398 Miscellanies, 
_as strongly confirmatory of the cosmical theory of shooting stars, inas- 
much as it seems to demonstrate the existence in this group, of a plan- — 
etary velocity, like ihat of the December group observed in 1838, (see 
this Journal, Vol. xxxv, p. 361, and Vol. xxxv1, p. 355,) in a direction 
normal to the observer’s motion, and incapable of resulting from it.— 
Proc. Am. Phil. Soc. ii: 67. 
Observations at New Haven.—From 1\h. to 12h. P. M. of April 
19, 1841, Messrs. F. Bradley, A. B. Haile, and i watched in the 
S. W. quadrant only, in concert with Mr. 8S. C. Walker and others, at 
Gemeente During this hour, we saw thirteon shooting stars, whose 
ths we recorded on the star-chart. Of these, two exceeded the first 
magnitude ; two equaled the first magnitude ; three were of the second ; 
five-of the third, and one of the fourth. The average time of visible 
flight was one third of a second. No definite radiant was observable, 
but only a general westward tendency. At Oh. 30m. (20th) we began 
to watch in the sky at large. Clouds soon came over from the west, 
and by one o’clock A.M. the sky was so much obscured that we were 
compelled to desist. In this half hour, we saw three meteors in the 
N ; two in the E., and two in the 8. No very definite radiant could 
be determined, but it appeared that the radiant region was then east 
of the meridian, and about 70° or 80° in altitude. For five nights 
following, the sky was wholly overcast. It may be worthy of mention 
that efiewe was a moderate display of the Aurora Borealis on the nights 
of the 19th and 20th. E. C. H. 
14. Shooting Stars of Dec. 7, 1838.*—In a paper communicated Jan- 
uary 8, 1839, to the Meteorological Society of London, by J. H. Ma- 
verly, Esq. of Gosport, he states the following observations :—‘ On the 
day after this storm, (of Dec. 2, 1838,) there were showers of hail and 
rain, two double rainbows, and one lunar rainbow at 61 P. M. On the 
night of the 7th, between 71 and 10, he noticed ninety seven meteors, 
om fifty six eastward of the meridian, and forty one westward of it.” 
*® So great was the display, that Mr. M. says, ‘ had this phenomenon 
occurred between the 12th and 15th of November, those who maintain 
the opinion of the annual appearance of showers of meteors, would 
have pronounced this pemrsemetenr appearance to have been their di- 
urnal periodical return.”—Proc. Meteor. Soc. Lond. i: 9. 
In the Institut for October 14, 1841, M. Colla states, that at Parma, 
in Italy, — cor ante of December 7, 1838, during three hours, he ob- 
3 ae ere ce eee 
* For observations made i in this ey and elsewhere, see this Journal, Vol. 
xxxv, p. 361, and Vol. xxxv1, p. 355. 
