipo\l, the lunarianl can not only
determine the period of the earth'_ rotation, JUlt as we do that
of' the -1lBo bnt they may aI_o dad the longitude of their places,
as we dod the latitude of OUll. ,
As the full moon alway. happ8D8 when the moon il directly
oppoaite the Iun, all the full mOO8l in our wimer, mUlt happen
when the moon ie on the norlA lide of the equinoctial, beCause
tI&m tbe lun' is on the IOIIlA lide of it; coDBequently, at the
north pole of the earth, there will' be a fortnight's moon-light
and a fortnight's darko ... by toms, for a periocl of lix monthl,
aod the lame will be the fact during the IUO'_ abll8DC8 the other
six months, at the lOuth pole.
The moon's axis being inclined only about lio to her orbit,
ahe can have no 8Ilnsible diversity of _sons;' rom which we
may infer, that her atlnosphere il mild and uniform. The quanti-
ty of light wltich we derive from the moon when full, ia an888t
three hundied Lltouland times less than that of the sun.-
When viewed through a good te18BCOpll, the moon presents' a
moat. wonderful and interesting aspect. Heaides the large dark
spo\l, wbich 8J8 visible to the nakec1 eye, W8 perceive extensive
valleys, Ibelving rocks, and long ridp of elevated mountaine,
projecting their shadows on the plaIRs below. Single moun-
lains occasionally rise to a great hight, while circular hollows, .
more than tlaree milea deep, seem excavated in the plainl.
Her mountain scenllry bears a striking resemblance to the
towering sublimity aud terrific ruggedness of the Alpine reogions,
or of the Appenine after which some' of her mountains have
been uarned, and of the Cordilleras of our own continent.-
Huge massel 'of rock rising precipitously from the plains, lift
their ppaked summits to an immense higbt in the air, while
s\lapeless crags hanl{ over their projecting sides, and 888m on
the eve of being preCipitated into the tremendous chasm below.
Around the base of these frightful eminen08l, are _trewed
numeroul loose and unconnected fragments. whicb time seema
to have detached from their parent mass; and when we exallline
the rents and ravines wbich accompany the overbanging clilfs.
the beholder expects every moment that thel are to be torn from
their base, and that the proces!! of destructive separation whicb
ht!' had onl:ycontemplated in ita effecta, is about to be elthibited
before him in all its l8Ility.
-Thil Monl. Boaqaer'. infefl'lllce. from hi. . at1tted h, , ..
Plo.ee, in hil work, II. 019. The nolult or Dr. WolJlllton'. eoml.'utHtlnn. Wft.
dill'erenL proreuor Leahe makfll the litrht of the mnnn 1110 000 IImPlle .. 'thai
IhaI of \he IU'.: it .... u formerly reckoned 100,000 time. 1_
'158 GEOGRAPIlY 01' TIlB HEAVENS
. The ra. of nlouDtUu nlled the ApfHlRines. "hietI travell8l
a portion of the .. -'a disk. from north-eut to aoath,-west, ._
of which some pug are .visible to "'e naked eye, rise with a
precipitout aDd cram froIK from the level of tbe Mare Imlwiu""
or Sea of sbowera. - ID abie extensiYe range are _era) ridget
wbose summits" ha" a perpeadicufar elevation of feur miltltl,
aud more; and though tbe), often deacend to 8 much lower h!vel,
they prelent an ina..,.ble barrier on the north-east, while on
"'e sooth-weet they "nk,in pa\le 4eeliYity to the plaiM.
There is one reIIlukabie featare in the moon'" lurface, whieb
bears no analogy ,to any tbibg obeervable on the eartb. This
is the cireular CBftlies which 11ppesr in every part of ber disk.
Some of these immense cavens are nearly folJl' miles deep, and
forty miles in diamet.er. They lire most numeroul in""tbe south-
western part. At they reBect the 8un'I rays more copiollsly.
ahfe, reader this put of her lurface more brilliant thaD any other.
They present liD DI JUIIlily 'he same appearance as our earth
millht he .upposed to present to the moon, if all our great lakea
and seu were dried .p. '. .
The number of, spets on the moon, wbose latitude
and lougit.ude have been accurately determined, nceedl two
hundred. TIle nllllfher of aea.e and lakel. al "'ey were formerly
considered, whose and breadth are known, il between
twenty and. thirty; whale the number of peake and mountaina,
whose perpendicuIJr elevation varies from a fourth of a mile to
five miles in hi,ht, and Wh088 bases are from one to leventy
miles iD length, II uot Ie .. "'an one hundred and fifty. t
,
Graphical views. of these natural appearance&, accom= with miIJ.
ute and familiar de9Criptioos,eonstitute wbatiscalled . apAy;u-
two Greek words, whicb mean the li8liiii thing in mprd to the IDOOD,
Geography does in regard til the earth.
An idea of lome of these scenel may he formed by conceiv-
'lng a plain of about a hundred miles in circumference. encircled
by a range of mountainti, ofyarious forms. three miles in pl'lr'
pendicolarhigbt, and having a mountliin near the center, whose
top reaehel a DiHe and a half above the level of the plain.
From the top of' "'is central mountain. the whole plain. with all
Its scenery, would be distiuctly visible, and the view would be
bounded only by a lofty amphitheater of mountains, rearing
their to the Iky.
The D8!D" oe a luuar IpOI.
t Brewoter'a The beat mape oe the _n hitherto publiahed,
are thOle by Mldler and Beer; bUI the mOllt curlou. and eomplete repreoenl ..
lioD of the leleocollic and natlll'lli oe the moon. i. 10 be IOen 011
au.'-" T"n,- 'J'e'" !:tee a1ao BIfmoIropMa, by C. PIUDL .
TIlE MOON.
253
Tbe bright apota of the moon are tbe mountainous ",gions ;
while the dark 1fI0ta are the plainl, or more level parts of her
lunace. There may be rivera or small lakes on this planet;
but it is generally thought, by astronomftra of the present day,
that there are no seas or large collections of watt-r. al was former-
ly lupposed. Some of these mountains and deep "Heys are
viaible to the naked eye; and many more are visible through a
telescope of but moderate powers.
A telescope which magDlfies only 8 hundred times, will show
a s:l'0t on the moon's surface, whose diameter is twelve hundred
an twenty-three yards; and one which magnifi .. s a thousand'
times, will enable us to perceive any enlightened ohject on her
surface whose dimension. are only a hnndred and tWllnty-two
yards, which does not much exceed the dhnensionl of some of
our public edifices, as for instance, the Capitol at Washington.
or SL Paul's Cathedral. Professor Frauenhofer, of Munich,
recently announced that he had discovered a lunar edifice. re-
sembling afurtijko.tion. together with .etlerallinu tf road. The
celebrated astronomllr Schroeter. conjectuff's the existence of a
great city on the east side of th.. monn. a little north of her
equator, an extensive canal in another plac ... and fields of vege-
tation in another. But no reliance is to be placed on these con-
jectures.
BOLAR AND LUNAR ECLIPSES.
Or all the phenomena of th" heavens. there are none which
engage the attention of mankind more than ecl.ips!'!s of the sun
and moon; and to those who arll unacquaint!'!d with astronomy,
nothing appeara more wonderful than the accuracy wj.th which
they can be predicted. In the early ages of antiquity th!'!y wllre
regarded as alarming deviations from the established laws of
nature, presaging great public calamities, and other tokens of
the divine displeasure.
In China, the prediction and obaemmee rI ecIit- are made a mattet
rI lltate policy. in order to operate on the fears of the ignorant, and im
pose on them a superstitious r e ~ a r d for the occult wisdom of their ru\era
In Mexico, the natives fast and a1Bict thl!Dlselve8 during eclipses, unde!
an apprehension that the Great Spirit is in deep sutJerance. Some of the
northern tribes rllndisnl have imagined that the moon hed been wouncJ.
ed in a quarrel; and others, that &he was about to be _allowed by a
huge fish.
It 11'88 by availing himself of these superatitious notionR that Culumbu.,
when shipwrecked on the island of Jamaicp, extricated himself and crew
fiom a most embarrassing condition. Being driven to great distress for
want of proviIioua, and the natives refuaiDg him any IIIIistance, when all
.'
26;' GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
hoPe .emed to be ent 'be himIeIf m their IIIIpI!nICiticm ill
regard to eclipaee. Having a.eJIIbJed the principal men of the iaImd, be
remoillltrated against their inhumanity, .. being oJImsive' to the Great
Spirit, and told them that a great plague waa even then ready to fiill upon
them, and aa a token of it, they would that night _ the moon hide ber
fiu:e in anger., and put on a dreadfully dark and threatening aapec:t. ThiB
"artifice' had the desired eftIItt; for tIie had no 1I0OII8I' begun than
the frightened barbarians came running with all kind. m proviaicma, and
thrOwing tllelJlllllv88 at the at of Columbus, implored his furgiV8Jl8llL-
AIrna"."fJJI. vol. I, 65 c., v. 2.
An eclipse of the aun takea place, when the dark body of the
moon. passing directly between the eartli and the sun, intercepts
his light. This can happen only at the instant 0(-.0 mOOD, or
when the moon is in conjunction; for it ia only theD that abe
passes between us and the sun. ' ,
A,n eclipse of the moon takes place when tbe dark body of the
earth." coming ,ber and tbe sun, ,intercepta bis ligbt, and
throws a shadow on tlte moon. Thia ran bappen only at the
time of full moon, or whE'n the mOOD ia in opposition; for it ia
only then that the eartb is between ber and tbe lun.
Aa every planet belonging to the aolar aystem, both primaty
and secondary, derives its light from the aun, it muat cast a
ahadow toward tbat part of the heavens whicb is opposite to the
sun. This sbadow IS of course nothing but a'privation of ligbt
in th" splice hid from the slln by tbe opake body, and will
be proportioned to the magnitude of thl' lIun and planet.
If tbe aun and planet WE're both of the same magnitude, tbe
form of the shadow cast by the plan!"t. would be that of a cJ lin-
del;, and of the same diameter as th!" Bun or planet. If the
planet were larger than the sun, the shadow would continually
diverge, and gtp.w larger and larger; but as the sun is much
larger than aOJ of the planets. the shadows which they cast
must converge to a point in the form of a cone; the lengtb of
which will be proportional to the size and distance of the
planet from the sun.
The m the IOn is lOch, that the shadow east by each of the
primary planets always CCIJlverge& to a point before it reach8B any other
planet; 80 that not one of the primary planets can eclipse another. The
shadow of any planet which is accompanied by .tellitea, IIIIIY, on certain
occasions, eclipse ita .tellites; but it is not'Iong enough to eclipse any
.fther body., The shadow of a .tellite, or moon, may alao, on certain
OCcasions, fall on the primary, 'and eclipse it.
When the sun is at hi!! greate.t distance from the earth, aDd
thor moon ,at her letut her IIhadow is sufficiently long to
lI'ltch the, earth, and extend 19,000 miles beyond. Wben the
lun is at his letut diatanc6 from the earth, and the moon Ilt her
ECLIPSES.
trealal, ber Ihadow will not reach the eartb'a lunace by 20,000
Dliles. So that wben the aDn and moon are at their _
distances: the cone of the moon'a sbadow will terminate a liule
before it reacbea the earth's surface.
In tbe former caae, if a conjunction take place when the
center of tbe moon comes in a direct line between the centera of
tbe aun andeartb, tbe dark shadow of the Rloon will fall cen-
trally upon the earth, and cover a circular area.of T75 mileS iii
diameter. To all places lying within thia dark spot, the aUD
will be totally' eclipsed, aa illustrated by the figure. .
ICLIP8l1:a OJ' TRI aUJ'"
In COIIII!qU8IlCl8 of the earth'. motion during the eclipse, this c;ircuIar
_ becomeI a continued belt over the earth'. 1IIIrlice; being, at the
broadeII&, 175 miles wide. This belt is, bowever, mely 80 broad, and
often dwindlea to a mere nominal line, without total darb_.
In March, this line extends- itself from 8. W. to N. E., and ill Sep-
tember, from N. W. to 8. E. In June, the central line ia a curve, going
tirat to the N. E., and then to the 8. E.; in December, on the contrary,
tirat &0 the 8. E., and then to the N. E. To all places within 2000
miles, at leut, of the central line, the eclipse will be vUa"ble; and the
nearer the lliace of oblervation ia to the line, the larger will be the eclipse.
In winter, if the central trace be but a little northward of the equator
l
and in 1J1IIIIID8J', if it be 21)0 N. latitude, the eclipse will be visible all OVIll'
the northern hemi8pbere. A. a general rule, though liable to many modi-
fications, we may observe, thet pJacea from 200 to 250 miles from the
central line, will be 11 digita eclipsed; from thence to 500 uilleB, 10 digita;
and 80 on, diminiabing one digit in about 2.'10 milea. .
If, in either of tbe otber casea, a conjunction take place when
tbe moon's center is directly between the centera of the sun and
earth, aa before, the moon will then be too distant to cover tbe
entire face of the aun, and thpre will be aeen, all around ber dark
body. 8 slender nbg of dazzling light. . .
258 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVEN8.
Tbi8 may be iJI1JIImted by the ingoing figure. 8uppoae C D to reo
p-t a put of the earth'. orbit, and the moon'. llladow to terminate
at the vertex V. The IIIIIIIIllI(l8ce between e f win represent the breadth
of the IWIIinowI ring which will be -riaibIe all &round the dadr. bod,. of the
moon.
Such ... the edipae of February 12, 1831, which J--.I over the
from.8. W. to N. E. It was the I!lIIl aunu1sr eclip..e
ever m .the Umted SIateL Alcmg the path of thia eclipae, the lumie-
_ rmg remained pedi!ct and unbroken tOr the .pace of two minutes
From the IDOII& elaborate calculation .. with a long aeries of
observations, the length of the moon'. shadow m eclipaes, and her distsnl"ll
&om the Bun at the IIUIIII time, vary within the limits of the foUowing
table:
of BhadoW,/ Length of Bhatlow in 1 Length 1 Di.tance in / Di ... ...;ce
DilL of mooD. semidiameters. in IDllel. semidiameteu. in milel.
Mean 118. 110. 1138.300
Leut 1 fiT.. 1228.(99 1
55
'53056= 1 211.148
Ore.telt &9.' 236._ 63.862 1152..638
Thus it appears that the length of the eone of the moon's llbadow, in
eclipses, varies &om 228,499 to 236,292 miles; being 7.793 miIea Icmger
in the one case, than in the other. The iqequality of her distsnces from
the earth is much greater; they vary &om 221,148 to 262,638 miles,
making a difJimmce of 31,490 miIea.
!lthough central eclipSft of the lun can never be total to
any Ipot on the earth more than 175 miles broad; yet the space
over which the sun will be more or less partially eclipsed, il
Dearly 5000 milel broad.
The section of the moon'. shadow, or her at the earib'. BUJIo
lace, in eclipaes, is tar &om being alway. circular. If the conjunction
happen when the center of the moon is a little ahooe or a little 1ieIow the
60e joining the centers of the earth and Bun, as is moat frequently the
case, the shadow win be projected over the earth's aurfilce, and
thus cover a much larger apace.
To produce a partial it is not neceBlry thet the lIbadow should
reach the earth; it is sutlicieilt that the apparent diatance between the
Bun and moon be not greater than the BUm of their aemidiameten.
If tbe moon performed her revolution io the same path in
which the sun appeara to move; in other words, if her orbit lay
ezactly in the plane of the earth's orbit, the .Iun would be
eclipsed at the time of every new moon, and the moon at the
time of every full. Bot one half of the moon's orbit lies about
50 on the north &ide of the ecliptic, and the other half as far on
the south side of it; and, consequently, the moon's orbit only
croSBeS the earth', orbit in lwo opposite pointa, called lhe
moon's Dodel.
ECLIPsEs.
257
When the mOOn is in ooe of these points, or nearly so. at the
time of the fleW moon, the aon .will be eclipsed. Wben she ia
in one of them, or nearly ao, at the time of full moon, the moon
will be eclipsed. But at all other new moons, the moon eitber
passes above or below the Bun, as 888n from tbe earth; and, at
all other full moons. Ibe either passes abo.e or below the earth'a
shadow; and, consequently, there can be no
If the moon be _tl!l in one of her nodes at the time of her
change. tbe lun will. be centrally eclipsed. If Ihe be 11 from
her node at the time of her chanr, tbe lun will appear at the
equator to be about 11 digits ecllpled. If sbe be 3 frolD her
node at the time of her cbange. tbe lun will be 10 digits eclipsed,
and 10 on; a digit being tbe twelftb part of the sun's diameter.
But when tbe moon is about 18 from ber node. she w:lll just
touch the outer edge of the lun. at the time of ber
witbout producing any eclipse. Tbese are called the ecliptic
limiu. Between these limits, an eclipse is doubtful, and re-
quires a more exact calculation.
The mean ec1iptieJimit for the IUD ill 161
0
on esch aide of the ilode;
the mean ecliptic limit for the moon ill 1001
0
on esch aide of the node.
In the former cue, then, there are sao about esch. node, making, in aU,
66
0
out of 3600, in which eclq- of the IOD may happen: in the latter
caae, there are 21
0
about each node, making, in all, 420 out of 360
0
, in
which eclipM of the moon OIUally 0ClCIIJ'. 'l'he proportion of the lOW
to the lunar ec\iples, therefore, ill u 66 to 42, or u 11 to. 7. Yat there
are more Yiaible eclipM of the moon, at any given place, than of the
BUn; beca1llll a lunar ec1ipee ill visible to a whole hemisphere, a eo1ar
eclipse only to a amall portion of it. . .
The greatest possible duration of tbe annutar appearance of a
aolar ecliple, il 12 minutes and 24 seconds; and tbfl greatest
poslible time during wbich the sun can be totslly eclipsed, to
any part of tbe worlil, is 7 minutel and 58 secondl. The moon
fIlay continue totslly eclipsed for one hour and tbree quartan.
Eclipsel of the sun always begin on hili weltern edge; and
end on bis ealtern; but all eclip881 of the moon commence on
her I'astern edge, and end on her western. .
If the moon. at the time of !ler opposition. be exactly in ber
Dode. she will pass througb tbe center of tbe earth's Ibadow,
and be totelly eclipled. If. at tbe time of her opposition; ahe
be witbin 6 of ber node. Ibe will still P8lS tbe earth's
shadow. thougb not centrally, and .be totally eclipsed:. but if
ahe be 12 from ber node, she will only jl1st toucb the eartb's
sbadow, and pass it witbout being eclipsed. . .
The duration of lunar ec1it-. therefore, dependa upon the dIJIi,renc.
between the diameter of the moon and that IIBC&ion Of the earth'. Bbadow
x2 .
258 GEOGRAPHY OF THE REA VEN8.
duougb. which abe . When an eeIi}le of the moon is both total
and central, ita duration is the 10Dplt poaible, IIIJIOIItlting nearly to .-
hoan; but the duration of all eelipees not central qriat with her cIiBIaQce
60m the node.
aCLI .. a. or TWa 11001'.
The tlitImder of the earth'. shadow, at the distance of the
moon, ia Dearly three times as large aa the diameter of the moon;
and the length of the earth's abadow ia nearly four times Sf:!
8S tbe di8tanCII of the mOOD; exceeding it in the same ratio thllt
the diameter of the eartb d088 the diameter of the moon, which
is aa 3.663 to 1.
''''''lqtb of .... _ .. _ ..... \fo ..... _ at ..... _ of I DIam_.,1IIo ILoooth ., 'be
... ...,o, .... lIItdeet .. tbe .. r .... ezhihlterl ia lbe .,UowlDtlable, """0.. ....1""" ill...,.
Son allhe peri... Moon al dialanc. 6.7&.1 &12,217
1
Moon at the apogee J
Moon at Ihe per'g.oe
Son at hi. mean diltance Moon at ber m.all dlltalle. 5.7\)9 8Ii6 5:17
1
I\I00n at Ihe 5.270 f
Moon at the perigee 8.3'8
I
Moon aL tbe apogee 6.308 J
Moon al her meBj.diIlRnc. &.gj6 !Q1,9119
Moon at the per:gee 6385
Son at the apogee
The firIIt column of figures the diameter of the earth'. sha-
dow at the moon: and 88 the diameter of the moon is only. 2162 milea,
it is evident that it can alway. be comprehended by the shadow, which is
more than twice 88 broad 88 the disI! of the moon. .
The time which .elap888 between two succ888ive chaDges of
the moon. is called a Lunation, wbich, at a mean rate, is about
291 dayR. Ir 12 lunar months were exactly equal to the 12 so-
lar months, tbe moon's node8 would always oecuP1 the same
points in the ecliptic, and all eclipses would bappen ID tbe 8ame
months of tbe year, 8S i8 the Ca8f' with the transita of Mercury
and Venua: but, in 12 lunations, or lunar months, tbere are only
3M day!!; and in this time the moon has passed tbrough both
her nodes. hut has not quite accomplished her revolution around
the 8un: the consequence is, that the moon's nodes fall back iD
the ecliptic at the rate of about 19jO annually; so that the
eelipslIl! happen sooner every year by about 19 day
As thl! moon pa8ses from onA of hllr nodes to the otber in 173
da18, there i. just thi. period between two succ88sive eclipaea
ECLIPSES.
259
of tbe sun, or of the mooD. In wbatever time of tbe yesr, then,
we have eclipses at eitber Dode, we may be sure tIIat in 173
day. afterwards, we shall bave eclipses at the other node.
:\s the moon'. nodes fiaII back, or Ntrograde in the ecliptic, at the rate
of 19!0 every year, they will colllJllet& a backWard revolution entirely
around the el'liptic to the IllUDe pumt again, in 18 yean 2t1i day.; in
which time there would alway. be a regular period of ec\ipBes, if any
compJete number of lunations were finished without a mnainder. But
this neYer happens; for if both the sun and moon mould start from a
line of conjunclion with either of the nodes in any point of the ecliptic,
the IIUIl would perform 18 annual revolutions and 2220 of another, while
the moon would perform 230 InnatioQa, and 86
0
of another, before the
node would come around to the same point of the ecliptic again; so that
the IIUIl would then be 1380 from the node, and the moon 86
0
&om
the san.
But after 223 lunations, or 18 years 11 day .. 7 houra, 42 minutes,
and 31 seconds, the aun, moon, and earth, will return so nearly in the
.. me po<ilion with respt'Ct to raeh other, that there will be a regular
retum of the /tame eclipae.. for many ages. '1'hia grand period waa
diacovered by the Chaldeaoa, and by them called 8aroB. If, therefore,
to the mean time of any eclipE, either of the sun or moon, we add the
Chaldean p'riod of 18 yean and 11 days, we shall have the return of
the same eclipse. This mode of predicting e c l i ~ will hold good for a
thousand years. In this period there are uauaIIy 70 ecliJ-; 41 of the
aun, and 29 "fthe moon.
The number of eclipses in anyone year, cannot be less than
two, nor more than Benn, In the former ease, they will both
be of the sun; and in the latter, there will be five of tbe 8un,
and two of the moon-those of tbe moon will he total. There
are sometimes six: but the usual number is four: two of tbe
aunt and two of the moon.
The cause of this variety ia thus IlCC01UIted for. Although the sun
usually paaI8II by both nodes only once in a year, be may Jl888 the
same node aguin a little befilre the end of the year. In consequence of
the retrograde motion of the moon's nodes, be will come to either of
them 173 day. after passing the other. He may, therefore, return to
the same node in about 346 days. having thus pused one node tIJJi
and the other _, making each time, at each, an eclipae of both the sun
and the moon, or Biz in all. And, since 121unationa, or 8M day. nom
the fir,t eclipse in thf' beginning of the year,leave room for another
new moon before the close of the year, and llinee this new moon may
tall within the ecliptic limit, it ia poaaible for the sun to be eelipaed again.
Thus there may be Be11e1I ecIi.- in the same year.
Again: when the moon changes in either of hf'r nodes, abe caHoot
come within the lunar ecliptic limit at the next full, (though if she be
If there are f- leap yean in thI. intef'f.al, add 11 day.; bllt if there .,..
",.., add only teD daYL
280
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.

foil ill one 01. her DOdea, ahe may come into the ... ediptic limit Ii
her next cAange, and llix montha afterwarda, she.will change near the
other node; thus making only two eclipaea.
The following is a 1m of all the BOlar eclipees th .. t will be visible in.
Europe and ADBica during the remainder of the century.
TN.
-
1IaJ ... -.
Il\sit.
Year. I Mrdh.
m' .... _.
o;po..
T
-.---

1848 Mar. I! 7 III A. M.
111711 Mar. 25 411 P. ltl.
1861 July 148 A. M ;It
1878
July

4 &6 P. M.
ISM May ttl 4ll1l P. M.
11t 1879 July 111 II
OA.M.
1858 Mar. 1& 614 A. M.
a
1880 Dec. 31 ? 30 A. M.
III
IH511 Jl11y 29 I! 3Il P. M.
1>-81
May
17 1
OA.M.
18110
July 18 193 A. M lass Mar 16 035 A.M.
8l
1861 Dec. 31 730A.M
4t 18116 Aug. 29 630A.M.
Ill.
1863
May
11 lOP. M.
1887 Aug. 10 o P. M.
1885 Oct.
19 10 A. M. 3. .
1890 June 11 3 o A.M.
1866 Ocl.
I> 111 A. M'I 0
June S 0 o Mer.
81
1867 Mar. S 0 AM.
1-112 !
Oo.t.

0111 P. M.
1868 l'eb. 2810 0 AM. 1891i .
I\lar. 4 o A.M.
1869 Aug. 7 II 21 A. M. 11Il
lriU6 I
Aug. 9 0 0 Mer.
1870 Dt-c. 22 II 0 A. M'
I
1M July
1111 9 8 A. M.
4l
1873 May 30A.M.
1899 \
June 13 DOMer.
11174 . Ocl. 10 4 0 A. M
1900 May
128 8 9 A. M.
11
1875 Sept. 19 II 116 A. M. III
The ecHJ- 01 18M, 1869, 1876, and 1900, will be very large. In
th088 of 1868, 1861, 1873, 1875, and 1880, the wn wiN rise ec/ipiltd.
Th088 of 1854 and 1876, will be annuiur. The dolar can coo-
tiDue this table, or exteDd it backward, by adding or subtracting the
CbaIdean period of 18 yeara, 11 days, 7 hours, 54 miDutea and 31
second.. .
'!'he lunar elements fur the lit of Jan. ISO I, are .. folloWl:
Mean distance (237,000 milea) earth eq. diam. .. unity, 29.9.76
Mean sidereailevolution, BOlar days, 27 d. 7 h. 43 m. 11.6 L
Mean tropical" "" 27 7 43 04.7
Mean synodical" ".. 29 12 02.87
Mean longitude, 1180 17' 08".3
Mean motion in a mean BOlar day, 13 10 36 .0
Mean long. of perigee, 2660 10' 7".4
Mean motion ofapsides, in a ao1ar day, '.. 6' '1".0
Sidereal rev. 01 apsides, ill mean BOlar days, 3232.6763
Tropical revolution of ditto, 3231.47'() 1
Mean anomaly, 2120 6' 69".9
Motion of ditto, ill a mean ao1ar day, 130.064991
Mean linomaliatic revolution, ill BOlar days 17 d. 13 h. 18 m. 37,4 L
Inclin.tion of orbit, 50 8' 47".9
A_nding node, 13 63 17.7
Motion of ditto, in a mean BOlar day, 3 10.8
revolution of nodes, 6793.39108
Synodical revolution of ditto, :U6.6198!;l
Revolution from node to node, 27 d. 6 h. 6 m. 36 ..
Et'CBntricity of orbit, . 0.06'8442
Greatest equation of center, 60 17' 12".7
tncIiruI&ion of axis.
Madmum evectioa,
Maximum ftriation,
Maxim1Jlll lJlllual equation,
Minimum horizoDtai parallax,
Meandiu.o,
Maximum ditto,
Maximum app. diam..
Mean ditto,
Minimum ditto,
ECLIPSES.
Mean diameter (about 2160 miles) earth'. u unit,.,
VoIulDll,earth88unity, - -. -
M ....
DeDaity,
261
1
0
30'10".S
1 20 29 .9
36 42.0
11 12.0
6S 48.0
67 00 .9
01 24.0
33 31 .1
31 07 .0
29 21 .9
3.ti6:1
I
''T
0.01252
0.61.')
MARS is the first of the exterior planets, its orbit lying im-
mediately without, or beyOfld, that of the earth, while tbole of
Mercury and Venuaare witAi... .
Mllfs appears to the naked eye, of a fine ruddy compll'xion ;
reaembling, in !lolor, and apparent magnitude, the atar Antares,
Dear which it frelJuently passes, It exhibits its greatest .bril-
Iiancy ahout the time that it rill88 when the sun sets, and sets
when the sun rill88; because it' is then nearest the earth. It is
lea.t brilliant when it rill88 and sets with the aun; for then it i8
five times farther removed from U8 than in the former ease.
I ts distance from tbe earth at its nearest approach is about
fifty nlilliona of milea. Its greate.t distance from us is abollt
two hundred and forty millions of miles. In the former case, it
appear8 nearly twenty-live timealarger than in the latter. When'
it ri8e8 before the Bun, it is our morning atar; when it sets after
the 8un, it ia our evening atar.
The distance of all the planets from the earth. whether they be interim
or exterior planets, varies within the limits of the diameters of their orbits
ror when a planet is in that point of its orbit which is nearest the earth,
it is evidently nearer by the whole diameter of ita orbit, than when it is in
the opposite point, on the other side of its orbit. The appDI't.f1t diamekr
of the planet will alao vary for the IRme l8IIIIOD, and to'the _ degree.
