56 Mr. Squire on the Comet of 1825. 
the respective meridians. From this it is clear that the comet 
must have been a very striking object to all the known parts of 
the southern hemisphere and the low northern latitudes. After 
the 12th of October the earth and comet gradually receded from 
each other, so that on or about the 17th of November the 
comet must have been too far from the earth to be visible, even 
under the most favourable circumstances of southern latitude. 
Although the relative motions of the earth and comet were now 
such as rapidly to increase their lineal distance, yet the comet 
continued to approach the sun till the 11th of December, when 
it passed its perihelion point at a distance of 1°2295 from that 
body. 
The earth and comet will continue to recede from each 
other till about the 20th of January; and as the heliocentric 
motion of the latter body is retrograde, and being at the same 
time in an opposite part of the heavens in respect to the earth, 
the two bodies will for some time move nearly parallel to each 
other, and towards the same infinite distant point in space, 
when the comet’s distance from the sun will be 1°4, and from 
the earth 2-28, the latter distance being equal to 21660 millions 
of miles. ‘Though the orbicular motion of the comet will now 
carry it rapidly from the sun, yet it will again gradually ap- 
proach the earth, or more properly, the earth may be said in’ 
the race to gain upon the comet till about the 22d of April; 
and on that day, at 5" 49™ 12° M.T. its distance from the sun 
will be 227056, and from the earth 1°37183, having at the 
same time a geocentric longitude of 243° 49! 46", and a southern 
latitude of 15° 27! 56": hence it will be near the star 3 in the 
neck of the constellation Lupus; at which time, and for a few days 
before and after, it may again be expected to be visible to the 
southern parts of the world, but its altitude above our horizon 
will be too small] for it to be seen from our northern position ; 
and by the beginning of May it will be too far from the sun and 
from the earth to admit of its being any longer visible to the 
inhabitants of our globe. On the second appearance of this 
comet it will, properly speaking, be divested of its tail ; in which 
case the nucleus will only be surrounded by a nebulous light. 
Yours respectfully, 
Epping, Jan. 1, 1826. THomas SQumRE. 
P.S. It is a little remarkable that the comet of 1823 passed . 
its perihelion about the same time in December as that of 
1825; but the fermer when in that point of its orbit was nearly 
at the same distance from the sun, as the latter was beyond 
the sphere of the earth’s orbit, their relative perihelion di- 
stances being *228944 and 122950 respectively. 
IX. On 
