304 Double Stars. — Occultations. 



faint lilac • converted into a fine triple group by the juxta- 

 position of another white 6 mag. star (16 Draconis), at 90"*5 

 and 194 n *6. These are, as yet, said to be stationary. 



A little nfv, that is, above it at the present season, and 

 forming the N. point of a triangle, of which 7 and /3 are the 

 base, is £, a 3 mag. star. A line through v and f soon falls 

 upon — ■ 



56. 39 Draconis. 3"'o. 5°*5. 5 and 8|. Pale white and 

 light blue ; a 7 mag. ruddy companion stands at 89"*2 and 

 21°* 7. There is a suspicion of binarity here • but Secchi re- 

 marks, as Struve had done, the discordancy of measures in so 

 distinct an object. 



The previous line through v and £ continued through the 

 last pair, will show us, if bent a little to the left, — 



57. o Draconis. 30"-4. 347°*6 (1830-78). 30"*3. 345°*5 

 (1837*89). 5 and 9. Orange and lilac. This beautiful pair, 

 if physically connected, as Smyth thought probable, is a 

 striking exemplification of the fact already referred to, that the 

 magnitude of stars is no criterion of their distance. 



We now leave the accumulation of double stars so curiously 

 clustered together about the head and neck of Draco, and re- 

 turn to Gygnus. We have already taken Albireo (No. 52) on 

 the beak. The rest of the constellation, when on the meridian, 

 lies N. and W. of this point. In following the galaxy from 

 Albireo towards Gassiopea, we soon find it crossed by a some- 

 what bent line of three nearly equidistant 3 mag. stars (besides 

 a fourth to the left) . These are 8, next the head of Draco, 7 in 

 the centre, and e. A little above 7 we come to a, Al Ridph, 

 the lucicla of the constellation • a star whose entire inaccessi- 

 bility to the ordinary questioning of parallax, and absence of 

 proper motion, indicate a distance perfectly incomprehensible ; 

 as its brilliancy under such circumstances exalts it, not impro- 

 bably, to the dignity of being one of the largest bodies in the 

 universe. If we now suppose a line from a to o, a little out- 

 side (or N.) of it, we shall find — 



58. o 2 Gygni, an orange 4 mag. star, which with o 1 , 5| mag. 

 cerulean blue, at 5' 38", and 63p.xx. 1\ mag., of the same colour, 

 at 1' 46"*6, forms a fine bright group, in one of the glorious 

 fields so continually occurring in galaxy regious. A 16 mag. 

 companion, 15" from 02, is not likely to fall under the notice of 

 any observer with less than 6 inches of aperture. 



59. % Gygni. 25"- 7. 72°*9. 5 and 9. Golden-yellow and 

 pale blue. This pair is relatively fixed, but has probably a 

 common proper motion. It will be found less than half way 

 (about two-fifths) from /3 to 7, a little to the right. 



A line carried from 7 through o (No. 56) nearly as far again, 

 will pass a little above a very pretty, though not easy object — 



