ASTRONOMY AND METEOROLOGY. 393 



decided but faint rose tint. Much detail was visible in the protuberances, 

 both of light, shade, color, and configuration. The side towards the sun 

 Avas not brighter than the opposite side; but in some cases the more distant 

 portions of the protuberances were fainter than the near portions. It is not 

 improbable, therefore, that they consist of gaseous matter in an intense 

 state of incandescence. The surface of some of the eastern luminous 

 prominences next to the moon was, when first seen, very irregular, and far 

 more so than was attributable to mountains as seen in profile on the moon's 

 edge. This irregular outline may, however, be explained by supposing 

 these prominences to have been first seen floating, like clouds in a transpar- 

 ent atmosphere, at some little distance from the sun's surface, and, conse- 

 quently, from the moon's edge a supposition which is supported by the 

 fact that one such prominence or luminous cloud was seen distinctly de- 

 tached, and at some distance from the dark moon. As the moon glided 

 over the sun's disk, the inner outline of the prominences in the eastern hem- 

 isphere became less and less indented, and at last they were bounded by the 

 nearly even outline of the moon's limb. As the eastern prominences became 

 gradually covered, a mountain-like peak, seen at first as a mere point in the 

 northwest quadrant, gradually grew in dimensions, then presented several 

 points, and at last resembled somewhat a colossal ship in full sail; and, ex- 

 tending from this through an arc of 60, there came into view in the north- 

 west quadrant a long streak of luminous prominences, varying in breadth, 

 and Avith a few points projecting outwards. This streak became very jagged 

 in its inner outline as the moon glided off from it, just previous to the sun's 

 reappearance, when these luminous prominences presented the same phe- 

 nomena as those on the eastern 'edge ; that is, they appeared like clouds 

 floating in a transparent atmosphere, a little distance from the sun. 



"As the prominences which AVC see beyond the sun's limb on the occasion 

 of a total eclipse are merely such as are, from their situation, seen in profile, 

 it is fair to presume that such prominences must exist pretty generally dif- 

 fused all over the sun's photosphere, and that they must be at all times A r isi- 

 ble either as light or as dark markings on the sun's disk. "Whether they are 

 the bright portions or faculas, or the darker portions (not the spots) of the 

 sun's mottled disk, or whether they may not in some cases appear more 

 bright, and in others less bright, than the general brightness of the sun's 

 disk, must still be a matter of conjecture. It is an interesting fact, however, 

 that on the nineteenth and twentieth a large mass of faculas, surrounding a 

 group of small spots, came round into view by the sun's rotation, which must 

 have occupied very nearly the position of the brightest portion of a large 

 streak of prominences on the southeastern quadrant. The prominences 

 in some cases did not project beyond the moon's limb to a greater extent 

 than the thinnest line, but in others the prominence reached a distance of two 

 minutes. The detached cloud before mentioned, when first seen, Avas about 

 half a minute (14,000 miles) bej'ond. the position occupied by the moon's 

 dark limb. It presented a double curvature on its northern side, both curva- 

 tures being convex towards the north. It inclined, in a curved direction, at 

 about an angle of GO 3 from a radius towards the east, and Avas a minute and 

 a half (42,000 miles) long. As the moon glided omvards in her course, she 

 approached it gradually, and at last touched the extreme point of this float- 

 ing cloud, Avhich glowed with all the brilliancy of one of our own terrestrial 

 clouds at sunset. It presented a decided rose tint. At 72 from the north a 

 proaibcrancc, in shape reminding one of a boomerang, imprinted itself on 



