a ee lee fe, 
Astronomy. 443 
IV. AsTRoNoMY. 
1. The new planet Astrea.—In our last number we briefly noticed 
the discovery of a new planet. Having lately received much fuller 
intelligence respecting it, through the Astronomische Nachrichten, we 
proceed to lay it before our readers, regarding this as marking an epoch 
in the history of astronomy. The following is the letter of M. Hencke 
of Driesen to Prof. Schumacher, announcing his discovery. 
Driesen, Dec. 10, 1845. 
Having been employed day before yesterday in observations on the 
planet Vesta, on account of its great brilliancy at the present time, I 
examined attentively the stars in its vicinity and found one of the ninth 
magnitude which I had not seen before, not being found upon my chart, 
which éontains many stars of the 9-10th magnitude, and all the brighter 
ones. Neither could I find it on the chart of the Academy, although 
Prof. Knorre bestowed extraordinary attention upon this region, and 
has included almost all the stars up to the 9-10th magnitude. The place 
of this stranger, reduced to the equinox of 1800, was in A. R. 64° 
47-5, and Dec. 12° 347 N., Dec. 8th, at 8h.: lying between two stars 
of the 9-10th magnitude which are found on the chart of the Academy. 
Unfavorable weather prevented my searching for it yesterday, and prob- 
ably will continue for some time to come ; this notice is therefore for 
those who being favored with better weather are able and disposed to 
follow this stranger. It is very improbable that this should prove to be 
merely a variable star, since in my former observations of this region, 
which have been continued for many years, I have never detected the 
slightest trace of it. K. HENCKE. 
The supposed discovery of a new planet was first verified at Berlin. 
The following is the letter of Prof. Encke to Prof. Schumacher. 
Berlin, Dec. 15, 1845. 
I think I am now able to announce to you a new planet. On the 
13th of Dec. it was stated in Voss’s Gazette that M. Hencke of Driesen, 
whom since the formation of our new charts of the stars I have known 
as a zealous amateur of practical astronomy, and who since that time 
has made for himself special charts of particular districts, had seen a new 
star of the ninth magnitude. Its place referred to the present equinox, 
was in A. R. 65° 25’, Dec. 12°41’. Yesterday we searched in this region 
with the refractor, and found a star of the ninth magnitude, not given 
on the chart of the Academy, which we compared by means of the 
circular micrometer with a star of the Histoire Céleste, and found the 
following differences of R. A. :—6" 28™ m. t. 495-81 in time. ;—125 
4 5. 
Hereupon we introduced the filar micrometer, and from a mean of 15 
observations obtained the following place. Dec. J4, 13) 56™ 595-7, 
