Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1850-09-21
THE PLANETARY SYSTEM.

AT the late meeting in Edinburgh, Of the British
Association for the advancement of Science, Sir
DAVID BREWSTER, the President, in the course Of
his Introductory remarks, said:
"Whin the bounds of our system, and in the vcini
of our EARTH between the orbits OF Mars and JUPITER
there wide space which, according 70 ,he law o. inc
planetary distances, ought to contain planet heplel
predicted that planet would be found hee and strange
say the Of times discovered at the begin
ming Of the present century four small planets Ceres Palas
Juno, and Vests, occupying the very place in our system
where the anticipated planet ought to have been found
Ceres the of these discovered by Piazza, at Paler
mo- in 1901 Palas the second Of them, by Dr. Oilers, OF
Bremen, in 1902; Juno the third by Mr. Harding in 1904
and Vesta the fourth, BY Dr. olbes In lso1; Aher the
discovery Of the third Dr. Oilers suggested the idea that
they the fragments Of planet that had been burst in
pieces and considering that they must all have dverged from
point the original orbit and ought to return TO the OPP
poe point he examined these parts OF the and
discovered the planet Vesa But though this principle
in the possession of astronomers nearly forty years elapsed
before any other planetary fragment discovered AT
in ls45 Mr. Heneke Of Dresden in Prussia discovered the
fragment called Asrea, and, in ls47 another called Hebe
In the year countyman, Mr.. Hind, discovered the
other two Iris and Flora. In lS4s, Mr. Graham, an irish
man, discovered ninth fragment called Mets In lS49,
Mr. Gaspas of Naples, discovered another which he cas
Hyge and within the last two months the same astronomer
has discovered the eleventh fragment to which ne has given
the name of Parthenope If these eleven small planets
really the remains of larger one the size Of the original
planet must have been considerable What its size
would to be problem beyond Inc grasp OF reason
But human genius has been permitted to triumph greater
difficulties. The planet Neptune discovered before
raw of its light had entered the human eyes and by law
Of the solar system just discovered determine the
original magnitude Of the broken planet long after had
been shivered fragments and might have determined
even after single fragment had proved its existence This
law we owe Dan. Khkwocd, of Pottsville, humble
Americana who, like the iustrious Keper, struggled find
something among the arhmecs relations of the planet
airy Between every adjacent planets there is
point where their attractions equal call the dis
Of this point from the the radius Of planets
sphere of attraction, then Mr.. Kkwoods law is, that in
every planet the square of the length Of its year. eckoped
in days. varies the cube Of the radius Of its sphere Of
traction This law has been verified by than one
American astronomer, and there be Doubt Of
them expresses it. that it is at least physical fact in the
mechanism Of system This law requires the existence
Of planet between Mars and Juper and it follows from
the law that the broken planet have been little larger
than Mars about miles in diameter and that the length
of its day must have been about 673 hours The Aneri
can astronomers regard this law amounting demon
sraon Of the nebua hypothesis Of Lapsce but
say that this opinion will be adopted by the
Of England. Among the discoveries with
in the bounds of system, cannot omit mention
those of distinguished counyman Mr. Lasses of Liver
pool. BY of fine twenty feet reflector constructed
by himself he detected the satellite Of Neptune, and
recently eighth satellite circulating round Saturn-a dis
covey which made the very day by Mr. Bond,
director Of the Observatory of Cambridge in the United
States"