Mar8 ia aometimel leen in opposition.to the sun, and 8ome-
times in superior conjunction with him; sometimes gibbous, bllt
DOver horned. In conjunction, it is never seen to paBB over the

262 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVEN&.
lun'l dilk, like Mercury and Venul. Thil not only that
ita orbit is u:ltrtor to the eartb'l orbit, but tbat it i8 an opue
body, Ibining only by tbe reflection of the lun.
The of Mari through the COD8tellationl of tbe zodiac
is but little more .tban laalf 81 great as that of the earth.; it being
trenerally about fifty-seven days in passing ovpr one lIilJll, which
IS at the rate of a little more than half a degree each day. ThuI,
if we kfloW wbat conltellation Mars entera to day, we may con-
clude diat two monthl hence it will be in the next cODtiteliation ;
fourmontlJl heol,e, in the next; six months, in the next, and 80
On.
Mars performs hil revolution around the sun in oile year and
ten and a half months, at the di8tance of a hundred and forty-
five million8 of milel; moving in ita orbit at the mean rate of
fifty-five thousand miles an hour. Ita diurnal rotation oli ita axil
II performed in twenty-four hours, thirtyseven minutes, and
twenty-one and a third seconds; which makea itl day about
forty-four minutes longer than ours.
Its mean Bidereal revolution is perfcmned in 1186.9796458 BOlar day.;
or in 686 day., 23 hoora, 30 minutes, 41.4 IIIICOJlda. Its Iynodical revo-
lution ill performed in 779.936 BOlar days; or in 779 day., 22 hows, 27
minutes, and 60 aeconda.
Ita form is that of an oblate spheroid, whose folar
is to ita equatorial, as fifteen is to sixteen, near y. ItB mean
diameter is 4222 miles. Ita bulk, therefore. is seven timel leu
than that of the earth; and being fifty millions of miles farther
from the 8un, it receivea from him only half 88 mucb light and
heat.
The inclination of ita axi8 to the plane of ita orbit, is about
28fo. Consequently, ita BeaBons mUlt be very 8imilar to those
of the earth. Indeed, the analogy between Mars and the earth
is greater than tbe analogy between the earth and any other
planet of the lolar system. Their diurnal motion. and of courae
the length of their daYB and nighta, are nearly the Bame; the
obliquity of their ecliptiCB, on which the sealons depend, are
not very different; anil, of all the superior planet8, the distance
of Mars from the Bun is by far the nearest to that of the earth ;
nor is the length of ita year greatly different from ourB, when
compared with the years of Jupiter, Saturn, and Herschel.
'ro a spectator on this planet. the earth will appear alternate-
ly, as a morning and eveni!lg star; and will exhibit aU the .
phases of the moon, just as Mercury and Venus do to U8; and
sometimes, like them, will appellr to pau over the lIun's disk
like a dark round spot. Our moon will never appear more than
II qtlGf'Itr qf II degree from the earth, although her distance froul
263
it is i40,OOO mil.. If Mars be attended by a satellite, it is too
small to be seen by the moet powerful telescopee.
When it is COIIIidered t!lat Vest&, the ImaUeat of the IIIteroida, which
ie _ mid " !&all times the cIiatance of Man from UB, and only 169
miles in diameter, is peroeivable in the open apace. and that without the
of a more COD8piCUOUB body to point it out, we may reuonably
oooc1ude that Man is without a moon.
The progn!IIi 01 Man in the heavens. and indeed of all the IUperior
plan .. will, lib Mercury and Venna, IOmetimea appear direct, aome.
timea and IOmetimea be will _m ltationary. When a su-
perior planet first becomes mible in the welt 01 the sun, a little
after its conjUDdion, its mOOon is direct, and a110 IIIOIt rapid. When it
iB first _ eut 01 the lUll, in tbe evening, IOOD after ita opposition, its
motion is rehvJ&mde. The. retrograde IIICm!IDentI and stations, III they
appear to a apectBtor from the earth, are common to all the plane ... and
demonIItrate the truth of the Copernican lYatam.
The telescopic pHenomena of Mars aft'ord p8C.'uliar intereat to
astronomers. They behold its disk diversified with numerous
irregular and variable apots, and ornamented witb zones aDd
belta of varying brilliancy, that form, and diRappear, by tuma.
Zones of intenae brightnllss are to be seen in its polar regiona,
subject, however, to gradual changea. That of tbe aouthern
pole ia much tbe moat brilliant. Dr. Herscbel 8Upp0888 that
tbey are produced by tbe reftection of tbe aun'a ligbt from the
frozen regioD8. and that the melting of tbese maa888 of polar ice
ia the caule of the variation in tbeir magnitude and appearance.
" He waa the more confirmed in these opiniona by observing,
tbat after tbe expoaure of the IUIDinoua zone about the nortb"
pole to a 8ummer of eight montbs. it waa conaiderably dureued.
while that on the BOuth pole, wbich had been in total darknes8
during eight months. had conaiderably i_tilled. "
He observed, further. that when this spot was most luminous,
the disk of Mars did not exactly round, and tbat the
brigM part of its aouthem limb seemed to be swollen or arched
out beyond tbe proper curve.
The extraordlDary hight and density of the atmospbere of
Mars. are luppoaed to be the caule of the remarkable rednesa of
its light.
It has been found by experiment, that when a beam of white
light paa888 tbrough any colorle.. transparent medium, ita
color inclines to red; in proJ?omon to the density of the medium,
and the space through WhlCb it has traveled. Thua the 8un,
moon, and stara, apllear of a reddish color when near the hori-
zon; and every luminoua object, seen through a mist, i8 of a
rnddy bue.
264 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
This pbenomeoon may be th11l explainech-Tbe momentum of the
red, or Ieut refrauaibIe ra,., being greater than that of the violet. 01' IDOI&
refrangible raya, the former will make their way through the rtlI!i.atinc
medium, while the latter are either re8ected or abeorbed. The color of
the betJm, thendOre, when it JI!IIChes the eye, mWlt partake of the c:olor
of the Ieut reIia,ogibIe raya, aod this color muat mer- with the w.
taDce. '!'he dim light, therefOre, by which Man ia illuminated, haviug
to pa.- twice through ita ~ e r e before it JI!IIChes the earth, mWlt be
deprived of a great proportion of ita violet raya, aod COIIIIIMI.lkmtly then be
red. Dr. Brewater IUPJIOIIeII that the diflerence'bf color among the other
planeta, and even the fixed stara, ia owing to the diflerent bights aod
denaitiea of their atmospheres.
The elliptical e1ementa of Mala, for Jan. lilt, 1801, are as follows:
Mean distance (142,000,000 miles), earth'. as unity, 1.6236923
Mean aid. 1e9.,. . . . . . . . . . . . 686 d. 23 h. 30 m. 41.4 L
Mean &yo. do., in BOlar days, 779.936
Long. of perihelion.. . . . 332
0
2:)' 66".6
Motion cir apaidea, E. per. an., .' 16".8
.. Rpparent for preceasion, I' 05".1f
Inclination of orbit, 10 51' 0 6 " . ~
.-\nl1ual decrease of do., 0".014
Long. of ABC. node.. 480 0' 03".5
Motilln of do. w. per annum, 13" .It
.. .. E. refilrred to the ecIiptic,. 26".tI
Eccentricity of orbit. Semi maj. axia unity, 0.0933070
Secularincreaae of do., 0.00090176
Greate- t equation of center, 10 40' 60"
Annual decTe&Be of do., 0".37
Rotation on axia.. 114 h. 37 m. lID.6 ..
Inclination ofaxia. 300 18' 10".8
Mean app. diam... 8".19
Diam. at conjunction, .3".80
.. .. oppoaition,. 18.J8
True diam. (4100 miles). earth as unity, 0.617
Volume, earth as unity, 0.1386
M .... IIUD as unity, 0.0000003927
THE ASTEROIDS, OR TELESCOPIC PLANETS.
AacC!m11l'8 higher in the solar system, we find, between the
orbite of Mara and Jupiter. a cluster of nine small planete. which
present a variety of anomalies that distinguish them from all the
older planete of the system. They were all discovered withia
the present centufJ.
THE ASTEROIDS.
The dalell of their diIcovery, IIIIIl the __ of their ani
fOllow.: .
Veres, January 1, 180 I, by M. Piazi, of Palermo.
Pallas, March 28, 1802, by M. Olben, of BJeD1811.
Juno. September 1,1804, by M. Harding, of Brelllllll.
Vesta, March 29, 1807, by M. Olben, of BJeD1811.
Astrea, 8th December, 1846, by Heneke, of I>nD-a.
Hebe, 6th July. 1114,7, .. .. .. ..
Iris, 13th Auguat, 1114,7, by Hind, of LoodoD.
Flora, 18th Oct., 1114,7, .. .. .. ..
Metis, 26th A pri1, 1848, by Graham, of 8ligo.
The scientific Bod". entertained the . opinion. that the plane-
tary distanl'M, above formed a geometrical aerietl, each
exterior orbit being double the distance of its next interior one,
from the sun; a fact which obtain. with remarkable exactness
between Jupiter, Saturn, and Herschel.. But this law seemed
to be interrupted between Mars and Jupiter. Hence he inferred,
that there wa. a planet wanting in that inteT\'al; which is now
happily supplied by the discovery of the four .tar-jorm planets,
occupying the very space where the unexplained vacancy pr,,"
aented a strong objection to his theory.
These bodie. ere muc1& trmIJller in size than the older planets-
they all revolve at _IV t1ae _ diltaru:u from the sun, and
perform their revolutionslD _Iy t1ae_ perioda.-their orbits
are mucb more and bave a mue1& greater ifll!lifltJlion to
the ecliptic.-and what is altogether singular. except in the case
of comets-nearly aU crOll _1& oJ1acr I so that tbere IS even a pol-
li/Jjlity that two of these bodies ma1' some time, in the court18
of tbeir revolutions, come into colliSion.
The orbit of Veata is .0 eccentric. that sbe i. sometime. far-
ther from the sun than either Ceres, Pallas, or Juno, although
ber mean distance is mallY millions of mile. less than tbeirs.
The orbit of V IISta crossetl the orbits of all the other three, in
two oppOIite points.
From these and otber eireumstancee, many eminent astrono-
mers are of opinion, that these four planets are the. fragments of
a large celetlual body which once revolved between Mars snd
Jupiter. and which burst asunder by lOme convul-
a AceordinglO him, the diltance.oCthe planeta may be ezprelled nearly ..
6:>lIowI: the eiU'lh'a cliltanC" &om the IUD being ID.
Mercury " d I Alteroidl '!m)(!l c:=28
Venul, ':mJl =7 Jupiter .4 'x'lll =62
The Earth, ...... 1=10 Salurn .... .. .... =1110
Man, ................ =111 Henchel ............ 4+3XIll .... ..
Comparing 1M ..... alael with the actaal mean dillancel DC the planell froIB
tbe aan. we eanuot but remark the near agreement, and can eoareely helitate
10 pronounce tbal the relpeetive distancel of Ihe from the sun, were
aaoigned according to R law. althou(rh we are enurel, ignorant of the exact
law, and oflbe reatOn Cor that Illw.-Bri..w.,, EIImeitII. p. 88.
Y
_ GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
aion, or BOrne external nolenee. The discover, of Ceres hy
Piazzi, on the first day of the preaellt century, drew the atten-
tion of all the astronomers of the age to that region of the sky,
and every inch of it was minutely explored. The consequence
was, that, in the year following, Dr. OIbers, of Bremen, an-
nounced to the world the discoyery of Pallas, situated not many
from Ceres, and very much reaemblinl1 it in size. .
From this discovery, Dr. Olbers first concelyed the idea that
these bodies might be the fragments of a former world. and if
80, that other portions of it might be found either in tbe same
neighborhood. or elae, baving diverged from the same point,
they ought to have two common points of reunion, or two
nodes in opposite regious of the heavens throu1h which all the
planetary fragments must sooner or later pass.' . .'-
One of these nodes he found to be, in the constellation Virgo,
and the opposite one, in the Whale; aDd it is a remarkable co-
incidence that it was in the neighborhood of the latter constel-
lation that Mr. Harding discovered the planet Juno. In order.
therefore, to detect tbe remaining fragments, if allY existed, Dr.
Olbers examined, tbree times eyery year, alf the small stsrs in
Virgo, and the Whale; and it was actually in tbe constellation
Virgo, that he discovered the planet Vesta. .some astronomers
think it not unlikely tbat otber fragments of a similar description
may hereafler be dlscoyered. Dr. Brewster attribute& the fall
of meteoric atones to the smaller fragments of these bodies hap-
pening to come witbin tbe sphere onhe earth's attraction.
Met.eoric atones, or what are generally termed aerolite3, are atofl.ee
which IOID8I;imes fiill from upper regions of the here, upon the
earth. '!'he substance of which tbey are composed, IS, for the most part,
metalIit: I but the ore of which it consista iB not to be fuund in tM aatne
_titumt in any known substance upon the earth. Their
fiill ia generally by a luminous appearance, a hlaaing noise, and
a low! explosion; and, when fuund immediately after their descent, they
are al_yehot, and UBUaIly cxmnd with a black crust, indieating a IItaIe
of exterior tu.ion.
Their size variee from that of ama1l fragments of inconaidmable weight,
to that of the most ponderous _ . They have been fiIund to weigh
from 300 pounds to ae'feral tons; and they have descended to the earth
with . furce lIIllBcient to bury them many feet under the sur&ce. . .
have supposed that the, are projected from volCan08ll in the
moon; others, that they proceed from volcanoes on the earth; while
othel1l imagiRe that they are generated in the regions of the atmosphere ;
bat the truth, probably, iB not yet ucerlained. In lOme inatances, these
atonea 00""' penetrated through the roo& of houaes, and. prom deatnloo
ti'fe to the inhabitants.
If we carefully compute the foroe of gravity in the moon, we shall find,
tbBt if body were projected tiom her surliloe with a momentum that
TH& AST&ROIDII.
'Would ca_ it to move at the rUe of 8,!l!)O ht in the &at II8COIId of
time, and in the directiOli of a line joining the cent.era at the earth and
moon, it would not fall again to the surface of the mooD; but would be-
come a aatellite to the earth. Such an impulae migh" indeed, cause it,
even after many revolutiona, to fall to the earth. 1'he faU, therefore, of
tbMe IItmea, from the air, may be IUlOOWlted for in this manner.
Mr. Harte calculates, that even a velocity of 6000 feet in a _d,
wooId be nfticient to carry a body projected from the surface of the
DlOOIl beyond the power of her at&ndion. If 110, a prQjectile force three
timeII grea_ than that at a cannon, woald carry a lioJy from the moon
beyaad the point of equal attraction, and _ it to reach the earth. A
fOrce equal to thia ia often elerted by oar volcanoeI, and by mbtenanean
Iteam. Hence, there ia no imJlOllllibility in the -auppoaition of their
coming from the moon; but yet I think the theory of aerial cooaolida-
1ion the _ plaulible.
Of the old .steroids we ptM8nt the following noticea:
Vea&a appears like a lltar of the 5th or 6th magnitude, shining
'With a pure steady radiance, and is tbe only one of the aater-
oids which can be diacemed by the naked eye.
JUlfO, the next planet in order after Vesta, revolves around
the san in foar years, four and a half monthe, at the mean dis-
tance of two hundred and fifty-foar millions of miles, moving
in her orbit at the rate of forty-one thouaand milea an hour.
Her diameter ia estimated at 1393 milee. This woold make her
magnitude a hondred and eighty-three tim .. I ... than the earth's.
The light and heat which ahe receiv .. from the sun ia Beven
188a than that received. by the earth.
The eccentricity of ber orbit is 80 great, that ber greateat dis-
!apce from the sun ia nearly double ber least distance; eo that,
wben ehe is in ber perilNliort, she ia nearer the sun by a bundred
and thirty milliona of miles, tban wben she is in her aplNliun.
This great eccentricity has a corresponding effllCt upon her rate
of motion; for being so much nearer, and therefore ao macb
more powerfally attracted by tbe sun at ODe time thaD at Bnother,
abe moves through that half of her orbit wbich is nearelt tha
aUD, in one balf of the time that Ibe oecupiea in comp\etinjf tbe
otber half.
According to Schroeter, the diameter of JWlO ia 1425 miIea; and abe
is arrounded by an atmospbenl more denee than that of any nf the
other planetI. 8cIuoeter alIO remarb, that the ftriatioo in her
ia chie8y owing to certain changes in the denaity of her atmoIpbere; at
the 88IJle time be thinb it not improbable that the. chaagaI may ariae
from a diurnal revolution on her axiL
. ellRIIS, the planet next in ordAr af'ter Juno. re.,ol., ... about the
Ian in four years, seven and a tbird monthe, lit tbe mean distance
of two hundred and sixty-three and a half willious of milll",
26M GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVEN8.
moving in ber orbit at tbe rate of forty-one thouaand milpa aD
bOllr. Her diameter ia eatimated at 1582 milea, wbicb makes
ber magnitude a bundred and twenty-five times leas tban the
eartb's. The intensity of the Iigbt and beat wbich she receives
from the alln, ia about Beven and a balf times 1888 than that of
those received by the eartb.
Cerea shines witb a ruddy color, and appears to be only abou'
the size of a atar of the eighth magnitllde. Conseqllently she is
never seen by tbe eye. She ia aurrounded by a species
of cloudy or nebulous light, wbich gives her aomewbat the ap-
pearance of a comet, forming, according to Scbroeter, an atmo-
sphere aix hundred and Beventy-five milea in hight.
Ceres, as has t-n IBid, _ the tint diacovered of die uteroid&. A&
her diacovery, aatronolDtll'l congratulated themselvea upon the hlU'lDODY
of the lIYatem being II!IIIoJed. TIley bad long wanted a planet to tiD up
the great void between Man and Jupiter, in order to make the .,....
complete in their own eyell; but the auooesaive diaeoveries of Pllll .. and
Juno again introdoced confusion. and presented a difficulty which tbey
were unable to 101"." till Dr. Olben auggestod the idea that these BIIIaII
anomalous bodiee were merely the liagmente of. larger planet, whieh
bad been exploded by aome Among tht- most able
and decided advocates of this hy . is Dr. Brewster, of Edinburgh.
P ALLAa, tbe next planet in order after Cerea, performs her re-
1'0lution arollnd the alln in four years. &eYen and two-third months,
at the mean distance of two hundred and sixty-follr millions of
miles, moving in her orbit at tbe rate of forty-one thouaand miles
an bour. Her diameter ia eatimated at 2025 miles, which is but
liul", less than tbat of our moon. It ia a singular and very re-
markable phenomenon in the solar syatem, that two planets,
(Cerel! and Pallas.) nearly of the same aize. ahollid be aituated
at equal distancea from the sun, revolve about bim in tbe aame
period. and in orbita tbat intersect each other. The diffeJ'PDC8
In tbe respective diatances of Ceres and Pallas is less than a
million of miles. The difference in their sidereal revolutions,
according to aome aatronomera, hi but a single day!
The calculation of the latitude and longitude of the BlltProids, is a
labor of extreme difficulty, requiring more than four hundred equation.
to reduce their anomalous p"rturbations to the true place. This an-
from the want of auxiliary tables, and flom the filet Ihat the elementa
of the a&arform planets, are very imperfectly determined. Whether any
of the asteroids baa a rotation on its axis, remains to be ascertained. The
tDlIowing table exlnDits the present .... te of knowledge with reference to
the aateroids. The longitudes are referred to the mean equinox, JIIII. 1.
UM8, except Metis, which iB fur April 30, 1848.
Name .
I Flon,
'Vella,
3 bia,
4 Metia,
II Hebe,
6 Albea,
7 JUlIO,
8 llereB,
II pan.,
NameL
I Flon,
S V8I&a,
3Iria,
01 Mea.,
5 Hebe,
6 AIIIlea,
7 Juno,
8 c-,
9 PaIlu,
TBB ABTBROID8.
BeY. ill Sid. da,. ..
1198.16
18S5.st
1346.16
13016.010
1876.26
11110.75
1694.68
1880.96
1686.66
Bpoob.
1MB Jan. 1.0
1847 April, 01.0
18017 Sept. 1.0
1848 April, 80.0
1847 July, 10.0
1847 March, 16.0
1847 July, 9.5
1848 March, 12.0
1848 March, 4.0
Aph. Dial.
loM7l16
1.671997
1.936886
1.908567
8.060943
8.349368
1.979798
3.438811
M"an -air.
36058' 32".0
810 46 101 .7
198 18 87.2
loll 601 11 .82
1701 601 01.8
63 80 49 .3
158 0602.1
21 MOO.6
24 57 sa.4
u .... n,-ContiRued.
Peri. DiaL
1.86&244.
1.150346
1.884262
1.986888
1.092456
1.998166
1.658746
I.I068CK
Lour. uc. node.
1100 18' 50".8
103 II 01 .8
269 015 19 .6
68 29 40.4
138 01044 .8
141 29 19 .1
170 53 51 .0
80 47 17 .9
171 012 II .8
Name ..
.1 Flon,
2 V8I&a,
3 Iria,
Long uc. ROdeo-Long.
0( Perihelion. Inclinalion.
50 52' 65".9
70880.3
6 IS 10.9
6 36 t4 .0
Aug. or Bccelllrioil,..
go 01' 36".9
01 Mea.,
6 Hebe,
6 Aatrea,
7Juno,
8 Ceree,
9 P.uu.
'f7O 26' ol9".1
tl2 16 It.4
118 1836.6
4 to t7.7
123 36 42 .1
6 00 31 .4
116 35 04 .11
298 28 14 .7
61 26 35 .1
Name .
1 Flora,
IVeata,
8 Iria,
01 Mea.,
6 Hebe,
6 AII&leao
7 Juno,
==
101 44 to .3
5 19 17 .1
13 OS 39 .3
10 37 18 .1
301 37 31 .1
6 07 II .6
13 10 60 .1
7 1836.9
11 81 11 .4
10 019 65 .8
101 012 19 .6
01 t4 66 .8
13 601 48.9
111_ d.aily Sid. -.
1086".1100
977 .948
963 .4498
962 .6660
941.37601
867 .8498
811 .7011
770 .9868
768 .8868
From theee eiemlmtll and data, IOIIlfJ curioua result. may be obtained
10
There are where the orbits are entirely encIoaed the ODe
within the other viz.
Flo:", &n
Iris and Flora in Juno.
A.trea and Vesta PaiIa
In., FLora, I'Flas, Vesta Cergg
The following orbite interlock like the links af a chain,
He"", and Ftrea.
Juno and AIItnla.
V,Fgg and
Flo"" and tsFrea.
Iris and Astrea.
PalFb in lkFb
H,L" and
Vesta and Iris.
FI,gg, and
PFbb and "ggko.
V est&. and Juno.
H,L,., and "",,0.
Ceres an" Juno.
Pall .. and Hebe.
V ggb and Hebe.
Cergg and Hebe.
Pallas in Flora.
V,,,,L,, in Fk,la.
In those cases where the orbits interlock with each other, .. the nocIe.
one orbit on any other are perpetually shifting, the tum, COb",
Fhen actuH inter",k:uon the mal" take suck
iime the two planets should be found at the same in this now COOP
mon point of their orbits, a collision would tske in
:zuen'" "f the "robahl" rotark ",oUon the :m,ving ,'r,jjes, muld k:':A
,Yuee a sudden terrific shock. The very1lear equality of the orbital
motions would eecure the from any severe collision from their
",e:IOciH", in
If kke knowk,rillge or lheee minute planeta was perfect, it would not be
impossible. 10 compute backward or forward and ascertsin the time
e:f ::::'eA!D
. times ?f !'e with the periods of
be "kmrnds U,eIl' ou::ts, It mould ",mp:m' the
mhen ,::lIisi'r: c,f thll hiane 10 pla:r:.
By computstions Encke found that about the year A. D. :ll!97, the
::!! "c! of
been attempted.
Th:: of Ortul'll gahz'l'II 8,;ngth new
mfl\'ered. ll}thoL,;h the that the alcillmlion Flora than
of Ceres, preaenta a difliCuity which had not before existed.
f fTPITEfTts
JUPITER is the largest of all the planeta belonging to the solar
system. It may be readily distintsdsh,d from the 6","C starll,
It:y ita kkple21:':TILr and magfLi:TIL,de;. to nak21:Y
JUPITER.
271
eye almost as retlplendent as Venus, although it II more than
Beyen times her distance from the sun. .
When his right aacension il less than that of the lun, he is
onr morning star; and appeara in the eastern hflmisphere before
the sun rieel; when greater, he il our evening star, and lingers
in the western hemisphere after the lun sets.
Nothing can be easier than to trace Jupiter among the can-
stellationlof the zodiac; for in whatever constellation he il seen
&ooclay, one year hence he will be seen equally advanced in the
na:I conltellation; two yeara hence, in the next; three years
hence, in the next, and 10 on; being just a year, at a mean rate,
in paning oyer one constellatioD.
The exact mean moIion of Jupiter in iii orbit, ill about' OIIe twelfth of
a degree in a day; wlW:h IIIIOUI1tII to 0DIy SOO 10' W' in year.
Jupiter il the next planet in the solar IYltem aboTe the ute-
roidl, and performl hi' annual reyolution around the lun in nearly
lSi of our yearll, at the mean distance of millionl of milea;
maTing in hil orbit at the rate of 30,000 an bour. .
The exact period of Jupiter'.1idareal re't'OIution 1111 yean, 10 months,
17 day .. 14 houra, 21 mutel, 261118C011d-. HII exact _ diItance
from &be Bun is U5,533,837 ume.; COIII8CIuently, &be exact rate of
motion in his orbit, is 29.943 ume. per hour.
. He reyolvfll on an axil, which is perpendicular to the plane
.of his orbit. in 9 houra, 55 minutea, and 50 secondl; so that his
year contains days and nights; each about 5 houralong.
His form il that of an oblate spheroid. whoee polar diameter
il to its equatorial, 81 13 to He il therefore considerably
more !attened at the polel, than an'y' of the other planets, excep"
Saturn. This is cauaed by hil rapid rotation on his axil; forh
il a univeraal law, that the equatorial parts of every body reyolv-
ing on an axil, will be !"Wollen out in proportion to the denlit1
of the body, and the rapidity of its motton.
The di8immee between the polar IDII equatorial diametmw of Jupiter,
6000 miles. The difference between &be polar ad equatorial
diametera of &be earth, ia oa1y 26 miles. Jupiter, eVen on &be IDOIt _
_ view through gpod teJeacope, aD'Dl!llrll be oval; &be loager diaJne.
tel being parallel to the direction of which are aIao parallel to
UJ..e ecliptic.
-B, this rapid whirl on his Uil, his equatorial inhabitants are
earned around at the rate of SI6.5M miles ao hour; which is
1600 miles farther than the equatorial inhabitants of the earth
are carried, by its diurnal motion, in ltJmIty.J'our Aourt.
the true mean diameter of Jupiter il 86,255 miles; which il
Il88rly.ll times greater than the earth'l. Hil volume ii, there-
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
fore, about Iltirlaft AfHIIlretl pli1es luger tban dlat oC the earth.
On account of hi8.great di8tance Crom the lon, the degree of
lif{bt and hest which he receive8 from it, il 117 Woes lea dian
thal received by the earth.
When Jupiter is in conjunction, he liaes, ..ita, and comes to the meri-
dian with the sun; but is never obeerYed to make a transit, or paas OYer
the aun's disk; when in opposition, he n-when the 8\Dl ... BellI when
the Bun riaee, and comes to the meridian at midnight, which never hap-
pens in the _ of an interior planet. This plOY. that Jupiter nmJI_
m an orbit which is t:IJIerior' to that of the earth.
A8 the variety in 'the seaions DC a planet, and in the length of
its daY8 and, nights, depends upon the inclination of its axia to
the plane of its orbit, and a8' the axi8 of Jupiter has no inclina-
tion, there can be no difference hi hi8' 8ea80ns, on the same par-
allel8 of latitude, nor any ftriation in the length of his days and
nights. hil not to be o:odentood, howeyer, that one tmiJarra
_1m preYaill from hi8 equator to his poles; bot that the __
parallel. rf laHlutk on each aide of hil equator, oniformlyenjoy
the same sealon. whatever lea80n it may be.
Aboot his equatorial regions, there is perpetoalsummer; and
at his poles, everlasting winter; but yet equal day and eqoal
ntght at each. "his arrangement seems to have been kindly or-
dered by the beneficent Creator; for had bis axis beeo inclined
to his orbit, li,ke that of the earth, his polar wintelR woold bue
been alternately a dreadfull,light ,of rill: !I_' tltw/mul.
Jupiter, when viewed througb a teleecope, appean to be
rounded by a number pf luminoos sones, usually termed bella,
tbat frequ,ently extend qoite around him. These belts are parallel
.not.ouly to each otber . bot, in general, to his equator, which i
allo neerly parallel to the ecliptic. They are subject, howeyer.
to considerable variation, both in breadth and .Dumber. Som ..
times eight hays been seen at once; sometimes only one, but
more usually three. Dr. Herachel once perceived bil wbole
disk covered with small belts.
Sometimel these belts continue for month I at a time widl
little or no variation, and sometimel a new belt hal been II881l
to (orm in a Cew houn. Sometimes they are interrupted in their
length; ,and It odler timea, thet appear to spread in widtb, and
run into each other, until their readth exceeds 5,000 miles.
