Chapter 4

+-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | | | | | Other Dates | | | Name of Shower | Date | Radiant Point |Characteristics| of |Location| | | | | | Observation | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | | | Between Great | | | | | Ursids |Oct. 4 | Bear's head and | Sw. Sk. | Aug. 20-24 | N. | | | | Polaris | | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ |Epsilon Arietids | | East of Hamal, | | Oct. 11-24, | | | Rich shower |Oct. 14| near Musca | M. Sw. | Oct. 30- | E. | | 1877 | | | | Nov. 4 | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | Orionids |Oct. 18| Near Alhena in | After 11 P.M. | Oct. 16-22 | E. | | Fine shower | | Gemini | Sw. Sk. | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | | | Near Castor and | After 10 P.M. | Nov. 7, | | | Delta Geminids |Oct. 29| Pollux | v. Sw. Sk. | Dec. 4, | N.E. | | | | | | Oct. 16-22 | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ |(e) Taurids. Rich|Nov. 2 | About 13[deg] | Sl. B.T. | Nov. 2-3 | E. | | shower in 1886 | |S.E. of Aldebaran| | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | Leonids | |Near ([g]) Leonis|After midnight.| | | |Brilliant shower |Nov. 13| In the Sickle | v. Sw. | Nov. 12-14 | N.E. | | | | | Sk. | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | | |Near ([m]) Ursae | After 10 P.M. | Sept. 15, | | | Leo Minorids |Nov. 16| Maj., the Great | v. Sw. Sk. | Oct. 16 | N. | | | |Bear's hind feet | | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | Andromedids. | | Near ([g]) | | Nov. 17-23 | | | The Bielids. |Nov. 27| Andromedae | Sl. T. | Nov. 21-28 |Overhead| | Fine display | | | | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | |Nov. 30|Between Capella | | Aug. 16 | | | Taurids | |and ([a]) Persei | V. Sw. | Sept. 15, |Overhead| | | | | | Nov. 20 | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | Zeta Taurids. |Dec. 6 | Near the horns | | | | | Active shower | | of the Bull | Sl. B. | | E. | | in 1876 | | | | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | Geminids. |Dec. 10| Near Castor | Sw. | Dec. 1-14 | E. | | Fine shower | | | | | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | Kappa Draconids |Dec. 22| Near Thuban | Sw. Sk. | Nov. 14-23 | | | | | ([a]) Draconis | | Dec. 18-29 | | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+ | Fire Ball Dates | | | | Nov. 29 | | | | | | |Dec. 2, 19, 21| | +-----------------+-------+-----------------+---------------+--------------+--------+

The Andromedes are usually red, sluggish in their movements, and leave only a small train.

Brilliant displays were seen in 1872 and 1885.

The Leonids are characterized by their exceedingly swift flight. They are of a greenish or bluish tint and leave behind them a vivid and persistent train. In most years the display is not especially noteworthy. Once in thirty-three years they afford an exhibition grand beyond description as in 1833 and 1866.

THE CONSTELLATIONS OF WINTER.

TAURUS (t[^a]'-rus)--THE BULL. (Face Southwest.)

LOCATION.--Taurus contains the well-known and unmistakable group the Pleiades, on the right shoulder of the Bull. A "V" shaped group known as the Hyades is just to the southeast of the Pleiades, in the face of the Bull, forming one of the most beautiful objects in the sky.

The brightest star in Taurus is Aldebaran, a ruddy-hued star known as "The Follower." It is at the beginning of the "V" in the Hyades, and is at the apex of a triangle formed by Capella, in Auriga, and [a] Persei, and equally distant from them both.

The star [b] called Nath, is peculiarly white, and is common to Taurus and Auriga. It represents the tip of one of the Bull's horns, and the right foot of the Charioteer. The Pleiades are mentioned in Chinese annals in 2357 B.C. On a photograph of the group over 2000 stars have been counted.

The ecliptic passes a little south of a point midway between the two horns, where a scattered and broken stream of minute stars can be seen.

Note two pretty pairs in the Hyades, one south of Aldebaran, the other northwest of it.

There are rich clusters below the tip of the horn over Orion's head.

Taurus was an important object of worship by the Druids.

Aldebaran is near one eye of the Bull, and used to be called "The Bull's Eye." An occultation of it by the moon, which not infrequently occurs, is a striking phenomenon.

The Eskimos regard the Pleiades as a team of dogs in pursuit of a bear. The group is receding from us at the rate of thirteen miles a second and has a common eastward motion of about ten seconds a century.

ORION ([)o]-r[=i]'-on)--THE GIANT HUNTER. (Face South.)

