March 2, 1893J 



NATURE 



425 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Mozambique Monkey {Cercopithecus 

 pygerythrus, <J ) from East Africa, presented by Mr. R, Hughes ; 

 a Bonnet Monkey (Macacus sinicus, ? ) from India, presented 

 by Mr. W. Yeoman; two Herring Gulls {Larus argentatus) 

 British, presented by Mr. J. S. Williams ; an Ariel Toucan 

 {Ramphastos ariel) from Brazil, presented by Mr. Ellis Edwards ; 

 a Great Eagle Owl {Bubo maximus) European, presented by 

 Commander E. G. Rason, R.N. ; two Spengler's Terrapins 

 {Nicoria speughri) from Okinawa Shima, Loo Choo Island?, 

 presented by Mr. P. Aug. Hoist ; two Tuatera Lizards {Spheno- 

 don punctattis) from New Zealand, presented by Capt. Worster ; 

 a Spiny-tailed Masligure (Uromaslix acanthinurus) from 

 Algeria, presented by Miss Rigley ; a Cuming's Octodon 

 {Octodon cumingi) from Chili, deposited ; an Eland {Oreas 

 canna, S ), born in the Gardens. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 

 Comet Brooks (November 19, 1892). — The following 

 ephemeris has been computed by Ristenpart [Astronomischen 

 Nachrichteu, 3154) from five normal places of this comet, 

 using the elements— 



T = 1893, January 6-529304 M.T. Berlin. 



i89o"o 



m =■ 851251-0) 

 a = 185 36 29-0 [ 

 i = 143 51 459) 

 log q = 00774148 



12/1. Berlin M.T. 



Logr. 



Log A 



0-1738 ...0-3379 ■•0-54 



01842 ... 0-3563 ... 0-47 



The unit of brightness occurred on November 21*5, 1892. 



Comet Holmes (1892, IH.). — M. Schulhof, in Astrono- 

 mischen Nachrichten, No. 3153, continues the ephemeris for 

 Comet Holmes, from which we make the following extract : — 



\2h. Paris Mean Time. 



Nova Aurig^e. — Last week we mentioned that Mr. Fowler's 

 observation of this nova consisted of two briyht nebula lines 

 situated near wave-lengths 5006 and 4956, the former being only 

 slightly brighter than the latter. In Astronomischen Nach- 

 richten, No. 3153, Mr Huggins, in a note dated February 11, 

 writes with respect to his observations on February 7, 8, 

 and 10, using a 4-inch Rowland grating (14,438 lines to the 

 inch) and the second order, that the hand was "resolved into a 

 long group of lines extending through about 15 tenih-metres. 

 The lines appeared more or less bright upon a faintly luminous 

 background which could be traced a little beyond the lines at 

 both ends of the group. Two lines, the brightest in the group 

 and about equally bright, formed the termination of the group 

 towards the blue ; and a line nearly as bright as these was seen 

 about the middle of the group. The group is therefore brighter 

 at the blue end, but it does not possess any of the features of a 

 fluting. No contrast in the spectroscope could well be more 

 striking than that which this extended group of lines forms with 

 the narrow and defined principal line in the nebula of Orion." 



NO. 1218, VOL. 47] 



Hydrogen Line H)8 in the Spectrum of Nova Auriga. 

 — Owing to the curious appearance of the H/3 line in the spec- 

 trum of Nova Aurigae, this line first appearing double and then 

 afterwards quadruple, various explanations have been put for- 

 ward to account for this peculiarity. From the hypothesis of 

 two bodies, which did not agree with the facts observed, that of 

 three and more bodies was suggested, until at last it was sup- 

 posed that six bodies in all were in question. This supposition 

 seemed most improbable, and since then the matter has been 

 allowed to lie dormant. With reference to the behaviour of this 

 line in the spectrum of vacuum tubes, Herr Victor Schumann 

 {Astronomy and Astrophysics for February) has made some very 

 interesting experiments, taking great ca^e to use the hydrogen in 

 as dry and pure a state as possible. We will here only refer to 

 the most important part of the paper, leaving the reader to refer 

 to the article itself for the apparatus, &c., employed. The pho- 

 tographic plates employed were made by himself according to 

 the *' silveroxydammonmelhode " of Dr. Eder, of Vienna. 

