APPLETONS' 



POPULAR SCIENCE 



MONTHLY. 



MAY, 1900 



THE COMING TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN. 



By FRANK II. BIGELOW, 



PROFESSOR OF METEOROLOGY, UNITED STATES WEATHER BUREAU. 



r I ^HE circumstance which renders the coming total eclipse of 

 -L the sun, on May 28, 1900, of special significance to thousands 

 of people who might otherwise entirely overlook the occasion is 

 the fact that the path of the moon's shadow over the surface of 

 the earth, or the track of the eclipse, is in such a convenient local- 

 ity — namely, in our Southern States — as to render the places of 

 visibility easily accessible. Instead of being obliged to go to the 

 ends of the earth, at a heavy expenditure of time and money, all 

 the while running the risk of not seeing the eclipsed sun on account 

 of prevailing cloudiness, we are fortunate this time to have the 

 show at home in our own country. While many foreigners will 

 be induced to come to the United States to make observations, it 

 is certain that more people will be in a position to see this eclipse 

 with a minimum amount of trouble than has ever happened before 

 in the history of eclipses, at least since the telescope was invented 

 and careful records of the phenomenon preserved. 



The track of May 28th enters the United States in southeastern 

 Louisiana; passes over New Orleans, La., centrally; over Mobile, 

 Ala., which is on its southern edge; over Montgomery, Ala., on 

 the northern edge; over Columbus, Ga. ; south of Atlanta, Ga., 

 which lies about twenty-five miles to the north of it; near Macon, 

 Milledgeville, and Augusta, Ga., Columbia, S. C, Charlotte, N. C. ; 

 over Raleigh, N. C, which is ten miles north of the central lino; 

 and over Norfolk, Va., fifteen miles north of the center. The track 

 is about fifty miles wide in all parts, and the duration of the eclipse 



VOL. LVII. — 1 



