The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1860-02-03
The Heavens. Beauties of the Skies
at the Present Time.

The Heavens Beauties of the Skies
at the Present Time.
The New York Century for this week
has an instructive article on "The Heavens"
from which we condense the following:
For several months the evening sky, save
when it was lighted up by the moon. DOS
sessed unusually little interest to the observer.
Only two or three stars of the first magnitude
and but small sprinklipg of the second,
were visible, their planetary neighbors
having been apparently frightened by q
panic off the great Celestial Change. At
present it is very different. confidence
has revived" and no fewer than half dozen
of these bodies, independent of the sun and
moon, are within view during some portion
of the night; while the finest consultations
that adorn the celestial vault appear in the
eastern sky. No other section of the
Heavens present so magnificent a spectacle
as that which now comes into view between
the hours of five and nine o'clock in the
evening.
Shortly after sunset Venus, the goddess of
beauty, is seen in the west, having recently
emerged from the suns rays while Jupiter,
king of the gods, displays his serene visage
on the eastern horizon. Saturn, on account
of his venerable age, we presume, is more
dilatory in rising but little past eight,
has become next to Jupiter, the most
conspicuous object in the orient. Uranus
precedes both the last, but is too indistinct
to be readily detected by the naked eye,
surrounded as it is with such attractive
objects in the constellation Taurus. The
fiery countenance of Mars can only be seen
after three o'clock A. NJ, and that of
Mercury not until three hours later, being
the suns last visible precursor In few
days it will have disappeared from view
altogether.
The first named of those planets (Venus)
is now in the constellation Aquarius,
between twenty-five and thirty degrees east
of the sun. Its distance from the earth is
about one hundred and fifty millions of
miles. When at its superior conjunction, or
on the opposite side of the sun, as it was on
the 9th of September last, its distance from
US was thirteen millions of miles greater
but since then it has been gradually APP
preaching, and will continue to move in this
direction until next July, when it will be
only twenty seven millions distant.
Jupiter is about eight degrees east of the
bright star Pollux, in Gemini, and appar
rently travelling towards the west among
the fixed stars Within three months it has
moved between two and three degrees in
this direction, and it will so continue nearly
as much longer.
Jupiter is now nearly in opposition with
the sun, and therefore one hundred and ninety
millions of miles nearer us than it will be
at its CONJUNCTION, six months hence.
Saturn is now in the constellation Leo,
about three degrees to the northwest of the
bright star Regulus, towards which it has
been travelling until lately. Its distance is
fully twice as great as that of Jupiter, but
will decrease slightly for the next two
months.
Mars may be observed rising shortly after
three o'clock in the morning, to the south of
east. 1t is at present within the four stars
forming the constellation Libra, nearly two
degrees east of the star Zubenesch. Its east
ward course will continue some time longer.
Mercury, as we write, is about twenty
degrees west of the sun; but will gain a
little on this, and afterwards rapidly recede
and disappear. Owing to its proximity to
the sun and the length of the twilight, it is
difficult to catch a glimpse of this planet
with the naked eye in Central and Northern
Europe. There is no difficulty here in
seeing it, when at the point of greatest
elongation, which occurs six or seven times
year. Its light is less brilliant than that
of Venus but very beautiful, and sufficient
to distinguish the planet from any of the
fixed stars.