2\2 



KNOWLEDGE & SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



[Oct., 1904. 



The Face of the Sky for October. 



By W. Shackleton, F.R.A.S. 



The Sun.— On the ist the Sun rises at r,.i, and sets 

 at 5.37 ; on the 31st he rises at 6.53, and sets at 4.34. 



Sunspots, facula', and prominences are fairly numerous. 



The positions of the spots, &c., with respect to the 

 equator and poles may be derived by employing the 

 following table : — 



Date. 



Oct 



21 



31 



The Moon : — 



Oct. 8 

 .. 20 



Perigee 

 Apogee 



The only occultation of the brighter stars visible 

 before midnight is that of 96 Aquarii, magnitude 5^, at 

 7.49 p.m. on the 20th. 



The Planets. — Mercury is a morning star in Virgo; 

 he is at greatest westerly on the i St., subtending an 

 angle of 17^54' W., when he rises nearly 2 hours in 

 advance of the Sun. The planet is in superior conjunc- 

 tion with the Sun on the 31st. 



Venus is an evening star m Libra, but is too low down 

 in the S.W. at sunset to be suitable for observation. 



Mars is a morning star in L50, rising about 2.15 a.m. 

 on the 15th. 



Jupiter rises about sunset throughout the month, and 

 forms a very conspicuous object in the sky, looking due 

 E. about 7 p.m. The planet is in opposition to the Sun on 

 the^ i8th, when the apparent equatorial diameter is 5o"-4, 

 whilst the polar diameter is 3"-3 smaller. 



At 10 p.m. on the 23rd the planet is in proximity to 

 the Moon, being only i'4 to the North. 



The configurations of the satellites, as seen in an in- 

 verting telescope at midnight, are as follows 



The circle (O) represents Jupiter; © signifies that the satellite is 

 on the disc ; • signifies that the satellite is behind the disc, or in 

 he shadow. The numbers are the numbers of the satellites.' 



Saturn is suitably placed for observation in the early 

 evening, being on the meridian about 7.30 p.m. and 

 setting at midnight on the 15th. Throughout the month 

 the planet is nearly stationary in Cancer ; he is near the 

 Moon on the evening of the 17th. 



The ring is widely open and we are looking on the 

 northern surface at an an.L,de of 16'; the polar diameter 

 of the ball is i6"-2, whilst the major and minor axes of the 

 outer ring are 4o"-8 and ii"'5 respectively. 



Uranus is on the meridian about 4 p.m. and sets in 

 the S.W. about 8 p.m., near the middle of the month. 

 He is close to the star 4 Sagittarii. 



Neptune rises about midnight on the last day of the 

 month. He is situated in the constellation Gemini, as 

 shown on the chart in the January number. The planet 

 is in quadrature with the Sun on the ist, and at the 

 stationary point on the nth. 



Meteors ; — 



The principal shower of meteors during the month is 

 the Orionids. 



The Stars : — 



About 9 p.m., at the middle of the month, the following 

 constellations may be observed : — 



Zenith . Cygnus, Cepheus, Cassiopeia. 



South . Pegasus, Aquarius, Capricornus, Fomal- 



haut. 



West . Lyra, Hercules, Ophiuchus, Corona ; 

 Bootes to the N.W. ; Aquila to the S.W. 



East . Andromeda, Perseus, Aries, Pleiades ; 



xVuriga to the N.E. ; Cetus to the S.E. 



North . Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Draco. 



Minima of Algol may be observed on the 2nd at 

 5.14 p.m., 17th at 1. 19 a.m., 19th at 10. 8 p.m., and 22nd 

 at 6. 57 p.m. 



Telescopic Objects; — 



Double Stars; — 7_Arietis i'' 48"^, N. 18° 48', mags. 4-2, 

 4-4 ; separation 8"-8. Easy double, power 30 ; notable as 

 being the first double star observed telescopically. 



7 Andromeda i"" 58™, N. 41^-52', mags. 2-i, 4-9, sepa- 

 ration io"-2. The brighter component is intensely yellow, 

 whilst the other is greenish blue. The fainter star is 

 remarkable for being a binary, the components of which 

 are now less than i" apart. 



Nebul.e ; — ■ 



Nebula in Andromeda, easily visible to the naked eye, 

 and readily found by referring to the stars ft and v Andro- 

 medas. Seen with a 3 or 4 inch telescope, it appears to 

 be an extended oval, which is in reality composed of 

 spiral streams of nebulous matter. 



(32 M.) Nebula close to the great Andromeda nebula, 

 and situated about 2^ to the south. It is fairly round, 

 and appears somewhat like a star out of focus. 



(18 ^ v) lies about the same distance north of the great 

 Andromeda nebula that 32 M does south ; it is faint, but 

 large and elliptical. 



