SI 4 History of Astronomy for the Year 1803. 



so correct as those of Greenwich. But Lemonnier observed 

 more stars. I propose to unite to this deposit the obser\"a- 

 tions of Picarci, Louville, Lacaille, Bouguer, Bailly, and 

 d'Agelet, which are in my hands. 



M. Bouvard has made at the Luxembourg, or palace 

 of the senate, an excellent meridian of mean time, which 

 it is much to be wished the public would use, as is done in 

 England and even at Geneva, and as those do who have 

 good time-keepers by Berthoud and Breguet. Our small 

 annuary gives the diiferencc for each day, which amounts 

 at most to a quarter of an hour. On the 27th of September 

 I renewed, at the Institute, the proposal of setting the ex- 

 ample by adopting mean time, which alone is regular, and 

 can form a real measure. 



It has been apprehended that this might be a restraint 

 on the public, who make use of sun-dials ; and the Insti- 

 tute has thought that government in this measure ought to 

 take the lead by causing the clocks in the national buildings 

 to be regulated by mean time. 1 do not despair of seeing 

 adopted this new kind of exactness, which is necessary on 

 account of the present improved state of the arts and the 

 sciences. M. Henry Lepaute, on the 26th of December, 

 erected in the Institute a beautiful clock, which will serve 

 as a regulator ; it indicates both mean and true time. 



The astronomy of the planets has this year made some 

 progress. M. Delambre has reconstructed tables of the 

 sun, by introducing fourteen new equations furnished him 

 by the theorv of Laplace, and calculating 5C0 observations 

 of Bradley and Maskelyne, He has increased the mass of 

 Venus, which he employed in 1 7<j2, in the ratio of 92 to 104, 

 and diminished that of Mars in the ratio of 100 to 72. 



The tables of the moon of M. Burg have been corrected 

 by introducing new positions of the stars, and the equation 

 of ISO years, found by Laplace. M. Burg has found the 

 longitude of the moon for 1801 to be 3^ \b° V 17-3" + 

 lO'Of' _|_ 0-8'', and the secular motion 10' 7° 52' 43-5". 



On the 1st of November JSL Burckhardt presented the 

 result of his calculations, in which he found 4*6'' less than 

 the longitude given by M. Burg, whose tables come down 

 onlv to the 17th of November. 



L. and anom. 1801 - 3^^ 15° V 12-7" 0' 18° 5& 5b-&' 

 Secular mot. - - - 10 7 52 45-5 6 18 49 17*8 



The difference arises from the new equation of M. La- 

 place, which M. Burg, perhaps, made too small, 



The eclipse of tht sun which took place on the l6th of 



August 

 1 