Bright and dark IpOts are also frequently to be leen in tile
belts, whicb uaually diaappear witb tbe belta themselyes, though
not alwaYI. for C8IIini obserYed that one ooeupiedthe same
position more than 40 yean. Of the _ oC tbese nriable
appearancel. but little ia known. The, are gtinera\ly IUppoaed
to be nothing mon than resulting from.
or combiDed widl. abe rapid mouoll oCdle planetupon i&8' axia..
.JUPITER. 278
DiftiDent opinioDl haft been enIIeJ1ained by utrooOlDell I'8IIpIIding the
ta1lle of th_ belli and _ they have been regvded ..
c1ouda. or RI openinp in the of the planet, ... hiIe other8 ima-
gine that they are of more permanent nature, and are the nwIuI of
pat phyaieal revoIutiouI, which are perpetually agiw.ting and changinf
the IIUIface of the planet. The &r.i 01 opiniOlll IlUfticiently ex-
pIainII the ftriatioDl in the form and magnitud'e of the 1pOU, and the
of the beltl. The apot firat qbaerved by CIIIIIIini, in 1666,
Which hal both dilappeared and' zeappeared in the __ form and
lion for the Bpace 01"4 a yean, couhr not potIIibly be occuioned by any
I&moIphericai variatioDl, but EeIIIII evidently to be connected with the
IIUlfiu:e of the planet. The l"onn of the belt, according to _ utrono-
men, may be accounted for by IUppoeing that the almotIJIAtn reftectl
, more light than the body of the planet, and that the cloud. which float in
it, being thrown into palaIIellltrata by the rapidity of ill diurnal motioo,
bm regular inttndica, through which are _n ita opeke body. Ol any
f1I the permanent .. which may ex.. within the JaIIIJII of the openins.
Jupiter ia alao attended by four latellilea or moon., lOme of
which are visible to him every hour ofthe night; exhibiting,oa
a amall acala and in short periods. moat of the phenomena of'the
BOlar aystem. When ,iewed through a teleacop .. the.. satel-
litea present a moat interesting and beautiful appaarance. The
firat aatellite, or that nearest the planet, is 259,000 milel distan&
from its center, and revolves around it in 42i houra; and appeara,
at the surface of Jupiter, four times larger than our moon doee
to 118. Hia second satellite, heiug both smaller and farther dis-
&ant, appeara about the'lize of oura; the third, IOmewhat less;
and the fourth, wbich ia more than a million of miles from him,
and takes 16l days.to revol,e arodnd hiDl, appeara only abou&
one tAird the diameter of our moon.
These satellites luifer frequent eclipses from paaaing through
Jupiter'. sbadow; in the aame manner 88 our moon il eclipaed
in paaaing through the earth's shadow. The three nearest aa-
tellitel faU into hia abadow, and are eclipaed, in e,ery revolu-
tion; but the orbit of the fourth ia 10' much inclined, that it
p88888 by its opposition to bim, two yeara in lix, without fall-
Ing into his shadow. By meana of tbese eclipaea, altronomers
haye not only diacovered tbat light is 8 minutes and 13 second a
in to us from the sun, but are also enabled to determine
tbe longitude of places on the earth with greater facility and
exactness than by any other methode yet known.
It was long since found, by the moat careful obIIervatiOlll. that when
the earth is in that part of her orbit which is nearelt to Jupiter, the
eclipeea appear to happen 8' IS" _ than the tables predict; and
when in that part of her orbit which is fartbeat from him. 8' IS" later
&ban the tableB predict; making a total diffimmce in time, of 16' 26".
From the mean of 6000 ecnp- ot.ned by Delambre, thia di-.greement
A4 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
and esIt:uItztiDn. __ tUfactiorily.uled at 8' 13",
while both _ COJIlIidered equally corNC&. NIIW,. wbeo the eeliJ-
happen _ than the mbIee, Jupiter i. at hie --' approach to the
eill1h-when 1ater, at hill greateBt distance; 10 that the tIi&reDee in m.
dlBlance8 from the earth, in the two -. i. the &olIole diomder of
earth', orbit, or about 100 millions of miles. Renee, it i. concludeil that
litrht iI not itutontaneow, but that it occupiell 16' lMI" in puaing IClOIe
the earth'. orbit, or 8' 13" in coming from the IAIIl to the earth; being
nearly 12 milliona of milea a minute.
The revolutions of the sstellites about Jupiter are precisely
similar to the revolutions of the planets about the SUD. In this
respect they are sn of the solar exhibiting, on
a smaller scale, the various change. that take place among the
planetary worlds.
Jupiter, when I88D from hi. D88reat 18tellite, al?paara a tlwtr
14M ti_larJcer than our moon does to us, exhibiting OD a &Csi.
of iDoonceinlilfl magnificence, the varying forms of a crescent,
a half moon, IL gibbous phase, and a full moon, every fo">"two
hours.
El __ of Jupiter and bi. .. te16tes b Jan Iat, lSOI.
PLUln.
Mean aid. JeVolu. (nearly 12 y_), aoIar da"...
Mean I)'noWc leY. IOlar daya, "
Mean longitude,
U8Sd. 14b. OSlO. OS.1iI.
898.867
1120 15' sa".O
Mean orbital mo. in a IOlar day,
Do. per annum,
Longitude of perihelion,
... nnwd mo. of apsidea eastward, "
Do. refeIred to the ecliptic.
Inclination of orbit to the ecliptic:,
Annual d_ of 'do.
Longitude bf -mmg node
Mo&ion at do. west per .nnum,
Ditto east, refeIred to the ecliptic:, "
EccenVicity of orbit, half aD nnity,
111CI'8IIII8 of ditto in a centuty,
Greatest equation at center,
Annual increaaa of ditto,
Rotation on axis,
Inclination of axis to ecliptic,
Mean apparent eq. diam.
".
Ditto at conjunction,
Ditto at opposition . ""
True diam. (00,000 milea_l.J) earth'. cliam. unity,
Volume, earth'. l1li unity, " " "
BUD'S:- unily'l " " " "
DeD81ly', BUn l1li UOlly', " " "
Mean distance C 485,000,000 mllea), earth'. l1li unity,
4 69 .26
80 20 82 .0
11 08 M .6
6.06
67.06
1 18 In .3
o .128
88 18 18 .9
16 .8
84 .8
0.0481621
0.000169860
rP 81' 13".8
o .634
Db. 56m. 49.71.
8005' 80".0
86.74
30.00
46 .88
10 .860
1280.0
0.000934 1 ,:n
0.99239
6.102776
JUPITER.
275
8.lTUoLITU.
1:'":"_-.-_---:---,,--1 Finl. second. Third. Fourth.
Sid. rey. in .. 18h.l8m. 3d. ISh. 14m.1d.8h.43iD." Ukl. ;!:IIII.
D.\lo for comp'lIation, .'111913'18 3 MIBIOI 7 .1M.W2S 16 6"*1,61,
M.an app. dlam. ()I'.IIII 1".273
Ditto in miles. !508 bJ8 33?7 ll800
M. .... Jap. as one. 0.0000173 0.0000lI3I 0.0000885 O.OIlOOt27
M. dill JIlp. eq. nod. ul. .0t863 Ut:J47 15 350:/4
Dilloin degreee, 1'&7".92 0"3'07".64 0"04'59".320"8'
Ditto in mile., I1lO,OOO 420,000 6711,000 . 1.100.000
A IDOIt curiOUI phenomenon with rdmmce to on8 of the satellites of
Jupiter, lull _aly been at the Cambridge ob8e"atory, and
aIao at the (,'int:inuati oberYatory. In Jllllling IICl(8 the diJIk of 'he
p\aDe&, it bu been __ to 10lIl illl ligbt .. if undergoing ecIipae, until it
finally becomeI a 6/Qek apot on the diIk of the planet; after pIIIIIiDs otf
the disk it __ ita liah&.
SATURN.
SATUU is situated between the orbita of J upher and Herschel,
and Is the moat remote planet from the earth of any that are
visible to the naked eye. It may be easily distinguished from
thfO fixed stars by ita pale, feeble, and steady light. It resembles
the star Fomalhaut, both in color and size, differing from it only
in the steadiness and uniformic,y of ita light.
From the slowneea of ita monon in ita orbit, the pu pil, through-
out the period of hia whole life, may trsce its apparent course
among the atars, without any danger of. mistake. Having once
.found when it entera a particular constellation, he may easily
remember where he is to look for it in IIny subsequent year;
because, at a mean rate, it is just two and a half years in Palla-
ing over a single sign or constallation.
Saturn's mean daily motion among the stan is only about 2',
the thirtieth part qf II degree,
8atum entered the COIlIIIIllation V"ugo about the beginning c{ 1833,
Ind COIltinued ill it until the middle of the year 1835, when he paseed
into Libra. Be will continue in that coll8teDation until 1838; and 10
on; occupying .bout 21 yeam in each COJl8telladon, or nearly thirty years
m one JeYOlution.
The mean distanee of Saturn f"rom the IUD il nearly double tbal
of" Jupiter, being about nine bundred and nine milliOfts or miles.
Hil diameter is aboG 82,000 miles; his volume therefore is
ekven Atmdred timu greater than the earth's. MoYing in his
orbit at the rata of 22,000 mil .. an bour, he requires twenty-
Dine and a hair y.... &0 oomplete Iris circuit around the sun :-
278 GEOGRA.PHY OF THE HEA.VENS.
but hi. diurnal rotltion on hi. axil i. in ten and a
" hlalf houl'l. Hill Yflar, therefore, i. Dearly thirty tim81 as long
as ours, while hill day is shorter by more than ODe balf. Hi.
year cantlin. about il5,150 of ite own day., wbicb are equal SO
10.759 of our days. ' '
surface of Saturn, like tbat of Jupiter, is diversified with
belts and dark apote. Dr. Herschel aometim81 perceived five
belts on hia aurface; three of wbich were dark, and two bright.
The dark belts have a yellowiah tinge, and' generally cover a
broader zone of the planet than those of Jupiter.
To the inhabitente of Saturn, tbe aun appears ninety timea
l8Is than he appears to tbe earth; and they receive from him
only one nimtidA part as much Iigbt and beaL But it is com-
p'uted that even the part of the sun'. light exceeds the
IIlumiuating power of 3,000 full moons, whicb would be abun-
danti y sufficient for all the purposes of life.
The telescopic appearsnce of Saturn is unparalleled. It is
even more interesting than Jupiter, with all his moon. and beltL
That which eminently distinguisbes this planet from evef1 other
in the system, is a magnificent zone or ring, encircling It with
perpetual light.
The light of the ring is more brilliant than tbe planet itself.
It turns around hs center of motion id the same time tbat Saturn
tuma on ita axis. When viewed with a JOod telescope, it is
found to consist of two concentric rings, diVIded by a darl!. band.
By the Ia_ of mechanica, it is impoaaible that the body of the rinp
should retain ita position by the adhesion of the particIeB alone; it mWlt
necell881'ily revolve with a velocity that will generate centrifugal force ...
Scient to balance the attraction of Satum. Obeervation' eonfirma the
truth of th_ principles. showing that the ringa rotate about the planet
in 10! hOOD, which is considerably Ie. than the time a ";'wllite would
tak" to revolve about it at the aame distance. 'fheir plane is inclined to
the ecliptic in an angle of 310. In CODIIIlqUllllCe of this obliquity of
poaition, they always appear elliptical to us, but with an eccentricity ..
variable 88 to appear, ClCCaBionally, like a IItnIight line drswn a<."l'Oll8 the
planet; in which _ they are visible only by the aid of superior instru-
ments. Such _ their pooition in April, 1833; for the BUD W88 then
paRSing from their .. uth to their north Bide. The ringa intenleCt the eclip-
tic in two opposite point&, which may be called their node&. Tht-...e pointa .
Ill\! in longitude 1700, and 3500. When, therefore, Saturn is in either of
these point&, his rings will be invisible to WI. On the contrary, when
his longitude is 800, or 2000. the rinp may be _ to the greatest advan-
tage. A. the edpt of the rinp will pteleDt ,lhelllolelvea to the SUD twice
in each revolution of the pIanet, it is ObviOUB that the disappearance of
them will occur once in about 15 yeara; aubject, however, to the varia-
tion dependent on the poaition of the earth at that time.
The ful10wing are the dBte8 during the ensuing revolutioBB of the
planet, wben ita mean /JeIioantric lonaitude is IIUch that the rings will (if
1838 July,
1847 Dec.
1A55 April,
1863 NOt'.
soc III 8eorpio,
10 of AquariUl,
SOC of Gemini,
SOC of Virgo,
North Iide illaminated.
In_ble.
South Bide illumillated.
lnviBible.
The distance between Satum and his inner rintf, is only
11,000 miles; being leas than a tmlla part of the dtlltanee of
our moon from the eartb. The breadtb of the dark band, or the
interval betweentbe rings, is bardly 3,000 miles.-The breadth
of the inner ring, is 20,000 miles. Being only about the same
distance from Saturn, it will preBent to bis inhabit,ants a lumin-
ous zone, arcbing tbe wbole coneaye vauh from one hemisphere
to the other with a broad girdle of light.
The obrious use of this double ring i8, to reSect light upon
the ,Planet in tbe absence of the suni what other purpose8 it may
be m .... nded to subBerve, is to 118 unknown. The 8un, aa ba8
b .. en shown, illuminates one side oC h during 151ea", or one
half of the period of tbe planet's revolution i an duriug the
next 15 years, the othl'r 8ide i8 enlightened in its tum.
Twice in the courae of 30 1ea", there is II sbort interval of
time when neither side is enhghtened, and wben, of course, it
O88BeS to be visible i-namely, at tbe time when tbe sun I!eaaea
to shine on one side, and is abont to sbine on tbe other. It
revolves around ,its axis, and conseqnflnt.ly, around in
101
0
hours, which is at the rate of a thousand miles a minute,
or 58 times swifter than the revolution of the earth's equator.
When viewed from the middle zone of tbe planet, in tbe
absence of the sun, tbe rings will appear like vast luminou8
arches. exte!lding along the canop), of heaven, from tbe eastern
to the western borizon, exceeding In breadth a bundred times the
apparent diameter of our moon.
Besidea the rings, Saturn is attended by Beyen satellites,
.. hich revolve about bim at difFerent periods and distancea, and
reciprocally reSect tbe aun's rays on eacb otber and on the
plan .. t. Tbe rings and moons illuminate tbe nigbts oC ,Satum ;
\he moona and Saturn enlighten the rings, and tbe planet and
reSect the sun'8 beam8 on the aatellite ..
TblJfuurtla oftbee Iatellitea (in the order III their diatance) -ftnt
diIeoYeIed by Hun-. 011 the 16th of Mareh, 1856, ad, in bOIlor III
Tbil bap,JM!u, .. _ han alreu., 1howD, whllll 8a1arll1. either in the lIOIh
deJree of PilCe&, or the lIOIh of Viqo. When he i. between the ..
pomta, or in the lIOIh d.".. either of GeminI or of Saciuariu, hi. rill( appeara
moel open 10"., and _ in the form of !Ill OYaJ, whOle kmpat diaDilller II 10
the IhOnelt ... 10 '- ' ,
Z
278 GEOGRAPHY or THE HEAVENS.
&be cJi8coorenIr, _ C8lIecJ the 8tJIelIiIL TbiJI aateIIite, being
the largest of aU, is E8D without much difficulty. CIIIIIini discovered the
1st, lZeI, 3d, and 6th aateJJiteII, between October, 1671, and Maroh, 1684.
Dr. Henchel.discovered &be 6th and 7th in 1789. These are nearer to
Saturn than 'any of the rest, though, 0 avoid confullion, they are IIIlIDI!d
in the order of their discovery.
The sixth and seventh are the smallest of tbe whole; the first
and second are the next smallest; the tbird is greater than the
first and second; the fourth is the largest of them all; and \he
fifth surpasBeB the rest in brightness.
Their respective distances from their primary, vary from balf
the distance of our moon, to two millions of miles. Their pe-
riodic revolutions vary from 1 day to 79 days. The orbits t1f
the six inner satellites, that is, the tat, 2d, 3d, 4tb, 6th, and 7th,
an lie in the plane of Saturn's rings, and revolve around their
outer edge; while the 6th satellite deviates so far from the plane
of tbe rings, as sometimes to be seen t!trough the opening between
them tbe planet.
Laplace imsginBl that the accumulation of matter at Batum'. equator
retainI the orbilB of the ftnJt llix satellites in the plane of the equator, in
the IllUDe maJIIIer u it retains the rings in that plane. It hu been ...
factorily ucertained, that Batum hu a greater accumulation of matter
about biB equator, and consequently that he is more 8att.ened at the
poles, than Jupiter, though the velocity of the equatorial parts of the f0r-
mer is much leas than that of the latter. TbiJI is aufticiently accounted
for by the filet, that the "11gB of Batum lie in the plane of biB equator,
and act IIIOJe powerfully upon thoae parts of biB IIIU'fiule than upon any
other; and thus, while they aid in diminishing the gravity of these parts,
also aid the centrifugal force in Battening the polea of the planet. Indeed,
had Saturn never revolved upon biB axis, the action of the rings would,
of itaeU; have been aufticient to give him the form of an oblate spheroid.
Satumian elements, January 1, 180 1 :
Mean distance (about 890,000,000 m.ilBl), earth's u one, 9.538786
Mean sid. rev. (lZ9,456 yeara), mean BOlar days, 10759.1198
Mean synod. rev. in mean BOlar da,... 378.090
Mean longitude, 135
0
20' 06".5
Mean orbital motion in a mean BOlar day, t' 00".6
Do. in a BOlar year, 120 13' 36".1
Longitude 890 09' 19".8
Ann. mo. ofapsicf8leutwud, 19".4
Ditto refened to ecIi.pIic, l' 09".5
Inclination of orbit to ecliptic, to 29' 36".7
Annual deereue of ditto, 0".156
I.ong. of ucend. node, 111
0
66' 87".40
Motion of do. per an. west, 19".4
" " .. .. .. " eat, ret: to ecliptic, 30".7
Eccentricity half maj. aD 1IIIity,.. 0.0561606
Decreue of do. in a century,
Greatest equation of center,
Annual decreaae of do.
Rotation on axis,
Inclination of axis to ecliptic,
App. diam. at mean dist. from the earth,
1'rue diam. (about 7fi06R milea), earth' ... unity,
Volume, earth's as unity, - - -
Mass, sun's as unity,
Denaity, SUB'S as unily,
Outer diam. of eXterior ring, 40",096
Inner
.. .. .. ..
36.289
Outer diam. of inner ring, 34 .476
Inner
.. .. .. ..
18,688
Equal diam. of planet -
17.991
Breadth of division between the riDgB, 0.408
Dial of ring from the planet, 4.339
279
0,000312402
60 16' 12".00
1".279
10 h. 29 m. 16.8 L
31
0
f9'
16".20
9.982
99f . OO
0.0002847380
0.650
Mile .
178.418
166.271
161.690
117.339
79.160
1.791
19.090
The multiple division of Saturn', rings hu be8n a matter of _ '.'
dilpute. There now _mil little doubt that the exterior ring is divided
into two rings. Prof. Encke laW the diviBion distinctly, April 26, 1837.
On the 25th of May he obtained theae approximate III8UIUIl8 :
oUter diam. of ellt. ring,
.. II II new division,
Inner diam. of outer ring, -
Outer diam. of inner ring,
Inner diam. of inner ring, -
40".4116
- 37.471
-. 38.038
34 .749
26,766
Theae are the only meuures which I have aeen. The third division
_ distinctly obaerved on the 7th September, 1843, at Mr. Lassell'.
obaervatory, near LiverpooL Since the erection of the Refractor of the
Cincinnati Obaematory, the planea of Saturn's rings have been too much
inclined to the vieual ray for exact examination. I have never been able
to mek8 out the triple division of the ringL
It hal been found that the laws of perfect equih'brium require that the
center of the rings should not coincide with the center of the planet.
Exact Dl8UUrea have shown that this discovery of theozy is verified in
nature. There is a alight dillimmce in the 1'8IIpIlCti.ve diste1lCllB from the
planet to the inner edge of the ring on the right and left, amounting
to about two-tenthll of a eecond of arc. .
Saturn is one of the moat magnificent ~ in the heavell8, when
_n with a powerful telescope, and never WIB to excite the moat pr0-
found admiration in the beholder.
The aatellitea of Saturn are by no __ .. weD !mown .. thOll8 of
Jupiter. The two inner aatellitell are among the moat difticult objectII to
be ~ in the heavenL The following elementll may be regarded u a
near approximation .. to the truth.
'.
_ GEOGRAPHY or THE HEAVENS.
IlalelHte. Sidereal 11l1&li DiIlaDOe.
BnolutioD DiICOTerer and
'=0Id
La mean
=--.
.&liii0-
Dale.
80lar Day.
-
aIIr
.......
---- ---

..
d. h. m.
,
I 7
0" 38
3.3111 19.15 120,000 w. Herachel, 1789
n 8 10853
.300
31.19 1110,000
.. .. ..
m 1 1 11 IS Ii.IS4 .5.13 190,000 D. CUIIini, 1684
IV
I I I 17 .11
8.819 1 0093
243.0011 ..
..
..
V 3 11 25 9.1124 124.S8 340,000
.. .. ..
VI 4 1111 II 41
22.0S1 3 26.60 788,000 C. Huygens, 16511
!-VB
1179 07 56 6U511 918.00
D. CaBni, 1671
URANUS OR HERSCHEL.
URANUS is the planet next beyond Saturn; to the naked eye.
it appears like a stat of only the sixth or seventh magnitude,
and of a pale, bluish white; but it can seldom be seen, except
in a very fine. clear night, and in the absence of the moon.
As it moves over but one degree of its orbit in eighty-five days,
it will be MIen yean in passing over one sign or constellation.
When first seen by Dr. Herschel, in 1781, it was in the foot
of Gemini; 10 liuJt it Aa8 not yet completed one revulution ainu it
_ diacotIered 10 be a pJaflel.
It is remarkable that this body was obaerved u liar back u 1690. Ia
__ three IimeII by FIamatead, once by BmdIey,once by Mayer, IIIId
eleven timea by Lemonnier, who registered it BIIlOIII the 1Itar8; bot DOt
one of them supected it to be pIaneL
The inequalities in the motions of Jupiter and Saturn, which
could not be accounted for from the mutual attractions of these
planets, led astronomer. to suppose that there existed another
planet beyond the orbit of Saturn, hy whose action these irregu-
Jarities wflre produced. 'rhis conjecture was confirmed March
13th, 1781, when Dr. Herschel discovered the moliOflB of this
body, and thus proved it to be a planet.
Herschel is attended by six moons or satellites, which revolve
about him in dift"erent periods, and at various distances. Four
of them were discovered by Dr. Herschel, and two by his sister,
Misl CarolillE' Herschel. It il p088ible that others remain yet
to be discovered.
UranuI' mean distance from the lun il 1828,000,000 of miles;
more than twice the mean distance of Saturn. His sidereal
URANUS.
281
reTolatiou is performed in 8' years and 1 month, and his motion
in hi' orbit is 15,600 miles an hour. He is supposed to have a
rotation on his axis, in common with the other planets; bat as-
tronomers have not yet been able to obtain any oceular proof of
such a motion.
His diameter is estimated at 3',000 miles; which would make
his volume more than 80 times larger tban the earth's. To his
inhabitants, the sun appears only the "2"1-. part as large as he
does to us; and of course they receive '"rom him only that small
proportion of light and heat. It may be shown, however, that
the !fit part of the 8un's light exceeds the illuminating power
of 800 full moons. This, added to the light they mllst receive
from their 8ix sa&ellitel, will render their days and nights rar
from cheerless.
But three of the six IIltelli&ee reported by Henchel, have been obeened
by those who have followed him.
The following elements are for the epoch let January, 1801, reckon-
ing from the mean equinox:
Mean Bid. rev. (84.02 yeara),1OIar days,
" wynocl. rev. " " ""
Mean longitude,
Mean motion in orbit in a _ BOlar day,
Do. per annum, .
Long. of perihelion,
Annual mo. of aprides east,
Inclination of orbit,
Long. of ascending node,
Ann. mo. of do. eastward,
Eccentricity of orbit. Semi axis maj. W1ity,
Greatest equatiou of center.
Mean app. diam. (35,000 miles scarcely),
True mam., earth's as unity,
Mass. sun as unity,
V olume, earth as unity. -
Density, sun's as unity,
30686.821 d.
369.61'>6 "
177
0
48' 23".0
. 42".37
4
0
17' 45".16
16'1 31 16 .10
52.60
0046' 28.44
72 69 36 .30
14 .16
0.04667938
6
0
20' 5'7".00
4 .00
4. 344
0.0000658098
82
1.100
19.182390 Mean di.;tance (I,SOO,OOO,OOO miles), earth's as unity,
Henrht'l'JI
Sidereal Revolution.
Mean
SatcHilea. dillmeter == 1 of PJnnet.
-----
d. h. m. s.
I 5 21 26 20
13.120
II 8 16 57 47 17.022
III 10 23 02 47 19.845
-
IV 13 10 !is 29 22.752
V 38 01 48 00 45.607
VI
107 16 39 66 91.008
Renchel'. perioda, of t.wo of IIltellit.es, have been eonfirmed by
z2 .
_ GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEA. VUB.
Ilia lIOII, and by Dr. Lemom, of MUDieh; a third CIII8 baa mcently beea
ot.erved by 8tri;. ve of PuIkcRa. .
From an exteDllive aeriea of II*IAlI8I, a flattening at the polea, and a
protuberance at the equator of tbia .pIanet Iw t-1 det.ectecI, delDOlllltrat,.
mg a rotation upon an axis, in IICDOldance with the pneral analogy of
the phmetI. .
NEPTUNE (naft C.A.LUJI LKnallUa).
THIs is the most remote and the latest discovered of all the
large planets. The extraordinary circumstances attending its
disp.overy, have given to this object an interest which does not
attach to any other heavenly body. After the discovery of U ra.
nus, in 1781, efforts were made to reduce ita motions to the
known laws of gravitation, and an orbit was computed, which,
in the outset, it was thought would represent all the obsened
places of Uranus, and by which ita future places might be pre-
dicted. In a abort time tbis orbit was found to be at fault: tbe
planet W\UI gradually leaving it, anll seemed to be under some
unknown influence, wbicb involved ita motions in mystery.
After tbe lapse of many Tears from the discovery of Uranus,
M. Bouvard resumed the Investigation of ita orbit, and finally
reached the conclusion that it was impossible to represent at the
same time, by any orbit, the old observed places of the planet
and the new ones, or those taken after the star was discovered
to be a planet. He, therefore, rejected the ancient observations
aa more likely to be in error, and adoptinJ tbe recent ones, com
puted an orbit and tables for Uranus, whlcb it was hoped might
repl'IIII8nt the future places of the planet.
A few years sufficed to show tbat this orbit and these tables
were defective. Tbe computed and tbe obsened places of the
planet did not agree, and the' difference increased from year to
year, until it attracted the attention of many distinguished as-
tronomers. Some were disposed to attribute these irregularities
to a relaxation of the AgOroUS laws of gravitation in those re-
mote rel[ions of space; others conceived that Uranus might be
attended by some large estellite wbicb was swaying it from its
computed orbit: wbile another class conceived the possible ex.
istence of a remote unl\iscovered planet, under whose infiuence
Uranus was made to break away from ite computed track
. Under these circumstances, a young astronomer, M. LeTerrier,
of Paris, as early as 1846, at tbe request of M. Arago, under-
took a thorough discussion of the irregularities of Uranus, with
a view to understand their cause; and in CBse tbis cause sbould
be an u.terior planet, to determill8, from the known irregularities
NEPTUNE.
of U ranua, tbe actual place of tbe unknoWll dieturbing planet at
a given epoch.
M. Levemer commenced by determining, witb all accuracy,
tbe disturbing influence on Uranus, exerted by all the knotcm
bodies of the aolar aystem, and ~ o r e eS)lecialJy the etrects of
the large and nearer planets Saturn and Jupiter. His memoir
on this subject was presented to the Academy of Sciences of
Paris, on the lOth Nov., 1845. On the first of the following
June, he read a second memoir before that I ~ m e d body, in which
he demonstrates that the irregularities of Uranus cannot be ex-
plained by any known cauaea; and concludes. that they are due
to an unknown planet revolving in an orbit exterior to tbat of
Uranus, and as far from Uranus as it is from the sun; and whose
place, as ronghly determined, was, on the 1st January, 1847, in
longitude 325
0
On the 30th August, 1846, a third memoir wa.
read, in which the author fixes the approximate elemE'nts of his
theoretical planet, its mass, and its cf0sition for theIst January,
1847, in beliocentric longitude 326 39'. On the 5th October,
J846, a fourth and last memoir was presented to the Academy,
in which M. Leverrier discussee tbe pOsition of the plane of the
orbit of hie unknown planet.
These wonderful accounts excited tbe greatest interest among
astronomers, yet such was the difficulty of the problem, that few
were willing to b"lieve that Leverrier's computation would ever
lead to the discovery of his imaginary planet. These misgivlnge
were soon dissipated. On the Ist of Sept., 1846, M. Leverrier
wrote to bis friend Dr. Galle, of Berlin, requesting him to direct
his telescope to the place in the heavens which his calculation.
had indicated as the place of his planet at that date. This re-
quest was immediately complied' with; and on the very first
evening of examination, the planet was actually discovered
within less than one degree of the place pointed out by M.
Leverrier!