LOCATION.--Orion is considered the finest constellation in the heavens. A line drawn from Nath to [z] Tauri (the tips of the Bull's horns), and extended 15[deg], strikes the brilliant Betelgeuze in Orion, known as the martial star. It forms the northeast corner of a conspicuous parallelogram. The splendid first-magnitude star Rigel is diagonally opposite Betelgeuze, and the girdle and sword of the Hunter lie within the parallelogram, a very striking group. The former is represented by three bright stars in a line 3[deg] long known as the "Three Stars," because there are no other stars in the heavens that exactly resemble them in position and brightness.

In the sword there is the most remarkable nebula in the heavens. It may be seen with an opera-glass and in a telescope it is a wonderful sight. Bellatrix is called the Amazon star. Note the contrasting colours of [a] and [b].

About 9[deg] west of Bellatrix are eight stars in a curved line running north and south. These point out the Lion's skin held in the Hunter's left hand.

Below [l] there are two stars forming a triangle with it. Flammarion calls this region the California of the sky.

The celestial equator passes nearly through [d].

Orion was worshipped in China during the one thousand years before our era, and was known to the Chinese as the "White Tiger."

The Eskimos see in the Belt stars the three steps cut by some celestial Eskimo in a steep snow bank to enable him to reach the top.

LEPUS (l[=e]'-pus)--THE HARE. (Face South.)

LOCATION.--Lepus crouches under Orion's feet. Four stars in the constellation form an irregular and conspicuous quadrilateral.

[g] is a beautiful double of a greenish hue.

Four or five degrees south of Rigel are four faint stars which are in the ear of the hare. They can be seen on a clear night with the naked eye.

The curved line of three stars [th], [[^e]], and [z], are in the back of the hare.

Lepus is about 18[deg] west of Canis Major, and, by reason of the earth's motion, the Great Dog seems to be pursuing the Hare around the heavens.

The first-magnitude stars that are visible in the winter season in this latitude present a fine contrast in color. Even the untrained eye can see a decided difference between the bluish white color of the brilliant Sirius, the Dog star that the Belt stars point south to, and Rigel, and the ruddy Betelgeuze. Procyon has a yellowish tinge and resembles the condition of our sun, while Betelgeuze is surrounded by heavy metallic vapors and is thought to be approaching extinction.

R marks the location of "Hind's crimson star," a famous variable.

COLUMBA NOACHI (co-lum'-b[:a] n[=o]-[:a]'-ki)--NOAH'S DOVE. (Face South.)

LOCATION.--Columba is situated just south of Lepus. A line drawn from Rigel, in Orion, to [b] Leporis, and prolonged as far again, ends near [a] and [b], the two brightest stars in Columba.

A line drawn from the easternmost star in the belt of Orion, 32[deg] directly south, will point out Phaet, in Columba. It makes with Sirius, in Canis Major, and Naos, in the Ship, a large equilateral triangle.

The star [b] Columbae may be known by means of a smaller star just east of it, marked [g].

The Chinese call [a] Chang Jin, the old Folks. Lockyer thinks it was of importance in Egyptian temple worship, and observed from Edfu and Philae as far back as 6400 B.C.

On a clear starlight night there are not more than a thousand stars visible to the naked eye at one time. The largest telescope reveals nearly a hundred million.

CANIS MAJOR (k[=a]'-nis m[=a]-jor)--THE GREATER DOG. (Face South.)

LOCATION.--The three stars in Orion's girdle point southeast to Sirius, the dog star, in Canis Major, the most brilliant star in the heavens. It was connected in the minds of the Egyptians with the rising of the Nile, and is receding from the earth at the rate of twenty miles a second.

The star [n] is a triple. The cluster (41 M.) can be seen with an opera-glass, just below it.

Between [d] and [o]^1 note a remarkable array of minute stars, also the very red star 22.

[d] and [z] are doubles for an opera-glass.

Below [[^e]] there is a fine group.

Betelgeuze, in Orion, Procyon, in Canis Minor, and Sirius form a nearly equilateral triangle. These stars with Naos, in the Ship, and Phaet, in the Dove, form a huge figure known as the Egyptian "X."

From earliest times Sirius has been known as the Dog of Orion. It is 324 times brighter than the average sixth-magnitude star, and is the nearest to the earth of all the stars in this latitude, its distance being 8.7 light years. At this distance the Sun would appear as a star a little brighter than the Pole Star.

ARGO NAVIS ([:a]r'-go n[=a]'-vis)--THE SHIP ARGO. (Face South.)

