SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



189 



Sun 



Moon 



Mercury. 



Mars 



Jupiter . 



Saturn 

 Uranus 



Neptune 





Rises. 



Sets. 



Position at Noon. 





It. in. 



h.m. 



R.A. 



Dec. 



1895. 



A.M. 



P.M. 



h.m. 





Sept. 1 



.. 5.14 . 



. r-. 4 6 .. 



. 10.42 .. 



. 8° 17' N. 



11 11 



... 5.30 . 



. 6.24 .. 



. 11. 18 .. 



• 4° 34' 



11 21 

 11 I 



... 546 • 



Souths. 



P.M. 



... 10.26 . 

 Rises. 



P.M. 



. 6.1 .. 

 Sets. 



A.M. 



■ 2.54 



Souths, 



A.M. 



• 11-54 ■• 



. o° 42' 



„ 3 



.. 7-27 •• 



A.M. 



• 3 13 



A.M. 







11 11 



... I.48 . 



Souths. 



P.M. 



• 946 



Sets, 



P.M. 







11 22 



•• 3-3 . 



. 6.58 







„ 8 



... 1.3 . 



. 7.1 • 



. 12.12 . 



. i° 16' S 



18 



... 1.16' . 



. 6.38 . 



• 134 .. 



. 8° 13' 



,, 28 



... 1.22 . 

 Rises. 



A.M. 



• 6-13 . 

 Souths. 



P.M. 



. 13-50 .. 



. I3 C 59' 



,1 8 



... 7.22 . 



A.M. 



.. 0.44 . 



A.M. 



• H-54 • 



• 8° 15' S 



„ 18 



... 6.9 . 



. 11.39 . 



• n-33 • 



• 6° 34' 



1, 28 



••• 4-55 • 

 Souths 



P.M. 



. IO.4I . 



Sets. 



P.M. 



. 11. 14 . 



• 3° 25' 



,, 8 



... 0.38 . 



.. 6.53 . 



. 11.48 . 



. 2° 14' N 



,, 18 



... 0.23 . 



.. 6.25 . 



. 12. 11 . 



. o° 24' S 



„ 28 



... 0.7 

 Rises. 



A.M. 



.. 5-5" . 

 Souths. 



A.M. 



• 12.35 ■ 



■ 3° 3' 



,, 18 



... 0.36 . 

 Soutlis. 



P.M. 



.. 8.26 . 



Sets. 



P.M. 



. 8.19 . 



■ 19° 54' N 



„ 18 



... 2.24 . 



•• 7-31 • 



. 14.13 . 



. ii° 3' s 



,, 28 



... 2.33 



Rises. 



P.M. 



.. 7-8 . 

 Souths. 



A.M. 



. 15-1 • 



. 16 48" S 



„ 28 



... 8.34 • 



.. 4.38 . 



• 5-9 • 



. 21° 28' N 



Moon's Phases. 



Full ... Sept. 4 ... 3-55 a.m. Last Qr... Sept. 12 ... 4.51 a m. 

 New ... „ 18 ... 8.55 p.m. 1st Qr 25 ... 6.23 p.m. 



Mercury is an evening star, and Neptune is 

 visible in the evening, but none of the other 

 planets are very well placed for observation. 



Considerable progress has been made with the 

 new twenty-six-inch photographic telescope, pre- 

 sented to the National Observatory, at Greenwich, 

 by Sir Henry Thompson. Sir Howard Grubb 

 is occupied upon both the glass discs, while 

 Mr. Simms is producing a new spectroscope for 

 photographing spectra. 



The Yerkes Observatory. — Mr. E. E.Barnard, 

 of the Lick Observatory, has resigned, to accept a 

 position in connection with the Yerkes Observatory, 

 on Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. There appears to 

 have been some friction among the staff of the 

 Lick Observatory, which may have caused 

 Mr. Barnard to arrange for this exchange of 

 appointment. 



Mr. Percival Lowell contributes to "Nature" 

 a carefully prepared paper on the " Evidence of a 

 Twilight Arc upon the Planet Mars." It is based 

 upon what he terms a " by-product," found during 



a reduction of 341 micromctric measures of the 

 diameters of Mars taken last year by Mr. Douglass, 

 the well-known astronomer. This investigation, in 

 Mr. Lowell's opinion, indicates unmistakably that 

 twilight not only exists on the planet but is visible 

 from the earth, having been unconsciously measured 

 by Mr. Douglass. That Mars possesses an atmo- 

 sphere few astronomers had any doubt, but if any 

 seriously exists the discovery of twilight on the 

 planet must set such doubts at rest. 



Popular Astronomy. — The last number of the 

 American Journal, " Popular Astronomy," is well 

 up to the excellence that has characterised this 

 magazine, which has now reached its twenty-first 

 number and third volume. The leading article is 

 an illustrated translation, by T. J. J. See, of the 

 eulogy of Laplace, by Baron Fourier, which was 

 delivered on June 15th, 1829, at the Royal Academy 

 of Sciences of France. A useful article, entitled 

 " Observations for Beginners," is by Mr. W. W. 

 Payne. In it he says, whether a person has only a 

 field-glass, an opera-glass, or a desire to see with 

 the unaided eye, the questions arise what to 

 observe and how to observe. It is important to 

 know what to observe, that time may be wisely 

 used, and equally important for obtaining the best 

 results that we should know how to observe. 

 Experience and aptitude alone points out what one 

 may observe to be useful. Work too difficult 

 should not be undertaken at first. For illustration, 

 at first it is enough to study the names and places 

 in the sky, of the first and second magnitude stars. 

 It is said that even this is neglected, for not one in 

 twenty average astronomers of the present time 

 could name all these stars at sight in his own latitude. 

 Thus the beginner may soon place himself even, or 

 superior in this special knowledge, with the pro- 

 fessional astronomers. To begin this work of 

 instruction, the learner should have a planisphere 

 which contains the names and places of these stars, 

 with directions for finding them. First make a 

 table of the first magnitude stars, with columns for 

 the Arabic names, and for those indicated by the 

 Greek letters, and the constellations in which they 

 occur, reserving space for a third column, to be 

 used later for the observation of colour, and a 

 fourth for general remarks. In a similar manner 

 make another table for the second magnitude stars, 

 and in this way begin work in earnest, having 

 before the mind at first only the names and places 

 of these stars. Be sure the Arabic names are pro- 

 nounced as correctly as possible, and for this 

 consult the best dictionary within reach. Make a 

 record of every observation in a note-book, on the 

 method of observing by Miss Mary E. Byrd, viz. : 



(1) Begin each night's record on a separate page. 



(2) Date each page of observations. (3) Record each 

 night the place of observing, and the time of be- 

 ginning and ending. (4) Enter the record in con- 

 nection with the observation. (5) Keep all records 

 of observations in pencil. (6) Make all corrections 

 of the original record, and enter copied observa- 

 tions in ink. The success of the work will 

 depend on the patience and perseverance of the 

 person undertaking it. At first it will go slowly, 

 very slowly, and the beginner will lose patience 

 because able to do so little, and what he 

 does seems to amount to so little. This is the 

 common experience of all. Soon that impression 

 will wear away and facility in doing will come, and 

 interest and knowledge will improve. Messrs. 

 W. Wesley and Son, London, are the European 

 agents for •' Popular Astronomy," the subscription 

 being 12s. 6d. per annum. 



