Delaware gazette and state journal., 1884-03-06
URANOLoaY FOR MARCH,

The astronomical editor is happy to assure
his readers that spring Ia near at hand. On
the 18th Of March, at midnight the Sun
enters the sign Aries-crossing the line Of
demarcation between spring and winter. After
that date, no matter how frosty the blasts
nor how frequent the snow squalls, we can
console ourselves with the reflection that the
days are vernal in the calendar, whether they
be 80 or not in character.
Star gazers should notice, however that
the sign Aries does not now correspond nth
the constellation Aries. twenty-five hum
dred years have rolled away since the sign
and constellation conceded, and that difficult
movement to explain-the procession Qt
should be termed ''recession'0 of the eqtli-
noxes-has carried the sign back, through the
constellation Pisces, to the eastern border of
Aquarius. This recession is going on at the
rate OF some 90 seconds per year, and will
continue to do 80 until IL equinoctial points
have swung clear through the zodiac back to
their starting point, which will be some
22 75O years from now.
On the Goth of March there will be an
eclipse OF the Sun, invisible here but visible
in northern Europe. We shall not miss
much, however, ,as the eclipse will be a triillng
one, covering only one eseventh of the solar
diameter. There will be two more partial
eclipses OF the Sun during the year, neither Of
which will be visible in this country.
The phases OF the Moon during March,
corrected to 18th meridian time, are az fol-
lows First quarter, Sd, ooh, 32m.; full
Moon, lid, 2h., 40m.; last quarter, l9d.,
6h., 13m.; new Moon, 26d.. 12h, AIM. None
OF the conjunctions or occultations in which
the Moon figures during the month possess
special interest the conjunctions are all
rather too distant to be striking, with the
exception OF those with Neptune, which are
invisible in this latitude while the stars
occulted by the Moon are OF minor inn
portance.
Mercury, the nearest of the planets to the
Sun, will keep too close to that luminary
| during the month to be visible. He is now a
morning planet but will pass superior con-
| junction on the 30th and become an evening
| planet thereafter until MAY 18th.
The four most brilliant of the planets
| Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn-are still
| excellently placed in the evening sky and
| are simultaneously visible during the earlier
| hours of the night. Venus looms up i'll the
| west soon after the Sun has sun k TO rest
being the harblnger Of the starry host, shining
iii serene splendor before any other planet or
| star can be seen. Viewed through a telescope
in the early twilight, before her glowing
brilliancy il strong enough to obscure her out
| lines, he now shows gibbous figure approach
| ing to the shape of half moon, which she will
| reach at her greatest eastern elongation in
| May. From now on until the first week of
June she will continue to increase in bright
| utrh uulll NJ uGE Dtst hUt Will give tIhll
twice the light she does at present. At 9.0S
p m. on the 9th of March Venus will be at
her nearest approach to Neptune the latter
planet being 31l to the southwark, and the
star Delta Arietls about to the northward
On the closing night Of March Venus will be
near the Pleades.
Nearly in line drawn frem Venus across
the heavens to the eastward are Saturn,
Jupiter and Mars, in the order named, The
majority OF the first magnitude stars. Sirius,
Aldebarsn, Rigel, Betelguese, Capella and
Procyon, are also visible at the same time.
The three planets named Saturn, Jupiter and
Mars have passed opposition and are reced-
ing from us, but are still very inter
esting in the telescope Saturn in
particular has attracted the attention OF
astronomers during the past few weeks by the
formation Of a narrow dark belt on his disc,
which can be seen i'll u comparatively small
telescope A great deal of nonsense has beer
written about Saturn and Jupiter being
worlds In process Of evolution the anti.cre
ationlsts have rung the changes on that WORD
evolution until they have made it almost
odiousi but the simple truth is that this is al
sur mise. The spectroscope has told lis a little
about the outer envelopes of these giAn
planets but, for aught we know, there ma,
/ exist, thousands OF miles within those
: encompassing gaseous folds earths as vel
adapted for the abiding place of human
beings as the world we inhabit. Upon tn,
same principle Of jumping at conclusion
there are many astronomers who neve
1 neglect an opportunity to point to the mooi
as "a dead world" hung up in the sky as
warning Of the fate ill store for us
and this in the teeth Of the fact that We neye
see but one side OF the Moon and canno
know to a certainty that the portion we do sc
is devoid OF life. The Investigations of receu
years tend 70 establish the existence OF som
q kind OF atmosphere there; very rare one
is true, but the people Of the Earth have n
9 just grounds for measuring the requirement
n Of the lungs Of the possible inhabitants {
: the Moon by their standard.
4 Uranus will be in opposition to the Sun o
' March 10th and may soon be family yisib
to the unaided eye OF the star gazer VIII
: knows exactly where to look for him.
requires however, not only sharp but
trained eye for such a test.