073 



ASTRONOMY. 



ASTRONOMY. 



071 



Euler's prize essay on the motions of Jupiter and Saturn. An annular 

 eclipse of the sun observed in Scotland. 



1719. Euler's and D'Alembert's researches on precession, D'Alem- 

 bert's on nutation, Clairaut's on the motion of the Lunar Apogee. 

 Halley's Tables. 



1750. Mayer first uses equations of condition. Boscovich measures an 

 arc of the meridian at Rimini. Wright's ' Theory of the Universe.' 

 In this work the author suggests the theory of the structure of the 

 Milky Way, which is generally admitted in the present day. 



1751. Lacaille goes to observe at the Cape of Good Hope. 



1752. Lacaille measures an arc of the meridian at the Cape. 



1753. Dollond makes his double object-glass micrometer. Mayer's 

 first idea of the repeating circle. Occurrence of a transit of Mercury. 



1754. Chappe publishes the solar and lunar tables of Halley. 

 Clairaut's Lunar Tables. 



1756. D'Alembert's researches on the figure of the earth ; Euler's on 

 the variation of the elements of elliptic orbits. Mayer's catalogue 

 of zodiacal stars. Clairaut's researches on the perturbations of comets. 



1757. Lacaille's ' Astronomias Fundamental 



1758. Lacaille's Solar Tables. Dollond's achromatic object-glass. 

 Clairaut and Lalande's researches on Halley's comet. 



1759. Lalande publishes Halley's Planetary Tables. Apparition of 

 Halley's cornet. Improved edition of Wargentin's Tables of Jupiter's 

 satellites. 



1760. Bird's Standard Scale. 



1761. Transit of Venus. Maskelyne at St. Helena. 



1762. Euler and Clairaut's researches on the perturbations of comets. 



1763. Lacaille's catalogue of southern stars. 



1764. Occurrence of an annular eclipse of the sun. Lalande confirms 

 Mayer's observations of libration. Lagrange's prize essay on Libration, 

 containing the first application 'of the principle of virtual velocities. 

 Mason and Dixon begin the measurement of an arc in Pennsylvania. 



1705. Harrison gains the parliamentary reward for his chronometer. 

 Maraldi discovers the libratory motion of the nodes of Jupiter's second 

 satellite. 



1766. Occurrence of a total eclipse of the sun, which was visible in 

 the Southern Ocean. Lagrange'a theory of Jupiter's Satellites. Bailly's 

 ditto. 



1767. First ' Nautical Almanac." 



1768. Beccaria measures an arc in Piedmont, and Liesganig in 

 Hungary. 



1769. Transit of Venus. Apparition of a comet with a tail of 

 immense length. 



1770. Mayer's Solar and Lunar Tables. Discovery of Lexell'a comet. 



1771. Bailly's further researches on Jupiter's satellites. 



1772. Sodei law of the distances of the planets. 



1773. Lagrange's researches on the attraction of spheroids. Laplace 

 on the secular inequalities of the solar system. 



1774. Maskelyne's observations on local attraction at Schehallien. 

 1778. Occurrence of a total eclipse of the sun. 



1 780. Mason's Lunar Tables. 



1781. Herechel discovers the new planet now called Uranus. Messier's 

 catalogue of Nebula:. Wargentin discovers that the inclination of 

 Jupiter's fourth satellite is variable. 



1782 Laplace finds the elements of the orbit of Uranus. Laplace's 

 researches on the attraction of spheroids. 



1783. Nouet's tables of Uranus. PingnS's ' Cometographie.' 



1784. Laplace's researches on the stability of the solar system, on 

 the relation between the longitudes of Jupiter's first three satellites, 

 and on the great inequality of Jupiter and Saturn. General Roy 

 measures a base on Hounslow Heath for the connection of the obser- 

 vatories of Paris and Greenwich. Herschel's catalogue of Nebula;. 



1786. Lagrange gives the differential equations for the variations of 

 the elliptic elements. 



1787. Laplace's theory of Saturn's ring, and explanation of the 

 acceleration of the moon's mean motion. Herschel discovers two 

 satellites of Uranus. Legendre and General Roy finish the con- 

 nection of the observatories of Paris and Greenwich. Beginning of 

 the trigonometrical survey in England. Herschel's first observations 

 with his forty-foot telescope. Herschel discovers two satellites of 

 Uranus (Oberon and Titania). 



1788. Lagrange's ' Mdcanique Analytique.' Herschel suspects that 

 the movements of the satellites of Uranus are retrograde. 



1789. Herschel measures the rotation of Saturn, and discovers two 

 sateUites of Saturn (Mimas and Enceladus). Delambre's tables of 

 Jupiter and Saturn. 



1 790. Herschel determines the rotation of Saturn's ring, and suspects 

 the existence of two more satellites of Uranus. Delambre's tables 

 of Uranus. Maskelyne's catalogue; Brinkley appointed to Dublin 

 Observatory. 



1791. An annular eclipse of the sun observed in America. 



1792. Beginning of the French survey. Taylor's Logarithms. 

 Lalande's improved Planetary Tables. Zach's first Solar Tables, and 

 Catalogue of Stars. A comet discovered by Miss Herschel. 



1793. Laplace on the satellites of Jupiter and figure of the earth. 

 Schrrnter determines the rotation of Venus. 



5. Herschel's observations on variable stars, and separation of the 

 milky way into stars. 



ARTS AXD SCI. EIV. VOL. I. 