LOCATION.--Argo is situated southeast of Canis Major. If a line joining Betelgeuze and Sirius be prolonged 18[deg] southeast, it will point out Naos, a star of the second magnitude in the rowlock of the Ship. This star is in the southeast corner of the Egyptian "X."

The star [p] is of a deep yellow or orange hue. It has three little stars above it, two of which form a pretty pair.

The star [z] has a companion, which is a test for an opera-glass.

The star [k] is a double for an opera-glass.

Note the fine star cluster (46 M.).

The star Markeb forms a small triangle with two other stars near it.

The Egyptians believed that this was the ark that bore Osiris and Isis over the Deluge.

The constellation contains two noted objects invisible in this latitude, Canopus, the second brightest star, and the remarkable variable star [[^e]].

MONOCEROS (m[=o]-nos'-e-ros)--THE UNICORN. (Face South.)

LOCATION.--Monoceros is to be found east of Orion between Canis Major and Canis Minor. Three of its stars of the fourth magnitude form a straight line northeast and southwest, about 9[deg] east of Betelgeuze, and about the same distance south of Alhena, in Gemini.

The region around the stars 8, 13, 17 is particularly rich when viewed with an opera-glass.

Note also a beautiful field about the variable S, and a cluster about midway between [a] and [b].

Two stars about 7[deg] apart in the tail of the Unicorn are pointer stars to Procyon. These stars are known as 30 and 31. The former is about 16[deg] east of Procyon, and is easily identified as it has a sixth-magnitude star on either side of it. About 4[deg] southwest of this star a good field-glass will reveal a beautiful star cluster.

ERIDANUS ([=e]-rid'-a-nus)--OR THE RIVER PO. (Face Southwest.)

LOCATION.--Three degrees north and 2[deg] west of Rigel, in Orion, lies [b] Eridani, the source of the River. Thence it flows west till it reaches [p] Ceti, then drops south 5[deg], thence east southeast, its total length being about 130[deg].

The great curve the River takes, just east of the Whale, resembles a horseshoe.

Acherna, the first-magnitude star in Eridanus, is too far south to be seen in this latitude.

Note the pretty star group around [b] and a pair of stars of an orange hue below [n].

The asterism known as "The Brandenburg Sceptre," consisting of four stars of the fourth and fifth magnitudes, can be seen arranged in a straight line north and south below the first bend in the River just west of Lepus.

METEORIC SHOWERS.

JANUARY TO APRIL.

+---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | | | | | Other Dates | | |Name of Shower | Date | Radiant Point |Characteristics| of |Location | | | | | | Observation | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | Quadrantids. | Jan. 2 | (44) Bo[:o]tis, | | | | | Rich annual | |between Bo[:o]tes | M. Sw. B. | Jan 3. | E. | | shower | | and Dragon's head| | | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | Zeta Cancrids |Jan. 2-4| ([z]) Cancri, | | | E. | | | | near Bee Hive | | | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | Theta Ursids | Jan. 5 |About 10[deg] from| Small | | | | | |[b] away from [g] | Sh. Sw. F. | Jan. 2-8 | N. | | | | Ursae Maj. | | | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ |Alpha Draconids| Feb. 1 | Near Thuban | Sl. | Jan. 9 | N. | | | | [a] Draconis | | Dec. 8 | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | | | Near Capella | | Aug. 21 |High in | |Alpha Aurigids | Feb. 7 | [a] Aurigae | Sl. | Sept. 12-22 |Southern | | | | | | | Sky | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | Tau Leonids |Feb. 16 | [t] Leonis, | | Nov. 27 | | | | | between Leo | Sl. Sk. | Dec. 12 | E. | | | | and Crater | | Mar. 1-4 | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | Alpha Canum |Feb. 20 | Near Cor Caroli | | | | | Ven. Well | | and Coma | V. Sw. B. | | E. | | defined 1877 | | Berenices | | | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | [a]-[b] |Mar. 1 | Between [a] | V. Sl. | July--Dec. | N.W. | | Perseids | | and [b] Persei | | Mar. 13-19 | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ |Beta Leonids or|Mar. 14 | Near Denebola | Sl. B. | Mar. 3, 4 | S.E. | |Beta Virginids | | [b] Leonis | | Dec. 12 | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ |Kappa Cepheids |Mar. 18 | Near Polaris | Sl. B. | Oct. 4-17 | N. | | | | | | Mar. 13-19 | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ | | | | | Apr. 10-16 | | | Beta Ursids |Mar. 24 | Near [b] | Sw. | Mar. 13-14 | N. | | | | Ursae Maj. | | Dec. 2-9 | | | | | | | Precise | | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+ |Zeta Draconids |Mar. 28 | Near the | Sl. | July 29 | N. | | | | Dragon's Head | |Aug. 24, etc.| | +---------------+--------+------------------+---------------+-------------+----------+

The Abbreviations under _Characteristics_ are as follows:

V. Very Sh. Short M. Moderately B. Bright Sw. Swift F. Faint Sl. Slow Sk. Streak leaving meteors T. Train leaving meteors

If you know the constellations, and memorize the following rhyme you will have ever at hand for reference at night, a reliable time-piece, a compass, and a perpetual calendar.

