28 Aurora Borealis near London. 



of the evening of this day. The morning of the 18th pre- 

 sented extensive and almost continuous sheets of cumulo- 

 stratus, followed by '03 of fine rain; but, excepting a few clouds, 

 ranking under the denomination of cirro-cumuli, the night was 

 clear and beautiful. 



The auroral light was sufficient to throw considerable, though 

 indistinct, shadows of near objects on a whitened wall. About 

 eleven p.m. no trace of the aurora remained, except a faint 

 luminosity in the northern horizon. 



The minimum temperature of the succeeding night was 37° 

 Fahr., and the barometer rose to 29*59, the morning being 

 fine and clear, with the wind n. by w. 



P. S. — I may add, that the minimum temperature of the 21st 

 and 22d has been 50° Fahr. — Swanswick, about two mites 

 north of Bath, November 20. 1335. 



Art. IX. Particulars on Appearances of Instances of Aurora 

 Borealis observed in the Neighbourhood of London^ on Novem- 

 ber 17-18. and 18. 1835; and on Events in the Weather subse- 

 quently: with Remarks relative to the Question of the Shower of 

 Meteors annually occurrent about Nov, 13. By W. H. White, 

 Esq. 



The two beautiful exhibitions of aurora, on Tuesday and 

 Wednesday evening last, must have afforded great pleasure 

 to every lover of meteorological science who witnessed them. 

 The first of them appeared about 1 1 p. M. on the 1 7th, and 

 played about the n. and n. w. for about an hour, exhibiting 

 every variety of form and colour that imagination could well 

 picture : indeed, so much did the appearance resemble a na- 

 tural fire at a distance, that we are told by a paragraph in 

 the Times of Thursday, that " sixty men and twelve fire-en- 

 gines" hastened towards some "dreadful conflagation ! " 

 About midnight, clouds intervened, and the fire became ex- 

 tinguished ; but the aurora again burst forth about 3 a.m., 

 so that the firemen were again on the alert ; and so completely 

 were they deceived by the appearance (though I regret I did 

 not witness this second exhibition myself), that several of the 

 fire-engines actually went as far as to Hampstead, and others 

 to Kilburn, before the men were undeceived. This aurora 

 was followed by a steady gale about 4 p. m. on Wednesday, 

 which lasted about two hours, and terminated by a heavy 

 shower ; after which the evening was calm, clear and mild ; 

 and 



An Aurora of a very different character appeared about 8 