1796. Establishment of the French Institute. Herschel gives strong 

 presumptions that the rotations of Jupiter's satellites are of the same 

 duration as their orbital revolutions. Oriani on the perturbations of 

 Mercury. 



1797. Delambre's observations on refraction. Laplace's theory of tides. 

 Olbers publishes the method for determining the parabolic elements 

 of a comet's orbit, which has since been generally used in Germany. 



1798. Cavendish demonstrates and measures the mutual attraction 

 of metal balls. Herschel announces his discovery of the retrograde 

 motions of the satellites of Uranus. 



1799. Commencement of the ' Me'canique Celeste." Occurrence of a 

 transit of Mercury. Kramp's researches on astronomical refraction. 



The following list comes down to the present time (March, 1859) : 



Bory . 



Jeaurat . . 



Mechain 



Lalande, J. 



Cavendish . 



Maskelyne 



Lagrange . 



Wollaston, Fr. 



Messier 



Burckhardt . 



Mudge 



Herschel, W. . 



Delambre 



Lambton 



Hutton 



Bode 



Fraunhofer 



Piazzi . 



Laplace 



Wollaston, W. 



Young 



Fallows . 



Pens . 



Foster . 



Oriani 



Zach 



Groombridge 



Legendre 



Brioschi 



Caturegli . 



Harding . 



Troughton 



Kater 



Brinkley . 



Pond . 



1803 

 1804 

 1807 

 1810 

 1811 

 1813 

 1815 

 1817 

 1817 

 1821 

 1822 

 1822 

 1822 

 1823 

 1826 

 1826 

 1826 

 1827 

 1828 

 1829 

 1831 

 1831 

 1831 

 1832 

 1832 

 1832 

 1833 

 1833 

 1833 

 1834 

 1835 

 1835 

 1835 

 1836 



Ganibart . 



Tiarks . 



Colebrooke 



Moll 



Bowditch . . 



Rigaud . 



Olbers 



Poisson . 



Bouvard 



Littrow . 



Cacciatore . 



Henderson 



Baily 



Bessel . 



Damoiseau 



De Vico 



Taylor 



Schumacher 



Cerquero . 



Boguslawski . 



Goldschmidt 



Colby . 



Arago 



Walker . 



Lindenau . 



Petersen 



Mauvais 



Gauss 



Sheepshanks 



Busch . 



Colla 



Raper 



Bond . 



Wichmanu 



Johnson 



. . 1836 



. 1837 

 . . 1837 



. 1837 

 . . 1838 



. 1839 

 . . 1840 



. 1840 

 . . 1840 



. 1840 

 . . 1841 



. 1844 

 . . 1844 



. 1846 

 . . 1846 



. 1848 

 . . 1848 



. 1850 

 . . 1850 



. 1851 

 . 1851 



. 1852 

 . . 1853 



. 1853 

 . . 1854 



. 1854 

 . . 1854 



. 1855 

 . . 1855 



. 1855 

 . . 1857 



. 1858 

 . . 1859 



. 1859 



. 1859 



1799-1804. Humboldt's voyage and observations in South America. 



1800. Wollaston's circumpolar catalogue. Bode's maps and catalogue. 

 Mudge begins his great arc of the meridian, from the Isle of Wight to 

 Clifton in Yorkshire. Commencement of the ' Monatliehe Corre- 

 spondenz" (an astronomical periodical, which terminates in 1812). 



1801. Lalande's catalogue. Piazzi discovers the planet Ceres. Swan- 

 berg begins the measurement of an arc in Lapland. 



1802. Olbers discovers the planet Pallas. Lambton begins the 

 measurement of an arc in India. Herschel's catalogue of Nebula). 



1803. Cagnoli's catalogue. Herschel observes the changes in the 

 position of double stars. 



1804. Harding discovers the planet Juno. Piazzi gives the proper 

 motion of 300 stars. Zach's solar tables. 



1805. Legendre, method of least squares. Discussion on the parallax 

 of the fixed stars, from this date to 1825. 



1806. Completion of the French survey by Mechain and Delambre. 

 Delambre's Solar Tables, and Tables of Refraction. Burg's Lunar 

 Tables. Carlini's Tables of Refraction. Pond's catalogue of North 

 Polar Distances (altitude and azimuth instrument). Herschel suspects 

 the motion of the whole solar system towards the constellation 

 Hercules. Occurrence of a total eclipse of the sun. 



1807. Olbers discovers the planet Vesta. Extension of the French 

 arc into Spain. Piazzi's catalogue of 120 stars. 



1808. Lagrange and Laplace's Researches on the Planetary Theory. 



1809. Troughton improves the division of graduated instruments. 

 Ivory's Theorems on the Figure of the Earth. Publication of Gauss's 

 ' L Theoria Motus." 



1810. Groombridge's Tables of Refraction. Carlini's Solar Tables. 

 Lindenau's Tables of Venus. Bessel's researches on the orbit of the 

 great cornet of 1807. Bessel appointed Director of the Kb'nigsberg 

 Observatory. 



1811. Lindenau's. Tables of Mars. Apparition of a great comet, 

 which continued visible to the naked eye for several months. 



1812. Troughton's mural circle mounted at Greenwich. Zach's Tables 

 of Aberration. Burckhardt's Tables of the Moon. 



1813. Bessel's Refractions (from Bradley). Lindenau's Tables of 

 Mercury. Pond's catalogue of North Polar Distances (circle). 



1814. Piazzi's catalogue of 7646 stars, the best and largest extant. 



