173 



689.-SUN SPOTS. 



Our Attention was called by C. S. Cochrane Esq., Chief Officer 

 of the Survey Department of Trinidad to the appearance of spots on 

 the Sun on February 1st. 



On February 5th a direct observation was made at St. Clair 

 Meteorological Station, and three large spots were noted placed in the 

 form of an irregular triangle. The largest spot was encircled by 

 many minute spots in its immediate vicinity, while the second and 

 third in size, were clear black dots only. The same spots, one of which 

 had apparently divided in two, were observed the following and 

 successive days, and appeared to be moving across the face of the Sun. 

 This is due according to an English Paper to the regular revolution 

 of that body. 



An observation taken on 18th February, showed that they had 

 entirely disappeared 



So far, the appearance of the spots, (which are said to have an 

 effect upon weather) do not appear to have affected our West Indian 

 seasons. 



The following notes with regard to their appearance appeared in 

 " Daily Mail " received by latest arrival from Europe : 



GIGANTIC SUN SPOT. 



COLLECTION WHICH COVERS 170,000 MILES. 



"Astronomers are much excited by the recent appearance of a 

 gigantic sun spot. The spot was first seen last Saturday ; it is now near 

 the east " limb ' of the sun, and will be at its greatest towards next 

 Saturday, as the sun takes about twenty-seven days to revolve on 

 its axis. 



" This particular spot is a collection of smaller spots, and it 

 was explained yesterday at the offices of the Royal Astronomical 

 Society in Burlington House that for smaller spots to mass together 

 and also for a large spot to break up were common occurrences. 



" The sun spot apparently extends over six degrees of solar 

 latitude, that is to say, roughly some 170,000 miles, which is excep- 

 tionally large. Professor C. A. Young, of Princeton University, a 

 cautious man, speaks, in his book on ' General Astronomy,' of 150,000 

 miles as being abnormal for the penumbra surrounding a group 

 of spots. 



"Naturally astronomers are observing the phenomenon very 

 closely, and at Greenwich photographs are being taken whenever 

 possible. Sun spots occur in regular cycles of about eleven years. 

 What they are has not yet been definitely settled, but an official of 

 the Eoyal Astronomical Society declared his firm belief in the inter- 

 dependence of sun spots and earth magnetism, maintaining that the 

 curve lines of sun spots and magnetic storms tallied year by year too 

 closely to be merely coincidences." 



