ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA AND PROGRESS. 



receive anew impetus, while the commerce of 

 eastern Asia with western America is rapidly 

 developing under the influence of the regular 

 steamboat connection through the Pacific. The 

 combination of so many vivifying influences 

 causes the beginning of an entirely new era in 

 the history of Asia, and, as Asia is the largest 

 and by far the most populous among the great 

 divisions of the world, it cannot fail, even to a 

 large extent, to give to the world's history a 

 new aspect. 



Thus far the colonies of England and France 

 in India lead the van in this new period of 

 peaceful progress. Both have enjoyed a peace- 

 ful year, and made new progress in commerce, 

 general prosperity, and especially in point of 

 education. 



ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA AND 

 PROGRESS. The Total Eclipse of 1869. 

 The novel and interesting discoveries made by 

 observers particularly those at the spectro- 

 scope on the occasion of the August eclipse 

 of 1868 (see AMERICAN CYCLOPJSDIA of that 

 year), created an unusual scientific curiosity 

 with regard to the total eclipse which was to 

 occur August V, 1869, and which would be 

 visible, in its totality, throughout a long and 

 well-populated tract of the United States. The 

 line of total obscuration entered the North 

 American Continent at Behring's Straits, about 

 the 65th degree of latitude, longitude 90 west 

 of Washington, and left at the Atlantic shore 

 in latitude 34 and the meridian of Washing- 

 ton itself, passing through Alaska, Iowa, Illi- 

 nois, Kentucky, West Virginia, North Caro- 

 lina, and other States. Congress appropriated 

 a sufficient sum to enable observations to be 

 taken by the superintendent of the Nautical 

 Almanac (Professor Coffin); and the Navy, 

 War, and Coast Survey Departments extend- 

 ed liberal aid to the same object, and sent out 

 scientific parties to the points most favorable 

 for witnessing the phenomenon. Professor 

 Coffin fitted out expeditions for Burlington, 

 Mount Pleasant, and Ottumwa, Iowa, along the 

 central line of totality. The Coast Survey had 

 parties in Alaska, at Des Moines, Iowa, Spring- 

 field, Illinois, and Abingdon, West Virginia. 

 The Navy Department was represented at a 

 station on the western shore of Behring's 

 Straits, and the War Department detailed Dr. 

 Curtis to take photographs of the eclipse at 

 Des Moines. The principal colleges and ob- 

 servatories in the country sent their profess- 

 ors of astronomy, and spectroscopic and me- 

 teorological experts, to points on the line. At 

 no one time in this country has so large an 

 amount of astronomical and mathematical 

 talent been concentrated upon the examina- 

 tion of a celestial phenomenon. 



At Des Moines, Iowa, a series of very suc- 

 cessful observations was taken by the Gov- 

 ernment parties and expeditions from several 

 American colleges. The sky was unclouded, 

 though a slight haze prevented a satisfactory 

 search for the supposed mtra-Mercurial planets. 



According to Professor T. H. Safford, of Chica- 

 go, the first contact occurred at 8 h 43 m 43" ; the 

 commencement of the total obscurity at 4 h 

 45 m 30 s ; the end of the totality at 5 h 48 m 22" ; 

 the last contact at 5 h 45 ra 11' those points of 

 time being from 6* to 22' later than calculated 

 at Washington. The total obscuration lasted 

 2 m 52|". The corona proper assumed a py- 

 ramidal shape, extending toward the northeast 

 (taking the zenith as north), having a breadth 

 of about 25 of the moon's disk, and 3 digits 

 deep. On the west side was one of similar 

 size and shape. On the east side was a mass 

 of light 50 at the base and 3 digits deep, but 

 not so brilliant as the opposite one. On the 

 north the corona was about 30 wide, and 3 to 

 4 digits high. The masses seemed to consist 

 of thin streaks of light radiating from the 

 central direction, and lying on a less brilliant 

 background, while the lengths of the contigu- 

 ous rays were widely different, giving the 

 outline of the perimeter a jagged appearance. 

 Says the correspondent of the Chicago Tri- 

 bune : 



The most deficient part of the corona was on the 

 southeastern quarter, where it averaged not more 

 than two-thirds of the other, and was badly broken. 

 It is remarkable that this part was the scene of a long 

 line of rose-colored protuberances, which stood out 

 like a string of beads from the moon's disk, and pos- 

 sibly caused an optical shortening in the coronal rays, 

 though it is not impossible that the convulsion in 

 the photosphere produced by these glowing masses 

 caused a surging over of the photosphere, while it 

 is also not improbable that the greater number of 

 these protuberances than usual caused the outline of 

 the corona to be more jagged than had been antici- 

 pated from the descriptions of previous eclipses. The 

 apparent motion of the corona with the sun was very 

 marked, that on the west side increasing in breadth", 

 while the eastern side lessened as the total phase ad- 

 vanced. The corona burst on the vision like a flash 

 of glory on the instant of total obscuration, and de- 

 parted like a vision of the night when the first faint 

 thread of light shone out on the western limb. Some 

 observers thought they saw the corona for a second 

 or two before the total eclipse, but this was probably 

 due to the haze in the atmosphere. 



The protuberances were grand. The ocular obser- 

 vations of these made by Professor Hilgard's brother 

 were the best. From the lowest point of the disk a 

 large, rosy patch shot out at the instant of totality, 

 extending 16 and protruding half a digit, or 35,000 

 miles. From the middle of this protruded a pendu- 

 lous mass of about 100,000 miles long, and 20,000 

 wide, which seemed to divide into three narrow 

 strips. The upper mass was of a deeper rose 

 tint than either of the other protuberances, and is 

 described by Hilger as nebulous in structure, almost 

 like a cirrus cloud, and shaped like a bird's wing 

 underlaid by a fleshy tumor, the fleshy substance 

 being something like a flying pile of down, illumi- 

 nated with a pink light, or pink-rose color. Due east 

 was another protuberance, paler and about 5 on the 

 base, perhaps 20,000 miles high. Ten degrees be- 

 low this was another like it in size and color, both 

 masses being nearly rectangular. These two disap- 

 peared near the middle of totality, and then three 

 smaller ones sprung up on the west side, one due 

 west, another 60 below it, and the third midway 

 between them. The one on the southwest was nebu- 

 lar, and rose out as a thin stem 10,000 miles high, 

 from which sprung out two long streaks like an an- 

 telope's horns, some 10 in length from tip to tip. 

 The large one first described appeared from first to 



