* Mr. H. E. Strickland on the Satellitary Nature 



annual epochs. This has been explained by supposing that 

 the earth at these periods intersects certain zones or orbital 

 rings, in which vast numbers of asteroids are constantly re- 

 volving round the sun. On the supposition that these bodies 

 are satellitary, and not planetary, it is certainly difficult to 

 account for the fact of their becoming visible in greater num- 

 bers at one season of the year than at another. It is however 

 conceivable that the luminosity of shooting stars may be 

 caused by their coming in contact, not with our gaseous at- 

 mosphere, but with an electrical atmosphere, which may ex- 

 tend far beyond the limits of the gaseous one; and it may be 

 further conjectured, that from unknown cosmical causes this 

 electric atmosphere may at certain points in the earth's orbit 

 receive quantitative or qualitative modifications, which may 

 enable it at those seasons to illuminate a larger numerical 

 proportion of the meteoric satellites. 



At these annual epochs the showers of meteors are said to 

 have apparently proceeded during several hours of observa- 

 tion from the same point in the heavens, viz. the constellation 

 Leo. 



But this alleged fact seems irreconcilable with either the 

 planetary or the satellitary theory of shooting stars. Even 

 admitting an approximate constancy in the directions in which 

 these bodies approach our atmosphere, yet as their distance 

 when rendered visible is considered to be not greater than 

 about 150 miles, it is evident that their parallax (whether 

 viewed simultaneously by two distant observers, or at succes- 

 sive intervals of a few hours by the same observer) would be 

 so great as to destroy the appearance of perfect uniformity in 

 the point of the starry heavens, where they make their first 

 appearance. We must therefore suppose that the amount of 

 this uniformity has been overstated; still it is possible that 

 there may be a prevailing direction in which the majority of 

 these bodies enter the atmosphere, and the predominance of 

 this direction may still be in some degree apparent, notwith- 

 standing the influence of parallax. Such a predominance of 

 direction (if it really exist) does not however necessarily prove 

 the shooting stars to be planets, but may be equally explained 

 on the satellitary theory in the following manner: — 



Let a a be an elliptical ring composed of great numbers of 

 these satellitary bodies revolving in parallel curves round E, 

 the earth ; let b be the limit of the gaseous, and c that of the 

 electric atmosphere in its normal condition. It is evident that 

 while this condition lasts, the meteors in the ring a a will be 

 wholly external to the electric atmosphere c, and will be con- 

 sequently invisible. The only meteors which would be seen 



