412 Mr. J. R. Hind 07i the Comets 



curved towards the north. Mr. Maclear considered the ge- 

 neral outline "more sharp and clear than the great comet of 

 March 1843." 



This comet was found by M. Colla at Parma on February 5, 

 and by Dr. Peters and Mr. Cooper at Naples on February 7. 

 I saw it with great difficulty on March 3, and Professor Challis 

 observed it until the 11th of that month with the great equa- 

 toreal at Cambridge. When I found the comet on March 3, 

 it was barely perceptible in a dark field, and was observable 

 with extreme difficulty. A faint oval nebulosity was all that 

 could be distinguished in the large refractor. At the Cape of 

 Good Hope, Mr. Mann observed the comet until the 12th of 

 March, and in addition to measures for position, he has fur- 

 nished us with some interesting observations on the angle of 

 position of the tail and anterior luminous matter. With re- 

 gard to the latter phaenomenon, we have the following remarks 

 in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society for 

 May: — "On January 11, a faint ray of luminous matter, 

 about 1;^° in length, was seen to extend from the anterior por- 

 tion of the comet's head in a direction opposite to that of the 

 tail. The breadth of this ray near the head was about 2', in- 

 creasing slightly towards the extremity. Its borders were 

 comparatively well-defined, and the light gradually diminished 

 in intensity from that portion nearest the comet's head until it 

 became insensible. A dark space seemed to separate the 

 head of the comet and ray." It is further remarked, that on 

 the 27th of Januar}^, the northern borders of the tail and an- 

 terior ray appeared distinct and sharply defined, but the light 

 was fainter on the southern border of the tail, while the corre- 

 sponding border of the ray could no longer be traced. The 

 anterior ray extended about 5' from the head of the comet, 

 but the actual connexion of the two could not be traced. Mr. 

 Waterston, who observed at Bombay, first noticed this singular 

 appendage on the 16th of January, and traced it for 3°, the 

 edges being well-defined and parallel. On January 31 the 

 ray was still seen, but very indistinctly. A similar appearance 

 was noticed in the comet of 1824. 



The Cape observations do not yet admit of complete reduc- 

 tion, the places of the comparison stars being generally unde- 

 termined. I have reduced Mr. Caldecott's observations and 

 compared them with an ephemeris computed from a set of pa- 

 rabolic elements which I obtained in March last. The final 

 positions, ephemeris, and comparison of observed and calcu- 

 lated places will be found in the Astronomische NachricJitcn ; 

 I shall merely transcribe the elements. ...,.j^ ..,•, jv. 



