Astronomy 591 



METEORITES 



THE Institution has paid great attention to the formation of 

 a collection of meteorites and to the gathering of accurate 

 information regarding the circumstances of their fall. 



It is an instructive proof of the wide influence of the Insti- 

 tution to note that all phenomena of this kind are promptly 

 reported to its Secretary. The first thought of observers of 

 all classes is to communicate with the Smithsonian Institution, 

 and this is also an excellent witness to the general intelligence 

 of the country, as has been remarked by all who have had 

 occasion to observe how widely this desire is spread and in 

 what unexpected places it is found. 



STAR- MAPS 



A COMMITTEE of the Connecticut Academy of Sciences, Pro- 

 fessor H. A. Newton, Chairman, prepared a large and very 

 convenient star-map of the north polar regions to aid in the 

 observations of the August meteors, which was widely circu- 

 lated at the expense of the Smithsonian Institution ; as well 

 as a copy of the smaller map, from the Toronto observations, 

 designed for observations of the aurora. Many observers 

 took part in the charting of meteors, and their results have 

 been discussed and published by Professor Newton and 

 others in various journals. 



TRANSLATION OF GAUSS'S "THEORIA MOTUS" 



GAUSS'S monumental work, "Theoria Motus Corporum 

 Ccelestium," was printed, in Latin, in the year 1809. The 

 first German translation of it was not published until 1865. 

 In the hope of familiarizing American students with the new 



