1 



174 Proceedings of Societies. 



Art. XXIX.—PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 



1. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 



November 24/A, 1828. — At a general meeting of the Society held this day, 

 the following were elected Office-bearers and Counsellors. 

 Pkesident— Sir Walter Scott, Baronet. 

 Vice-Peesidents. — Right Hon. Lord Chief-Baron, Professor Russel, 



The Hon. Lord Glenlee, Hon. Lord Newton, 



Dr T. C. Hope, H. Mackenzie, Esq. 



General Secretary. — John Robison, Esq. 

 Secretaries to the Ordinary Meetings. — P. F. Tytler, Esq. 



Rev. E. B. Ramsay, A. B. 

 Treasuser.— Thomas Allan, Esq. 

 Curator of the Museum and Library. — James Skene, Esq. 

 Counsellors. — Sir T. M. Brisbane, Bart, Dr Alison, 

 Hon. Lord Meadowbank, Dr Brunton, 

 Dr Graham, Dr Brewster, 



Thomas Kinnear, Esq., Captain Basil Hall, R. N., 



James Hunter, Esq., Sir Henry Jardine, 



Sir William Hamilton, Bart., Professor Jameson. 



Dec. 1. — A paper was read, entitled " Observations on Topographical 

 Modelling and Delineation." By William Bald, Esq. M. R. I. A. and F. 

 G.S. 



2. Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society. 



November 10, 1828. — The Reverend Professor Gumming, Vice-Presir 

 dent, in the chair. 



A paper by J. Challis, Esq. Fellow of the Trinity College, was read. On 

 the law of the planetartj distances as applied to the Satellites. In the case of 

 the planets, it is w^ll known that if we take the excesses of their distances 

 above the distance of Mercury, these excesses form a geometrical series, of 

 which the common ratio is 2. Mr Challis has examined the distances of 

 the satellites from their centre, with a view to ascertain whether a similar, 

 law prevails with regard to them ; and from the results of his calcAlationsj 

 it appears incontesiible that this curious analogy, hitherto entirely unex-j 

 plained, obtains in the secondary as well as in the primary systems. The] 

 common ratio in the case of Jupiter is 2^ nearly. In the case of Saturn it] 

 appears to be 2 for the first five, and 3 for the last three. In the case 

 Uranus the ratio is \\ nearly. Mr Challis suggests that the apparent irre 

 gularity in the case of Saturn may be connected with the disturbing influ-? 

 ence of his ring. In the system of Uranus it is necessary to suppose 9] 

 satellites ; and thus, in the same manner in which the law applied to th< 

 planets led astronomers to conjecture the existence of a planet betweei 

 Alars and Jupiter, it leads us to suppose, when we apply it to the satellit 

 of Uranus, that there exist, as yet undiscovered, two satellites between the 

 fourth and fifth, and one between the fifth and sixth of those at preseni 

 known. 