The numbers above the star names indicate consecutively the months of the year in which these respective objects rise about the first instant in the eastern sky. In addition to first-magnitude stars the rhyme refers to the head of Capricornus, the Sea Goat, the Great Square of Pegasus, and Orion's Belt. All except Arcturus rise between 9 and 9.30 P.M. Arcturus rises at 10 P.M., February 1st.

1 First Regulus gleams on the view, 2 3 4 Arcturus, Spica, Vega, blue, 5 6 Antares, and Altair, 7 8 9 The Goat's head, Square, and Fomalhaut, 10 11 Aldebaran, the Belt, a-glow, 12 Then Sirius most fair.

Eight months of the year are identified by the position of the Dipper at 9 P.M. In April and May it is north of the zenith. During July and August it is west of north. In October and November it lies close to the northern horizon and in January and February it is east of north with the pointers highest.

THE PLANETS.

It is not within the scope of this work to dwell at length on a discussion of the planets. Certain explanatory matter regarding them is necessary, however, to prevent confusion; for the student must bear in mind the fact that from time to time the planets appear in the constellations, and unless identified would lead him to think that the diagrams were inaccurate.

The reader is referred to any one of the four large plates that precede each season. He will observe that a portion of an ellipse has been traced on each of them, and that this line has been designated the Ecliptic, which simply means the sun's apparent pathway across the sky.

This pathway is divided into twelve equal parts of thirty degrees each, and to these twelve divisions are given the names of the constellations of the Zodiac in the following order: Aries ([Symbol: Aries]), Taurus ([Symbol: Taurus]), Gemini ([Symbol: Gemini]), Cancer ([Symbol: Cancer]), Leo ([Symbol: Leo]), Virgo ([Symbol: Virgo]), Libra ([Symbol: Libra]), Scorpio ([Symbol: Scorpio]), Sagittarius ([Symbol: Sagittarius]), Capricornus ([Symbol: Capricornus]), Aquarius ([Symbol: Aquarius]), Pisces ([Symbol: Pisces]).

The sun, starting from the first degree of Aries, the first day of spring, passes through one constellation a month. The planets follow the same pathway.

Confusion, therefore, respecting their identity can only arise in connection with a study of one of the twelve constellations named above, so that whenever a star of any size is seen in one of these constellations, not accounted for in the diagram, the student may conclude that this is a planet; especially if the unknown star does not twinkle. It now remains to identify the planet.

This can best be done by referring to an almanac, which states what planets are above the horizon, and which are morning and evening stars. By morning star is meant that the planet is east of the sun; by evening star, that it is west of the sun.

If the planet is in the west, and very brilliant, it is safe to assume that it is the planet Venus.

If it is brighter than any of the fixed stars, and is some distance from the sun, it is doubtless the colossal Jupiter.

If it is very red, it will probably be Mars.

Saturn is distinguished because of its pale, steady, yellow light.

As for Mercury, Uranus, and Neptune, the former is very near the sun, and seldom seen; while Uranus and Neptune are so inconspicuous as to lead to no confusion on the part of the novice.

A few notes of interest relative to the planets follow, taking them up in regular order passing outward from the sun: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.

MERCURY.

Mercury is the nearest to the sun of any of the planets. On this account, and because of its rapid changes, it is seldom seen.

The most favorable time for observing it is just after sunset, or just before sunrise, during the months of March, April, August, and September, when it may be seen for a few successive days.

The greatest distance it ever departs from the sun on either side varies approximately from sixteen to twenty-eight degrees. Its motion resembles a pendulum, swinging from one side of the sun to the other.

VENUS.

Venus approaches nearer to the earth and is more brilliant than any other planet. It is bright enough to cast a shadow at night, and is sometimes visible even at noonday. It is almost as large as the earth, and appears to oscillate, as Mercury does, on either side of the sun.

It never appears more than three hours after sunset, and as long before the sunrise, and is never more than forty-eight degrees from the sun.

MARS.

Mars is most like the earth of any of the planets, and, although not as interesting an object to view as the more brilliant planets, Venus and Jupiter, it claims our attention chiefly because of the surmises respecting its habitability.