5i6 



NA TURE 



[April 2, 1903 



against this hypothesis is that, as in all new stars, the 

 dark absorption bands are always on the violet side, 

 and the bright radiation bands displaced towards the 

 red ; this implies that the former always move towards 

 and the latter away from the sun, which, as he says, 

 is highly improbable. M. Belopolsky does not consider 

 the displacement of the bright lines towards the red 

 end of the spectrum real at all, but only illusionary, in 

 consequence of their unsymmetrical appearance. This 

 unsymmetrical appearance is due, as he suggest^, to 

 the absorption bands, which lie nearer to the violet 

 edges of the bright bands. In fact, he says, " streng 

 gesagt existeren keine Rander der Emissions-Banden," 

 but that they merge into the continuous spectrum; it 

 is only the existence of absorption bands which gives 

 them their sharp edges on the violet side. 



Another point which M. Bolopolsky dwells upon at 

 some length is the apparent peculiarities in the be- 

 haviour of the intensities of some of the hydrogen and 

 cleveite gas lines, and he is inclined to attribute these 

 interchanges of intensity to actual changes of the lines 

 themselves. Other observers have been more inclined 

 to explain such apparent abnormal features by assum- 

 ing that a neighbouring line of other origin was be- 

 coming bright, while the original line was on the wane. 

 Thus, for instance, when the hydrogen spectrum of the 

 Nova was dimming very considerably and the lines 

 were all weak, one of the hydrogen lines, Hf, on the 

 other hand, was becoming stronger. Since the weaken- 

 ing of the hydrogen lines was accompanied by a 

 strengthening of the nebular lines, it was fair to assume 

 that at, or close to, the position of He a new line of un- 

 known origin had made its appearance, especially if 

 it were of a similar nature to the nebular lines. 



Enough, perhaps, has been said to indicate the 

 general lines M. Belopolsky has followed. There, are, 

 however, many other points, such as the individual 

 structure of the bright bands (M. Belopolsky has 

 divided Hy into twenty-four and H5 into twenty-eight 

 parts), to which reference might be made, but these 

 must be left to those readers who will read the original. 

 Four plates accompany the text, the first two giving 

 in diagrammatic form the intensity curves of the 

 hydrogen bands, and the rest reproductions of the 

 spectra of the Nova, with the terrestrial comparison 

 spectra on different dates. It seems a pity that the 

 latter are so very narrow that it is difficult, 'even with 

 the aid of a lens, to identify more than the very general 

 features, while one can assume that the originals were 

 full of detail. William J. S. Lockyer. 



THE BRITISH ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION. 



""P HE first news of the British Antarctic Expedition 

 ■*• since the departure of the Discovery from New 

 Zealand in December, 1901, has been brought by the 

 relief vessel Morning, commanded by Captain Colbeck, 

 which arrived at Lyttelton on March 25. Captain 

 Colbeck found the Discovery in MacMurdo Bay (Vic- 

 toria Land) on January 23, 1902 ; all was well ori board 

 and only one serious casualty had occurred — the loss 

 of a seaman named Vince, who fell down an ice-slope 

 intothe sea and was drowned. Commander Scott's 

 official report of the voyage of the Discovery up to the 

 time of meeting with the Morning has been telegraphed 

 home by Reuter, and is as follows : — 



The Discovery entered the ice pack on January 23, 1902, 

 in latitude 67° south. Cape Adare was reached on January 

 9, but there a heavy gale and ice delayed the expedition, 

 which did not reach Wood Bay until January 18. A landing- 

 was effected on January 20 in an excellent harbour situated 

 in latitude 76° 30' south. A record of the voyage was de- 

 posited at Cape Crozier on January 22. The Discovery then 



NO. 1744, VOL. 67] 



proceeded along the barrier within a few cables' length, 

 examining the edge and making repeated soundings. In 

 longitude 165 the barrier altered its character and trended 

 northward. Sounding here showed that the Discovery was 

 in shallow water. From the edge of the barrier high snow 

 slopes rose to an extensive heavily glaciated land with 

 Oct asional bare precipitous peaks. The expedition followed 

 the coast line as far as latitude 76°, longitude 152 30'. 



