On the Solar Eclipse predicted ly Thales. 365 



By a trigonoTTietrical calculation, I find that the sun rose 

 centrally eclipsed to the inhabitants of Holland in N. lat. 

 51° 43' and E. long. 5° 39'. The iijoon's umbra then pro- 

 ceeded across Denmark, Finland, and the northern pro- 

 vinces of Russia : and the sun became centrally eclipsed on 

 the meridian in N. lat. 74^^ and E. lone,. 113" 33'. This 

 eclipse, therefore, eould not possibly be the one mentioned 

 by Herodotus. And yet his translator, M. Larcher, with- 

 out taking the slightest pains to verify the fact, or even to 

 ascertain its probability, has adopted it as the most likely, 

 one, " parcequ'elle s'accorde niieux avec la chronologic que 

 *' toutes les aulres :" an opinion as unfounded, as the cir- 

 cumstance to which it relates; and an assumption which 

 puts the visionary speculations of the antiquarian in com- 

 petition with the immutable laws of nature. It '.s scarcely 

 necessary to add, that this eclipse likewise was anvvlar. 



Jn the eclipse alluded to by Usher, September 20th, 601 

 B. C. the ecliptic conjunction took place at 7'' 25' IS" in 

 the morning, mea?}- time at Greenwich, or 7'' 31' 35" ap- 

 parent time: and the-elements were as follow: 



True longitude of the luminaries 3' 20' 46' 50" 

 Sun's declination, north 3 42 27 



semi-diameter 16 8 



Moon's semi-diameter 16 43 



• equatorial parallax Gl 14 



horary motion from the sun . 35 24 



true latitude 52 1 



■ horary motion in latitude . . . —3 27 



From a projection of this eclipse, it will be seen that the 

 centre of the moon's shadow entered the Cirth's disk very 

 near the north pole ; and that the sun became centrally 

 eclipsed on the meridian in N. lat. 73|-° and in E. long. 72" 

 10'. The umbra then passed over Siberia and the eastern 

 parts of tlie Chinese empire : and consequently this eclipse 

 was not central in any part of Asia Minor. 



The eclipse first suggested by Bayer, and hitherto gene- 

 rally received as the true one, happened May 18th, 603 B.C. 

 The ecliptic conjunction took place at 7'' is' 13" in the 

 morning, mean time at Greenwich, or 7"^ 19' 36" apparent 

 time : and the elements w ere as follow ; 



True longitude of the luminaries V 19^ 15' 44''' 

 Sun's dccliuation, north 17 4S 24 



semi-diameter 15 46 



Moon's semi-diameter 16 43 



equatorial paralla.x 61 16 



Moon's 



