192 Scientific Intelligence. — Mcteoi^ology. 



light was still strong, and its larger diameter appeared greater, 

 and its smaller less, than the semidiamcter of the moon. Its 

 direction was from east to west, its track nearly horizontal, and 

 the altitude about thirty degrees. Colonel Blacker regrets not 

 having heard of any other observation of this phenomenon at a 

 greater distance, whereby he might have estimated its absolute 

 height. As, however, it did not apparently move with the velo- 

 city of ordinary meteors, it was probably at a great distance, 

 and consequently of great size. So long as Colonel Blacker be- 

 held it, which was for live or six seconds, its motion was steady, 

 its light equable, and its size and figure permanent. It latterly, 

 however, left a train of sparks, soon after which it disappeared 

 suddenly, without the attendant circumstance of any report 

 audible in Colonel Blacker's situation. Colonel Blacker con- 

 cludes his paper with some interesting observations on luminous 

 meteors : and considers them of perpetual recurrence, although 

 day-light, clouds, and misty weather, so often exclude them 

 from our view. Of their number no conception can be formed 

 by the unassisted eye ; but some conjecture may be formed of 

 their extent from the fact mentioned by our author, that, in 

 using his astronomical telescope, he has often seen what are cal- 

 led falling stars, shooting through the field of view, when they 

 were not visible to the naked eye ; and when it is considered 

 that the glass only embraced one twenty-five thousandth part of 

 the celestial hemisphere, it will be apparent that these pheno- 

 mena must be infinitely numerous, in order to occur so frequent- 

 ly in so small a space *. 



2. Waterspouts in the Irish Channel — Mr James Mackintosh, 

 an accurate and intelligent observer, keeper of the Lower Light- 

 house on the Calf of Man, in his monthly report to Robert Ste- 

 venson, Esq. engineer to the Northern Lighthouses, mentions, 

 that " on the morning of Tuesday the 14th November (1826), 

 at a quarter to ten o'clock, he witnessed a remarkable phenome- 

 non. The morning was clear, the wind from the east, inclining 

 a little to the north, when he observed a column of water rising 

 from the sea, off Kegger Point : this column was about the 



• On the subject of falling stars seen during the day, see previous Num- 

 bers of this Journal. The work of Brandcs affords much information as to the 

 vast number of luminous meteors always moving through the atmosphere — 

 Edit. 



