Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1878-07-30
SOLAR ECLIPSE.
The Eclipse OF the SIM Yesterday At
fernOon-What tT Was and What
are it's Uses 40 the People
of Earth.
Memphis net being in or naar the Path
OF Totally, the sun appeared
Only Partially k;ciipscd-
Our Astronomer Takes
Observations.

Yesterday afternoon the sur and moon We're
IN con junction and an ec!Ip>- ,sultsd Solar
ecipseS like that OF yesterday are caused 10y
the earth's passing into the shadow Of the
moon, and, Of course, Occur only 1t new
moon, and when the moon Is nearly III the
plane of the elliptic. The elliptic Is the ap-
parent path of the sun, Or real path OF The
earth as seen from the sun. As the moon =
much smaller than the sun, lis shadow run
rapidly to Il point, and never covers more
than a small portion OF the earth, hence the
phenomenon OF a total eclipse is very rareS n
seen. Olive Branch and Lake Charles. l.
isiana, were In the path u totIlty, as W.
also the following points IN leXa@: Decatur,
JdckSOnbOro, Fort Richardson, Melissa, Mes
quite and Terrli. 4 number of stations IN
Texas were near the partia! path OF totallty,
as were also Shreveport, BGtOn Rouge, New
Orleans, etc. ~ the cone Of the moon :
shadow is surrounded by 4 larger Inverted
cone OF penumbra, i.e. OF space N which the
moon lntercept5 part OF the light, the op-
portunitles Of seeing partial eclipse Of the
sun are frequent. The instant OF entering
the penumbra is sharply defined by an APP
parent indentation IN the limb OF the sun,
and that of entering the shadow bC tde total
disappearance of the sun. It sometimes hap
pens that the moon Is too far from
the earth 10 allow her shadow to reach rs. IN
which case persons III the center OF the Pc
the months is called an eclipse. Solar
eclpses afford the means of testing our cacu
latlOEs OF the moon s motions and OF deter
mining the longitude of PLACES ii the earth,
the beginning and ending OF The partial or OF
the total echpses, and the distance apart OF
the ends OF the Indelt3tion of the sun
limb, all may be calculated and observed
with accuracy, and the observations are Of
great use III correcting the assumed Data Of
the calculations Of the moons motions and
the longitude OF the places OF oUServ ton.
Total echpses also afford many opportunities
for many interesting observations on physical
phenomena, and on the emotions OF the anu
nal tribes, the most singular optical elf ct be-
ing the occasional issuing of rCSe-cpiOred
flames from The sun during the total ec!ipsa.
The word eclipse Is from the Greek word
ekleipSiS, meaning failure. or the Interruption
OF light from one heavenly body by the inter-
ventIOn OF another. Our own astronomer
took Il few notes while the phenomena was
progressing yesterday afternoon. The hour
OF contact, or the instant Of entering the pc
numbra, was at ten minutes after three
0 clock, and in the northwest limb OF the sun.
The sun was one-fourth shaded at ftty-fve
minutes past three clock, 0ne-haif shaded
at twenty minutes past four O'Clock,
three-fourths shaded at torty-flus minutes
past four O'Clock, and at half past four the
shadow commenced decreasing and moving
limb OF the sun was not shaded during The
eclipse, it presenting il size the appearance
of new moon. A twenty minutes to SIX
the shadow passed away, aud the eclipse was
over. at least so it appeared Though the
clouds, which at that time f0ated and missed
between the earth and the sun, and at last
closed out from view both the sun and the
moon. 1t was only partial eclipse so far as
Memphis was concerned. Memphis being
only somewhat near 10 the path OF totality.
1t was an attractive sight, however, and was
witnessed by thousands of people. Opera
glasses, telescopes, looking-glasses, and
smoked glass were used il observing the
phenomenon The small boy wed
with the oldest inhabtSnt In taking
his observations and commenting thereon.
Faces were On the turn up, not only here, but
elsewhere, and for the time being men forgot
10 look down at Mother Ealtb, as they had
been doing for some time past. seek
ing the gold which WAS dug from her bosom
by toll, or won FROM her grasp by specula-
ton. Men took more elevated yiew OF
things celestial, and things terrestrial! were
forgotten, but when the eclipse passed away
eyes were cast down again, and the search for
money or fame became again the predomI-
mating idea. Gbe only phenomenon to lie
visible this year is as follows: A partial
eclipse of the moon August 18th III the even
ing, size, seven and fifteen one hundredth
digets. The moon will rise more OF less
eclipsed, east of Kansas, west Of which no
eclipse will be visible.