50 



VOCAL PROGRESS IN 1897. 



diff. r, :. densities. Samples of heavy and light gas 

 urre examined uir 



;o the inch. nnl in n case was any din*. 



: in the snectra of various sample*. 'I 

 hum lino was discovered in (I 

 spectrum re vears ago, out until lat. 



could be found on tl,,- fart h. 

 was always seen close to tin- D* lux- of sodium, it is 

 also known as D*. The spectroscope reveal 



uer in the Min of 28 substances that we are 

 familiar with herv. but no oxygen ..r gold. 



.(erring** : :--rt announces the 



safe arrival at the Harvard station. An-.juipa. P. -ru. 



a K'rrat Bruce photographic u*leMMi|* . \\hieh is 

 under ful management of IW. Sln I. 



.mg tin- -J 

 f faint *ti>. with the lare rism pla 





..irge number -f objeet- 1... 

 l-ortra have been detected, includii 



lew, two new ntji .rina- and 



: ! "f tin- Algol typ.-. \V. 



.1111. having a variation of 2-?l magnitudes, 

 .r has also been discovered in (Vntaurus 

 ,g on examining some of tho Draper 



of it DOOM bf seen on I hi- 5."> plates taken from Mav 

 June 14. - taken on 



July s iiml 10. lHir>. i id.- was 7'2. In !>- 



r Mowing it had sunk to tin- eleventh mag- 

 nitude. It was discovered from the peculiarity . if 

 its spectrum as taken on July 18, which resemble! 

 that of the nebula surrounding :!< Domdus. ami 

 lao ' nil ('atal' \ 



Its j>|< trum. examined visually < 

 monochromatic, like nebula, v 



llarvanl College Observatory an immense 

 amount of work has been don*-. a- tin- following 



iry will show: During 1896 20,000 photo- 

 metric light comjwrisons were made, 4.192 to deter- 

 mine the form 01 the light curve of ihe Algol-type 

 variab.e \V. Delphini. :j.438 of V. c.-phei. l.16 of 



rrulis, 74 of T. Andromeda. 752 com pa; 



i. and many others, including 26 

 eclipses of Jupiter's moons. A study was made of 

 parallel lines, similar to the assumed double canals 

 of Mars, with the result that is unfavorable to their 

 duplicity. In addition. 2,508 photographs hu\e 

 been taken with the Draper telescope, and 2,770 at 

 Arequipa with the Bacne photographic telescope. 

 peculiar spectra have been found on the 

 plate. 2'l of them having the hydrogen lines bright 

 All these photographic plates are dated, numbered, 

 and preserved in a fireproof building. 



Motion of Stars. The spectroscope, in its im- 

 proved form, is being used to determine the velocity 

 of approach or recession of stars to or from our 

 system. In "Monthly Notices of the Royal A 

 nomical Society of Knjrland " for June. lsi7. i* the 

 result of measures 1 well with the BfUOfl 



spectroscope attached to his 'j.Vim-h refract 



ambiidge Observatory. Kngland. with the fol- 

 lowing results: Recession Alpha Tauri(Aldeharam. 

 30 miles a second : Alpha <>rionis io- miles. Ap- 

 proach Gamma Leonis, 87'5 miles; Arcturus, 6'8 



:..... -. 



Broadening of Line*. Dr. Zuman has discov- 

 ered that the spectral lines in a magnetic field are 

 lima-l ;.is fact is const 1 im- 



iortance in connection with astrophysical i 

 Prof. Lodge has succeeded in shovvtn^ that the 

 lines not only broaden, but are split m. into twos 

 and threes and even more. Dr. Xuman s discovery 

 is con-idrn-d the most impf.rtant that has been 

 made during the pn 



lioTa Auriga, This remarkable temporarv star, 

 which in less than two months in the beginning of 



1809 changed from the fourth to the fourteenth 

 magnitude, and then increase. I to the .)?! h. and so 



.ne. I f,.r ; . 1\ cliaiiiriim into a 



nebula, has red ; ..^ain to the ele\-nth 



magnitude. Nothii. i//linu r to 



astronomers than t: r of thi> extraordi- 

 nary ' 



Neu llolil.le St.ll'x. ,.f doul.le 



aml triple stars has reached enormon- proportions. 

