132 



EECEEATIVE SCIENCE. 



to ignite in tlie upper regions of the air, at 

 the instant of ignition being intensely bright, 

 and then subsiding into a phosphorescent 

 flame, which streak or flame was very slowly 

 wafted about or carried along by currents. 

 In the case of this meteor, it moved over 

 18^' in space in less than a second of time ; it 

 cannot, therefore, be supposed that the meteor 

 itself could be within 5' of this path ten 

 minutes afterwards, although the phospho- 

 rescent light was there. Now if we sup- 

 pose that the meteor burst at this point (which 

 seems improbable), it must have burst in a 

 medium where light could shine, and if so, 

 it is as easy to suppose that some substance 

 should be ignited by it, as that the meteor 

 itself should blaze. The intense brightness 

 was too great for reflected light. This meteor 

 was first seen in the N.N.W., and moved to- 

 wards the W., from near H 17 Camelopardali 

 downwards to midway between Capella and 

 ju Persei. The time was 6h. 13m. a.m., and 

 the size about that of the apparent diameter 

 of the moon ; the light for the instant re- 

 sembling a brilliant flash of lightning, and 

 equalling that of day. After the meteor itself 

 had vanished, a light similar to that of a 

 comet's tail was visible along the whole path 

 of the meteor; this gradually became less 

 bright, and bent itself towards the E. Fig. 

 2 shows the appearance it assumed immedi- 



Fia. 2. ' Fig. 3. Fig. 4. 



ately after the meteor had vanished, and 

 later (6h. 18m.) that of Fig. 3 ; and finally 

 (6h. 23m.) that of Fig. 4. It was visible 

 fully ten minutes. Somewhat analogous 

 changes were observed in the singular meteor 

 pf September 30th, 1850, which was visible 



from the Cambridge Observatory, United 

 States, and was first seen by Madame Jenny 

 Lind, who happened to be at the Observatory 

 at the time. Professor Bond sketched the 

 appearance at difierent intervals of time. It 



was visible an hour. Figs. 5, 6, 7, and 8 

 show the successive changes that it under- 



FiG. 6. 



Fig, 8. 



went. The height (according to the Hon. 

 W. Mitchell) above the earth was 50 miles, 

 and its distance from Cambridge 100 miles. 

 (Fig. 5, at 8h. 54m. p.m. ; Fig. 6, 8h. 57m. ; 

 Fig. 7, 9h. 3m. ; and Fig. 8, 9h. 7m.) 



The meteor of August 8th, 1849 (Fig. 9), 



Fio. 9. 



seen by myself at lOh. 16m. p.m., at the 

 Highfield House Observatory, was kite- 

 shaped, and left mimerous separate stars in 

 its track. The singular feature in this meteor 

 was its disappearance andreappearance again, 

 li^ further on, after the lapse of a second 