In the mean time, the publications of Leverrier had brought to
lillht the fact, that Mr. Adams, a young geometer of Cambridge,
Eng., had discussed the vert same problem, and had reached
reaults almost exactly coincident with those of Leverrier. In-
deed, Mr. Adams had obtaint>d his results some months previous
to M. Leverrier, but having failed to publish them to the world,
thus gave to his distinguished rival the priority and right of dis-
covery. The wonderful coincidence of the results obtained by
Leverrier and Adams, Sfll!med to fix absolutely the fact of the
discovery of the planet from calculation. The news of ite dis-
covery was soon spread throughout the world, and excited every
where the deepest mterest. The intelligence rear-hed Cincinnati
on the 28th Oct., 1846, and on the same evening the planet was
284 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
readDy detected by its flUTe with tile great refractor. Ite diame-
ter waa immediately measured.
The new rlanet was now followed with IIreat intere8t at all
the principa ObSe"afOries in the world, with the view of dis-
coyering how nearly the coml!uted elements before discovery
would agree with those determined from actual observation after
discovery. As the planet moved extremely 810w, this would
hue required a ,long series of years, but for a most important
dieeovery made by Mr. S. C. Walker, then at the Washington
observatory. After computing an orbit of the new planet from
the besl data then in eXl8tence, he traced it backward for fifty
or lixty yeara, in the hope of finding that its place had been
fixed fong since by lome astronomer who had obse"ed it, be-
lieving it to be a fixed 8tsr. His research wal rewarded with a
brilliant discovery. Two plaee8 of the planet were obtained
from thecatelogue of Lalande, a8 fsr back a81795, which, com-
bined with recent places, gaVE' sufficient date to determine with
comparative a"curacy the elements of the orbit of the new planet.
A difficulty herf! arose, from the fact that a great dieerepancy tlll.-
isted between the periodic time of the planet and that computed
by M. Leverrier. His computed period was about 217 yeara,
- while the periodic time of Neptune i8 about 164. This discre-
pancy has induced 80me astronomers to assert that the discovery
of the planet, after all, was aecidenlal. Thi8 Leverrier denies;
and here. for the present, the matter rests.
Prof. Pierce of Cambridge, after an elaborate research, finds
that all the irregularities of Uranus are most perfectly accounted
for by the inftuence of the new planet; 80 that in case this re-
sull may be relied OD, thi8 great problem is DOW absolutely
exhau8ted.
The following are the elements computed, before discovery,
by M. Leverrier:
Periodic time, yean, 117.387
Mean distsnee, esrth unity, 36.1639
Mean loogitulie, lat Jan., 1847, 81SO .r
Longitude or perihelion, 1M ," S
Mean anomaly, - M 01 68
Equation of center, - 7 .9
Helioeentric longitude, lat Jan., IM7, 316 31
Radius ftCtor, earth'. unity, 33 06
M-. of the BUD'. -. .
Adams' computed before disco'Yery :
Mean longitude, Oct. 6th, IM6,
Longitude of perihelion,
Eccentricity, -
M-. BUD' unity,
313 Ot'
199 II
0.1t0616
.0.00018000
NEPTUNE.
286
The elements obtained since the diBcoyery of the planet by
Mr. Walker, and by using &he place of &he planet observed by
Lalande, 1795, are as follows. These will be gradually im-
proved as ob88rvatione are multiplied.
Long. perihelion poiat,
Long. ucending node, -
IAclination,
Eccentricity.
Mean daily lid. muton, -
Long. Ii epoch, -
470 12' 56".73 m. eq. II1l Jan., 1848.
- ISO 06 11.04 m. eq. llIl Jan., 1MB.
1 4668.97
0.00871946
:U".1tM48
_ s300 "' 41".at S m. noon, Greenwieh,
l II1l Jan., 1848.
Mr. L8_II, of Liverpool. discoyered a satellite to Neptune,
on which a snfficient number of obserYBtions haYe bel'n made to
determine, with considerable accuracy. the maS8 of the planeL
,'his has been computed by Prof. Pierce, of Cambridge, and i.
found to diff'er considerably from that obtained by Leverrier be-
fore .Jhe discoYery. From observations on Lassell's satellite by
Mr. Bond, of Cambridge, the mass of Neptune is determined to
be r..lu of the sun's mass.
With this mass Prof. Pierce accounts for all the irregulariti81
of Uranus, and closes, at least for the present, the investigation.
COMETS.
COIRTI, whether viewed as ephemeral meteore, or as substan-
tial bodiN, forming a part of the 80lar .ystem, 8re objects of no
ordinary interesL .
When, with uninstructed gaze, we look upwards to the clear
sky of evening, and behold, among the multitudes of heavenly
bodies, one, bJazing with its long train of light, and rnshing on-
ward toward the center of our system, we inaensibly shrink
back 8S if in the presence of a supernatural being.
But when, with the e:re of astronomy, we follow it through
its perihelion, and trace It far off', be,ond the utmost verge of
the solar system, till it is 10lt in the Infinity of space, not to re-
turn for centuries, we are deeply impressed with a sense of that
power which could create and let in motion loch bodies.
Comets are diltinguished from the other heavenly bodies, by
their appearance and motion. The appearance of tbe planets is
globular. and their motion around the sun is nearly in the lame
plane, and from weat to ellat; bot the comets have a variety of
forma, and their orbits are not confined \0 any particular part of
the heavens; nor do they obsene anyone general direcuon.
286 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
The orbitll of tbe planets approacb nearly to cirell'lI, wblle
,110118 of tbe comets are very elongated elipses. A wire boop,
for.flxample, will represent the orbit of a plsnet. Ir two oppo-
site sides of the same boop be extended, so tbat it sball be long
and nanow, it will then represent tbe orbit of a cornel. The
sun is always in one of the foci of the comet's orbit.
There is, howeYer, a practical difficulty of a peculiar nature which em-
bal'l'UE8 the solution of the queetion as to the furm of the cometary or-
bi... It 10 happens that the only part of the coune of a comet which
can ever be viaible, ia a portion throughout which the ellipse, the para-
bola and hyperbola, 80 closely reeemble each other, that no observations
can be obtained with lIIIfficient accuracy to enable UB to distinguish them.
In &ct, the obeerved path of any comet, while visible, may belong either
to an ellipae, parabola, or hyperbola.
That part whicb is usually brigAUr, or more optJIce than tbe
otber portions of tbe comet, is caned tbe nuckua. Tbis is aur-
rounded by an etltJe/op, wbich bas a cloudy. or Aairy appeara,lICt'.
Tbese two ,arts constitute tbe body, and. in many inauuicea,
the wbole 0 tbe comet.
Most of them, however, are attended by a iong train, called
the tail; thougb some are without this appendage, and as seen
by the naked eye, are not easily distinguisbed from tbe planets.
Others, again, bave ito apparent nucleus, and seem to be oo)y
globular malses of vapor.
Nothing is known with certainty of tbe compoaition of these
bodies. Tbe envelop appears to be nothing more tban vapor,
becoming more luminous and transparent wben approacbing tbe
lun. As tbe comets pass between us and the fixed staTS, their
envelops and tails are so tbin, tbat .stars of very small magni-
tudes may be seen througb tbem. Some comets, having no nu-
cleus, are transparent throughout tbeir whole extenL
Tbe Ducleus of a comet sometimes appears opake, and it
theD resembles a elanet. Astronomers, \lowever, are Dot agreed
upon tbis point. Some affirm that the Ducleus is always trans-
parent, and that comets are in fact Dotbing but a mass of vapor,
or less condensed at the center. By others, it is maintained tbat
tbe nucleus is sometimes solid and opake. It seems probable,
however, tbat tbere are three claBses of comets, viz.: 1st. Thoee
whicb have no Ducleus. being transparent tbroughout their wbole
extent; 2d. Those which bave a trsnsparent nucleus; and, 3d.
Tbose having a nucleus whicb is solid and opake.
A comet, wben at a distance from the sun, viewed througb a
good telescope, bas the appearance of a dense vapor surrounding
the nucleus, and sometimes flowing far into tbe regions of spllce.
As it approacbes tbe sun, ita ligbt becomes more brilliant, till it
reaches Its perihelion, when ita light is more dazzling than that
COMETS. 287
of any other celestial body, the sun eJ:oepted. In tbis part of
ha orbit are Been to the beat adYl.tage the pbenomena of this
wonderful body, wbiob baa, from remote antiquity, been the
specter of alarm and terror.' .
Tbe luminous train of a comet usually loltow. it, as it ap-
proacbea the sun, and goa 'b(ore it, wben the comet recedes from
tbe SUn; sometimes tbe tail IS considerably curved towards the
region to wbich the comet is tending, and in some instances it
baa been observed to form a rigM angle with a line drawn from
the sun througb tbe center of the comet. The tail of the comet
of 1744. formed nearly a quarter of a circle; that of 1689, was
curved like a Turkisb sabre. Sometimes the same comet bas
several tails. Tbat of 17 bad, at one time. nO less than liz,
which appeared and disappeared in a few days. The comet of
1823 bad, for several days, two tails; one eJ:tending toward the
sun, and the other in the opposite direction.
. Comets, in passing among and near tbe planets, are materially
drawn aaide from their courses, and in some cal88 have thf>ir
orbits entirely changed. This is remarkabl, true in regard to
Jupiter, wbicb seems by some strange fatahty to be constantly
in tbeir way, and to serve as a perpetual stumbling block to
tbem.
,-
" The ~ k a b l e comet of 1770, which W$8 fOund by LenD to reo
.mve in a moderate ellipae. in a period of about five yean, actually gat
entangled among the II8Ielliles of Jupiter, and thrown out of its orbit by
the attracliona of that planet," and bas not been heard of lin_Her-
.eM1, p. 810. By this extraordinary rencounter, the mouona of .!:t:::1
_telliles IIUffered not the leut pereeptible derangement ;-a . t
proof of the aeriform nature of the comet'. -.
It is olear from obserYltion, that comets' contain very Iittle
matter, for they prodoce little or no eft"ect on the motion of tbe
planets when passing near those bodies. It is aaid tbat a comet,
In 1.5., eclipsed the moon; ao that it must bave been very near
the earth; yet no sensible eft"ect waa observed to be produced by
this cauae upon the motion of the earth or the moon.
Tbe observations of pbilOIOphera upon comets, have aa yet
detected nothing of their nature. TJcboBrabe and Appian
aupposed their tsils to be produced by the rays of tile sun, trans-
mitted through the nucleua, wbich they supposed to be transpa-
rent, and to operate aa a lena. Kepler thougbt they were occa-
sioned by the atmosphere of the comet, driven oft" b>: the fmpulse
of the sun's rays. Tbis opinion, witb some 'lDedlfication, W'6
also maintained by Euler. Sir Isaac Newton conjectured tbat
they were a thin vapor, rising from the heated nucleus, aa smoke
ascends from the eartb; while Dr. Hamilton supposed them to
be streama of electricity. .
188 GEOGRAPHY OJ' THE HEAVENS.
II Tbal the Iuimnoae put of a ..... " aJII Sir Joim BencheI,".
in die JIIIlure of a IIIIOke, Cog, 01' cloud, IIU8p8IIded in a tram-
panmt ill evident tiom a filet wbicll hu been often no&iced,
m.: that the portion of the tail where it ClODleII up to, and lIIIlJOunda the
bead, ill yet 88pIIIIded tiom it by an interval Ie. luminous; as we often
_ one layer of clouds laid CYfer another with a considerable clear space
between tbem." And again-- It fullowa that the. can only be reganled
.. great _ of thin ftpor, au:eptible of being penetrated through
their whole aubltance by the 1IIlIlbeame. ..
Cometa haYe always been considered by the ignorant and su-
perstitioul, as the harbingers oC war, peatilence, and famine.
Nor has thi, opinion been, eyen to this day, confined to the un-
learned. It was once uniyersal. And when' we examine the
dimensions and appearanees of some or these bodies, .we cease
to wonder that they produced univeraal alarm.
According to the testimony or the early writers, a eomet,
which could be seen in daylight with the naked eye, made ita
appearance 43 years herore the binh or our Sanour. This date
was just after the death of Cesar, and by the Romans"the comet
was belieyed to be hi., metamorphosed soul, armed with fire and
Tengeance. Thil comet is alrBin mentioned aa appearing in 1106,
and then resembling the IUD in brightne8B, being or a great aize,
and haTing an immense tail.
In the year 140i, a eomet wu aeen, so brilliant as to be die-
earned at nocm-day.
In 1456, a large eomet made ita appearance. It spread a
wider terror than was eyer known berore. The belief was Tery
general, among all elassel, that the eom"t would destroy the
8arth, and that the Day or Judgment was at hand!
This comet appeared again in the yeare 1531.1807,1682, 1758, and
1835. It pa-.l ita perihelion in NCYfember, and wil18'1ery 751
yeare thereafter.
At the time or the appearance or this comet, the Turks exten-
ded their nctorioul arma across the Hell""pont, Bnd seemed des-
tined to OTerrun all Europe. This added not a little to the gen-
eral gloom. Under all these impressions, the people seemed
totally regard leas or the present, and anxious only for the
The Romiah Church held, at this time, unbounded away oyer
the liYes, and fonunes, and consciences of men. To prepare
the world for ita expected doom, Pope Calixtus III ordered the
Ave Maria to be repeated three times a day, instead of two.
He ordered the church bells to be rung at noon, which was the
origin of that practice, so univerBBl in Christian churches. To
tbe Ave Maria, the prayer was added-" Lord, saTe us from the
DITil, the Turk, and the comet:" and once each day, these
&breI' .,bntlxia1!s personages sull'ered a regular excommunicaton.
COMETS' ~ 8 9
The pope lind clergy, exhlhiti'ilg 'ul'hl'ear, it R not II. matter
or wonder that it became the ruling passion of the multitude.
The churches and conventa were crowded for confession of
ains; and treasures oncoonted were poured into the Apostolic
chamber.
The comet, after sufferinl some months of daily corsing, and
escommonioaUon, began to show signs of retreat, 'and SOOD
dieappeared from those eyes in which it found no favor.
Joy and tranquillity soon retumt'd to the faithful subjects of the
pope, but not so their money and lands. The people, however,
became eatisfied that their Iius, and the safety of tbe world, had
been cbeaply purchased. The pope, who bad achieved eo
aignal a victory over the monilter of the sky, had checked the
progress of the Turk, and kep.t for the preBent, his Satannic
majesty at a safe distance; wbl!.e thl! church of Rome, retaining
her unbonnded wealth, was enabled to continue that inftuence
over' her followers whicb she retains, in part, to this day.
The comet of 1680 woold bave befOn still more alarminc than
that of 1456, had not acience robbed it of its terrors, and hIstory
pointed to the signal failure of its predeceBsor. This comet
waa of "-larI8lt size, and had a tail whose enormous .length
W88 more tbaD mmty-aiz millUlN rf milu.
At ita greatest distance, it is 13,000,000 of miles from the
aun; and at its nearest approach, only 574,000 miles from hia
centar; or about 130,000 miles from his Bunace. In that part
of ita orbit which is lIfIarest the 8un. it fiieB with the amazing
8wiftneea of 1,000,000 miles in an hour, and the 8un aB Been
from it, appears 27,000 timl!8 larger than it appeara to os;
consequently, it i8 then exposed to ft heat 27,000 t ~ m e B I(l'eater
&han the solar heat at the earth. This intensity of heat exceeds,
several thousand timea, that of red-hot iron, and indefld all the
degrees of heat that we are able to produce. A siJDple ma88
of v'apor, exposed to a thousandth part of such a heat, would be
at once dissip'ated in space-e pretty strong indication that,
however volatile are the elements of which cometa are composed,
they are, nevertheless, oapable of enduring an inconceivable
intensity of both beat and cold.
This is the comet which, according to the reveries of Dr.
Whiston, and othera, deluged the world in time of Noah.
Whiston waB the friend and BucceSlOr of Newton: but, anxiooe
to know more than is revealed, he paased the bounds of sober
philoaophy, and preaumed not only to fix the residence of the
I iJamneci, but allO the nature of their punisbmenL According to
his theory, a 88me, WIll tbe awful prison-hooae in which, aa it
wheeled from the remotest regioDl Of darkne18 and cold illto the
"lory vicinity of the SDn, hurryinr ita wretched tenantetp the
-,'!" ... -:
2.\
990 GEOGRAPHY OF THE IlEA. VENS.
extram.. of periahiug col. aDd deYouring fire. abe Almighty
waa to diapenle the Ie .. riuea of hie juatice. , ~
Surb theories mal. be ingenioul, but they hue no basil of
facta ,to relt upon. rhey more properly belong to the chimeN.
of Astrology, than to the acienee of ARtronomy.
When we are told by philosophera of great caution and high
reputation, that the fiery train of thl! comet, juat' alluded to,
extended from the horison to the zenith; and that of 1774 had,
at one time, six tails, each 6,!)OO,000 of miles long; and that
another, which appeared lOOn after, had one 40.000,000 of milea
long; and wben we conlider also tlte inconceivable velocity
with which they speed their Bight through the solar system. we
may ceaae to wonder if, in the darker agea, they have been re.
garded as evil omenl.
But th ... idle phantasies are not peculiar to any ar or coun
try. Evea in our own timea, the bAllutiful comet ,0 1811, the
most splendid one of modern times, was generally considered
among the superathions, as the dread harbinger of the war which
WIS declared in the following spring. It is well known that an
indefinite- apprehension ,of a more dreadful catastrophe liltely
pervaded both -continents, in anticipation of Biela's comet
of 1839.
The nueleus of the' comet of 1811, accordinll to observations
made near Boston, was 9,617 miles in diameltlr, corresponding
nearly to ,the size of the moon. The brilliancy with which it
IIhone. waa equal to one-tenth of thst of the moon. 'rbe envelop,
or aeriform covering, aurrounding the nunleus, waa 94,000
miles thick, about five hundred times 88 thick as the atmosphere
which encircles the earth; making the diameter of the comet,
including ita envelop, 50,617 miles. It had a very luminoua
tail,whOl8 greatest length waa one Aundred miUi_ tf mila.
This comet IDOftd, in ita pen'brlion, with an almost inconceivable WI-
locity-fifteen hundred times greater than that of a llaIl burBling 6um the
mouth of a cannon. According to RegiomontanWl, the comet of 1471
moved o.,er an are at 1200 in one day. Brydone obeei'Ied a comet at
Palermo in 1770, which JIll-'- through 6()0 of 8 great circle in the baa.,.
en . in 24 hours. Another comet, which appeared in 1769, pB8II8II 0'181'
41
0
in the .. rne time. The conjecture at Dr. Halley, therefore, 1I8IIIIIII
highly probable, that if a body of IJ1lCh a _, h a ~ any CIIIIIIiderabJe
density, and movins with BUob 'I8locity, were to mike oor earth, it
would instantly reduce it to chaos, mingling its elements in ruin.
The lraD8ient effect of a comet paaring near the earth, could .--Iy
amount to any great convuhion, .. ys Dr. Br8Wlller: but if the esrtb WeRI
actually to recei.,. a shock 6um one at these bodies, the COIIII8q118DC8I
would be awful. A new dimctiao would be pen to its rotary moCion, and
it would re'IOI.,. UCRlnd a new ana The.... fiBtlllkilll their beda,
... ould be hurried, by their centrifugal bee, to the new equitorial regions:
COMETS. 291
WaadII aDd cenIiDeD.., theabodM rJimen aDd miIDaIa, .,ouId be __
by the UDivenal rush of the watera to tbe new equator, aDd fmIr1 ves&iae
of hUIJIa!l indua&ry and genill8 _Idbe at once delUuyed.
The chant'.e8 apinat eucb an eYent, bowever, are 80 very
Dump-rolla, that there ia no reason to dread its occurrence. The
French government, not long since, called the attention of some
of h"r ablest mathematicians and astronomen to the solution. of
this problem; that iI, to determine, upon matlaematica/ prineiplu,
IW'w tatlY cAamu tf col_on tlae eart4 w", to. A fter a
'liature examination, they reported,-" bave found that, of
IIRl,OOO,OOO of cbances, there is only one unlavorable,-there
exists but one which can produce a collision between the two
bodies." ,
.. tben," 18, they, .. for a moment, that the comets which
may strike the earth with their nucleii, would IIIIDibilate the whole
human race; the danger of death to each individual, reaulting wm the
appearance of an lIf1imoum tDr1ld, would be exactly equal to the riak he
would run, if in aD urn th .. re wu only one lingle white ball amoug a
total number of lSI ,000,000 balla, and that m. condemnation to death
would be the ine9itabIe -.eqaence of the white ball being produced at
the fint drawing."
We haYe before stated that cometa, nnlike the planeta,
observe no one direction in their orbita, but approach to and
recede from their great center of atlraction, in every possible
direction. Nothing can be more sublime, or better calcul'l1ted to
fill the mind with profound astonishment, than to contemplate
the revoiutioR of cometa, while in that part of their orbits
which comes within tbe aphere of the telescope. Some seem to
eome up from the immeallurable deptha below the ecliptic, and,
having doubled the heavena' migbty cape, again plunge down-
ward with their fiery trains,
"00 the long travel of a thoWland yeaH."
Otbere appear to come down from the zenith of the uni'l'erae
to doable their perihelion about tbe aun, and tben reiiscend far
above all buman vision.' ,
Othen are dasbing through the solar systfom in ,all possible
directions, and apparently without any undiaturbed or un.
disturbing patb preacribed by Him wbo gnides and sustains
tbem all.
Until within a few yeare. it wal univenally believed that
the periods of tbeir reyolutiona must neceasarily be of prodigious
length; but witbin a few yeart, two comets bave bel'n discov
.ered, whoae revolutions Ire performed, comparatively. witbin
onr own neigbborhood. To distinguish them from tbe more
remote, they are denominated the comet. qf a .lwrl pn-iod. 1'be
first was discovered in the conatellation Aquarius, by two French
191 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEA. YENS
\roDOm81'l, in tbe' year 1786. The lIame comet wall apia
observed by Mill Caroline Hers('thfll. iD the conatellatioD Cyg-
DUI, in 1795, and agaiD iD 1805. In 1818, Profelaor EncJ[e
determiDed the dimeDsions of its orbit, and ~ e period of itlt
sidereal revolutioD; for whicb reason it bu beeD called .. Er!dtJe'.
annel."
Thia comet performa ita revolution arouDd the SUD in about 3
years aDd 4 mODtha, in aD elliptical orbit which lies wholly
within the orbit of Jupiter. Ita _ diatance 'from. the aun is
919,000,000 of miles; tbe eccentricity of ita orbit ia 179,000,000
of milea; cODsequeDLly, it ia 358,000,000, of miles nearer the
aUD iD ita perihelion. than it ia iD ita aphelioD. It waa visible
throughout the United States in 1825, wheD it presented a f i D l ~
appearaDce. It wu also observed at ita Dext return iD 1828;
but ita last return to ita perihelioD, on the 6th of May, 1839,
waa iDvillible iD the United States, OD account of ita great
lOutherD decliDation.
The second" Comet ofa ahort period." 111188 observed in 1772;
and wal 888n again in 1805. It waa Dot until its ..... ppearanee
in" 1896, that unonomers were able to determine the elements
of ita orbit, and the exact period of ita revolution. Thil was
auccessfully accomplished by M. Biela, of Joaethstadt; hence it
is called Biels', annel. According to observauons made upon
it in 1805, b, the celebrated Dr. Olbera, ita diameter, including
ita envelop, la 42,280 miles. . It is a curious fact, that the path
of Biela'a comet puses very Dear to that of the earth; ao near,
tbat at the moment the ceDter of the comet is at the poiDt near-
est to the earth's path. the matter of the comet exteDda beyond
that path, aDd iDcludes a portion within it. Thus, if the earth
were at that point of ita orbit which is Dearest to the path of the
comet, at the same momflnt that the comfit should De at that
poiDt of ita orbit which is nearest to the path of the earth, the
earth would be enveloped in the nebulous atmosphere of the
comet.
With respect to the eft'ect whicb might be produced upon our
atmosphere by such a circumstance, it il impoaaible to oft'er any
thing but the m08t vague conjecture. Sir John Herschel waa
able to di8tingui8h ltars u miDute a8 tbe 16th or 17th magDitude
IArougla 1M body rf 1M comet! Henee it aeema rea80nable to
infer. that the Debuioul matter of which it i8 compoaed, mUlt be
infinitely more attenuated than ODr atmosphere; 10 that for
Ivery/article of cometary matter which we should inhale, we
Ihoul iDspire millioDs of panicl" of atmospheric air.
This i8 the comet which wal to come into colli8ion with the
earth, aDd to blot it out from the solar 8ystem. ID returning to
ita perihelioD, November 26th, 1832, it wai computed that it
would cr08l tile earth'a orbit at a distanee of only 18,500 miles.
COllETS.
It il erideat that if the earth had been iD tbat pan of her orbit
at the _ Ii",,- with the come&, our atmosphere would bave
mingled with the atmosphere of the comet, and the two bodies,
perha,., bave come in contaCt. But the comet paaaed tbe
earth'. orbit Oft the'19th of OctobardD the 8ih degree of Sagit.-
tariUI, and the earth did Dot arri,. 'at that point until the 30th
of November, which wu 81 daYI afterwardl.
I{ we mUltlply the 1UIm"r of houre in 3J day .. by 68,000
(tbe velOcity ohhe earth per hour), we maU find that tbe earth
YU more theD 11,000,000 miles bebind tbe eomet wbeD it
croaaad her orbi&. bl neareet ap'proaeb to the earth, at any
time, wy about 51,000,000 of mdes; ill nearest approacb
tbe laD, wu about 83,000,000 of miles. Ita mean dilllnce
from th,e IUa. or half the 10Dgeat lIil of ill 'orbit, il 337.000,000
of milea. III acceDtrieit, il 153,000,000 of miles; cOll88Cluently,
it is 507,000,000 of miles nearer the 10D in ill peribelion than
it is in ital aphelion. The period of ita sidereal revolutloD is
1,'60 dayl, or abOllt 6f yean.
Up to the beginning of the 17th century, DO correct notiona
had been entertained in respect to the path I of comell. Kepler'l
first conjecture waS, that they mOTed in Itraight linea; but u
that did not agree with obse"atioD, he ne.U concluded that they
were CU"el, having the lun Dear the vertex, and run-
oillg mdefiniteI)' iDto tbe regioDI of Ipace at both extremiues.
Thl'lre wal notblDg in the obaervauonl of tbe earlier aatronomere
to fix their identity, or to lead him to IUlpect that Iny one of
them bad ever been _n before; mncb I... that tbey formed a
part of tbe IOlar Iyatem, re,olving about the IUD in ellipucal
orbill that retorned into themll8lvel. '
Thil grand disoo,ery wu rese"ed for one of tbe mOlt indu ..
trioUI and lIfICiool ulronomere that ever lived-thil wu Dr.
Halley, the contemporary and friend of Newton. Wben the
oomet of 1681 made ill appearance, be I18t himself about obll8"-
ing it with great care, and fouad there wu .: wonderful resem-
blance betweeD it and three other comets that he found recorded,
the comell of "56, of 1531, and 1607. The umet of their aI?-
pearaace had been nearly at Ilual and regalar interval a ; thear
perihelion dillancea were nearly the lime; and he finallT. proved
them to be one and the lame comet. performing ill circUit aroond
the Iun in a period varying a little from 76 yeare. Tbia il
tberefore called Halle,', comet. It ia the very lime comet that
filled the eutern world with 10 mocb conatfomation in 1456, and
became an object of 80 mocb abhorrenoe to the chorch of Rome.
The three periodic cometa, Encke'l, Biela'l, and Halley' ..
baYe preaented, in their recent returna, lOme extraordinary pba-
nomena. The periodic time or Encke'a comet appeara to line
been regularly _miMWn& ainCl Ita dilcoTery. The
2.6.
194 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
guilhed astronomer whose Dame it bearl,llfter a rigoroUI eX1lIDi-
Dation ofall the knowD causel can produce luch In effect,
finally reached \be cODolulion that there mUlt exist, throughout
the planetary regioDI, a rare medium, cap-able of reailting the
motion of the light and p"eoUI comets. ('his ltartling doctrine
baa been received with oonliderable favor amoDg the learned,
although it involvel Dothing leas than the fiDal deltruetion of
the entire .IOlar system. In case a reaistiDg medium exist, no
matter how email ha eff'sct OD the plasetl and oomets may be,
yet lIince the stability of the eatire system is guaranteAd only on
the hypothelilthat the revolutions of the planets are without
rellistance. it followl that, sooner or later. the same effeets sup-
pOled to be exhibited by Encke's comet, will be shown by
every revolvinlf planet and satellite. and each, in SUCoossioD,
will terminate Its cal'l'er by falling into the sun. Reeflnt obser-
vations by Sir John Herschel, OD -the physicsl constitution of
Hailey's comet during its return in 1835. have revealed lOme
truths which may. in the end, accoum for the retardatioD of
Eneke's comet, without resorting to the hypothE'sis of a resisting
medium. He conceives that the laws of gravitation will not
acconnt for certain phenomena presented by Halley's COlllet,
and that we will be compellt'd to admit the existence ora repul-
live force, developed onder certsin circumstances . among the
particles composing the tails and gaseous portions of comfits.
During its late return, Biela's comet exhibited the wonderful
phenomenon of an actual separation into two distinct portionl.
When first discovered, the comet presented its ordinary apptlllr-
ance, but in the coune of the following month, it was found
to consist of two distinct parts, each pos_sing all the charac-
teristiCll of a comet. These fragments continued to separate
from each other, while they pursued their orbhual career around
the sun. ThiB phenomenon Sir John Herachel is disposed to
.attribute to the same causeB.which are operating to diminiBh the
periodic time of Encke'B comet, and which produced luch sud-
den and wonderful changeB in the appearance of Halley'l comet,
during its retorn in 1835. ,
The next appearance 'of Biela'B comet will be looked for with
great intereRt. At thil time aBtronomers are on
the look-out for Ericke'B colDet. Our koowledge of the phYBical
cODBtitutioD of these mysterioul objects, is extremely limited.
