The Portland daily press., 1880-12-06

1t to be visible in the sky In the superb form
in which the telescope reveals 1T that every.
one who looked upward tn the heaven cou Id
enjoy the peerless planetary view, which Is
now completely hidden from far the greater
portion OF the world. Jupiter and Saturn
change little in their position as regards each
other during the month. Saturn is about thr Q
degrees north of Jupiter and sets an hour latt +.
DE sets now at o'clock in the morning, at the
end of the month at l O'Clock.
Mars is morning star, and getting far enough
from the sun to be of some interest. lie is in
conjunction with Mercury on the 23d, being
about degree south of him and helping to
point out his position. Mars rises then about
an hour and a half before the sun, and may be
easily known by his red color. The planetary
picture will be worth getting up an hour be-
fore sunrise to see. Mars now rises about a
quarter after O'Clock; at the end of the month
about 6.
Uranus is morning star, and, exactly the re-
verse of Jupiter and Saturn, is moving from
conjunction to opposition. He reaches his
quadrature or halfway point on the 5th. when
ne will be on the meridian at O'clock in the
morning He, like Saturn and Neptune, is
speeding on toward perihelion, which he will
reach In 1882, some time ahead of his brother
planets. He rises now about midnight; at the
end of the month about 10.
Mercury is morning star throughout the
MONTH He reaches his greatest western elOn-
CATION on the 18th When he is in the last of the
three favorable positions for observation DUR
ing the year. For a week before and after the
l2th he may be looked for an hour before sun
set, five degrees north of the point where the
sun will appear. Mercury rises now about a
quarter before 6 O'Clock; at the end of the
month al out half-past 6.
The December moon is an important mem
her OF the planetary fraternity. There are
two new moons, one on the 1St and one on the
5lst On both occasions. as the moon passes
h-fW fhn and anrfh hos n.
nearly in the plane of our orbit that she causes
partial eclipse of the sun. She is, therefore,
he cause of our having two solar eclipses in
one month. The eclipse of the 1st is invisible
in the United States. That of the 31st is par
TALLY visible. The sun will rise eclpsed, and
the eclpseiwill end soon ter O'Clock, little
more than seven-tenths Of the suns disc being
hidden at the time of the greatest observation;
the last morning of the year will therefore be a
dark one. The new mo)n of the 1st will be
IN conjuction with Venus on the 4tb crescent
and evening star forming celestial picture to
which every STAR gazer will pay an involuntary
tribute of admiration. On the 10th her path
lies near Jupiter; on the l1th, near Saturn.
The moon fulls on the 10th, and passes near
Uranus on the 23d. The waning moon on the
morning of the 29th passes within twenty
seven minutes of Mars. and on the 3Otn within
thirteen minutes of Mercury.
Thus the ever-changing aspects of the plan
cts present new combinations to reward the OBJ
server who makes study OF their movements
during the month of December. The sane
,onfiguration which tonight rewards our gaze.
will never be repeated during our mortal lives.
Few are the observers who behold revolution
of Uranus, and no person now living, will ever
see the Year when Neptune shall complete the
first round since his discovery. Some of the
points to be noticed are the lessening distance
between Jupiter aud Venus, the Visibility of
Mercury as morning star about the 18th, the
charr ing picture which the moons slender
crescent and the fairest of the stars present on
The evening of the 4th, and the somewhat un-
usual advent of two new moons in the same
month, which has not before occurred during
the year.
The eclipse of the sun on the 31st can be
watched by any one who commands view of
he piece of sky where the sun rises. and a
piece Of smoked glass is all that is required to
watch the progress of the grand phenomenon
in which the moon dares to obscure the ace of
the glorious king of day.