SCIENTIFIC SUMMARY. 
177 
T = 1880, Nov. 9*4087, Washington Mean Time. 
\ == 263 0 13 Longitude of Perihelion. 
& = 249 38 44 Longitude of Ascending Node. 
i = 60 41 24 Inclination, 
log q = 9*830884 Log of Perihelion distance. 
Motion direct. 
Mr. Chandler remarks, 1 The orbit of this comet presents a curious 
general resemblance to that of 1807, memorable from the elaborate investi- 
gation by Bessel, whose results indicated a period of 1483 years, and could 
not be reasonably satisfied with a period of less than 700 years.’ 
A New Suspected Extension of the Milky Way. — An interesting account 
has been published by Mr. Arthur Searle, one of the assistant astronomers 
at the Harvard College Observatory, U.S. : — 
* During the last five years I have become convinced by repeated observa- 
tions that a very faint, but permanent band of light extends from Aquila to 
the Pleiades, passing through Aquarius and the southern part of Pisces. 
Since a considerable part of its course lies near the ecliptic, it may interfere 
to an appreciable extent with observation of the Zodiacal Light, and may 
be worth mentioning on this account. ... I have consulted several works 
likely to contain information on similar subjects without finding any notice 
of it, and its presence seems not to have been generally recognized, if at all. 
Other observers here have seen parts of it favourably situated for observation 
at the time when pointed out to them ; but fuller and more independent 
observations are of course required to furnish satisfactory evidence of its 
existence. As I see it, its width is about 5°, and a line drawn along the 
middle of the band will begin between a and S Aquilce, and pass between 
a and /3 Aquarii, nearly through % Aquarii ; thence crossing the ecliptic it 
will pass near 27 Piscium and v Piscium, and will end after recrossing the 
ecliptic in the faint extension of the Milky Way towards the Pleiades. The 
colour of this luminous band seems to me whitish, not yellowish like the 
brighter parts of the Zodiacal Light. ... If other observers should concur 
in my opinions with regard to the existence and course of this luminous 
band, it will be a question of some interest whether telescopic stars are 
unusually abundant along it. This would of course afford the simplest 
explanation of any phenomenon of the kind.’ — Ast. Nach., No. 2358. 
Parallax of a and ft Centauri. — Herr C. W. Moesta has lately carefully 
reduced the great number of observations of these stars made at Santiago, 
in Chili, during the years 1860-1864. From his results he deduces a parallax 
for a 2 Centauri of + 0"*579, and for (3 Centauri of 0"*2096, the difference or 
relative parallax of the stars being 0"*369, which is somewhat less than that 
found from the observations made at the Cape. 
Parallax of the Star Piazzi III. 242. — Nearly twenty years ago attention 
was directed by Otto Struve to the desirability of determining the parallax 
of this star as it forms a wide binary pair with its neighbour, 50 Pjrsei, 
some 15' distant, and is itself a binary double. Dr. Ball has lately taken 
up this investigation, but with disappointing results, as the parallax comes 
out with a very small negative quantity. It is obvious, therefore, that this 
star has no sensible parallax. It would really seem worth ascertaining 
whether its binary neighbour, 50 Persei, also gave a similar result. 
NEW SERIES, VOL. V. NO. XVIII. N 
