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  XXVII. 
  Notices 
  respecting 
  New 
  Books. 
  

  

  Expedition 
  Antarctique 
  Beige. 
  Resultats 
  du 
  Voyage 
  du 
  JS.Y. 
  ' 
  Belgiccf 
  

  

  en 
  1897-1898-1899 
  Aurores 
  Australes 
  par 
  Heneyk 
  

  

  Arctowski. 
  Anvers, 
  1901. 
  64 
  pp. 
  quarto 
  & 
  2 
  plates. 
  

  

  Expedition 
  Norvegienne 
  de 
  1899-1900 
  pour 
  Vetude 
  des 
  Aurores 
  

   boreales. 
  Resultats 
  des 
  recherclies 
  magnetiques 
  par 
  Kit. 
  Birkelakd. 
  

   Christiania, 
  1901. 
  81 
  pp. 
  large 
  8vo 
  & 
  12 
  plates. 
  

  

  r 
  PHESE 
  two 
  works 
  possess 
  a 
  special 
  interest 
  in 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  

   -*- 
  expeditions 
  which 
  have 
  recently 
  set 
  out, 
  or 
  sire 
  now 
  in 
  con- 
  

   templation, 
  having 
  the 
  Antarctic 
  for 
  their 
  objective. 
  A 
  study 
  of 
  

   their 
  contents 
  will 
  give 
  the 
  reader 
  an 
  idea 
  of 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  some 
  

   of 
  the 
  more 
  important 
  problems 
  with 
  which 
  these 
  expeditions 
  

   have 
  to 
  deal, 
  and 
  hence 
  of 
  the 
  special 
  training 
  and 
  wide 
  scientific 
  

   knowledge 
  desirable 
  in 
  the 
  observers. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Arctowski 
  was 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  observers 
  on 
  the 
  ' 
  Belgica.' 
  Of 
  

   the 
  62 
  auroras 
  he 
  deals 
  with, 
  most 
  were 
  observed 
  by 
  himself, 
  

   and 
  all, 
  with 
  one 
  exception, 
  during 
  the 
  seven 
  months 
  March 
  to 
  

   September 
  1898. 
  During 
  the 
  observations 
  in 
  1898 
  the 
  latitude 
  of 
  

   the 
  ' 
  Belgica 
  ' 
  varied 
  from 
  69° 
  51' 
  to 
  71° 
  36' 
  S., 
  the 
  longitude 
  from 
  

   83° 
  35' 
  to 
  92° 
  21' 
  W. 
  (of 
  Greenwich). 
  Particulars 
  are 
  usually 
  

   given 
  of 
  the 
  times 
  of 
  appearance 
  and 
  disappearance 
  of 
  each 
  

   aurora, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  important 
  changes 
  observed. 
  The 
  

   more 
  characteristic 
  forms 
  — 
  arcs, 
  bands, 
  curtains, 
  ribbons, 
  &c. 
  — 
  

   are 
  illustrated 
  freely 
  in 
  the 
  text, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  two 
  fine 
  plates 
  at 
  the 
  

   end 
  of 
  the 
  volume. 
  The 
  descriptions 
  occupy 
  the 
  larger 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  

   work. 
  Mr. 
  Arctowski 
  concludes, 
  p. 
  50, 
  that 
  the 
  visual 
  phe- 
  

   nomena 
  were 
  very 
  similar 
  to 
  those 
  described 
  by 
  Nordenskiold 
  

   during 
  the 
  voyage 
  of 
  the 
  'Vega' 
  in 
  1878-79. 
  As 
  he 
  remarks, 
  

   this 
  is 
  all 
  the 
  more 
  significant 
  from 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  times 
  of 
  the 
  

   two 
  voyages 
  occupied 
  similar 
  positions 
  in 
  the 
  sun-spot 
  cycle, 
  and 
  

   that 
  the 
  distance 
  of 
  the 
  * 
  Belgica 
  ' 
  from 
  the 
  assumed 
  position 
  of 
  

   the 
  south 
  magnetic 
  pole 
  was 
  similar 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  ' 
  Vega 
  ' 
  from 
  

   the 
  north 
  magnetic 
  pole. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Arctowski 
  investigates, 
  pp. 
  53-56, 
  the 
  diurnal 
  variation:— 
  

   (1) 
  treating 
  all 
  the 
  auroras 
  ; 
  (2) 
  including 
  only 
  those 
  where 
  the 
  

   meteorological 
  conditions 
  were 
  throughout 
  favourable 
  for 
  visibility 
  ; 
  

   (3) 
  allowing 
  weights 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  luminous 
  intensity 
  (estimated 
  

   apparently 
  by 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  special 
  glass 
  plates 
  required 
  to 
  render 
  

   the 
  aurora 
  invisible, 
  see 
  footnote 
  to 
  p. 
  8). 
  The 
  time 
  found 
  for 
  the 
  

   maximum 
  varied 
  between 
  9 
  and 
  11 
  p.m., 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  method 
  

   of 
  treatment. 
  The 
  great 
  majority 
  of 
  the 
  auroras 
  were 
  observed 
  

   between 
  8 
  p.m. 
  and 
  2 
  a.m. 
  The 
  results 
  are 
  very 
  similar 
  to 
  those 
  

   obtained 
  at 
  the 
  polar 
  station, 
  Jan 
  Mayen, 
  in 
  1882-3. 
  As 
  concerns 
  

   the 
  annual 
  variation, 
  Mr. 
  Arctowski 
  found 
  very 
  decided 
  maxima 
  

   in 
  March 
  and 
  September, 
  with 
  a 
  much 
  smaller 
  maximum 
  in 
  July,, 
  

  

  