ASTRONOMICAL PROGRESS AND DISCOVERY. 



stars. He considered it necessary to make 

 three observations in right ascension, and three 

 in declination. Up to 1879 only about one 

 third of the observations had been made. The 

 annual number of observations was about 

 T.O'.'O. Since 1879 the instruments have been 

 increased by the Bischoffsheim meridian circle, 

 and the director, Admiral Mouchez has aug- 

 mented the observing-staff. During the past 

 eight years the number of observations for the 

 catalogue has amounted to about 27,500. The 

 first installment of this valuable catalogue has 

 been published in two volumes, one devoted to 

 the catalogue, and the other to the individual 

 observations. The stars are in the first six 

 hours of right ascension, observed during the 

 years 1837 to 1881. It contains 7.245 stars, ami 

 represents 80,000 observations in both elements. 

 The introductory chapters contain a compari- 

 son of the Paris Catalogue with Auwers re- 

 reduction of Bradley. M. Bossert furnishes a 

 valuable investigation of the proper motions of 

 374 stars in the catalogue, and supplies a long 

 list of errors in Lalande. 



In the Dunsink Catalogue of 1,012 southern 

 stars, by Rarnbaut, most of the stars are be- 

 tween' 2" and 23 : south declination. The ob- 

 servations were made between November, 1882, 

 and September, 1885, and are of stars which 

 needed reobservation. 



The second part of the eighth volume of the 

 OGyalla Catalogue has been recently pub- 

 lished. This catalogue briefly indicates the char- 

 acter of the spectrum of each star observed in 

 the zone selected, which lies between the equa- 

 tor and the loth parallel of south declination. 

 The publication is intended as a continuation 

 of the spectroscopic study of the northern 

 heavens projected some years ago by Prof. Vo- 

 gel and Dr. Duner. The faintest stars observed 

 are of the 7i magnitude. The third volume of 

 the Potsdam " Observations " gave the first 

 installment of the survey, the number of stars 

 being 4.051. lying in the zone between 20 

 north and 1 south declination. The O'Gyalla 

 Catalogue contains 2.022 stars. The spectra 

 show that types I a and II a are most frequent. 

 Only three cases of III I are given. 



The ninth volume of the " Observations " 

 has also been issued and contains those ob- 

 servations made in 1886. Dr. Konkoly de- 

 scribes instruments and methods. Spectrum- 

 photometry of thirty-four fixed stars and of the 

 planets Mars. Jupiter, and Saturn is the most 

 original of the work. Some nebulae and com- 

 ets, and some special stars, were examined pho- 

 tometrically or with the spectroscope. Many 

 notes in regard to the appearance of the solar 

 surface on each day of the observation, and a 

 table of positions of sun-spots for 1886, are giv- 

 en. A laree number of meteor observations 

 and a list of radiants completes the volume. 



Volume xlix. Part I. of the "Memoirs of 

 the Royal Astronomical Society" contains Dr. 

 Dreyer's new general catalogue of 7,840 nebu- 

 laa and clusters of stars, being the catalogue 



of the late Sir John F. W. Herschel, revised, 

 corrected and enlarged. The Council of the 

 Royal Astronomical Society has printed an 

 additional 225 copies of this catalogue, on ac- 

 count of its value to astronomers. It is sup- 

 posed to give the records of all nebulae of 

 which the places have been published up to 

 December, 1887. 



A. M.W. Downing, in the May, 1888, "Month- 

 ly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society." 

 gives the positions for 1,750, and proper mo- 

 tions for 154 stars south of 29 south declination. 

 This catalogue is deduced from a revision of 

 Powalky's "Reduction of the Star-places of 

 Lacaille's ' Astronomise Fundamental " 



Dr. Peters, of Hamilton College, Clinton, 

 N". Y., has undertaken to collate all available 

 existing manuscripts of Ptolemy's catalogue, 

 for which purpose he has visited the principal 

 libraries of Europe and has the assistance of 

 Mr. Knobel of England. 



Pulkowa Obsen atory has published the cata- 

 logue for 1865 of the principal s'ars to the 

 fourth magnitude, as far as 15 south declina- 

 tion. This catalogue re-examines the stars in 

 the old catalogue for the epoch of 1845. 



J. G. Porter has published the result of two 

 and a half years' work with the three-inch 

 transit. The catalogue contains 4,050 stars 

 between 18 50' and 22 20' south declination. 

 Most of the stars down to the 85 magnitude 

 Lave been observed, as well as some fainter 

 ones. The proper motions of 75 stars are 

 given in the appendix. 



S. C. Chandler has published a valuable cata- 

 logue of variable stars, in Kos. 179 and 180 of 

 the " Astronomical Journal." The catalogue 

 has been printed separately for distribution. 

 The author says: "Thirteen years have passed 

 since the appearance of Schonfeld's Second 

 Catalogue of variable stars. A work that shall 

 represent the knowledge of to day as that did 

 the knowledge of its date, is an urgent need of 

 this branch of astronomy." This preliminary 

 catalogue is issued in hopes of supplying that 

 need. A great deal of care has been given to 

 its preparation. The catalogue shows that of 

 the 225 stars comprised in it, 160 are distinctly 

 periodic ; 12 belong to the so-called Norce. Of 

 the periodic variables, Mr. Chandler has been 

 able to assign both maximum and minimum 

 epochs for 63 stars ; maximum epochs alone 

 for 82 ; minimum epochs alone for 14, 9 of 

 these being of the Algol type. The elements 

 of 124 stars are the results of Mr. Chandler's 

 own investigations; for 22 he has adopted 

 those of Schonfeld. and for 14 those of Arge- 

 lauder, Gould, Parkhurst. and others, after in- 

 dependent examination had shown that the 

 data at hand would not give essentially im- 

 proved values. He has added to the catalogue 

 an arbitrary estimate of the color or redness of 

 many of the stars. The catalogue also contains 

 a list of some of the doubtful c;ises of variables. 



Polaris. T. H. Safford gives the year 2102 A. 

 D. as the time of nearest approach of Polaris to 