The heavy pack formation of the young ice caused the 

 expedition to seek winter quarters in Victoria Land. 



On February 3 the Discovery entered an inlet in the 

 barrier in longitude 174 . A balloon was sent up, and a 

 sledge party examined the land as far as latitude 78 50'. 

 Near Mounts Erebus and Terror, at the southern extremity 

 of an island, excellent winter quarters were found. The 

 expedition next observed the coast of Victoria Land, extend- 

 ing as far as a conspicuous cape in latitude 7S 50'. It was 

 found that mountains do not exist here. Huts for living 

 and for making magnetic observations were erected, and 

 the expedition prepared for wintering. The weather was 

 boisterous, but a reconnaissance of sledge parties was sent 

 out, during which the seaman Vince lost his life, the re- 

 mainder of the party narrowly escaping a similar fate. '1 he 

 ship was frozen in on March 24. The expedition passed a 

 comfortable winter in well sheltered quarters. The lowest 

 recorded temperature was 62 below zero. 



The sledging was begun on September 2, parties being 

 sent out in all directions. Lieutenant Royds, Mr. Skelton 

 and party established a " record " in an expedition to 

 Mount Terror, travelling over the barrier under severe 

 sleighing conditions, with a temperature of 5S below zero. 



Commander Scott, Dr. Wilson, and Lieutenant Shackle- 

 ton travelled ninety-four miles to the south, reaching land 

 in latitude 8o° 17' south, longitude 163° west, and establish- 

 ing a world's " record " for the farthest point south. The 

 journey was accomplished under trying conditions. The 

 dogs all died, and the three men had to drag the sledges 

 back to the ship. Lieutenant Shackleton almost died from 

 exposure, but he has now quite recovered. The party found 

 that ranges of high mountains continue through Victoria 

 Land. At the meridian of 160 foothills much resembling 

 the Admiralty Range were discovered. 



I In- ice barrier is presumably afloat. It continues hori- 

 zontal, and is slowly fed from the land ice. Mountains 

 10,000 feet to 12,000 feet high were seen in latitude 82 ' 

 south, the coastline continuing at least as far as 83° 20' 

 nearlj due south. A party ascending a glacier on the main- 

 land found a new range of mountains. At a height of 9000 

 feet a level plain was reached, which was unbroken to the 

 west as far as the horizon. 



The scientific work of the expedition includes a rich 

 collection of marine fauna, of which a large proportion are 

 new species. Sea and magnetic observations were taken, as 

 well as seismographic records and pendulum observations. 

 A large collection of skins and skeletons of southern seals 

 and sea birds has been made. A number of excellent photo- 

 graphs have been taken, and careful meteorological observ- 

 ations were made. Extensive quartz and grit accumulations 

 were found horizontally bedded in volcanic rocks. Lava 

 flows were found in the frequently recurring plutonic rock 

 which forms the basement of the mountains. 



Before the arrival of the Morning the Discovery had ex- 

 perienced some privation owing to part of the supplies 

 having gone bad. This accounted for the death of all the 

 dogs. She was revictualled from the Morning, however, 

 and the explorers are now in a position to spend a comfort- 

 able winter. 



As the Discovery left Port Chalmers on December 

 24, 190 1, and reached Cape Adare on January 9, rgo2, 

 the statement that she entered the pack ice on January 

 23 is obviously an error ; the correct reading is prob- 

 ably " January 2-3." 



In addition to the above, the following telegrams 

 have been transmitted by Reuter, under dates March 

 26, 27, and 28 : — . 



Captain Colbeck, of the Morning, said in the course of 



an interview that he thought the chances of the Discovery 

 being free this season were doubtful. 



Nine of the Discovery's seamen, who are tired of the 