The number of comets which have been ot.ned aince the ChristiaD
era, amounl.l to 700. Searce1y a year has pa8II8d without the obaerva-
lion of one or two. And since multitudes of them mWlt escape obeerva-
tieD, by reasoD of their tzavtmling that part ofthe heaVllllll which Is above
the horizon in the day time, their whore number is probably many thou-
ADda. Comel.l. 10 eircumatancea, can only become visible by the _
eoineidtmoe ofa.total ecHp.e of the nn-a coiDcidence which happeued,
. .. related by Seneca, 60 ytllll'll before ChM, when a IaJp comet_
actually obeened very _ IIUJl.
But M. Arago reuollli in the following 1IWIJlI!l, with respect to the
number of comets :-The number of aecertained cometa, which, at their
leut diatancee, JlUII within the orbit of Mercury, is thirty. AIIII11IIlin,
that the comets are UJIiformly distributed throughout the IOlar system.
there will be 117,649 time. u many comets included within the olbit at
Henchel, u there are within the orbit of Mercury. But u there are 80
within the orbit of Memury, there m\l8t be 3,629,'10 within the orbit of
Henchell
Of 97 comets whoae elements have been calculated by
S4 between the sun and the orbit of Mercury; 33 between the
orbits of Mercury and Venus; 21 between the orbits of VenDS and the
Euth; Hi Iletween the orbite of CeJ'IlII and Jupiter. Forty-nine of theIe
comets miwe from eaRt to west, and 48 in the opposite direction. ,
The total number of distinct comets, whoae paths during the_DIe
part of their course bad been ucertained. up to the year 1832, __
hundred and thirtyo48V8ll.
What regions thesll bodiea vi8i&, wben they paS8 beyond
limits of our viflw; upon what errands they come, when they
again revisit the central parts of our sYlltem; what is the differ-
ence between physical constitution and that of the 8un and
planets; and what important ends they are destined to accom-
plish, in the economy of the universe, are inquiries which natu-
rally arise in the mind. but which surpas8 the limited powers
of the understandini a\ present to determine.
118 GIIOGBDBY or- Tn RKA-VUL
CHAPTER VIII.
THE TJU.N8LATJON OP THE 8UN AND BOLAR 8YBTBK
THROUGH 8PACE.
Bnura clOll8d a rapid aUn'ey of &be individual objecta couti-
tuting &be aolar ayatem, we proceed to &be examination of the
wonderful discovery made by Sir William Herechel, and re-
cently confirmed b, &be Runian aatronomers, &bat 1M """
Gltefldetl by all AU pI4rtda, ..ullilu, _ t:OIIteU, .. moving IfDiJIly
eArougla apaa.
It will be remembered, &bat the aun muat be reckoned amonr
the fixAd atara; and, indeed. is one of the many millions of atara
oomposing the Galaxy, 01 Milky Way. So aoon as the .fsct
waa ascertained beyond question, tbat amoDI{ the fixed stara
many were found, which after yean of attentive ell:Bmination,
actually changed their relative poaitiou in the heavens, it waa
not unnatural to conjecture these changes to be the eft'ect of
parallax, produced by the movement of the aun and hia lyltelD
, of planeta, in lOme direction through the regiou of space.
It will be readily leen. that in cue luch a movement of the
lun exilta.1lnd should be appreciable in amount, when compared
with the diltance of the ltan. ita eft'ect would be to produce aD
apparent change among the relative placea of the ltara. in coo-
8f!Cluence of the fact that the apectator every year viewl &hern
from a dift'erent point of absolute apace.
The extenaion of &be law of gravitation to the fixed stars, by
the diaeovery of binary Iyatema, reduced it to a certainty &bat
the ltan exerted a motual inftuence over each other; and froID
thil ,eneral attraction which each exerted over every other, it
was lmroalible for the IUD to eaeare. The result of &bia ge_
ral attnction would be motion in lOme direction. To demo ...
Itrate the tru&b of thil conjecture-to determine &be direction.
angular velocitV, and actual Jpovement of &be lun and IYltem,
have been &be great queltionl for lolution during the laat few
yean of aatronomical research.
Sir W. Herschel had roughly examined thil lubject; and
from a general examination of -the proper motion of the fixed
ltan, conoluded &bat the lolar Iyatem was moving toward &be
8OnlteJlation Hercnl... For many yean, &bil theory wal re-
ceived with comparatively little favor. The IpecnlatiOD was 80
TRANSLATION OF THE SUN TB!l0UGH SPACE. 197
bold, 80 daring, and apparently so Car beyond the leope of aceu-
rate examination, tbat many minds were indisposed to receive
it. Within a few yeara, bowever,tbe liubject baa been taken
up by M. Argelander, a Russian astronomer, and the IJrand
apooulation of Heraebel bas become a matter of abaolute sClenes.
Argelander'a general mechod of determining tbe direction of
the aolar metion, may be thua explained, in ita general outlinea.
He commenced by f \ x i n ~ , with accuracy, the places of five buu-
dred atara, in all the Visible parta of the hea,ens. His own
determined placea of these stars were then compared with the
r.1acea of the same st8rs determined by preceding astroUOl\lers.
rile old position of any star,joined with Ita new position, would
give ita direction of apparent motion, and the distance between
the two places, combined with the interval between tbe old and
Bew observations, would fix the rate of movement per annum.
The five bundred selected .tars were then grouped into three
classes, according to their annual rate of motion. Tbe Iqost
swiftly-moving, comr,osing the first clase, were examined sepa-
rately in this way. rbe old and new flscea of each star bemg
joined, tbe HDe. thus determined in position, made a certain angle
with the meridian, which could easily be determined. All theBe
angles wpre computed; and by an examination of their values,
it Willi spen tbat their general direction indicated, that in CBse
the proper motions of theae atars were occasioned by tbe move-
ment of the solar system through space, the direction of that
Diotion must be, as Heracbel had aaid, towanl the constellation
Heroules.
A point in tbis constellation was now selected, as the one
ioward which the aun waa moving; and, on thia hypothesis,
the directions in which the stars already examined would ap-
pear to move, were accurately computed. Now in CBse these
computed directions ahould in every inatance 'coincide with the
aelual obaerved directiona. it would demonatrate that the point
had been well cbosen, and was the true point required; while a
want of coincidence would abowtbat another trial must be
made.
Tbua did ArJJelander proceed, witb incredible paina, to select
anel test one pomt after another, until be obtained one, whicb,
better tban all otbera, barmonized all tbe proper motions of bis
five hundred atara; and thia was tbe pomt towards which, it
DOW became certain, the sun, witb all hia attendanta, was urging
his flig 11.&. .
A aubaequent inveatigation. by M. Str6ve, baa confirmed
Argalander's resulta in the most't'emarkable manner. Having
accomplished thia object, M. Striive gave his attention to the
determmation of the amoont of angular motion of the Bolar aye-.
tern, as seen from the mean diltaDce of the RarI of the lat mil"
198 GEOGRAPHY or THE HEAVENS.
Dimde; and by a compl_ and elaborate ipv_tipao., laaUy
ucer&ained, that in each year, the lun'langular mouon amountecl
to three huodred and thirty-five thounndtha or oDe 1eC00d or
arc, or this would be the angle included between two Yiaalil
raya, drawn rrom the eye or a apectator removed to tbe mean
distance of aten of the 1st magnitude, to the two placea OCCII-
pied by the aun at the and close of tbe same year.
Having learned the value or this distance approximately, we
may DOW convert this angular motion into linear movement, aad
we reach the following wonderful proposition, via. :-TA. 1Vn.
attended . by all Ai. planet., raullite., and coma., i. .weeping
thrwgA apace. towartlr'tAt rtar .. , in tAt eonrtellation H_lt6,
at tAt rate rf tllirtll-thru millionr tlru Atmrlretl and ,Nt" u.-ncI
milta irw-lI ,ear. .
Sucli1a the latest determination, wUb rererence to the magni-
icent ayatem with which we are usociated.
LAW OF UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION.
IT ia aaid, tbat Sir Isaac Newton, when he W88 drawiDgto a
cloee the demonstration or the great truth, that gravity ia the
cause whioh keepa .the heavenly bodiea in their orbita, was 80
mucb agitated wlth tbe magnitude aod importanoe of the die-
coyery he W88 about to make, that be was unable to proceed.
and desired a rriend to finiah what the intensity of hia reelingB
did not allow bim to do. By grantation is meant, that
aal law or attraction, by whicb every particle or matter in _ the
aystem haa a tendency to every other paniclll.
Tbia attraction, or tendency of bodies toward each other, il
in proportion to the quantity of matter they con&ain: The earth,
being immensely.1arp in compariaon with all other lubatancea
in ita vicinity. destroys tbe effect or this attraction between
amaller bodies, by them all to itself.
The attraction or JraYitation ia reciprocal. All bodies not
only attraet other bodlea,but are themselves attracwd, and both
aecording to theit respective quantities or matter. The aun, the
largest bOcly in our a),stem, attracta the esrth and al\ the other
planeta, while they In tum attract the SUD. The earth, alao.
attracta the moon, and abe in tum aUraata the earth. A ball,
thrown upward from the earth, ia brought again to ita surface;
. the esrth'l attraction not only counterbalancing that or the ball,
but alao produolng a mouon of the ball toward itself.
Thia diapQaition, or tendency toward the earth, is manirested
in whatever ralla. whether it be a pebble from the hand, or an
apple rrom a tree, or an avalancbe rrom a moun&ain. All terres-
LAW 01' GRAVITATION.
Irlti boell., DOt escepdng die waten o( tbe ocean, gnYitate
toward the center :f the earth, and it is by the same power that
animala on all parts of the globe stand with tbeir f.t pointing
to ite center. . .
The power of terrestrial gravitation is greateR at the earth'l
IUrface, whence it decreaaea both upward and downward; but
Dotbotb ways in the aame proportion. It decrea .. s upward
III lAe ItJU"'" of lAe dillanu. from the earth'. cenler incre .... ;
lo.u.at at a diltance from the center equal to twice the .. mi.
diameler of the earth, the force would be only one
fourth of wbat it is at the surface. But below the surface, it
decreaaea in the dired ratio of the distance _ from the center; so
that at a diatance of half a lIemidiameler frpm the cenler, the
grllYitatinl( force is bot half what it i, at the aurface. L
WeigAt and grtfI?ity, in this case, are synonymoo;,erm".
We aaya piece of lead weigbs a pound, or 16 ounces; but if by
any means it could be raised 4000 miles above the surlitce of
the earth, wbich is about tbe of the surface from the
center, and equal to two .. mi-diameters of the
earth above ite cenler. it would weigh only one fourth of alound.
or foor ouncea; and if the same could be raise to an
elevatioo of 12,000 miles above the surface, or foor aemi-diame-
ten above the cenwr of the earth, it woold there weigh only one
sixteenth of a pound, or one ounce. '
'I'he lime body, at the center of the earth, being equally
attracted in every direction, woold be witbout weight; at 1000
miles from tbe center it would weigh one fourth of a pound; at
2000 miles, one balf of a J?ound; at 3000 miles, tllI'",e fourtbl
'of a pound; and at 4000 mdes, or at the aurface, one pound.
It is a unmr.J law rB aUnction, that iU power at tAe
.-,uare of tAe dUt_ m-. The con_ of this is aIao true, via.
ne power inemJIa, III tAe IfJfIlIn of tile dUt_ d_. GiviDg
to this law the fOrm rB .. pracIiilaI rule, it wiIllbmd th1l8:
ne grtIf1ity of 60diea aboIe lAe "!'fa of tAe earlA, det:nt.ua in"
- duplWde ratio (ur III tAe of llieir ira
len of tAe earl1&, from tAe itIrl/a'. ctnUr. That iI, w'ben the gravity is
increuing, multiply the weight by the lIIuare of the distance; but wllea
the graYity ill the waight by the 111_ of the cI,iatanca,
8uppGIIB a body weigba 40 pound. at 2000 mil. above the earth'.
surface, what would it weigh a' the surfiule, eatimatiDg the earth'. BeIJIi.
diameter at 4000 mill!81 From the center to the given bight, is Ii
8B1J1i.diameter: the 111_ of 1 i, or 1.Ii, is lUll, whid!, multiplied into
the wei,ht (40), gives 90 pounds, the answer.
8u.ppoae a body which weigba 266 pounds upon tbe IDrIice of the
eanb, be raiaed to the distance rB the moon (140,000 milea), what would
be ita weight 1 Thas, 4000)140,000(60 ieJni.diameterI the eqoare rB
wlIIch ia 8800. M the pmty, in ttiie -. ia decnIIina. ditride the
'800 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS
. we1ght by dIe.- of the diIbulee, ad it will give 98OO)2116t1oJttb
of a pound, or 1 00-' .
2. To find to wbat hisht a Bi- welpt mUll be l'aiaed to lnee a
eertain portion of ita weight. ,
RULlI_Divide tAt weitllat lit 1M -:t-.lI!l tAt MJUirwl weigAt,
tmd utraet tAt MJUII"t root 0/ 1M quolimt. Ex. A Iioy weigba 100
pounds. how high mlJlt he be canied to weigh but 4 pounds! Th-.
J 00 divided by 4, .givee 26, the aquare root' of which. ill 6 IIBJDi.diameteIII,
F 20,000 mil. above the.center.
Bodies oC equai magnitude, do not always contain equal
quantities of matter; a ban oC cQrk, of equal bulk with one DC
lead, contains less.matter, because it is more porous. The sun,
though /ourtn lauMreil tlaotuand tiDies larger than the earth,
being much less dense, contains a quantity of matter only
355,000 times 88 great, and hence attracts the earth with Ii Corce
only 355,000 times greater than that with which the eartb
attracts the sun. ' .
The quautity of matter in the sun, is '780 times greater than
that of all the planets aud satellites belonging to the solar sys-
tem; consequently their whole united force of attraction is 780
times less upon the sun, than that olthe sun upon them.
. The center f gravity DC a body, is that point in which its
whole weight IS concentrated, and upon which it would rest, if
Creely suspended. IC two weights, olle of tan pounds, the other
of one pound, be connected together by a rod eleven Ceet long,
nicely poised on a center, and then be thrown into a free rotary
motion, the heariest will move in a cirele with a radius oC one
Coot, and the lightest will deecribe a circle with a radius DC tell
Ceet; the center around which they move is their common center
DC gravity. .
Thus the sun and planpta move arouod an imaginary poill:t aa
a ceoter, always preserving an equilibrium. .
If there were but one body in the universe, provided it were
DC uniform density, the ceoter of it would be the center of gravity
toward which an the sfarrounding pomona would uniformly
tend, and they would thereby balance each other. Thus tbe
center oC gravity, and the body itself, would forever remain at
f8Rt. It would neither move up nor down; there being no other
body to draw it in any direction. In this CBse, the terms up and
:lawn would have no meaning, except 88 applied to the body
'tself, to express the direction oC the surface Crom the center
. Were the esrth the only body revolving about the suo, as the
un's quantity of matter is 355,000 times 88 great 8S that of the
earth, the sun would revolve in a circle equal only to the tlaree
lufldred IJndjlfty-Jifle tlaouBandtJlpan of the earth'a diatance from
it: but 88 the planeta in their aeveral orbits vary their positiollll,
LAW 01' GRAVITATIOK. 801
&btl center of gravity ia . not \ah ... y. at the .. me clilaanca from
the IUn.
Tbe quantity of matter in the aun 80 far eueecla that of all
the planeta wlether. that were they all on ODe .ide of him. he
would Dever be mqre than hia own diameter. fro.m the common
center of gravity; the .un. i therefore. juatly conaidered aa the
center of the ayatem. .
The quantity of matter in the 8IlTth being about 80 timn aa
great aa that of the moon. their commo. center of gravity ia 80
timea nearer the former tban the latter, which ia about 3000
milea from tbe earth'l center.
The 8econdary planeta are loverned by the aame lawl aa their
primarin. and both together move around a common oenter of
,ravhy.
Every IYltem in the universe il BIIppoeed W revolve. in like
manner. around one common cetIter. I
ATTRACTIVE AND PROJECTlLJt FORCES.
Au. limple motion il naturally rectilinear; that is, all boclif!a
put in motion would cont,nup. to go forward in Itraight linea, aa
long 81 they met with no resiltance or diverting force.
On the other hand. the lun. from hie immflDse size. would. by
the power of attraction. draw all the planeta to him, if hie attrac-
tive force were not counterbalanced by the primitive impulse of
the planetary bodies to move in straight line.. .
Tbe attractive power of a body drawiag anothflr body toward
dae oenter. ia denominated centripetal foru I and tbe tendency
of a revolving body to fly from the cp.nter in a tangent line, ia
called the projectile or Centrifugal fUf'Ce. The I' oint action of
these two central force. ~ V 8 8 the pfanete a circu ar motion. and
retaine them in their orblta al they revolve, the primariel about
the lun, and the eecondariell about their primariel.
The degree of the aun'l attractive power at eacb particular
planet, whatever be itl distance, il uniformly equal to the cen-
trifugal force of the planet. The nearer any planet is to the
aun, the more atrongly is' it attracted by him; the farther any
planet is rrom the sun, the lesl is it attracted by him; therefore.
thoBe plfllete which are the nearer to the sun mUlt move the
(aater in their orbita, in order thareby to acquire centrirugal
forces equal to thl! power of the aun'a attraction; and tbose
which are the fartber from the aun muat move the slower. in
order that they may not have too great a df!gree of centrirugal
force. for the wenker attraction of the aun "t '1>0'18 diatances.
2B
82 GEOGRAPH Y' OF THE RBA VU&.
The dieoovery of tbeee great trathl, by Kepler and NewtoD,
.. tablilhed thl! UIIIVER8AL LAW or. PLAlfI:TUY MOTION; which
lDay be atated al Coli OWl.
. 1. Every planet monl in ita orbit with a velocity varying
nery inltant, in consequence of t.o forces; one tending to the
center of the IUn, and the other in the direction of a tangent to
ita orbit, arising froll!. the primitiveJmJlulae given at the time it
was launched into space. The former II eaUed it.s centripetal, the
latter, ita cmtrifugalf-. Sbould the centrifugal force ceaee,
dae planet would faIr to the lun by ita gravity; were the lun
not", attraet it, it would, lIy oft" from ita orbit in a straight'line.
B. By the time a Jllanet haa reached ita aphelion, or tbat point
of itl orbit which II Cartheat from tbe lun, his attraction hilS
overcome ita velocity, and draWl it tOward him with luch an
accelerated motion, ,that it at last overcomes the lIun's attraction,
and Ihoota past him: then gradually decreasing in velocity, it
am ves at the perihelion, when the sun's attraction again prevails.
3. However ponderous or light, large or amall, near or.renlote,
the planeta may be, their motion is always luch -that imaginary
lines joining their centera to the slln, paal over equal areas in
equal times: and this ia true not only with respect to the areaa
deacribed every hour by, the _me planet, but the agreement holda,
with rigid Ixactness, between the areaa described in the same
time, by aU the planeta and cometa belonging to the aolar
aystem.
From the foregoing princ:iplea, it folJOWII, that tile fiJrce of gravity, and
the centrifugal force,.,., mutual continually act-
ing the other. ThlJ8, the weight of bodies, on the earth'. equa-
tor, is diminU/led by the centrifugal force of her diurnal rotation, in the
proportion of one pound for every two hundJed and ninety pounds: tba&
l8, bad the earth no motion on her axis, all bodies on the equator would
weigh one two hundred and eighty"Tlinth,.part more than they now do.
On the contrary, if her diurnal motion were accelerated, the centrifugal
force would be proportionally incre8sed, and the weight of bodies at the
equator would be, in the aalDe ratio, diminished. Should the earth revolve
upon ita axis, with a velocity whicb would make the day but eighty.(our
minutes long, instead of twenty-four hours, the centrifugal force would
counterbalance that of gravity, and all bodies at the equator would then
be abaolutely destitute of weight; and if the centrifugal force were filrther
augmented, (the. earth revolving in 1_ time than eighty-four minutes).
gra";'tation would be completely overpowered, and all fluids and looIe ,
subdances near the equator would fiy oft" from the 1IIll'fBce.
'I'he weight of bodiee, either upon the earth, or on any other planet hav
Ing a motion around, ita axis, depends Jointly upon tile mass of the plaDet,
and ita diurnal velocity, A body weighing one pound upon tile equator
of the earth, would weigh, if removed to tile equator of the ann, 27.91ba.
Of Mercury, 1.03 lbe. OrVen1l8, 0.1I81ba. Of tile moon, -tr lb. Of
Mara, Ib. Of Jupiter, 2.716 Iba. Of Saturn, 1.01 lbe.
PUCISlION OJ' THE ZQUIlfOXES. 808
9HAPTER IX.
PRECESSION, NUTATION, ABERRATION, PARALLAX,
REFRACTION.
. I. attemptiDg to b the pleee olany heaftnly hody, at a giV8D
epoch. for ,the purpose of ascertaining its subsequent movements,
h is absolutely know the precise changes which
are affectiog the points or lines to which the heavenly body is
referred. and by means of which its place la determined.
The longitude and right alC8nsion are both reckoned from the
nml! point, viz . the eertIIJl rquiflOlIf, and in cue this point is not
fixed, to know with accuracy the place of a star or planet
rllfem.d to the vernal equinox, we muat learn the precise amount
of change in the place of this point of
If the lun in its apparent annual motion among the bed stars,
pused oYer tbe same identical track every year, then the points
an which hil orbit cnts the celestial equator would be ever in-
variable. Thill. howsver, ia not the case. The sun's path among
&he fixed stsrs. ill slowly but constantly changing. If a bri,ht
slar this year should happen to occupy the exact point in which
the aun's path CI'Oll88l the equator in the spring, at the end of
one year the sun would come round and would cro88 the equator
10 88 to leave that atar a Iillk to llae etUI. . .
This apparent yearly motion of the lun westward. cauaea i&
to reach the equinox or to come to the equator earlier than it
otherwise would do, and in &hil 'way brings on an equality
between the daYI and nights, BOOner than it would have come
had the sun's apparent orbit been fixed. Because the snn in
this way comes to the equinox at a time its
arrival. it has been called a prtUIIiDfi of die equinoxes, while
in reality It is a recession or receding of the equinoctial pointl
along the equator. We shall now in a few worda trace this ex-
traordinary phenomenon to ita origin, point out its effects, and
present ita exact numerical value.
The swift rotation of the earth on ita axis, causes a protuber-
ance or elevation around its equatorial regions as we have alread,.
seen. This belt of matter heaped up at thto equator. is subjected
. to the attractive enl'rgy of the sun and moon, and by their com-
bined action eXflrted on this belt of redundant matter, the solid
Mrth is made to reel 8lightly on its axis. Now thf! plane of the
earth's equator produced cull from the heannl the equinoctial,
804 GEOGRAPHY OF THE BEAVENII'.
and in eue this plane be in any way deranged or moved, it will
cease to cut the ecliptic in its fOfl!ler points. It will be eeeD
readily that whatjCYer caulle operates to displace the earth's
equator, must operate to chauge the position of tbe equinoctial
points.
Again: as the earth's axis is ever perpendicular to tbe ftllrlh's
equator, it followlI that every change lD the position of the equa-
tor, involves a corresponding change in tbe position of tbe earth '8
axis. To exbibit tbis to the eye, take a wooden wheel, pass
through its center an axis; and tben let.the wbeeland axis flm.t
on still water: [f the wbeel be one half sunk below the Burface
of the water, tbe otber balf coining up above tbe surface, then
will the axis cease to be vertical, and will become inclined to-
ward .the immersed ponion of thewbeel's rim. Repeat the ex-
periinent at any point of the rim, and it will be fOlind that every
motion of the wheel involves a corresponding motion of the axis.
The wheel repreaents the earth's equator, the axis that of tbe
earth, and the surface of the still water the plane of ~ e earth's
orbit. [n the long run, the etreet of tile combined action of tbe
Bun and moon, on the equator of. the earth, causes it to cut tbe
ecliptic in two opposite points, 'which move slowly backward
every year, and accomplisb an entire revolution in about 26,000
years. As this motion is repreaented -exactly by the earth'.
axis, it follows that in the same period the pole of the equator,
or north pole of the beavens, will revolve around the pole of the
eclietic. .
. 1 he ellact value of precession, aa recently determined by M.
Striive, is 50".23449; a quantity of the utmost importance, in
the nice investigations of sidereal aatronomy.
[n consequence of the motion of the north pole of'tbe beaven .. ,
the bright star Polaris, now nflar tbe pole, will ultimately be
left far behind, and at tbe expiration of aboat 12,000 years, th.
brilliant star Vega, in the Lyre, will become the polar star.
Nutation is a subordinate etrect of the same _general cauaes
producing precession. [t was diacovered by Bradley, and is
aue to the joint influllnce of the sun and moon on the protuberant
mass at the eartb's equator. It nriBB with the configurations
of the sun,moon, and moon'l node. and is represented by sup-
posing the extremity of the earth'l axis' to deacribe a minute
ellipse in the heavenl, in about nineteen yearl, while it is car-
ried forward in its general revolution about the pole of tbe eclip-
tic. The exact numerical value of nutation, as determined by
BIlICb, Peters, and Lllndahl, is 9".2320
.8berrtUion.-Ir the light which radiatel from a lelf-Iuminous
body, or which is reflected from an opake one, pasled instantly
from one point in space to any other, however remote, then
woalcl luminoul bodi. actually occupy the plaCBB in space,
I ABERRATION.
whicb, to &he eye. they appear to Ill. il DOt
dle. oue. Ligbt baa beeDfound to PlOfI8I8 wida a TClocitJ
amain, indeed, but It ill finite, bringing with it certain eft"ecla,
which, In &he pJellCnt ltate ofastronomy,oallDOtbe dientganled.
The discovery of the fioite velocity of light was made by Roemer,
Crom ao aueotive examination of \he eclipl" of 1M eatellitee of
Jupiter. It will be remembered that the earth'l orbit, being ...
clOl8d wi&bin the orbit of Jupiter, wben tbe earth and Jupiter
are in a straight line pusing \hrough the sun, 'alld on \he same
lide of the son, they are Dearer each other \hall wben OD oppo-
lite sides of \he IUD, by a di!l\aa4le equal to the diameter of the
eartb's orbit, or by nearly 200,000,000 of mil... It _ found
that \hose eclipses of Jupiter's eateUhes wbich occurred while
the earth and, Jupiter were near each other, came on earlier thall
\he computed time; while those occuiring at the time Jupiter
and the earth were at their greatelt distance, came on too late
for the computed time. For a long time no explanation could
be found for thie siogular phenomenon. At lengtb it was found
to depend on the relative distances of \he earth aIId Jupiter, and
was fina)ly explained by giving to the light which cornea to UI
from the eatellitea of that planet, a finite and determined vel.
city. AI \he light from the satellites is reflected light, so 8000
as the satellite enters the shadow of Jupiter, the lource of ligbt
ie cut off; aIId in case light moved instantly from one point to
another, the ecrrpee would take place tbe moment the satellite
entered the shadow of its primary. Bllt the stream of light flow-
ing on with a finite velocity, requires a certain time to become
exhausted. When Jupiter and tbe eartb are nearest, or in con-
Junction, the stream is shorter. or has a le88 distance to flow, by
Dearly 200,000.000 of mites, than wheD the earth and planet are
in opposition, or most remote from eacb other. In \his way it
is found that Iigbt requires about sixteen minutes to cross &he
diameter of the earth's orbit. The velocity tbus determined has
been confirmed, in a remarkable manner, by Bradley's discovery
of what has been called the aberration of the fixed stare. Thil
is an apparent change in the placea of the fixed stars, due to the
Cact that the velocity of light, combined with that of the earth
in its orbit, causes fixed stars apparently to a mi-
nute orbit. in the period of one year. Very extended and minute
investigations have revealed the actual velocity ofthe light of the
fixed stars: and this velocity is nearly, if not exactly equal, to
that of reSected light as dedllced from tbe obeerved ecliplea of
Jupiter's eatellites. The numerical value of aberrstion, as lut
determined by the RUBsian is 20".50.
PlI1'allaz.-This subject bas already been treated, in the cbap-
ter on the distribution and distauce of tbe fixed stare. Th.
eft"eet of parallax on the place of ally heavenly body, ie to callie
282
_ GEOGRAPHY or THE .HEA VENS.
lHo appear leu I!Ilented above the borizon than it wOlld be if
leen frolllthe earth'l center. The apparent plaeea of the lUIIt
BlOOn, and planeta, are senlibly aft'ected by parallax; and their
we places caD only be obtained from their apparent placel, by
oorrecting these for the eft'ect of parallax. '
Rtfraetitm. - The Iigbt which reachel UI from the bentonly
bodiel oirly comea to the e.,e of the observer after traveraing the
atmosphere, a gaseoUI mechum, which POlsesses tke power of caus-
ing a ray of light, while traveraing it, to bend from ita rectilinear
path. In Clonlequeaoe of this bending of tIt.e rays of light, called
refraction, a star or planet ia seen iD the direction of the straight
line drawn tangent to the .curved ray of light, at the point where
it.enters the eye; and it thUI appears higher above the horizon
than it really il. a star or planet is seen, by the eye.
wbile it i8 yet really below the horizon, in consequence of re-
fraction. The aame cauSe dift'uses the light of day, and gives
to UI the twilil[bt of morning and e.ening. The eft'ect of refrac-
tion on tbe .pfacea of the he .... enly bodies has been carefully
ltudied,and tablea have been prepared, sbowing the value of
refraction at all elentionl above the borizon, and for all changea
of the thermometer and barnmeter. . .
