THE NEW PLANETS. 



covered in the beginning of the century* 

 ami are therefore in complete accordance 

 with the conditions mentioned in the cu- 

 rious hypothesis of Olbers above stated. 



The planet discovered by M. Gasparis, 

 on the 17th of March, 1852, was observed 

 by that astronomer at the Naples Obser- 

 vatory, on the 17th, 19th, and 20th March. 

 It appeared as a star of the 10th or llth 

 magnitude. The observations were pub- 

 lished in the " Comptes Rendus," of the 

 Academy of Sciences, Paris, tome xxxiv. 

 p. 532. 



The planet discovered by M. Luther was 

 observed by that astronomer at Bilk, near 

 Dusseldorf, on the 17th April, and again 

 by M. Argelander, on the 22d April, at 

 Bonn. The observations were published 

 in the "Comptes llendus " of the Paris 

 Academy, tome xxxiv. p. 647. 



14. Dr. Olbers was a practitioner in 

 medicine, Messrs. Hencke, Luther, and 

 Goldschmidt amateur observers, Mr. Hind 

 lias been engaged in the private observa- 

 tory of Mr. Bishop, in the Regent's Park, 

 and Mr. Graham in that of Mr. Cooper, at 

 Markree, in the county of Sligo, in Ireland. 

 It appears, therefore, that of these twenty- 

 three members of the solar system the 

 scientific world owes no less than fourteen 

 to amateur astronomers, and observatories 

 erected and maintained by private indi- 

 viduals, totally unconnected with any na- 

 tional or public establishments, and receiv- 

 ing no aid or support from the state. Mr, 

 Hind has obtained for himself the honour- 

 able distinction which must attach to the 

 discoverer of ten of these bodies. Five are 

 due to M. de Gasparis, assistant-astronomer 

 at the Royal Observatory at Naples. 



M. Hermann Goldschmidt is an historical 

 painter, a native of Frankfort-on-the- 

 Maine, but resident for the last eighteen 

 years in Paris. He discovered the planet 

 with a small ordinary telescope, placed in 

 168 



