Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1885-02-05

Venus continues morning planet until
May. She is still quite obvious in the early
morning sky, although approaching near the
Sun, and shorn Of three-fourths Of her former
glory. For the past month she has been
compelled to resign the palm for pre-emi-
hence in the morning sky to Jupiter, which
planet glows brightly in the west while Venus
is rising In the east. A few days ago the I'M
aided eye might have kept Jupiter in view
even after the Sun had risen but that great
planet ia too near setting at the hour Of sum
rise now.
Mars is invisible. He reaches conjunction
with the Sun on the 18th, after which he
becomes nominally morning planet and
begins slowly to draw nearer to us again. Not
for months to come will he be Of much
account to observers; not indeed until he
nears his opposition in March Of 1886.
Jupiter has been recently filling the double
role Of chief Of both evening and morning
summarizes. Rising earlier, he has now nearly
disappeared from the morning sky. On the
18th he reaches opposition with the sun, rising
then at sunset and setting at sunrise. At
opposition he will be most fayorably placed
for observation, and, in good telescope, he
becomes. with his attendant satellites and
belts, grand object indeed. The eclipses
and transits of his satellites, which may be
observed here, during the next two weeks
will be-.
Feb. 1888 p. m. Transit satellite III,
ingress; 8, liz a. m, egress.
Feb. 7-45S q. m. Eclipse satellite l.
Feb. $3.50 q. m. Transit satellite l,
ingress; 4.49 a m, egress.
Feb. SLIPS p. m. Eclipse satellite I.
Feb. $50 a. m. Transit satellite II,
ingress, 6.l3 a. M, egress.
Feb. $3.50 p. m. Transit satellite l,
ingress; Hoy p. m, egress.
Feb. 1913 As p. m. Eclipse satellite II.
Feb. 11-229 a. m. Transit satellite Nv,
ingress.
Feb. 1S-0.54 g. m. Transit satellite Ill,
ingress; 429 a. m, egress.
Feb. 15-414 a. m. Transit satellite I,
ingress.
Feb. 16-1.19 q. m. Eclipse satellite l.
Feb. 1851 a. m. Transit satellite II,
iDgress.
Feb. 16--10.40 p. m. Transit satellite L,
ingress; II, 0.59 a. M, egress.
Saturn continues evening planet and,
though contributing nothing to the events Of
the month, is still well placed for observation.
A great deal Of speculative stuff is periodic.
ally sent out by imaginative astronomers
about these two great planets being immature
worlds immense globes of fiery matter
which are slowly cooling down and will con-
tinue to cool and contract for many millions
of years until they become fitted for the re-
ception of human beings, by which time our
Earth, that fortunately for us went through
its preliminary cooling and contracting
stage some millions of ages ago, will have
carried its cooling and contracting so far
that, if it has not exactly "dried up and
blown away" it will at least have frozen out
all it's inhabitants and degenerated into a
lifeless and desolate world like the moon"
and so on, ad nauseandum. The fact is that
there is no convincing proof that Jupiter,
Saturn, the earth or the Moon are, or ever
have been doing any cooling or contracting
whatever or are ever likely to do anything of
the kind; and there is likewise no
proof that the conditions which
now prevail. and may always have prevailed
and ever continue to prevail, for sught we
can prove to the contrary, on all the planets
and satellites Of our and all the countless
millions Of ether systems which we may
reasonably believe to exist that these
! prevailing conditions may not be exactly
suited to the needs Of the inhabitants Of
worlds differing perhaps "a much from each
other as they do from the world on which we
! live. The astronomer has no right to guage
4 the wants Of the denizens Of other worlds BIZ
those Of cur own.
Uranus and Neptune promise little Of
interest to observers in this latitude during
February.
Prof, sharpless Of Haverford College OBJ
servatory, thus reports an occulation Of las
Wednesday night IAN unique phenomenon
IN our experience was observed last night
The star lambda Geminorum Just skirted tn,
edge Of the Moon, and was out Of sight fey
minutes. When it resppesred it was in
valley Of the Moon, seen in profile, and it wa
probably five seconds before it got out Of it
moving as it was at a very small angle to tn
limb Of the Moon. During this time it wa
very faint, but whom it reached thu edge o
depression it made sudden leap into it
ordinary brightness, II this faintness wa
not due to the neighboring glare, and there
fore wholly delusory, it would seem to indi
cate that there was something like gas O
vapor in this depression which Obscured tn,
stars light. 1t is generally believed tina
nothing like an atmosphere exists on tn,
Moon, but the phenomenon would seem t,
point this other way"