27-9 J 



^LVIII. Account of the Meteor seen on the Evening of 



on the best Means of ascerUunmg the Altitude, Beanng, 

 Ma^Me, Distance, and Velocity of suck Phenomena. 

 By Mr. T. Firmikgek, 

 I WAS at first advertised of the appearance of th;£ meteoT 

 ■by a very stroiag light v.hlch rendered a 1 the suKO..ud.i g 

 ejects ^.slble h .va., .ndeed, so ve,y ^^S^J^ . ^ ^^^^ 

 have read a new,pape: by .t without the least difficult) 1 

 „o sooner saw tins hght than 1 was ^PF':=1^^"^^^'^ " . ^^^ 

 cause which produc^^l it. and upon looknig up saw the 

 S:;;^;!:; the^outh o^ the .e..th, and ahout twenty-Jv. 

 decrrees in azimuth to the cast ot the meridian ; it N^as thea 

 aSo- with a .-reat velocity towards the west m a rather 

 nor.h-westeriy du-ection; us course, however, was very 

 aicarlv ui a hue perpendicular to the mendiau. 



At' Its first appearance it seemed quite round a^d u ell 

 defined, except the part opposite ^^^'^^ 'i'':^''""^^ ™ 

 it was movm- , v.hich .ec.ned toproject ahttle, and to ter 

 Biinatein atatl urat extended to a small distance irorn t (see 

 uppermost figure, Plate VI.) On each ^^^^^ ^//j^^ is tail 

 there were two or three smaller balls, tinged at their ex- 

 trcm.tics with vcllow and orange colours, and one or t%.o 

 S ^u pie. The whole body='continued to move together 

 Without anv sensible difference in eitlier.us cobur or shape 

 till 'viihin about a second or a second and a half betore its 

 disappearance, wlien it suddenly altered its figure to some- 

 thin^S.Ue the shape of an egg, Xseo the lower figure m 

 whic^h AB represents tlie direction of Us motion.) At tti.« 

 .. oment its lidit became so strong that it was not with- 

 out nuieh difficulty I was able to keep looking at it. 1 

 sliould think Its light was full two-thirds as mtense us haX 

 of the sun when upon the meridian. It seemed at this time 

 as if the meteor had before been covered with one external 

 coat, which now burst or separated m the middle the whole 

 len<rthof its longest diameter, aiid exposed a surtacexvuti 

 abn'vhine^slar surpassing its former lustre. 1 may, How- 

 ever, have overrated its light, by supposing it equal to two- 

 thirds of that of the sun ^^hen upon ihc meridian, tor it is 

 to be observed that the pupil of my eye must have beea 

 before much dilated from the darkness ot the n.gnt, to 

 .vhich it had been exposed at least a quarter of an hour; 

 ^lUt the comparison relates to the ctfect it produced upon m/ 



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