AURORA BOREALIS OF NOVEMBER I7, 1848. 629 



blue. Altogether, both as to form and colour, the spectacle at this time was so singular and so beau- 

 tiful, that those who witnessed it here could not forbear giving repeated expression to their feelings of 

 wonder and delight. 



" The heavens were then partially covered with light clouds, through which the brightness of the 

 Aurora seemed to penetrate. At 9*'. 58", a red patch covered the constellation of Orion. At lo'', 

 when the clouds had dispersed, the general light resembled that of a night in midsummer, or the dawn 

 of morning. Birds were heard to chirp in several quarters. 



"At lO*". IS", I saw a meteor, as bright as a star of the second magnitude, move slowly in a 

 westerly direction, and disappear at an altitude of about 53°, and at an azimuth of about 28" from 

 W. towards S. Flashes, supposed to be of lightning, were twice noticed. One occurred in the S. W. at 

 lO*" . 23™. At this time the Aurora had much declined in brightness ; but at 1 1*" it broke out afresh, 

 and the Corona was again formed, not however with the same distinctness as before. At 11*'. 18", a 

 meteor, equal in brightness to a star of the second magnitude, was seen to cross the heavens slowly 

 from E. to W. N. W., leaving a train behind it. Shortly after II'' . Si" the Corona became invisible, 

 and the Aurora generally declined. I saw it, however, again between l*"" and IS*" in great brilliancy : 

 a tolerably regular arch was formed in the N. W., from which very definite streamers rose, but did 

 not reach the zenith : the red light also re-appeared in the West." 



With reference to the above particulars I have two remarks to make. First, having in repeated 

 instances of the Aurora observed the red light to prevail in the same azimuths, I made a comparison 

 of the azimuths noted here in the instance of November 17 with statements respecting the prevailing 

 direction of the red light given in descriptions of the same phaenomenon as seen at other places, and 

 it seems to me probable that the red auroral clouds are formed over the Atlantic and German oceans. 

 Secondly, the occurrence of meteors during an Aurora has been so frequently remarked, that one can 

 hardly avoid suspecting some connexion between the two kinds of phaenomenon. 



Vol. VIII. Taut V. i M 