 \\hi-i n like 



111. Whieli . ' the exception 



in-tcad of the rule. '--I.. mhly Notice** 1 f-T 



I li-t of 1 M :eil at the 



The position 



angles di-tniices. and n, ..f the r..mpo- 



and their places for 11MHI-0 j The 



! the 



southern >ky l.y Dr.T.J.J. See. while at Mr. I 

 ell's temporary ..!-, ; the city of >|, 



di-c. ral new pain, and several double 



and wide pairs which he resolved into trip!' 



One which de-er\e- particular mention i- 

 Mu Velornm. of nearlv the third magnitude, and 

 Mipanion. of the eleventh. Tin- pair \\.. 



vio\isly discovered i>\ Kueil of s\dm-y. AU-- 



the - A-'iroiiomical Jo'urna'l. 

 ". \-suining that tin-re i- IM> tvpogiuphica] 

 error in tho angle given, it i- clear that \\> 

 here a case of i-apid. direct motion: a change of 



implies a period not far 1: 



century." He' finds t hat Alpha Pirn-nice- ami Kta 

 Centniiri an- binaries, and many oil 

 subsequent Iv. 



Prof. S. \V. P.urnham.of the Verkes Ol 

 the distinguished double-Mar di--., \-en-r and ol- 



Berver, condemns maoy of the p>eudo orbits ( ( f al- 

 leged binaries. Among those recently crit. 

 are Lambda Cyirni and Xi- A<juarii. II 

 several astronomical publications diagrams of tin- 

 supposed orbits, and shows in the case of Lambda 



: that a straight line sati-fies the <.!,-. 

 p">itions of the components better than '. 



napp's ellipse with it- !:{-J-year period, and 

 that in the case of Xi* Ajuarii 'it mayha\- 

 period between three hundred and fifty years and 

 1,578*33 years. All this, he says, i- the result of a 

 premature attempt to fit orbit- to such -tar- after 

 t hay have been ob-crved through but a .-mall part 

 of their orbits. These facts are -trikingly exhibited 

 in his drawings and comments thereon. 



s peclroscopic Binaries. Prof. r\,-\, 

 nounces the spectroscopic duplicity of .Mu 1 Seorpji 

 from an examination of the Draper Memorial 

 photograph.- by Prof. Mailey. Arc<|iiipa. The 

 trum is of the fii-^t t \ pe. and also contains lines 

 characteri-tic <.f the Orion stars. The spectl 

 both Mu 1 and Mu 3 are clo-e 1 

 the negative plate, and on -oiue plate- they p: 



J -imilar appearance. The line- in the 

 tmm Of Mu* are alway- -in-le and -harply define.l, 

 but thos' of Mu 1 sometime- -.TOW broad and 

 and then dc.uble. The same chai.. n-.te'd 



by Mrs. Fleming on plates taken in ! .'and 



in ISM (July 20 and :il). which leaves no doubt that 

 One Of tlie Component! i- a -ingle -tar: the other, 

 Mu 1 . a sp- d<ublc. The i.erioil o( 



Majo!i- i- lift \-t\vo days, of P.eta A 

 3 d gk 46", while that of Mu is only :M h 42" W in a 

 circular orbit. Another-: : i<- double hav- 



ing the same period as Beta Auriga i- the star 

 :irht ascension 14 h 407 ; declinu- 

 uth 25 5' 18'. 



Prof. A. IVlopolsky has found that Alpha 1 (Jemi- 

 norum. one of the conij.anion- .,f Ca-tor. i- B 

 o-<-oj.ic binary. In January. ISJM;, he, I 

 the inve-tigation <.f" this star by spectrum ph 

 raphy,and lie found as the result of 80 photograph! 



