' discoveredji/ Dr, oilers, &c, 229. 



a magnifier of 460 would not show it to be different from, 

 the stars of an equal apparent brightness, its diameter must 

 be extremely small, and we may reasonably Expect it to be 

 an asteroid. 



May 21. With a double eye-piece magnifying only 75 

 times the supposed asteroid A makes a right-angled triangle 

 with two small stars a h. See fig. 2. 



^..With a very distinct magnifier of 460 there is noj^% 

 pearance of any planetary disk. ; i, ,^ 



May 22. The new star has mowd away from a hy ,^i>d is 

 now situated as in fig. 3. The star A of figure 1 is no 

 longer in the place where I observed it the 24th of April, 

 and was therefore the asteroid. I examined it now with 

 gradually increased magnifying powers, and the air being 

 remarkably clear, J saw it very distinctly with 460,, 577, 

 and 636. On comparing its appearance with these powers 

 alternately to. that of equal stars, among which was the 

 4'63d of Bode's catalogue of the stars in the Lion of the 

 7th magnitude, I could not find any difference in the visible 

 bize of their disks. 



By the estimations of the distances of double stars, con- 

 tained in the first and second classes of the catalogues I have 

 given of them, it will be seen that I have always considered 

 every star as having a visible, though spurious, disk or 

 diameter : and in a late paper 1 have entered at large into 

 the method of delecting real disks from spurious ones : it 

 may therefore be supposed that T proceeded now with Vesta 

 (which name I understand Dr. Olbers has given the aste- 

 roid), as 1 did before in the investigation of the magnitudes 

 of Ceres, Pallas, and Juno. 



,- The same telescopes, the same comparative vaews, by 

 >yhich the smallness of the latter three had been proved, 

 convinced me now that I had before me a similar fourth 

 celestial body. 



, The disk of the asteroid wliich I saw was clear, well de- 

 fined, and free from nebulosity. At the first view I was 

 inclined to believe it a real one; and the Georgian planet 

 being conveniently situated, so that a telescope might with- 



P 3 out 



