104 REPORT—1850. : 
APPENDIX, 
Containing details from the original Records of Observations, communicated . 
to Professor Powell, referred to in the foregoing Catalogue. 
No. 1.—Note communicated by Lord Wrottesley to Prof. Powell from the 
Assistant at the Wrottesley Observatory. 
“ September 4, 1848. 
« Standing with my back to the south, at the west end of the Observatory, 
there came a flash of light from the south which completely illuminated the 
shrubs and the ground around me. I immediately turned round and there 
saw a beautiful pale yellow streak, about half an hour west of the star 
a Aquilz, the vertex of the streak being about the same altitude as that star, 
and in length about 25°, perpendicular to the horizon; I saw this streak 
about 10°, when it began gradually to dissolve (commencing at the vertex) 
into a beautiful train of large sparks of a fiery red, and disappeared in about 
5° after. On going into the Observatory to note the time, I found it exactly 
8" 4.5™ p.m. mean time. This must have been the train of a meteor, and from 
the flash it emitted (which was equal to the most vivid flash of lightning I 
ever saw), it must have been one of an extraordinary size. The night was 
beautifully clear, large dusky clouds very low in the S.W. horizon.—R. P.” 
No. 2.—From the Derbyshire Courier, August 25, 1849 :— 
ἐς Meteor—On Monday evening, August 20, 1849, about ten o'clock, a 
splendid meteor was seen to the west of Chesterfield. It was about twice the 
apparent magnitude and brilliancy of Venus, and moved slowly in an almost 
horizontal line from north to south, leaving a érain of smali stars in its track 
which speedily disappeared. In a few moments afterwards a long dark cloud 
marked its path.” 
No. 3.—M. Coutvier Gravier on Shooting Stars, §c.— Comptes Rendus, 
1849, No. 7, p. 179. 
The number of meteors, as we have always remarked, has been very small 
in the first half of the year; but since the commencement of July, the num- 
ber has progressively increased, and the maximum has been about the 10th 
of August. 
The following shows the increase for the year, taking the observations for 
the horary number at midnight :— 
July August 
1849. 10,| 11. 13. 14.| 15,| 26.| 21.! 29. 26. 27.) 28.| 6.| 8. 9.{10.11. 
Horary number 
at midnight 
}s 8 | 10] 7 | 10/13/13 | 12 | 26 | 28 | 33 | 50 | 60 107/120) 80 
Ibid —No. 21, p.601. 
«“ The maximum of August rises this year to 120 meteors in a hour, and 
its duration is about fifteen days. The maximum of November riscs to forty 
meteors per hour, and lasts about thirteen days. 
« The maximum of August happens invariably about the 10th, while that 
of November may happen from the 15th of October to the 5th of December. 
This year it has been observed from the 15th to the 17th of October. Thus 
the maximum, which we always expect on the 12th of November, took place 
΄ 
