62 



TRANSIT OF VENUS, 1874. HONOLULU. 



Subsequent remarks, December 8, 8 p.m. 



From what I learn from others who continued to observe during the whole 

 phenomenon with the same eye-piece, I feel inclined to think that the thin 

 line of light which I observed on changing the eye-pieces must have been 

 due to light from the Sun's corona. No light of the kind was visible in the 

 double-image micrometer, and I regret that it was changed, since otherwise, 

 1 think, a very good time of contact would have been obtained by it. 



J. W. NICHOL. 



Mr. Nichol's chronometer (see following comparisons) was 7 m . 55 S< 17 fast 

 on local mean time. 



COMPARISONS of the SOLAR CHRONOMETER C with the TRANSIT CLOCK, and inferred 

 ERROR of C on LOCAL MEAN TIME, on 1874, December 8. 



EEPORT OF LIEUT. E. J. W. NOBLE, E.M.A. 



The instrument I used was the Dollond telescope of 3^ inches aperture 

 and 57 inches focal length, with a solar diagonal prismatic eye-piece giving 

 rectangular reflection, a power of 139, and the darkest neutral tint glass. 

 The instrument, protected from the N.E. trade by a " bell " tent, was mounted 

 close to the door of the altazimuth hut, so that I could distinctly hear the 

 counting of the time-keeper, Lieut. Shakspear, R.N., of H.M.S. Scout, with 

 whom I had practised, and of the accuracy of whose counting I was quite 

 convinced. 



As the time for external contact approached, I observed a slight notch on 

 the vertex of the Sun. At 20 h . 17 m . 11 s . I was fully satisfied that Venus had 

 entered on the Sun, and I estimated that the external contact had taken place 

 2 m . 30 s . before [or at 'about 20 h . 14 m . 40 s .]. 



I then left the telescope, and took only casual glances as the planet 

 advanced on the Sun till within about 10 minutes of the time of internal 

 contact, when I kept the instrument pointed on the Sun's limb. 