To obtain, then, the absolute place -of any heavenly body,
from its apparent place, as taken by aD instrument absolutely
perfect, we mUlt ita !Dltrumental, or place, for
precession, nutation, aberratton, parallax, and refraction.. If the
lDltrument be not absolutely perfect, then must ita errors be in-
l'8Itigated, and be allowell for. before a final reliable resuh caD
be obtained.
CHAPTER X.
THE TIDES.
. .
THE oceans, and an the seas, are obsened to be incessantly
agilated f!lr certain periods of time; first from the eaBt toward
the west, and then again from the west toward ~ e east. In tbie
lBotiOD, which laSIa about aix houl'll, tbe sea gradually swell a ;
80 that entering tbe moutbs of rivers, it drives back the waters
toward tbeit source. After a continual flow of aix bours. the
seaa seem to rest for about a quarter of an hOllr; tbey then be-
gin to ebb. or retire back sgain from weat to eaat for lix hours
more; and the rivers again resume their natural courses. Tben.
after a aeeming ,pauae of a quarter of an bour, the ae88 again
begin to tlow, as before, and thua alternately. This regular al-
ternate motion of tbe sea constitutes tlu lith_, of wbich tbere
are two in 80mething leBs tban twenty-five bours.
'.file ancients con.idered the ebbing and flowing of the tides .. one of
the greatest mysteries in. nature. and were utterly at a 10118 to account for
them. GaJileo and Descartea, and particularly Kepler. made BOme BIle-
eeeafiJl advances toward 88CeJ'laining the cauee; but Sir IlIIIac Newton
was the first who clearly mowed what were the chief agents in producing
these motiOllL
The cause of tbe tideB, is tbe attraction of the sun and moon,
but chietly of tbe moon, upon the waters of tbe ocesn. In vir-
tue of gravitation, the moon, by her attraction, draws, or raisE'll
the water toward her; but because the power of attraction di-
minisbes as the squares of the distance Increase, the waters on
the opposite side of the eartb are not eo much attracted as they
~ on the side nearest the moon.
That the moon, llllya I3ir John HeracheI, ahould, by her attraction, heap
up the waters of the ocean under her, ~ to moat per8Oll8 very na-
tara!; but that the llllme cauae ahould, at the _ time, heap them up
011 the opposite 1Iide, EeDII, to many, palpably abeurd. Yet nothing i.
mori! true, nor indeed more evident. when we consider thet it ill not by
her wAole attraction, but by the diBilrences of her attractiona at the oppo-
Bite III1I'fiIees and at the center, that the watem are raiaed. ,.
That the tides are dependent upon aome known and determinate la,..,
u evident from the exact time of high water being previoualy given in
e'fer! ephemeris, and in many of the COIIlIIIOD a1manllal. .
The moon comes fJVfJr1 day later to the meridian than 011 the day pre-
eeding. and her exaet lime is known by ""'aIlation; and the tides in any
'lOS GEOGRAPHY 0., 1;0 REA VENS.
I11III ..,., pi-, will be &JuDd 10 iIIIow the _ rule; happeiDg u-
actIy 10 much later every day .. the moon _ Jatar 10 the metidiaD.
From thia old coafDnnity to the moao.. 0( the JIIOOII, we _ iDduced
to look to her .. the eaU88; I11III to ini!r that &be. phennmerw _ qc:ao
.woed principa11y by the moon'. aUJaetioa. .
. THE TIDE'.
_e
FIG. I. Fla. lL
If tbe eartb were at relt, and there were DO attractive illAu-
ence from eitber the lun or moon, it ill obyioul from the princi-
ples of gra.yitation, tbat the water, in tbe ocean would be truly
,phelical (al represented by figure 1); but daily obee"atioD
proves tbat they are in a state of continual aitation.
If the earth and moon were without motloD, and tbe earth
covered all oyer witb water, the attraction of the meon would
raise it up in a beap in that part of the OCt!8n to wbich the mOOD
ia vertical, as in figure 2, and there it would, probably, alway'
cODtinue; b!1t by tbe rotation of the 'earth upon hI axil, each
part of its .urface to which the mOOD is vertical is presented to
the action of the moon: wherefore, as the quantity of water aD
the whole earth remainl the lame, when the watera are elevated
on the lide of the earth under the moon, and on tbe opposite
'ide alIa, it is evident they mUlt recede from the intermediate
pointl, and thUI the attraction of tbe moon produce laitlA tIHIter
at two opposite placel, and low water at two opposite places OD
the earth at the lame time, aa represented by figure 3.
Thill is evident from the figure. The _tera eannot riBe in 0IIII pJ-.
without falling in another; and therefonl they mu. fall .. low in the
horizon, at C and D, .. they rille in the aenith and DIldir. at A I11III B
.. in the foIlowinJ figure.
It haa already beeD Ihown, UDder the amcle gravitation, tha'
the earth and moon would fall toward each other, by the power
of their mutual attractioD, if there were DO ceDtrifugal Coree &0
THE TIDES.
809
p J e v e ~ t them; and tbat \he moon would ran as much' faater to-
ward \he earth \han \he earth would rail toward the moon, aa &he
quantitf or matter in \he earth ia greater than the quantity ot .
matter In the moon. The iame law determinea alllO the aize of
their Jespective orbite around tbE'ir eommon center oC gravity.
It follows, then, 88 we have -. that the moon does no& revohoe,
ltrictIy speaking, around the earth 88 a center, but around a point be-
twem them, .which is 80 times nearer the earth than the moon, and con-
lI!CJ.uently is situated about 3000 miIea from the earth's center. It has
also been shoWn. that all bodiee moving in cirolee aequire a centrifugel
force proportioned to their respective m_ and velociV' . From the.
&ete, some pbiloeophelll account for high water on the IIide of the earth
0pp0IIite to the moon, in the filllowing manner :
As the earth and moon move around their common center of gravity,
I/IIJt part of tM earlh which is at any time tumed from tM moon, being
about 7000 milee farther from the cenler of gravity than the 'lide next
the moon, would have a greaUr centrifugal.r- tluJ" 1M .. ntI:l
At the earth's center, the centrifugal foree Will balance the attractive force;
therefore, 88 IIIUdl water is thnYum oil by the centrifugel force on the
.we which is turned from the moon, 88 ia ...wed on the Bide nut her by
her tdVactiOIl. .
From tbe universal )aw, \hat the Coree oC gravity diminishes
.a the &quare oC \he distance increases, it reaulta \hat the attrac-
tive power oC \he moon decreasell in intensity at every step of
tbe descent Cram the zenith to the nadir; and, consequently, that
the waters on the zenitb, being more attracted by tbe moon than
the earth ia at ita center, move Caster toward the moon than the
earth'a center does: and aa the center oC \he earth movea Caater
toward \he moon than \he waters about the nadir do, the .waters
will be, as it were, left behind, and thua, with Jeapect to \he
center, they will be raiied.
I The reason why the earth aDd waters of our globe do not _ to be
6:ted equally by the moon's attraction, is, that the earthy eubltance of
the globe, being firmly united, does not yield to any dilJinnce of the
moon's attraclive force; inaomuch that it. upper and lower eurIi&ce mUl&
move equally &at toward the moon; whereas the watera, cohering top.
therbut very slightly, yieJd to the dift'erent ~ of the moon'. attraI>
tive force, at dilimmt distances from her.
The leng&h of a lunar day, that is, oC the Interval from one
meridian pasaalfB oC the moon to ano\her, being, at a mean rate,
24 hours, 48 mlnutea, and 44 aecondll, the interval between the
fux and the reflux of the sea il not, at a mean rate, precill8ly aix
houri, but twelflll minutllll and eleven 1IIeOfItla. more, ao that the
time of high water doee not happen at the game hour, but is
about 49 minutes later every day.
The earth revolvea on ita axis In about twenty.four bours; if
the mOOD, thereCore, were . tationary, the _e part of our globe
110 GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS. I
would retam beneath it, and there would be two tidea eY.,
lwellty-four bour.; but while the earth i. tumiul' ODee upon ill
axis, the mOOD haa goae forward 13 iu her orbll, which tak ..
fort),-aiae minutel more before the same meridiaa is brought
.gaan directly under the moon. And heDee every suceeediag
day the time of high water will be forty-uine minutes later thaa
the preceding. .
For example :-8uppoae at any place it be high water at 3 o'clock iu
the afternooD, upon the day of DeW 1IIOOIl; the fOllowing day it will be
high WIder about .9 minut.ea after 3; the day after. about 38 minutea
after.; and 10 OIl till the next new moon. The exad daily mean retu-
daIion of the tideI iB thoadetermined : .
The mean motion of tbe moon, in a IOIar day. i. 13".l763116311
The mean motion of tbe .l1li, ID a IOlar dllY, i. 0 .98564722
Now, lIS 111" ia 10 80 milUltea, 10 i. 11".11107491110 48' W'.
lt il.obrionl that the aUracUon of the IDD mnst produce upon
the waters or the ocean a like effect to that of. the moon, thoogh
in a leal degree; for the great mue of the lun il more than
compensated by ita immeose distance. Neyerthelels. ill effeCt
is considerable, and it caa be Ibown, that the hight of the solar
tide is to the hight of the lunar tide al i to 5. UeDee the tidea,
though conltant, are nol eqnal. They are greatelt wheD the
moon il in conjunction with, or in opposition to, the Inn, and
least'when ill qnadrature. For, in tbe former cale, the lun and
moon set togetber, and the tide will equal the snm of the solar
anil lunar tides, and in the latter they act agaiust each other,
and the tide will be the difference.
'rhe former are called apring utI., the latter, fIIGJI tida. Th.
Ipring tidea are higbeat when the lun and moon are near the
equator, and the moon at her least di.lance from the earth. The
neap tidea are lowelt when the moon, in ber first and second
quarters, is at ber greatelt diatance from the earth. The geaeral
theory of the tidea is thi.: when the moon is neaMat the earth.
ber attraction il Itrongest, and the tides are the bighelt; wben
Ihe ia farthest from the earth, her attraction is least, and the
tidea are the 10wesL
From the abon theory, it might be Inpposed that the tid ..
would be the highest when the moon was on the meridian. Bnt
it il found that iu open seas, where the waler 1Iowl freely, the
moon haa generally f)GIUd llal north or lOUt! meridian about tlaree
Nnw. wAeta it iI l l i ~ - ' " water. The reason iI, that the force by
which the moon ratsea th" tide conti_ to act, and consequently
the waters continue to riBe after Ihe hal paaaed the meridian
. For the aame reason, the highest tid .. , which are produced by
the conjunction and oppoaition of the. aun and moon, do not hap-
pen on the daya of the full and change; neither do the low .. t
tides bappen Oil the dayl of their quadratnree.-But the greatelt
THE TIDES. 3ft
tpring lida commonly happen Ii days afIer the new and full
moons; and the leut neap lida Ii day. ofter the first and third
quarten.
The 81IIi and moon, by I'I!88OD or the elliptical form or their orbitI, are
alternately Dearer to and fit.rther &om the earth, than their mean diatanC8lo
In ClODII8CI.uence or this, the efII.cacy or the IUn will ftuduate between the
e1:ireme8 J 9 and 21, taking 20 for ita mean 'f8Iue; and between 4,'J
and 69 fordlat of the moon. Taking into thiII cause of diJIiII..
ence, the bigheIt spring tide will be to the lowest neap 8.69+21 is til
or 88 8Q to 24, or 10 to 3. The relative is l1li
51 to 20, or 88 5 to 2, _ly . .,...Hu8CAel' .A8tr. P. 339.
Though the ti'des, in open .et.II, are at the higbest about. tAru
Aoun after the moon has passed the meridian, yet tbe waters in
tbeir plUlsage tbrough sboals and cbannels, and by striking
against capea and headlands, are so retarded that, to different
plaoes, the tides hlLppen at all distances of the moon from the
meridian; consequently at all houn of the luriar day.
In small collections of water, the moon acts at tbe same time
on every part; diminishing the gravity of the whole mass. On
\bis account there are no sensible tides in lakes, tbey being gen-
erally so sma)) that when the moon is vertical, it attracts every
part alike; and by rendering all the waters equally ligbt, no
part of them can be raised higher than another. The Mediterra-
nean and Baltic seas have very small eleutions, partly for this
reason, and partly because the inletS by which they communi-
cate with the ocean are 80 narrow, that they cannot, in so short
a time, either receive or discharge enough, sensibly to raise or.
sink their surfaces. .
. Of all the of dUFerence in the bijrht of tides at different
places, by far the greatest is local situation. In wide-mouthed
. rivers, opening in 'tbe direction of the stream of the tides, and
whose channels are growin gradually narrower, the water is
accumulated by tbl! contracting banks, until in some instances
It rises to the-hight 0(20, 30,and even 50 (eet. .
Air being lighter tban water, and the surface of the atmoflphere
being nearer to the moon than the surface of the sea, it cannot
be dou\ted but that the moon raises mucb hijrher tides in the
atmosphere than in the sea. According to SIl John Herschel,
tides are, 'by very delicate obse"ations, rendered not only
sensible, but me_able.
UPon the that the waters on the IRIlfiace the moon are
of the same speci1ic gravity 88 our own, we might 8IIIiIy determine the
hight to which the earth would raise a li1nar tide, by the known principle,
that the attraction orone or these bbdiea on the other'81R1lfiace i8 direc#y
88 ill! quantity of matter, and inwnely 88 itIJ diameter. By making the
calculation, we BhaIl find the attracti-ve power of the earth upon the moon
to be 11.777 m- BNIier tbIID dlat of the moon upon the earth.
IJS GEOGRAPHY OF THE IlEAVUS.
CHAP'.I,'ER XI.
THE 8EA80N8-DIPFBRENT LENGTHS OF THE DAYS AND
NIGHTS.
Tali vici.situdes of the le-.onl and'the unequal lengths of
the days and nights, ate occasioned bl the annual revolution 01
the earth around the Iun, with its axil inclined to the plane 01
its orbit. '
The temperature of lUIy part of the earth's surface depend.
mainly. if not entirely. upon its expolure to the lun's ray ..
Whenever the lun i8 obot7e the horizon of any 'place .. that, plaCE
II receiving heat; when the lun i8 below the horizon. it i8 parting
with it. by a process which ii' called ri.liation. The quantities
of heat thul received and imparted in the course of the year.
mUlt balance ear.h other at everyllace, or the equilibrium of
temperature would not be 8upporte
Whenever. then, the lun remainl more than twelve houra
above the horizon of any place. and lesl beneath, the general
temperature of that place will be abo/ltl the mean state; w heD
the reverse takes place. the temperature, for the, lame reason,
will be below the meaD 8tate. Now the coDtinuance of the lun
above the horizoD, of any place, depends entirely upon his decli-
nation. or altitude at noon. About the 20th of 'March. when the
Inn il in the vernal equinll'&, and consequently hal no declinatiC;lD,
he riS88 at lix in the morning and sets at aix in the evening;
the day and n i g h ~ are then equal. alld aa the sun continu,ea as
long above onr horiz.on as below it, hia iDllu.ence must k Dearly
the same at the aame latitu.dI8s., in buth hemiBphl'rea.
From the 20th of March to tbe 21s. oC June. the days grow
longer, and the nights ahorter; in the IJ,Orthern hemi8phere the
temperature increa8es. and we paBl froBl apring to mid-summer;
while the reverse of this takes place in the 80uthern hemisphere.
From the Illst of June to the 23d 9f Septembt'r, the days and
nights again apcroach to equality, and the excess of temperature
in the northern lemisphere above the rqean atate, growa lea8. U
also its defect in the southern; ao that, ..,hen the lIun arrivea ai
the autumnal equinox, the mean temperature ia llgBin f8atol't'd.
From the 23d of September until the 21at of December, our
nights grow longer and the daya ahorter, and the cold increases
\
THE SEABOIt'I.
818
.. before it dhninisbed; wbile we pue trom autumn 'to mid
winter. in &he nonhem bemispb8Je, aDd the iDbabitants of the
NOtbern hemispbere trom spring_ to mid-aummer. From the
lUst of December to the 5lOth of Maroh, the cold relaxes u tbe
days ~ r o w longer, and we pus from the drearin88s of willter to
the mlldneu of spring, wben the se880nl are completed, and the
mean temperature is again restored. The 18me vict88itudea trana-
pire, at the 8Ime ,time, in the louthern hemisphere, but ill a
oon&ra7 order.-Thus are produced the four S88lonl of the year.
But haYe stated not the only. nor, perbaps, the moat efficient
cause in producing the heat of lummer and the cold of winter.
If, to lhe iDbabitants of the equator, the lun were to remain 16
hours below their borizon, aDd only 8 bours above it, for every
day of the Y9r, it ia certain they would Dever experience the
rigors of our winter; lIince it can be demonatrated, that al much
heat flllll upon the same area from a W:rlictJl aun, in 8 hours, as
would fall from him at an angle of 000, in 16 houra.
Now 88 the lun's rays fall m6fIt obliqt.Hly wAeta tM day. are
dortut, and moll d&reet1!l wAeta 1M day. are /tmgat, theae two
caUSf'S, nalll8ly. the duration and intenlity of the lolar ht'Bt,
together. produce the temperature of the ditrerent lea80ns. The
reason ,why we have not the hotle8t temperature when the daYI
are longest, and the coldeat temperature when the daYI are
ehorteet. but in each case about a month afterwards, appears to
be, that a body once heated, doea not grow (lold inBtantaneouB!Y. -
but gradually, and BO of the contrary. Hence. as 'long aB more
heat comes from the lun by day than il 10lt by night, the heat
will incff'8Be, and wee wna. '
The nortli pole of the earth il denominlted the e/ewdedpole,
because it iB a1waYI about galo above a perpendicular to the
plane of the equator, and the Bouth pole ia denominated the de-
pr'UIeti pole, because it iB about the 88me diBtance below such
perpendicular.
AB the Bun cannot Bbine on more than one half the earth'l
aurface at a time, it iB plain, that when the earth iB moving
through that POrtiOR of ita orbit which liel al1oIIe"lbe aun, ~ e
elevated pole is in the dark. This requires aix month. that II,
until the earth aniyea at the equinox, when the elevated pole
emergeB into the light, and the depreaaed pole is turned away
trom the Bun for the lame period. Consequently, there are lix
monthB-day and Bix montha night, alternately, at the polM.
When the aun appears to nl to be in one part of tlui ecliptic,
dJe earth, .. 888n from the -BUll, appeara in the point cliametri-
cally oppoaite., Thue, when the aun appeara in the vernal equi-
DOX at the fim point of mea, the earth is aetaally i. the oppo-
lite equinox at Libra. The daya and nighta are daen equal all
OYer the world.
20
.h lite IUD ..".... to lDOYe Dp fia. lite ....... eqaino1 to the
18_ eolltice, da. earth 8O&8aIly .. IW.. fia. the autumaal
equinoK dow. to Ibe wiater eoladee. The daYI now length ..
in the IlOI1hera bemiapb .... _ ahOrteD iD the aouthem. The
IUD il now oyer lite north pole. where it is mid-day, and oppo-
aile the eouth pole. wbBftl It is mid-uigbL .
As the IUD d8lOllllda from lite IUDUDer eolldoe towerd lite
autumnal eqaiDoz, the earth uoeuda from Ihe ... iDler aoladoe
toward lite yernal eq8iDo:i. Tlafl IBIDmer daya iD-the Dorthem
btmlitphere haYiDg wued ahOrler and Iborter, D,W become
again or equalleugth iD both bemiapberea. .
While the lun appears to moye from the autumDai equiDOx
dOWD to the wiDler eolllioe. the earth paeeea up rrom the yernal
&qaiDOK to the I_mer eo"doe; the aouth pole com .. iDto the
ligb&, the wiDler daYI coDliDuaily aborteD iD the northem bemi-
apbere, and the Hmmer daya .. regularly iacreue iD length iD
th .. lOutheru hemia'phere. .
Wbile the aaD appears apia to .-ad from ita winler 101-
llice to the yemll equiDos:. the earth deacenda rrom the aummer
aolatice to the autumual equiDOK. The aummer days now
IIhorten in the eoutheru bemiaphere, aud the wiDler daYlleDpeD
in the .onhem bemispbere.
WheD the IUD pa .... the Yenaal equinox, it ri_ to the arcdc
or eleYlted pole, and 88&8 to the an&8rotic pole. When the aUD
arriyes at the aammer eolatice. it ia noon at the DOrth pole, and
midnight at the aouth pole. WheD the IUD p .... the autumnal
P.Cjuinox. it 88&8 to the Dorth pole. and ri_ to the south pole.
WheD the IUD arriyea at the winler IOlatioe, it il midDight at
the IlOrth pole, and DOOD at the IOUth pole; and wbeD the aUD
oomel agam to the yemal eqUiDOX, it CI0888 the day at the ROUth
polto. and lightl up the momlug at the north pole.
There would, therefore, be 1861 daya dunng which the aUD
would not set at the north pole, aDd au equal time during wbich
he wODld nIK riee at the aouth pole; and 1781 daya in which be .
would not let at the south pole, Dor ri88 at the north pole.
At the arctic circle, i30 ~ from the pole, the longest day ia
24 houta, and goes on increa&lng a8 you approacb the pole. ID
latitude 67 18' it ia 30 days; in Iat. 69 30' it ia 60 daya, &C.
'rbe aame takes place between the autarctic circle and the south
pole. with the exception, that the day iD tbe lime latitude aouth
18 a liule aborte" aince the aun ia Dot 80 long looth of the equa-
tor, as at the Dorth of it. .ID thia eatimale nO'lCCO.UDt ia takeD
.of the refraction of the atmosphere, whicb, as we sball aee
bereafter, increaaea the leqgtb of the day, by makin, the IUD
appear more elented above lbe boriloD thau it really II.
LENGTHS 0:1 DA. T8 AND NlGIIT8. 816
THE IJEASON8-UNEQI1AL LENGTH& OP DAYS AND NIGHTS.
The above cut ~ t a &be iDclination of the ~ ' . uill to ilil orbit
in every one of &be twelve IIigBB of the ecliptic, and COIIIIflCluehUy for each
month in the year. The BUD enteD &be sign Ariu, or &be vernal eqw.
nox,on the 20th of March, when the eanh'. uil inclines neither toward
the SUD, nor .from it, but IitlewUe to it; 110 &bat the BUD &ben IIhineI
equally upon the eanh fiom pole to pole, and the days and .ta lie
8Y8J)'Where equal. TbiI iii the'bepming of &be lIItnInomical year; it ill
allIO the begiJmin of day at tile north pole, which .. jul& co.miDg into
light, and tbe :l of day at the IIOU&b pole, which .. jull png into .
emu-. ,
By tile eanh'. orbital prop-, the BUD appear. to eater tbe IIIIClODd
lip, Tauru.r, on the 20th of A pri1, when the north pole, N. baa lIBIl8ibIy
advanced into the light, while the 1IOU&b pole, 8, baa been declining tlom
it; whereby the day. -.:ome longer &ban the nigbtl in the northern
hemisphere, and aborter in the IIOUthem.
On the IIld of May. &be BUD appean to enter the Bign Gemini, whea
the north pole, N, baa advanced CODIIiderably further into the light, while
the sou&b pole, 8, baa ~ y declined tlom it; &be IDJDDler da)'l
lie DOW wuing longer In the northern hemisphere, and the nighll
1Ihorter.
The 1111& of June, when tile BUD enterI the Bign C_, .. the ftnt
day of 1DJDDler, in &be lIIIIronomical year, and the longeIt day in the
northern hemiBpbere. The north pole now baa ita greatellt inclination
to the BUD, tbe light of wbiDh, as .. ehown by the boundary of light and
darkn-, in the &cue, extend8 to.the utmoIt verge of the bdie Circle I
the whole of whicll .. included in the enlightened hemisphere of the
8Iltb. and enjoy., at thiI -. COIIIItaDt day duriDa the _plete NVOo
818 G:r.oGILl.PHY OF TilE BUVOI

hdioD of the euth 011 _ uit. The wheIe of the DOrthem Frigid Zcme
ill now in tile circle of perpetual illaminalion.
On the I3d of July, the BUll entenl the IIign Uo I and 88 the line of
the eanh', uia alway. continues &0 itaelt; the boundaJy of light
and damae. begina &0 approach nearer &0 the pol., and the length of
the day in the northern hemiaphere, which had at _ maximum,
begins gradually to decreaae. On the 23d of August, the sun ente\1l the
aign V'trgo, increasing the mentioned in Uo.
On the 29d of September, the sun enteJs Ubra, the first of the au-
tumnal aignII, when the eanh'. axie, having the _me inclinationas it had
ill the oppoaite sign, .his, ill turned neither from the BUD, nor toward it,
but obliquely to it, 110 that the BUll again now shines equally upon the
whole of the earth'. BUrlBce from pole to pole. The days and nIghts are
__ of equal length tha world.
On the 23d of October, the BUll entel1l the sign &orpio I the days visi-
hly deereaae in Iengtb in the, DOrthem beiniapbere, and increase in the
1IOUthem.
. On thend of November, the BUD entel1l the sign the 1881
of the autumnal signs, at which time the boundary of light and
is at a considerable distance from the north pole, while the south pole baa
proportionally advueed into the light; the length of the day continues
to increase in the southern hemisphere, and to deeieaae in the northern.
On the 21st of December, which is the period of the winter solstice,
the BUD enteta the aign Capricorn. At this time, the north pole of the
earth'. uis is turned from the BUn into perpetua\ darkne.; while the
IIOUtb poIe, in _ tum, is brought into the -light of the BUD, whereby the
whole Antardic region comes into the circle of perpetua\ ilIuminatioa.
It is now that the 1Kiuthern bemiapheJe enjoy. all thoae advantages with
which the northern hemiapbere 11'88 filvared 011 the 21st of June; while
the northern bemiapbae, in _ tum, Ullderaoea the dreariDe. of winter,
with IIbort da,.. mil lema niPt& '
,
AUlt.OU JlGREAtlS.
811
CHAPTER XII.
AURORA BOREALIS
Tv. lublime aDd beautiful phenomena prMented by the /JUrIJt"III
6orealie, or norIAem ligltt., II they are caUed, haYe been in all
agel a 4IOuree of admiration and wonder alike to the peasant and
the philosOpher. In the regionl of the north, thel1lre regarded
by the ignorant with IUperatitiOUI dread, as harblRgera of eyil;
while all sgree in placing them among tbe unexplained wondera
of natura,
These lights, or meteoric coruscations, are more brilliant in
the arctic region .. sppearing mOltly in the winter Sf'lIlIOn and in
froaty weather. They commonly appellr at twilight near the
horizon, and sometimes continoe in that stllte for BeYllral hours
without any perceptible motion; aft.f!r which they send forth
Itreaml of Itronger light, shooting with great velocity I1p to the
paith, emulatiDlf' not unfrequently, the invividn88l,
and the rainbow IDcoloring; and .again silently nsing in a com-
pact majestic arch of lteady white light, apparently durable and
Immovable, and yet 10 8ftneacent, that while the beholder lookl
upon it, it is goDe. .
At other times, tbey cover the whole hemisphere witb tbeir
flickering and Canutic coruscations. On these occasionl their
motions are amazingly quiek, and they astonilh the spectator
with rapid changes of form. They break out in placee whera
Done were ... n before, skimming briskly along the heavenl;
then they are IOddenly extinguished, leaYing behind a uniform
dosky track, which again il brilliantly illuminated in .the sllme
manner, and al IOddenly len a dull blank. Some nigh. they
aSlume the appeaflllC8 of YIlt columnl; on one lide
tlnta of the det'lpe8t yellow, and on the other, mehlngaway till
they become undistinguilhable from the lurrounding sky. They
han generally a Itrong tremuioul motion from end to end,
which continu .. till the whole yanish...
. Maupt>rtuU relatea that, in. Lapland, .. the Iky .u lometimes
tinged with ao deep a red. that the conltellation Orion looked as
though it were dipped in blood, and that the people faneie4 theT,
IIW srmies engaged, fiery chariots, and a thouaand prodigif!8.'
ihMlin relatea that, .. in Siberie, on the eoniDea of the ie, ...,
202
8J8 GEOGRAPHY OP THE HEAVENS.
tile spectral forms appear like ruBhing armies; and that the hi ...
ing crackling noiaea of thole .,rial fire-works so terrify the d0r.
and the hUnten, that they fan prostrate on the ground, and will
not move while the raging host i, passing."
Kergvekfl describes" the night; between and the Ferro
lalands, .. brilli1Lnt'as the day," the heavens being on fire with
ftames of red and white light, ohanging to columns and archl's,
and at length oonfounded in a of pyramids,
radii, shes'fes, arrows. and globes of fire.
Bat the e'fidence of Copt. Parry is of more value tban that 0'
the earlier tra'felera, as he examined the phenomena under the
most circumstances, during a period of twenty-sllven
consecutive months, and because his oblenations are IInin:O.u-
enced by imagination. He speaks of the shifting figures, the
spirea and pyramids, the majestio arches, and the sparkling bands
and stan which appeared within the arctic circle, as surp .. sing
his powen of deacril.'tion. They are indeed sufficient to enUat
the supentitioas feehngs of any people not fortified by religion
and philosophy. '
The eolorl of the polar lights are of various tints. The ray.
or bctJme are steel gray, yellowish gray, pea green, celandine
green, gold yellow, violet blue, purple, sometimes rose red.
crimson red, blood red, gresnishred, orange red, and lake re4,
The areMt are sometimeenearly black, passing into violet blue,
gray, gold ,ellow, or white, bounded 1Iy an edge of yellow.