 Working with pressures from i to lOO mm. of mercury, the 

 results obtained at those of 65, 80, and 100 gave the following 

 results : — At 65 mm. H3 and H7 were most prominent, and in 

 the negatives they were well defined, "although the sharpness 

 of their edges is injuriously affected by broad, hazy fringes of 

 considerable intensity, which shade off into the background from 

 both sides of the line." Under a pressure of 80 mm. Hj3 lost 

 most of its definition, and close to it on each side were observed 

 two fine thin lines, the fringe also being present but a little wider 

 than before. H7, although increased in breadth, has lost its 

 definition. With a pressure of 100 mm., "the more refrangible 

 component of the pair of lines just mentioned as belonging to 

 H(3, has disappeared, and in its place has appeared H/3 itself, 

 broad, but very weak ; near by on the lower side one observes 

 a thin line twice." With reference to the fringe of HS he says, it 

 has now "spread itself out more towards the blue than the red, 

 thus displacing the middle of it towards the blue." H7 remains 

 a very weak line. These observations showed that of all the 

 hydrogen lines H7 was the only one that showed reversal as 

 well as displacement, and he concludes with the remark that 

 "if it be asked whether the phenomena of reversal as observed in 

 my hydrogen spectra furnish in themselves an explanation of the 

 reversal of the lines in the spectra of Nova Aurigae, the answer 

 must be decidedly in the negative." 



Coincidence of Solar and Terrestrial Phenomena. — 

 Since Prof G. E. Hale commenced his solar researches at the 

 Kenwood Observatory, much has been added by him to our 

 knowledge of the physics of the sun. Faculae, for instance, 

 which were supposed to be scattered only here and there on the 

 solar surface, are now found, by means of the fine spectre- 

 heliograph, to occupy largely both hemispheres, and sometimes 

 to extend in almost unbroken belts across the disc. This fact 

 has led him to consider the question of the probability of chance 

 coincidence between terrestrial magnetism and spots and faculae 

 {Astronomy and Astrophysics, for February), his attention being 

 especially brought in this direction through a paper communicated 

 to the Paris Academy of Sciences by M. Marchaud. .M. Mar- 

 chaud, in summing up his results after an examination of both 

 solar and magnetic observations, .«ays, with reference to the 

 curve of magnetic intensity, that " each of these maxima sensi- 

 bly coincides with the passage of a group of spots or a group 

 of faculae at its shortest distance from the centre of the disc. " 

 From an examination of 142 photographs of the sun, obtained 

 between January 25 and December 3, 1892, at the Kenwood 

 Observatory, Prof. Hale finds that no less than 132 show " one 

 or more groups of faculae on the central meridian, i.e. at their 

 shortest distances from the centre of the solar disc." The 

 chances, therefore, that at any given time one or more groups 

 may be located at the central meridian, he finds as 093. This 

 value, as he remarks, will be reduced for periods of decreased 

 solar activity, but "coincidences noted in epochs like the present 

 can hardly be regarded as of great importance." 



"Astronomical Journal" Prizes.— In addition to the 

 prizes already offered, and to which we have previously referred 

 (Nature, vol. xlvii., Astronomical Column, p. 282), two extra 

 ones,subject to the same conditions, are now to be presented. The 

 first is to be given to "the observer making, by Argelander's 

 method, the best series of determinations of maxima and minima 

 of variable stars during the two years to 1895, March 31." The 

 sum in this case is two hundred dollars. It is stated that "a 

 principal basis for the award is to be the extent to which the de« 



