Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1854-12-23
COMMUNICATIONS.
LIE WERNER.

Neptune He hos - 49, Nitn Aonofs
rsoeived fsom the scvsies and acsdeaies cf Europe
The object of this paper = briefly his title to
his position.
The discovery Of Neptune resulted from the study Of
the motions Of Uranus The tables of this planet at pre-
sent employed in Of is apparent positions
were composed by M. Bonvard of Paris and published
in the year 1921 In the formation Of these tables Mr
Bonvard wished to combine the ancient observations Of
Flamsteed lie Monnier &c. with the whole series be-
tween l7sl and 1920 and thus produce tie means Of
predicting the future places Of the panst from study
of its mosion through period Of one hundred and tl
wears But in the of this Investigation an NIX
pected diculty encountered He found I'M possi-
BILE to represent the whole Of the observations ancn
ard modern by elliptic orbit even after
tion Of the disturbances due the action cf Jsr and
Saturn as indicated by the formula Of Lapace At the
time there appeared to be satisfactory explanation OF
this discrepancy, and the able astronomer preferred
abandoning altogether the old observations and founding
his tables on the positions from 1871 and 1920, which
could be fairly reconced with an elliptic orbit with
the perturbaons produced by known
planets This curious anomaly excited no further re-
mark among mathematicians for some few years after
the publication of the tables; but in the year 1928
the Cambridge observations Of Uranus showed very
sensible difference between the planets true places and
those calculated from theory The circumstance had
written in November 1884, by the Rev Hussey to Mr.
Airy then Plumian Professor at Cambridge it is stated
that the French astronomer had been led to suspect the
existence Of an exterior planet to Uranus in order to
for the idea which had occurred
to Dr. Hussey himself.
Early in the year lS43 Mr.. Adams, Of st. Johns Col
lege Cambridge, commenced examination of the theo
~ Of Uranus and after satisfying himself that the err
rors of M Bonvards tables coud be ascrbed neither to
oversight calculations to corrections required BY
the pure elliptic elements Of the planets orbit he direct
ed his attention to the probable effect Of more distant
planet and succeeded in obtaining approximate sou
ton Of the problem Of prm5Gtons, in which GER
tain observed disturbances given to find the posi-
tions and path Of the body producing them In this first
solution Mr. Adams assumed that the unseen planet
moved round the Sun in circular orbit at twice the
mean distance Of Uranus and his results were 50 salts
factory as to induce him to enter the subject again.
starting from complete data and working out the
problem without any hypothesis respecting the form OF
the orbit. An application was made to the Astronomer
Royal AIr. Airy, through Professor Chais, for some
quantities furnished by the Greenwich observations Of
Uranus, and in reply the whole hehocenric errors in
latitude and longitude, between 1854 and 1850, were
placed at Mr. Adams's service From these data, and
the ancient observations Of Flamseed he started aesh
and in October, ls45, communicated to Mr.. Airy
the result Of his second and complete Investigation
He remarked that the observed irregularities in the mo-
tons Of Uranus might be explained by supposing the
istence Of more distant planet the mass and orbit Of
which he estimated The Astronomer Royal replied to
his communication on November 9th, 1845, observing
that his estimate was very satisfactory and further in
curing whether the assumed perturbation would explain
the error in the distance of Uranus from the Sum- which
had become very considerable and first pointed out
BY Mr. Airy in 1886. From some accidental cause no
immediate 20 this query was sent; but Mr. Airy
states that, had he received affirmative reply, he
should at once have exefted all the influence he might
possess to procure the publication Of Mr. Adamss theory
As it happened, 1t was not printed until
sfter this time.
In the summer Of 1916 lie Verrier turned his attention
to the onomalous Of Uranus being entirely g
aorart Of the already Mr. Adams
In he Complies Rendus" Of the Institute of Paris for
November TO- lS45 appeared memoir by him upon the
theory Uranus regards the perturbatons produced
by Jupiter and Saturn He determined the precise ef
ects to be attributed the action Of each of these bodies
and after carefully comparing his new theory with the
observations ancient we'll modern he announced
Is the principal result Of his investigation that the ano
uaes in the motion of Uranus could not be explained on
he principles of gravtation without admitting the ex
stence of some extraneous influence. Such extrane
US influence was, he satisfied himself, that Of new
Tin distance outside Of the orbit Of Uranus. The cacu
ions Of lie Verrier given fully in two subse
uent numbers of the Complies Rendus those for the
it Of June and the s1st Of August, 1885, and the
sening Of the 23d Of September following DR.. Gale,
1.-THE astronomers Of the Royal Observatory at Berlin
lvng received request from lie verrier to direct his
tesoOpe to specified point Of the heavens diseOvsred
neO planet.
We offer here few words with reference to the credit
pich is due Mr. Adams for his cpherg after the dis
very thus brought about through lie verrer Arago,
b countryman and in the foster-father Of
Iverrier, says. touching the same:
.Mr Adams has no right to figure in the history Of
discovery Of the planet, not even to the extent
6he slightest allusion."
he did not employ phrase not overpolished,
h the best possible to express meaning, ha right
nose with the real visible planet ITSELF nevertheless,
there was an award Of merit to be made at oil on
cn Of its discovery, it for that and nothing be-
ass, which Mr.. Adams accomplished. His particular
fortunc seems to been that his advisers met the
of his efforts with doubts Of their success,
that he did not enter into them with the zeal and
mptitude Of lie yerrer, who, the contrary not