The lflller 0 these lights 'fariee in kind as well .. Intensity.
Sometimes it is pearly, sometimes imperfer.t1y vitreous, lIome-
times metallic. Its degree of intensity varies from a very faint
radiance to a light nearly equaling that of the moon.
Many theories have been proposed' to acoOUlit for this "Won-
derful phenomenOD, but there seems to be none which ia entirel,.
.. tisfaotory. One of the first conjectures on record, attributes It
to inflammable npon a_nding from esrth into the polar
atmosphere, and there ignited by electricity. Dr. Halley objects
to this hypothesis, that the cause was inadequate to. produce the
eft'eot. He was of opinion that the poles of the earth were in
some.wayconneoted with the aurora; that the earth was hollow,
having within it a magnetio sphere, and that the magnetic eftln-
'fia, in passing from the nortb to the lOuth, might become visible
in the northern hemisphere. .
That the aurora boreslis is, to some tIlttel)&, a m .... tical phe-
nomenon, is thought, e'f8n by othera, to pretty clesrly esta-
blished by the fonowing considerations :
1. It has been olisened, that when the aurora appean near
the northern ,horison in the form of an aroh, the middle of it ia
DOt in the direction of the we north, but in that of the magnetic
...ale at the pi .. of obaematioll; and that when the arch riaee
AUBOIA BOREALIS.
819
toward the _hh, it constantly Crotlle8 the haa"_ at rip& lUI-
glee, not to the true 1I.agnetie meridian. .
2. When the beams of the aurol'll shoot up ~ al to PUI the
.nith, which il lometimea the case, the point of their conYerg-
enCt! is in the direcaon of the prolongation of the dippmr needle
at the place of obselVlluon.
3. It h .. allO been obse"ed. that during the appeal'llnce of aa
active and brilliant aurora, the magnetic nf'edle ofteu becomee
resdels, varies lometimes several degl888, and does not resume
its former poaiticn "ntil after several houra.
From theae facta it has heen generally inferred, that the aurora
ia in some w:ay connected with the magnetism of the earth i and
that the simultaneous appearance of the meteor, and the disturb
ance of the needle, are either related as cause and effect, or U
the eommon rauU oC lOme more general and unknown cause.
Dr. Young, in his lectures, ia very certain that the phenomenon
in question is intimately connseled with electro-magnetism, and
ascribes the ligla of the aurora to the illuminated agency of
electricity upon the magnetioal substance.
It may be remarked, in suppOrt of the eJectro.magnetic theory, that in
IDIIgIl8tism, the asency of electricity is now clearly eatabliahed; and it
am hardly be doubted that the phenomena, both of eleetric:ity and mag-
netism, are produced by one and the _ cause; inumuch .. m a g n ~
ia1 may be induced by electricity, aud the electric spark baa been drawn
from the magnet.
Sir John Henchel allo attributes the appearance of the auro;'
to the agency of electricity. Thia wonderful agent, aays be,
which we see in intense activity in lightning, and in a feebler
and more diffused form traveraing the IIpper regionl of the at-
mosphere in the northern lights, is preaent, probably, in immenae
abundance in every form of matter which aurround. UR, but b ..
comee sell8ible only wben 4iaturbed by excitements of peculiar
kind ..
_ GJ:OGaAPBY or TId IbJ. TENS.
CHAPTER XIII.
ASTRONOMICAL INSTRUlIfENT8.
T.. rapid introduction of teleecopes into eebool. and acade-
mia, u meaBl of inatruction, demanda lOme notice of lbe coo-
atruction and modes of uaing theae inatrumenla. The creat adno-
tage of poa_ing auch meana of a wakening interest and exciting
to atudy, will be readily appreciated when we remember that th.
acmal aigbt of an ohJect lhrollgh a teleecope for even a aingle
mOIDenl, producea an impretlllion, tbrougb the eye. on the mind.
that no labored deeeription can ever accompli.h.
Tbere are two principal cla_ of teleacopea. the Rifradi"II
and &jketing. In the fim c1ua, the light from the object
nnder examination falla on a lens of glu., and by refraction ia
brouvht to a fOCDl, forming an image of the object which ia thea
through a powerful magnifying glaaa caJled the ere
piece. In the reftectinll teleacope the Iill'ht falla on a mamllia
.peculum or highly pohahed mirror of auch form u to rtjlut the
light to a fOCIII. where the imagt' formed il examined with a
magnifying gI.... The te!eacope8 which have ever been
conatructed, are of the rejkdlngklnd, and among theae may be
mentioned the Great Reftector of Sir William Herechel, the
diamp.ter of whose Ipecnlum waa four feet, and ila focal length
forty ffleL ' A mnch larger one hu reoeady been conatructed by
Lord Roale, an Iriah nobleman of great liberality. Ikill and
eeienee. The lpeculam of hil MOBlter Re8ector, u it hu befon
termed. ia no I ... than lix feet in diameter! and ila focal length
il 54 feel. Thia magnificent inltrument hu aocompUabed tbe
resolution of a great number of nebule into alars. which bad
reaiateci the power of a\lprecedinlJ inatrumeela. Th. larreat
reftecting teleacope accurately mounted in tbe world, is that in
the observatory of Mr. Laaaelle, near Liverpool. Ila .peculu ..
it about 1M inoh" in diam.ter.
For many y .. rs relecting tel_opes bave heen little uaed for
any other purpose than mere gasing, in eonaeqnence of tb .. ir
nnwieldly proportiona, rendering it next to impolaible to mount
them with lufticant accuracy and ateadinMa, for the nicer mea ..
ures and obaervationl of utranOlDY. Theae difticulti .. 188m to
ASTRONOMICAL INSTR.UMENT.,. 821
have been IU0C88sfulIy overcome )ly Mr. Lu .. Ue, and with dae
., accurate figure which Lord Roue hal beenable to gin to his
large specula, re&ctorl may apin come into competition with
refractorl u instrumeota for critical obll8rY8tion.
The largest and mOllt perfect refracting teleacopes, have been
manufactured at the optical institute of Utzschneider and.
Frauenhofer, of Munich, Bavaria. Two instruments have been
daere constructed. with object gla911ell of about fifteen inchel.
diameter. One of these is at the Imperial Ruasian observatory
at . Pulkova, nllar St. Peteraburgh; the other is now mounted in
the observatory at Cambridge. Ne,w England. The refractor
of da\ Cincinnati ob.ervatory has an object glaas of 12 inches
diameter, aod a focal length of 17 feet.
These instruments are mounted with all the perfection
of art. Then enormous weight is ,so perfectly counterpoised
and balanced in every direction, as to be moved by the slightest
touch. of the observer. They are provided with delicate ma-
chinery, which may be attached to the telescope, and will give
to it a motion such as shall exactly follow the apparent diurnal
motion of any object under examination. But for this most
ingenious and beautiful. contrivance, with high magnifying
powers, it would be next to impossible to follow the swift ap-
parent motion of the heavenly bodies.
The whether ref'racting or reflecting, iI
mounted lD such way al to revolve on twe principal aXeS. The
one called the polar tJIri&, is precisely 'parallel to the earth's axis;
the other, called the deelifitJli01l =-, IS perpendicular to the fitst
in all ita positions. By revolving the telelCOpe around the polar
axis, WII fo\1ow the diurnal motion of the ,heavenly bodies; by
moving the telescope around the declination uis. it is carried
north or south, .describing the arc of a declination circle. The
two motions combined, the observer to direct the telescope
to any point in the heavens.
The HOf!.r Circle, firmly attached to the lower extremity of the
polar axis, is divided into hours and minutes of time, and mea-
aurea with accuracy any motion of the telescope around the Jlolar
axis. The Declination Circl., fixed to the declination aXl11, ia
divided into and minutes of arc, and by Vemiers, into
seconds. rendenng it possible to read with accuracy any motion
of the telescope arouDd the declination alda.
The Micromlter is an instrument 80 contrived 'lUI to mauure,
with great accuracy, the relative diatanCeB and poaitions which
fall within the field of the teleacope. There are many construc-
tiODS for. this purpose, among them Frauenhofer'a wire micro-
meter holds a high rank. Two delic.te lpider,' we6a are so
adjusted in'the focua of the eye-piece of the. telesco'pe, that they
are aeen distinctly, and appear, when by a &mall
322 GEOGRAPHY OJ' TIlE IlEAVUS.
lamp, .. delicate rolden wir'81 draw,. aeroaa the field of view.
The machinery bearing theM wires il 10 contrind .. to enable
tb. oblerYer te mon them parallel to tbl!lJlMlntl, aad alllO to
re.ol.e them around the axil fJf the telllCope. Eacb of thetle
motionl il meuured by di.ided _lea, in the moet preeiM man-
.er; and loeh ia the power of the mierometera attached to the
large refractora now in uae, that the I8mi-diameter of a apider'.
web mlr be m_ured with great or an inch ma), be
di.ided Into 80,000 equal parte. '
With the micrometer, the distanee aDd angle of poIinon of
the doubl. stara, the diameten of the planeta, of the SUll and
moon, are accurately measured; and a .ariet)' of delieate obl8r-
.. tions made, which could ,.ot he aceomplished iu an)' other
.
The mounun, of large instrumenta is very expenlive. wbell
attended witb all tbe accurate detail necesaary to reDder them
ul8ful aa meana of accurate obaer .. tion. The amateur astroJlo-
mllr, wbo wllhea bis telesllOp, mounted merel)' for fiDdiDI aad
gazin\r' ma)' accomplieh it at a trifting eXpt'Dle. (Fer a de-
acriptlon of a cheap and conVlnient mounting, eaned the Paral-
lacttc Ladder; aee Mitchel'e Sidereal Meallnger, Vol. III.)
The n-aMt IN1ru1llCftl, il a teleacope firmly attached to aD
axil perpendicular to that of the teleaeope, and p .. eing throup
ita center. When thie axia ill 10 placed on permanent lopporte
al to be exat't1y level, nd preeiael, eaat and weat, the telel80pe
will, in revolving around ita axil, deacribe a great circle paelin,
north and louth, or will remain in all poeilioDl in the plane 0
the meridian. The horizontal axis ie composed of two hollow
conel of braee or btber material, firmly a"aebed to the tube of
the telelcope, on either aide. In the fOCal of the eye-piece,
leYeral spiders'.webe are placed at equal diataneetl from each
other, and preeiaely .erdeal in poeilion. Theae .are crolsed at
right anglea by one horizontal spider'e line. The number of
vertical wi,.", al they are ealled, is generally ae.ell. TJ,Ie
tranlit inlllmmen' il ulld to determine the right a_nlion of the
heannly bodiel, and the prineiple of ita al'plication il e:ltremely
lIimple, while ita actnal uae ill attend"d With great ditlieulty, and
requirel extraordinary care and Ikill.
It will be remembered, that the right aleenlion il
on the equator, from the vernal equinox rennd through 24 houre
or 360 dl'greE'I. The inltant when the vernal .. qoinox il on tbe
meridianj il the moment marked () boura by a lidereal or
at that moment the sidereal day begina. If an object il found to
Cf08l the meridian, pallsing the field of the transit Instmment and
ita central wire, at one hour aenn minutel eight aDd three-tentbs
aeeonda. sidereal time, then will thil be'itl right a_n8ioD in time.
To obtain the inltanr of croaainr the middle wire, or tbe m88D
ASTRONOMICA.L INSTRUMENT&. 823
of tbe wh'88, is the critical matter in oblMlrvin, with the transit.
The obaen'er 10 places his teleaeope, in declination, that tbe
Itar to be oblen'ed will enter tbe field of yiew near the horizon-
tal wire. About the time of ita appearance, be takes the second
from tbe clock, and, counting the beati, notea at what beat, and
fracllon of beat, the ltar pasael each of the leven yertieal
wires. By adding together these times, and dividinJ by seven,
he obtainl the wtant at wbich the star crOised an imaginary
wire called tbe __ tf ',lie wira. This. corrected, for the
nrious enon to which tbe clock and transit in8trument are liable,
will give the apparent right .. cen8ioA of the object observed.
The of the tran8it, are the following :-18&', error
of WDel, an8iAg trom tbe fact that the horizontal axi8 i8 not pre-
ciaelyleYel, aDd, iA caae the eaat end ia hiJ,hfl8t, the teleBCope
will look too much west, ud the reverse, If the west. end be
high. 241., Error of GZi",utA, occasioned by the horizontal al.ia
not behlg located precilM'ly east aAd west. If the east end of
the axis be a little north of 88st, then the teleacope, looking
north of the seAhh, will point west of the meridian; looking
aouth of the seAith, it will point east of the meridian. 3d., error
of collimation, ariaing from a failure to make the axis of the
teleacope preciaely perpendicular to tbe horizontal axis on which
it reYoryes. This error may cause the instrument to look either
too mooh east or west, a8 the axi8 incline. in the or the
other direction.
The TrarMit Circle i8 an in8trument like a transit teleacope.
beariAg on its horizontal !,xi8 a ,circle, by means of
wbich the pOlition of the instrum .. nt, in declination, may be read
with aoourat'y. Such an instrument enables the ob.erver to
determine both the right aacension and declination of the object
under examination, at the same observation.
The8e are ealled filed, or meridian instruments, because, un-
like the equatorial, which may be directed to any point in the
heavens, they move only in the, plane of the meridian.
1'here are many other ae'ronomical instruments, but our limite
will not permit, in this place. a more extended noti('8. The
only object haa been, to give to the etudent some idea of the
con8truction of the inatrumente uaually found in an astronomiclll
obseryatory. In mounling these teleBCopes for BCientifie Ulft,
the greatest pains mUBt be taken to secure a firm foundation;
such is the delicacy of theae instruments, that nothing abort of
the moat IOlid and ieolated foundation, will render their resulte
reliable. At the Cincinnati ObserYatory,la"e piers of grouted
masonry are founded on the rock, and carReu up to a hight
I,litllble to receive the etone colnmna on which the teleacopes
are lixed. These pien are entirely ilOlated from the building
aDd are BeCured from Inl external action.
814 GEOGRAPHY 01' TO RUVOI.
CHAPTER XIV.
QUESTIONS ON THE lIIAPSi TABLES, ETC.
IT has beeD thought uanecelaary, al it il quite impracticable,
to Sl'8l8nt a full eet of question8 on each or the constellationl,
an othet topics treated in this volume. This would hue in-
creased the sin of the "folume to nearly twice itl preaent dimen-
lion., without increasiug ita nlue. EveTT judicious teacher
will puraue hil own plan of communicating Instruction, and will
never confine himself or hie pupils to a set of stereotyped
queationa. .
We present, therefore, as a mere specimen of the kind of en-
mination which we dMm important. a series of Questions on the
Constellation Cygnus, Map No. 20.
Is the Swan a northern or louthern conltellation' In what
declination is ita southern limit' How far uorth does it extend'
Between what hours of R. A. is it included' How is it bounded
on the south, esst, north, west' How is it situated, with refe-
rence to. Ly,.,1 How may the conlltellation be recognized in
the heavens' What stars constitute the longer piee-e of the
Cross 1 What stars the shoNr piece'. What is the name and
magnitude of CYrni 1 How many stars of the third magni-
tude are contained in the Swan, and their letter namesl Where
Bra p., E. and. situated 1 Where is f6 l'ituated 1 Whl're are I,
8, and 1& found 1 What are some of the principal double stars ,
What aJ'4! the magnitudel and colors of the components of f6 eyg-
ni' What remarkable fact in the hiltory of the components of
I CYllni 1 What their distance, and probable period of re"folu-
tion 1 Gin lome aCOollDt of the diacovery of the parallax of 61
Cygni. What is the distance of this set from our system'
What their period of revolution' What the lum of the masses
fJf these stars, compared with the 8un'l UlasS 1 What is t h ~
distsnce and magnitude of the componenta of 61 Cygni' Why
was it selected, by Beaeel, for his reeearchea for parallax'
How does its .witt proper motioD accord with Midler's theory
of a central sun 1
What remarkable nebule are found in the constellation' What
aurious phenomena han been remarkecl in the planetary Debule
QUESTIONS ON THE MAPS, ETC. . 325
Dear I Cygni 1 What may be said with regard to the magnitude
and distance or these objects' A.re they situated in the region
or the fixed stars' How shouhl the chaJ1 or map be held, to
make its stars to in the beavens ,
TABLES.
PLA.CES OF THE PLANETS 111'1' JANUARY, lIMO.
FROM these places, and the elements of planets given in
this work, the approximats lositions or the planets may be
readily computed, so 88 to fin them at any time. . .,
Nallllil.
Mercury,
'Venus,
MIIN,
Vesta,
Juno,
Pall88,
Cerea,
Jupitsr,
Saturn,
Uranul, '
2D
TABLE L
Apparent R. A.
18h. 29m. 23s.
21 33 53
17 03 24
o 12 00
. Ii 16 30
16 33 18
16 39 30
9 37 07
13 26 33
1 08 40
Apparent Dee.
S. 24 46' 01"
S. 16 22 28
S.23 05 40'
S.62(00
S. 0 19 00
N. 3 10 00
S. 19 18 00
N.15 10 03
S. 5 57 12
N. 6 37 56
326 GKOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
TABLE II.
TABLE III.
\
1'0 change
-xlnds
right ascensiOffL
nutes, and
time.
DtIg. H. M. DeL
MI. M.S. I\I"L
Sec. . Th, Sec.
1
2
3
4
5
6
36
7
37
8
38
9 39
10 40
11
44 41
12
o 48 42
13
o 52 43
14 o 56 44
15 1 0 45
----
16 4 46
17 1 8 47
18 1 12 48
19 1 16 49
20 1 20 50
21 1 24 51
22 1 28 52
23 1 32 53
24 1 36 54
25 1 40 55
-- -
26 1 44 56
27 1 48 57
28 1 62 58
29 r 56 59
3 44
3 48
3 52
3 56
fE,!l To change hoUlB,
conde, of IIidereal
minutes, and
tor, or right flfLff'lfffllllli,
IH
22
23
24
25
32021 20 26
6 30
330,22 0 27
645
34022 401 28 7 0
7 15
66
57
58
59
30 2 0 60 4 0
350 23 201
1
29
36024 01 30 7 30, 60
14 0
14 15
14 30
1445
15
0
TITUDE,' .PLACES
TABLE IV.
Longitude
with their
hTrHTED Tr27
in
Hash-
The are reelwned Jirz:r;!z, Green,wick
ne Capital8 (&ala of GovernmmJ) of the Statu and Territ0rit8 art
duignated by Balic LetterB.
,Tapital),.... N. Y. 42
., lZ """a,.. .... .. .. D. c. as
An .... pol ... , .............. ( ..... Md. :JY 0
Auburn, ..................... N. Y. 66
Auguata, ...................... Ga. 3;j \!8
A ...... ta (Stat. House), ........ Me. t4184-1
Baltimore (Battle Monument). Md. :19 11 13
Court .. Me. 44 "7
g.zz7",'le (Old CouL . Mas.. 41 .j j
N. Y. 42,7
............. "S. c. ;'2
i?SCE!0:?7Th iit&te HOUIeL" .)1818. 42
BrialOl (Hotel),.; : .......... R.I. 413\1
Brooklyn (Navy yard), .. , ..... N. Y. 40 41
Brunswick (College), ......... 43 sa
Bulfalo, .............. ........ N. Y. 4:l 53
15
... ::
L1z7z:,,,.,wn (Navy Tr".j). . Mas.. 2"
CincInnati, .................... Ohio. as
Col ... mbia, ........ ............ s. c. 33 111
Col"mbw, .................... Ohio. :19 41
CotWml (State House), ......... N. H. 43 1229
Dedbam (Court House),,, ...... Mas . 42 16
Dmoit, ...................... .. Mich. 42 24
: l:
kA",,?,;"" 0.......... .N H 43 ,<"
307"1.", {Court Houae:, .Md .. 18
Eastport, ...................... Me. 44 64
EcienlOn, ..................... N. C. 36 0
Exeter, ............. , ......... N. H. 42 58
.................... Ky. 38 14
Fredericksburg, ............... Va. 38 34

Tr",,,,,z,wn, .. . .. .. .8. C. :J3 if,
"l},,,,,,,,,,,,, ......... .Mas . 42
778
Il84
414
661
66
68
936
693
110
336
318 GBOGJLAPHY OF THE HEAVENS.
Latitude LonBitade, W.., DiaLfrom
Nonb. indegreet!. in time. Wub'n.
07Ii
...................... N. Y. U 14 '/3 46 4 liII. lM6
........ .. Ala. :K 38 86 &7 II 4'7 48 7tII
Iftil' ................... Iucl. 39 5& 86 Ii II " !If) 173
J .................... ............ M'pi. 31 23 10 8 II 0 311 10311
J"-. ..................... M'nri. 38 36 81 8 8311 1180
iCennebnnk .................. Me. 43 l1li 70. 4 U 8 118
Kinpton ...................... U. C. "8 76 40 II 8 40
KnoxTille ..................... Tenn. 35 " 83 54 II :Ill 36 118
Lanouter .................... Pa. 40. 38 '78' !If) 83 Ii 1I!12 101
..................... Xy. 38 8 Ii4 111 IIIJ7 III lI34
LiuJ. -. .................... Ark 3& 40 111111 8 848 1088
Loekpon, ................... N. Y. 43 11 78 48 Ii 15 4 403
LoBiavWe, ................... Ky. 38 a 86 30 II 4Il 0 lI!IO
Lo ... ell (St. Ann .. Ch.roh) ..... M .... 41 38 48 71 18 48 4 45 15 4-'11
Lynehbugh ................. Va. :n 38 711l1li Ii 17 18 118
Lynn
l
....................... M .... U 28 70 1I7, 4 43 48 "1
Marb eh.ad, ................. M .... U ao 70 ho 443 lIS ._
Middl.to:wn. .................. Conn. 41 3& 71 311 4 lID 38 au
.................. Ga, 33 7 83 10 II as lIO 841'
Mobil., ....................... AI.. ao 40 tiS II II iii " 1033
MotaIpdior, .................... VL " 17 7138 4 lID. 6M
MonomoY'Point Light, ....... M .... 41 39 08 70 1 31 440 8.1 IlOO
Mont .... aI, ..................... L. C. 45 31 '/3 36 4 1I4 10 l1li1
Nantuckel(Town Hall), ...... M .... 4110311 70 741 44030.8 IlOO
N .... .,;u" ...................... Tenn. 38 II 30 86 411 3 II 47 18.1 714
N.tahea. (O .. t1e), .. ...... .. lII'\)i. 313& III 1M 41 II II 1140
Ne .... rk, ...................... N. J. 40 48 74 10 00 40 1110
Ne ... Bedford (Marinen' Oh.), M... 41 38 7 70 46 0 4 43 44
Ne ... bern, .................... N, O. 3D W 77 II II 8 10 3IJ7
Ne ... burgh, ................... N. Y. 41 3l 74 1 4 /18 4 M
Ne ... buryport (td Prea. Ch.), .. M .... U 48 10 70 III 0 443 lIS 480
Ne ... caatle, ................ .. Del. 311 40 76 aa II 8 103
N .... H_ (CoUep), ......... COnn. 41 1708 7167 .. 461 6U 301
Ne ... London, ................ COnn. 41 !12 71 II 48 36 354
Ne ... Orleana (Oity), .......... La. 10 67 48 10 841 8 0117.3 11103
N""",,", ...................... R.I. 41111 71 III 14 .. 46 . 11 403
N .... Yorlr (City Hall), ........ N. Y. 40 G 40 74 I 8 58 U ..
Norfolk (Fanner'a Benk) ... .. '. Va. 36 &0 76 18.7 Ii 1\ 15.1 1117
Northampton (ManaionHollae),M ... , 41'185& 7l) 40 4 lID 40 378
Norwicb ...................... COlln. 41 33 71 7 4 48 118 II1II
Penaacola, .................... FI.. 10 118 87 II 6 48 48 1060
Peterllbllrgh, .................. Va. 37 13 114 77 10 1i.1O 144
Pbiladelplii. (lndepend. HaIl) Pa. 31166 III 711 10" II 0 43. I.
Pittaburgb
i
.................... Pa. 40 311 30 8 Ii 10 31 l1li
Pittalield ( aL Cong. Churcb), M .... G 118 118 73 17 ao 4 &3 10 H
PI.llabllrgh ................... N. Y. 44 G 7'd 118 4 &3 44 638
Plymolltb (Court HOule), ...... M .... 41 1I7 III 70 4110 4'411 450 431
Portland (Town HOUle), ....... Me. 43 31118 702030 41 II 64.
Ponamollib (Court HOUle), ... N. H. 43 4 114 70 411 4 43 0 4l1t
POlllhktepaie, ................ N. Y. 41 41 '/3511 4 lIS 40 301
Princeton, .................... N.J. 40 II 74 all , 5810 17Y
"""'""- (Old CoI.), .......... R. I. 41 4lI18 71 II 68 4 46 43.7 3M
Qllel?ec (Cutl.), .......... , ... L. 0. 411 47 17 70 /18 31 4 43 40.1 7flt
.... ... N. O. 3& 47 78 48 6 15 " 1811
RichoftoftIl (Capitol),.... ..... Va. 39 17 77 18 til 6 II 411.11 IS
Rocheller fR'r Houle), ........ N. Y. 43 8 17 77 III II 11 t4 381
Sable (Cape) .................. Fla. 14 60 81 JII II til 0
Sackell'a Harbor, ............ N. Y. G 68 76 til II 3 48 407
Seeo, ............. .... ...... M.. 43 31 70 lIS 4 41 44 ..
St. Allpatine, ................ Fie. 118 48 30 ,81 3CI II 18 10 1M1
SL Low., ..................... )I'd. 311. .. ao II 08 14 _
LATI,UUU, :UTe., OF
Salem (E. I M,,',,"
Savannah, " "" " " "" G"

Taunton (Court Hou.e), Mu .
Toronto (york), . . U. C.
:::: ::::::::


W""SHINGTON (Capitol), ... D. C.
W ubington, .. M'pi.
Wheeling, . . .. Va.
Wilmington, ... .. Del.
Wilmington, .... N. C.
Worcester {All' 21"11), M",,"
York. M""
Vork, " " .. P,'
22
IN UNIT:u:u ELLLTES. 32:U
Latitude Longitude, West, Di.L from
indegreeltin time ..
" 0 I jt; 11'1. I. mIle .
19 70 64 ifT L3 36 446
81 3 f,; 0" ;2 662
73 56 U ;,5 EO 391
72 36 i; 24 357
m
79 I!O 17 20 500
74 39 68 36 166
7340 46440 383
87 42 ,6 60 48 858
3 78 31 is i", 6.9 124
,,49 76 13 383
89 2 '" """ 8 781
I:
77148i8U
91 20 6 II 20 146
SO 49 22 48 264
75 28 6 I f$2 108
78 10 5 J 2 40 416
71 49 " ;6 . 394
70 40 i; 40 600
76 40 ;" 40 87
"
HUNTINGTON AND SAVAGE,
........ , .... 'I'BIIII'I'. BIIW 1rOaK,
PUllLI8B TIUI .oLLOWIM
VALUABLE SCHOOL BOOKS.
To which they ftry respectfully IOlicit the attention of Connty and Town
fluperintendenta, TJ'WIteetJ, SchOol Committees, Teachen, and othen inter
.... in the _ of education.
. AN ELEMENTARY ASTRONOMY,
I'or Academies and 8chooll. IDultrated by numerous orllfinal colored
dlapamL Adapted to _ witIa or witIIout the author'e LUge Mapa.
By H. MATTISON.
Pifth Bdition, with Questions and a Glouary.
'nUs Is ODe of the moet comprehensive and splendidlJ: iIIultrated worb
011 .btronoDly hu ever been publilhed in the United Statel. Ita plan Is
8IninelltlJ: orlJinai and Dhiloaophical. It is conlined to the of the _.
ence, or the"",,," that lIave been reached during tile lapse of api, without
delineating Ita MytholOSical history. or tracing llie proC8S188 by which these
facta haft been alCertained, either by the uee of ili$umenta, or by mathl-
matical CII1culatiOJlll. It embodies all the late discoverie., and is equally
adapted to p!1vate learnen, the library, and the achoolroom, u it is com-
plete in itaelf; independelit of the larp charta. AI a book of reference it is
Invaluable. To this may be added ita perfect adaptation to use ...,Is the larp
Maps, (of which tbe IUUltnltions in the book are exact oopies in lDiDiature,l
10 tbat tbe learner baving the Maps. bu on a larp IC8le the l&IIle
by which to illustrate the 188lOn at the reeitatio tbat bave been preYloUlly
studied by tbe pupil in tbe textbook. To .ay nothing of the recommend ..
tions that follow. the Ale of lea ..... """ copie. of this work, in a little over a
",ar, is a au1llcient proof of ita popularity and intrinlic yalue.
ASTRONOMICAL MAPS,
Adapted to uae with the .. EL.arllll,. ... Y A.,..olloary," and to iII_
crate the JlechanislD of tbe Heavens. For the use of Public Lecturen,
PriYate Learnen, Academies, and ScboolB.
By H. MATTISON.
