ASTRONOMY AND METEOROLOGY. 419 



man's hat, struck the water off Fort Washington, very close to the vessel, 

 and disappeared with a hissing sound. A similar phenomenon was observed 

 by the officers of a steamboat on the Hudson near Albany. At New Bed- 

 ford, four or five luminous bodies were observed to strike the water of the 

 harbor, at the same time, at as many different points. 



On the subsequent day, Xov. 16th, a curious phenomenon was noticed by 

 Edward L. Higgins, of East Killingly, Conn., and is thus described by him, 

 in a communication to the New York Evening Post: 



" On the afternoon of Xov. 16th, about three o'clock, I was walking from 

 the mill (in Killingly) to the post-office. The day was cloudy, and a mist 

 was slowly settling over the hills which skirt the horizon. A slight drizzling 

 rain was falling, and I had just opened my umbrella, when I was astonished 

 by a loud whizzing noise, somewhat like that produced by a sky-rocket on 

 its ignition. I turned my umbrella aside, and looked up, when I perceived a 

 phenomenon that very much surprised, and I may say, awed me. Out of 

 the mist, from the hill-top, a bright band of flame seemed approaching that 

 part of the upper air under which I stood, and for quite a distance on either 

 side the mist was illumined by the light; but the centre of the luminosity 

 was intensely brilliant, and very rapid in its motion. In a few seconds it 

 was above my head, and, to my intense disgust, not very far above it either; 

 and I was enveloped in a sheet of milky-white light, and became sensible 

 of a very noisome smell, something between that of very coarse burning 

 brimstone and sour garlic. I followed with my eyes the course of the centre 

 of the bed of light, which passed just above the mill, and describing a para- 

 bola, descended to the earth, with a terrific explosion, about half a mile off. 

 Business intervening, it was an hour and more before I could go in search of 

 the exploded aerolite; and when I reached the spot where I had observed it 

 fall, I was petrified with astonishment to perceive no trace whatever of its 

 presence." 



ON THE SPOTS OX THE SUX. 



Father Secchi, of the Observatory at Rome, has recently published his 

 researches on the spots upon the sun's disk. He commences by supporting 

 the opinion entertained by Wilson, according to whom the feebler light of 

 the penumbras depends, at least partly, on the different angles of the sur- 

 faces emitting that light. He says " at least parti}*/' because we must 

 make allowance for the striated formation of the edges of the spots, or 

 penumbrae, which is now established. Closer observation, aided by more 

 powerful instruments, has proved that the penumbne are composed of 

 extremely fine, brilliant filaments, whose light equals that of the luminous 

 solar envelope, or photosphere ; but in consequence of the black lines which 

 separate them, the total effect is that of half-tints. Powerful instruments 

 have also enabled Father Secchi to discover in the darker portion of the 

 spots semi-transparent veils, to which he gives the name of cirri, or clouds. 

 He attributes them to some irruption of luminous matter having the fila- 

 mentous aspect of the penumbras. Wilson's theory supposes a real depres- 

 sion of level in the solar spots, and Father Secchi has accordingly attempted 

 to measure this depression, and has arrived at the conclusion that the solar 

 photosphere does not exceed half, or even one-third, of the earth's diameter 

 in thickness. This would give a depth equal at most to the two-hundredth 

 of the sun's diameter; but, notwithstanding the smallness of this estimate, 

 Secchi believes he is not far from the truth, and he holds the frequent dis- 