Thia aeriel conaiata of Sixteen Mapa, or Celestial Charta. eoiCh IS by 44
lJl('.bes, repreaenting the various of the Heavenly Bodie&-tba
Sun, Moon, Planeta, Cometa, and Fixed 8tars-&nd the laws
whieb gover. them in their molions, the philosOphy of Tides, EcJipaee, and
Tranlita, and indeed all tbe most interesting and wonderful pbenomena 01
the M.echanism of the Heavens. Tbe sixteen Mapa cover an area of neerly
100 square feet. They are priDted upon a black ground, anaweriDg to the
aatural appearance of the heavens iii the night, and are beautifully colored
and 1D0unted upon elata and rollers. They are oeyond comparison the molt
Iplendid and complete aeries of scieDtiIic cbarta eyer published in this coun-
try. They are not only invaluable for Seminaries, AClidemies, and tbe higher
inltitution. of learning, but at the l&IIle time are 8,dmirably adapted to p0p-
ular uae in Common Schooll. 0... """"""" .,. of this have already
been aold and fIOne into uae fa diJrerent parta of the oonntry; and the una-
nimity and oordiality witb whicb they are commended by all wbo bave used
Ol'u&mined them, 1& truIt gratifying to tbe pub1ilhen. (See following pap.)
Ln, per eel, ia c_, with cloth bacb, ......................... 820 00
II II ,II OD Itroll&' paper, withoat cloth baob, 15 00
Book. per copy........................................................ 50
o:r Bach Set oC Mapa Is nicely packed in a Wooden Caee, and _ be
.at to order with perfeCt aafety to any pan of the United States or CIIDIIda
HuaIiftpm 4- &'D466'.
n. ."..,.,. of of Bc1tooU. 7'rufeU. __
T ......... iIIIIiId,. tA.J.u..;.,
RECOMMENDATIONS
Ha'riDg eDJDined, and IItIveral of .. 1IIItId, the A..
,.8OJIOIIY IUIil M ...... by R MaUiaon, _ are prepared
to _y, that in our opinion, they are better adapted to the
of elementary iDmuctiOll in Aaroaomy, thaD aDy other work or ap-
puatus now before the public. We woold therefore cordially Ie-
-.unend their introduction into all achoo. where thiB BUbIime 8CieDoe
_taught.
EDWARD COOPER Sec.,. o( Teachers' ABlciatioll, _ N. Y.
ALBERT D. WRlGR'!J Principal NormallDst., BrooklyD, N. Y
IAS. L. McELLIGOTT, Prin. Col. 8cboolL N. Y. city.
JAS. R. BOYD, Prin. Je1l"el'8Oll co. Inat., watertown, N. Y.
R. K. 8ANFORDL,Teacber Natural Science, lIiddleburJ AcademJ.
WyoDUng, N. Y.
N. BRITTAN, Principal o(Union School, Lyoll8, N. Y.
R. F. HICKS!.. County Supt.!. LiYinpton co., N. Y.
ALONZO BE..,.BE, County BUpt., Ontario CO., N. Y.
HENRY GILLAM, (ormer teacher of MadI. Cayoga Academy, N. Y
B. R. McALPINE, Supt. o( Public Schools, Roi:be8ter, N. Y.
ELLERY S. TREAT, Prin. Pub. Schoo! No. I, Rocbe8ter, N. Y.
WM. BARNES, .. .. .. 5, ..
A. F. HALL ...... 7 ..
REUBEN JOHNSON, .. .. e:' ..
DANIEL HALLOCK, .. .. II, ..
A.. S. GREGORY .. .. .. 14 ..
H. G. WINSLOW, Prin. Union School, Mount Morris, N. Y
P. BARKER, Prin. Public School No. 10, Brockpo"," N. Y.
G. L. Prin. Publio Schdol No. a, Watertown, N. Y.
G. R. JACKS01'l, Teacher, Oswego. N. Y.
I. PATTERSON, Prin. Public School No." N. Y. city.
JULIA B. CLARKE, Teacher of Public Schoo! No. I, Osweso, N. Y.
p;..,. faa,. lIrrmo:r., Director of tIN Ciftt:itmcdi Ob.rNtory.
ID a DeM'to the publi8helll, Prof. M. -18=
II Your lleriee of are hung up in the public _ption-room 01
the observatory. I am much pleased with your plaD of epeaking to
.ile eye; and am confident that th_ will IIOOJl &ncI their way
iDIO every well.oconducted achool."
Prom Pko C.wwnr., of BrOlDn lJ"i __ ty, .ndN. BmROP, EaQ.,
Bapmratetadtmt of PulIlie Be." in Prmlknc., R. L
!'10m a brief examination of Mr. .. E1emeatlllJ AItron-
omy," and the accompBDying Maps, we have formed a favorable
opinion of their utility to pupil, iB that branch of ltudy, and have
recommellded their iBtroouctioD into the High School of the city of
Provideace.
M_All, 1847.
'"'" :bY. lbOlUAD S. Rnr, OIllllfllWUmer of Pili/lie BeAooz. for
tlle Btate of NeVI H_,.lir
I have examined with great pleaaure, Mr. Mattilloll" ElemenilllJ
Astronomy, and Astronomical Mapa, and I think them admirably
adapted to IImI8l the attention of the young, and to impart thorough
and practical knowledge in the nblime .udy of Astronomy.
I admire the arrangement and cl_fication of the Aatroaomy. It
explaillll and iU\IIItl"ateI one thing at a time, in a manner 10 clew and
interelltinf, that it CaDDot fail of entertaining and improving the student.
In view of the excellellciea of the Elementary Aafronomy, and
Mapa, I molt cheerfully commend them to an intelligent pnblic,
hoping that they will meet with all that n_ which their meritalO
richly d8lOrYe.
M 18, 1847.
I
'"'" B.uwBL H. Cox, D. D., of Brooklyn, N. Yo
Th_ Mapa, mathematical and optical, illulltrate the lIoblellt parll
of that incomparable lCience j they are accompBDied by an explana-
tory volame, adapted to them, lucidly arranged, all Conning, I think,
an apparatDl for the learner and the ICholar, of rare excellellce and
enduring uaefuln-. Reaalta and proceBII8I are there combined, re-
duced to IIYltem, and digested collll8Cutively in happy order j compe-
tent to inIItruct the merchant, the mechanic, the farmer, the inquiai-
tive youth, the rntlemen of leimre, and aD others who upire after
lub\ime knowledge, and are willing IOm!ltimea to look at the heavell&
Ladiea who value true knowledge, and who hue \earned how to .
think-and there are lOme of this dOlCriptiou-wi!1 prize anch iJIIItrn-
mental helpa to the acquiaition of lOund and rich information in AI-
tronomy. AA a work of reference, a ,lIeNU".. of knowledge, a
profitable am_nt, or an ornamental pDl8Dit, it woald greatly
honor .. well .. happily form their mentaJ.character, and nbordiJlate
the very gelllll of heaven to their proper decoration .. intellectual and
immortal hoiuga I need not add it ill very valuable for lIChoo'" IIWd
d8lOrYea the patronage of our countrymen, .. a native productiOD. I
IiDcerely _ret" well .. aaticipate ita __
May 6,1847.
THE
GEOGRAPHY OF THE HEAVENS,
AND CUBS-BOOl[ OF A.8TROJrOJlY.
1 'IOL 18mo.
AccampaIecl by a CeleItial AUu, Imperial4t.o., Da.ai, c61ored.
b admirable work to follow tile .. An'aolfOIlY" &JIll ....
M....... The two works together pre_ a more thorouJdl
embodimeDl of tile lCleoce than any otllen of tile _ eompua, ill tfie
oouatry.
OP Tall
1. P!&n exhibitiDI the relative Magnitudes, DistaD,,", aDd POBition of the
di1l"erent Bodie. whiel;! compose the Solar S)"IItem.
I. The Visible Heavens in January, February, aDd March.
I. The Visible Heavens in October, November, and December
... The Visible Heavena in Jull'! August, and September.
II. The Visible Heavena in April., May, and June.
II. The Visible Heavens in the South Polar Regiona, for each IDODth III
the year.
'T. Tbe Visible Heavens in the North PQlar B.ea10u, for each month III
the year.
8. Planisphere of the Whole Heavens, on Mercator', Projection. '
By B. A. BURRITT, A. II.
With an Introduction by Tao .... DICK, LL. D., Author of tile "Cluietuul
Philosopher," "ritten expreasly for this work.
A variety of intereating facts and observations embraclllg the latest im-
provements in the acience, were derived directly from the French and EIIJ-
lish Observatories, e:qwe"z, for this Class-Book, and are not contained m
an! otber. It is now coming generally into use m our Seminaries,
and Is recolljlDended to sehools in general by memben of the Board of EJ:-
amination of Yalp College, &I a work more needed, and which, it is be-
lieved, will be more useful than any other introduced into our .. ln8Iitutiona
of Learning, lor a number of years."
This book, as its title imports, i. designed to be to the &tarry heavens
what geography is to the earth. Such a Class-Book baa been neoded.
Hitherto, the science of the stare has been but very IIlpelifiClally ItUdied In
our schools, for want of proper helps. They have oon\inaed to gaze upon
the visible heavens without comprehending what they I&W. They have
cut a vacant eye up'<!n the splendid pages Of that nat volume whICh the
night unfolds, &I chIldren amuse themselves with a boot which they are
unable to read. They have caught, here and there, as it were, a capital.
letter, or a picture, but theI have failed to distinguish tho.e smaller chlll"llC-
ten, on which tbe sen"" of tbe whole depend.. Both teachen and pnpils
have found that Clasa-Books and Maps are as mdispenaable to this depu.n-
ment of knowledge, &I to that of Geography; and that an artificial globe is
just as poer a aubstttute in one case as in tbe other. Inatead of Uuiglobe.
and a few bal\a strung upon wires, Mr. Burritt's book IOIId Atlas introduCBI
the pupil at once to the Grand Orrery of the Heavens, and mates him
aoquainted with the names md positions of the bodies which compose j&.
He learns to locate and to oltulih liia astronomical knowledge as be d.- hiI
geographical; and experience hIlS proved that a child of tell years will _
DIlt all the constellations that are visible In tbe heavens, and name the
pr!nciP!ll &tan in each, lIS readily a8 he will learn tile \Jf)unclarieI of ...
Itate8 from a map, and name tbe cities tbey contllin. ,
Huntington 4' Sa"age', Pu6licat'OM. 17
A NATIONAL GEOGRAPHV FOR SCHOOLS,
mUltraled by 110 EngraYinp and 80 Stylograpbic Mapa; with a colored
, GLO MAP, OR A lIaw PUR.
One vol. quarto.
New and Improved edition.
By S. G. GOODRICH, Author of Peter Parley's Talee.
Tbis worlt Ie dee\ped u a l<Aaol-book-a manual for ,_ ..... ; and nothlDg
m the 11 o)rk Ie allowed to interfere with this design. At the same time, from
the arranllement adopted, it wUl be found to contain a lTOat quantity of
matter wbich will render it a convenient twnUy book for reference. Its
utility, in this reapect, will be enhanced by the IDdex Dt the close of the
volume.
su.,IicifJ, par.,...,.,u" and ....,......... have heen carefUlly studied in the
arrangement of the whole work. Thus the typography, esperJaUy that
whlCti contains the leadintl ideu of each 18I8On, 18 clear and conspicuous;
the lettering of the mapa 18 peculiarly full and distinct; the wbole view of '
each country Ie brougtit toll'ether, 80 as not to embarrus the reader by a
reference to' separate pagea
t
or separate tables; distinct mope of tbe prin <
Clpal countriea are Biven, ana care hu been taken not to All them with un
importent names, which may bewilder the student, and render all bis &eo
Qwsitionl obaoure and Imperfect. Too many of the popular school-boou
on thiI lubject are made to compass I ... obj ,.; to combine a universal
lJ8081'&Pby and a ICbool seography in one. Botb objects are not, tberefore,
well at_ed
i
for while there 18 not enough for the former, there is too
much for the alter: the coD88Quence is inconyenience and embarrassment
to the teacber-increased study and labor to 1be pupil, wbile he is im-
'pedectly instructed, if not actually injured In bis habits of study. Tbe
mllpa uid text of this work contain quite u mucb of detail u the pUIlU can
remember. The design -hu been to embrace jUlt 80 much, that, If well
studied, the pupil will carry in bia mind clear IUld distinct Im.s of the
forma of countries, courses of rivera, location of towDI, citiea, &c., 80 that
every with its leading features. can be and will be permanently
mapPed on bis mind.
ill respect to map!! a new and useful deYi.ce hu been adopted, wbich _
entitle a 0,. Mop. ThiS, of necellity is separate from the pages referring
to itt but its great utility and convenience, in the way it is to tie used, can-
not lail to stnlte every praotical teacher. It bu a handle, and with a .....w
.J,M If" ill Au /tad, the pupil is taught the various nainel Biven to the
diYilloDl of land and water, the shapes of oceans and continents, and the
relative positions of countries and places upon the fuce of the earth.
It is in short. .."illll. /".. .. artificial If". with the advantage of bema.
.. uiiy handled, and constantly before thB eye, during the early atagee of
the study.
A. a means of rendering the progress of the pupil at once atlreeable-and
dective, the author hu endeavored to invest the subject with eyery de-
11'" of interest of wbich it iR capable. He has sought to keep the attention
i1tve by 'rivid descriptions; Dnd. in order to convey accurate Impressions of
'risible objeclll, he hu introduced a larger numlier of illultrative engra'rinp
than have eve:Eap ared in a similar treatise. EYery one know. that mere
words are in Ie of conveying correct and 'distinct ideu of animals;
and that a simp e out of a lion, for instance, will be more useful in giving
an imprelllion of bis form and than a whole volume of verbal de-
IOripUOn. The same may be saiil of the countenancea and costumes of
TIl:ious nations; of the peculiar modes of building, travelli., worshipping.
ar.c. The el1gravinp, therefore, are not introduced as mere .mbellishJnents
= to the pupil, but as aD elIIcienl aII4 _CialIOIUCe of oar
PETER PARLEY'S NEW GEOGRAPHY FOR
BEGINNER8.
IDIIIInIed with 18 beaIdiI1IJly colored II., .... 110 BllpariDp, .... ~
bOaDd Ia.wr COTen. ~
B _...u.. to ..,.. 01 die ttIIcltr 0I1tJ1e, or of tile ~
.... pnedcal.-bod m wbich Peter P v ~ p--. to aile e ...
jflIU 01 wbicb be writeL NCIC1rItJwtaMl.,. other worb 0 the _YO
__ "'1Id, tbWlitde work, _ fnll ad _rUe ilia .. y. ~ 10
__ iU _, Ia all ~ where improYemeDla Ia PJ:imuy ed.-cioD are
... forward. B bU been ~ 1a.BqJud.'" II ftt.eD8h'e1=
tJaroqIIout tbat COQIItry ad CUIad,: it bu ~ - tnDIIated. lato
ad iii mucb UIed Ia 1'DDce; It bu been JIIIhIlIbeclIa Gnak, ad -
to -,OlIO yoatb of tbat JWloD. B bu aIIO __ traD8Ia&ed by the _____
Ia Penla, IIId lDtrodaced into &heir 1CIIoo", ad .... been __ -'" r.
printed Ia 8idDeJ, New South Wale8. TIWI foreIp _ II ~ of &be
ftJae ad.popuIarily of the work; yet it II to be ~ Iba& _ baYe DO
ooPJrilbt Jaw to Ifft IIltbon IIId pubIiIIIen the baeIl of IIIIIIl -.
Huntington t &WJge'. Pv.6lictmoM. 18
IU8Iorr 01 Bo&lDical Science. UlCl &lie IiDd CoII1IUtI
onraobeCllIIId IlDOrgaDised matter In Nature.
1. diaUDnilhed aDd experienced teacber in natural ICIence ..,. 01 dill
.. ar from o&ber worb on &bia subject, Bblillr. my Ie-
will not be invidious, wlien I aay. Sblt I &binIt it far better adaptjd to
. of Inat:ructioJi m the ICIence than IIIlJ I have __
I am ucb deUabted wi&b the euy UId natural metbod '-" wbleb it
ducee the schow to a knowledge 01 the ftrat prinCiples of tbe science. UId
&be strict philOllOSlhical arranpment It emplOJ8 in impartinA: ID8truCtIan.
TIle whole work Iiu &be impre .. of one practiCally acqiiainteil wi&b the art
of leIIcIriDIr. UId adds aDoUier to tile inaJ!f. Ureail.y emtiDJr. tIIIt Ia-
ItlUctora 01 are l8Derally better quaW1ed to pJepare el.1I18JItarI
works tban those who have never bad any experience Ia the Of
luchins"
......... J.1I'l'JIO&,
DB8IGNBD FOB. P1WU.B.Y AND COIIMON 8CHOOLS,
BOTANY FOR BEGINNERS.
All III'l'&ODUOTIOII TO .... LlllcoLll'I lOToUI1'.
BI' MU. LINCOLN PULP8.
I voL 18mo. pp. 150.
TblI book 18 lateacled cbteA,. 6:lr the _ 01 priJnery ecbools and the
younpr pupils in bJ.sber schools and seminaries. 80 mucb bu, of late, ,
been iIrrid bJ those who take an interest in &be IUbject 01 education, In
fa.or o(InWOduc!Da the Natural Sciences Into Common Schools. &bat it ia
to be hoped that tbe time Is DOt far distant w ben plante UId minMaII will be
u familiar objecte of lltUdy Ia our diatrict u &be 8IlIIlIinx-bool<
now il. PerhaPi lOme parent or teacher may be ready to inquire, wnether
It is reaommended thet IriIcb Itudiee aball taIui &be piac8 01 re8iinr. epellins.
or wrltiDg i by DO _; but every teacher boWl that there are many
liatle8I IUI4 VllCBDt -.nts when even &be moat active 01 bls pupils leelll
tired of tIIeir monotono1lll punuita, habit UId reapec\ 6:lr &beir teaCber may
lead &bem to lit ItIll UId ilo no mischief; but it]a not di1IIcuJ.t to !l8J'C8ive.
by &be beavy eye IIIId inanimate countenance. that the intellect ilumbera.
These are Ole momente when the ezr:rlenced teacber feels &be nHd of
80me new stimulant. Instead then 0 saying. "Jobn. or Lucy. have
been BiUiJIK idle &bia half bour. wby 408't JI)U mind )'QU1" boOk 1 be wbn
unde1'8tand8 the 111IIIIIIII mind is awue that tbls is the very way Itill more to
disgust bls pupil. aDd be will auuredly be read}' with some new method of
aw8keniDg attention. SUJIPOI!I. then, inltead of a rebuke for idlane., the
teacher auld lIIDdly addre. bls pupil u follow8: .. You have been ., lema
engqed upon a ceram I8t 01 atudiea, that I peroeive they have beoome
lOme; I tIiiDk ollatroclucing a new study lato &be school; to-monow 1...."
p --. .. fIeI-.Jr; you mal &bere6:Jre brInjJ with you toomonow all tile
Wild lilies} or violet'li. or any kind of common W:iId flower that you can find
In &be flelaa." Tbe dec&, aDr one at all aoc1llltomed to the care of children
will readily understand. But it may be aaid
J
"&bere are many teacbers who
_ not c&pable 01 BivIDB a lecture upoil DOteny." To tblj it may be an-
that every teacluir wllo is ID any de.,.. fit to be sueb can 1II1II the
.. 6:lr Besume .... " even never beard a lecture upon tile
IUbjeet 01 botuiy I it willteacb blIIi &be 18ading priDciples, an4 be can a
them to blIi pupila; tbls will be IIJHIII Bo'""
ThouaBDda are iIIfD8 tbls little wort, and iIlve the IIh'OIIIlII* MItimonJ ID
"favor
. TIle n_ 0I1IiII Beeeber Ia tile Hartford Female 8emInary aayI t-
"It cIear,limple.aDd interuttar ezblbition 01 tile priIIcIpln Of .. _
10 HumiflgWn 4- Savage" Publicatwr&8 .
tertalDlDr 1CleDoe, adapted to tile codlprebeoslon of cbUdren, for wboD .., ..
deaiped; and fully capable of prepariag tbem for a more enaDded trea __
It is partimIlarly reco1iuDeD4ed Ole iDatructorl. of our common 1ICbool., ..
an iJitereatiDi emJ)ioymem for tbe leiaure boul'll of their 8Obol&l'll; II! ...
motben, u an ualst8nt to them In the great work of atoriDg their
IDIDda with the kDowledp of tile worb Creator."
PHELP8' NATURAL PHIL080PHY,
lOa TIIJI Villi OP ICBOOUl, AOADIIIIla, A1CD P&I1'ATII ITV_
. iull8trated with numeroua EnsraviDp from original deIdpI.
By MRS. LINCOLN PHELPS.
New EditioD. I vol limo.
PH.ELP8' PHIL080PHY FOR BEGINNERS.
I vol.18mo.
A teacher of mucb experience, and PrIncipal of one of our lint
1&)"11 of theae worltlr-
" Tbe aub.lect is treated in a ID8llner blgbly acientific I the ensraviqa de-
ligned for nfuatrating tbe ten are bappil)' cbOl8n and executed:; aDd a de-
gree of fre8bne .. per'Vadea the wbole work wbleb cannot but impart life aDd
animation to the atudent of itl pagel. But more than all, we rijoice to _
.. bealthy moral feeling dIftIIaiDI ita fragrance over tile whole."
PHELP8' CHEMISTRY.
New Edition. 1 voL limo.
PHELP8' CHEMI8TRY FOR BEGINNERS.
1 voL lSmo.
ProrellOr Cuwel1, or Brown University, bariD& eumiDed 80me of "-
molt important cbaptel'll of th_ worka, 118.)"11 :-" Tbe priDcip\ee or the
leienee BpJl8lLf to be atated witb brevity and c1eam_, aDd are bippily illn.
tr-' by Iamiliar UIIl well .. elected exampiea."
'OlUVBBIIlTr BDmOB
OP
DR. WEB8TER'S DICTIONARY:
Abridged from tile quarto American Dictionary, with WalIter'1 K.ey to the
Pronunciation of Greek, Latin, and Scripture ProJl4lIo-Names, etc. With
a Memoir aDd But or tile Author. 1 voL royal duOdecimo. 560 papa.
WEBSTER'8 HIGH-8CHOOL DICTIONARY.
limo. 160 pageL
The deaigD or thil volume 11 to f'unll.b a vocabulary of the more common
words, wbiCh conatltote the body of our language, Wltb numel'OU8 tecbDical'
terms In tile 8ciencea aDd Arts, and many woro. and pbruea from other
languagee, wblcb are often met with in Englieb boob, With a brief deftDi..
tion of eac'!.Lto wblcb 18 added an accented vocabulary of CLASSICAL,
SCRIPTUJUi, aDd MODERN GEOGRAPHIC NAMES. The
phy and PronWlciation are made to clOl8ly with. tboae editiODl
of the work of 'tile author r_ntly reriaed under tile editonbip or Profeilor
GOOD.ICB,of.YaIe College; ,
Huntington 4- Savage'. Public4ti0n8. 21
WIBSTBl'8 PlIlI!IlY SCHOOl DICTIONAIY.
With Accented Vocabularies of CI_cal, Scripture
l
and Modem Gqn.
pbical Proper Names. Square 1411110. New ecbtion, reviBed and eo-
Iarpd, correapoJIdiJIg in oitbography to the large worlt of Dr. Webater.
Tbia work embraces about ten thoUllllDd more w0rd8 tIum Walker's 8chooI
, Dic&ioDary, and 18 8IpCIC.iaJly recommended to the attention of teachen.
BDITION, In several *lJ'leI of blDIIiDI-clotb, siI&
, and silt emhoUed.
Tbia Iaat 18 a yocabuIary of the __ importlnt wordll of our lUlgu ....
ho&h 00IIUD0Il and llCientillc, with a CODClIe. pRmitive deftniUon of each
word, followed by the derivatiODl of the same word,-thus preleDtinJ the
two fea&uru In one, of a deftnill8 Dictionary, and one of the 8JDonym .
The ,Tutimonial II IUhIcribed by a Iwse numbilr of the __
di8Iinpjahed men of our country :
.. Tlie sub8criben highly appreolue Dr. Webster's purpoae and attempt to ,
improve the Ell8lish Ilmguaae, by reDderiDa Its orthography more simple,
and uniform, and by removiq diJllculties arising from its anomaJi ....
Ie 11 wry deliral>le that one atandard dicllonary should be used by the nu-
merous DdllioDl of people who are to inhabit the vaat extent of territory IJe.
!,on&inJ to the United State.: as the uae ofauch a atandard may prevent &be
formation of dialects In .tatea remote from each other, and impreu upon
the ..... ,....." and ,'abiIit,. It II deairable, aIIo, that the acquili-
tion of the language mould be rendered easy, not only to our own citilellll,
but to foreignen wiah to pin __ to the rich atoreI of acience whicb
it contains. We reJoice that the A.....-ic:aa DicIiGury bids fair to become
ncb a atandard; and we alnceraly bope that the autlior'l eiementary booka
for pr!mary acboola and academiel, will commend themaelve. to the general
_ of our feUowci&ilens."
THE PRACTI8AL FRENCH TEACHER.
By NORIU.N PINNBY, A., It.
The leading peeuliartty In tbia work Ie, that It uercl_ the atudent
througbout In the constant practice of apeatiDr. The preparation of every
II a preparation for speaking the lanfUaae, and every I_n 18 an
actual convenatioD In it. Theae conyenationa, too. are progreuive and
."atematic hi' commenciq wltb tbe limple.t elements of the language. and
ednncilllJ an easy proce ... to the more dilllcuit. The wbole bas been
prepared wi a view to overcome the dilllcuitiea whicb an Allierican lIleets
ID acqulriq a knowledge of that eo necenary part of a linlIbed education.
KEY TO PINNEY'S PRACTICAL FRENCH TEACHER.
TBB I'Dl8T BOO][ Dr FBmfOK; or, A I'rIIcticaJ Introduction to the
Readiq, Writing, and 8pea1dq of the Frencb Laquage. By No ....
I'lIn y, A.III.
PICTORIAL HISTORY OF THE U. 1!7 S. G. GooDBlOB'
PICTORIAL HISTORY OF FRANCE. by S. b. GOODBIOH.
PICTORIAL HISTORY OF by S. G. GooDBlCB.
HISTORY OF ROME. by I). G. GooDJUCB.
PICTORIAL HISTORY OF GREECE, by S. G. GooDBlCB.
The above aeriel of biltorfea, formerly published by lIIesan. 80rin a. Ball.
m Philadelphia, 18 very introduced into both priyue and publio
ENGINEER'8 '" MECHANIC;8 COMPANIONI
IIeDmration of Super8cee aDd 8oIlde; tablet! of Sq __
CiIbeI; Square aDd Cube RoOts; Cit'cua\fereIIc aDd Areas of Circlaa;
the Meclwdcal Powen; of Steam aDd Steam EJisine8 ;
Ullited 8tate8 Weights aDd Meuuree, 6:0.
BY 1. M. SCRIBNER, A. J(.
1 YO!. 181M., 140 pep-. Morocco, lilt. with tucb.
ThIa work Ia 1UghlJ' recommended aeveral ciYll eqiDeen
_ maohiDIaIa; IIIld, u JIaDual fOr m8chaDia. ia a work 01
Ire&t value. Be8ides the purallOpice already enumerated, it _taIDa
vu& aDIOUII& of valuable mauer, in relation 10 Cen&re& of Gran&y; Gravi&a-
tion of BocIi"!] PeDduluma; Specifio WIQllt.
_ Cruah of lIlateriala; Water"'WheeJa , H ce; HydrauJil!!j S&atiCa ;
Cen&rea of PercUlllon aDd Gyration; F ' ; Hea&; '1'1iblea of weialda ot
JIe&alI; Pipes, 8cudIiDp; 6:c. 6:c. '
THE ENGINEER,., CONTRACTOR's, AND SURVEYOR'S
POCKET TABLE-BOOK.
BY 1. M. SCRIBNER, A. M.
1M ,..., MIno. Tuck hindbIs, with gUt edp.
The aiJoTe work comJlrlaea LorIarithma of NlUIIben, Loprithm1c sin8a
_ Tangents, Natural SiDes aDd N"aturai TaDgents ; &he Travene Table,_
. a fUll ana extensive Nt of t&blea, exhibiting at one view the number 01 Cu
bic Yards conta,ined in lIIlyemblUlkment or cuttiDg,lIIld for lilly bue or elope
of IIidea uaual in praclice. Beaidea these eaential tables, the work comprlaea
10 more of Mensuration, Tables, Wi!' ts of Iron, Strength of M_
rialI, Formulu, etc., for.. out RailroIIda, C ..... and
eurv .. ; mllch 01 wbleb baa never before otrered to the public. aDd aD
indlapensabTe to the engineer. Thia book will pro" a great aaviDg of &!me.
aDd will enable the new beginner to fUmiah reiults .. iecurate1y (aDd wiIJI
much greater rapidity) u tile moat experienced in the profeaaion, without tla
aid. The tables of logarithms, eto., _ve been caref\illy corrected aDd co ...
parII!l with cWrerent eilitiona of the l&1li8 tables; aDd all the tables thr0ugh-
out the book have been reed carefully by proofs four times ; hence the IDOIt
implicit con6denee may be placed in theii correctneu.
KAME'8 ELEMENT80F ORITICI8M.
I voJ. Svo.
The OD1yedftton which received the latelt rerilion of the Aather,
PRE8TON'8 BOOK-KEEPING,
DOVBL .urn ImeL RTRY.
PRE8TON'8 INTERE8T TABLE8,
per cenL-Larp aDd AlIridpd. 7 per cenL-Larp and Ahridpd.

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