Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1886-01-31
ASTRONOMICAL.
THE PLANETS FOR FEBRUARY.


scope Venus. Jupiter, saturn. and the
providence Journal.l
VENUS is evening star. She still holds
her place at the head OF the planetary
roll, for during the month she appears in
her most charming aspects, both as eve
ming and morning star. On the 18Th, at
2 O'Clock in the afternoon, she is in in
ferior conjunction with the sun, passing,
like the moon at new moon, between
us and the sun, and reappearing on the
suns western side to commence her
course as morning star. She may be
equally beautiful in this part OF her
course, but there are comparatively
few to behold her as she crowns the
smiling morn with her bright cir
clet." 1t requires effort and self-de-
NAL TO rise before the sun, even to be-
hold the fairest Of the stars, while
little painstaking has been necessary
for the last few months to watch the
radiant course Of the most lovely star
that CLOVIS in the armament. lIesperus
and Phosphor were the poetic names
given by the apcients to the fair STAR.
/ IT was even believed that there were
two distinct stars. until observation
showed that Phosphor was never seen
in the morning sky, until Hesperus
had disappeared in the evening sky.
Their identity was thus proved.
Venus varies greatly in apparent
magnitude. When she is in superior
/ conjunction, her diameter is 10" when
she is in inferior conjunction, her dame
ter is about G4|, or nearly six and
half times greater. Her dark side is
then turned towards US, but the brilliant
light she gyes for a month before and
after inferior conjunction, when only a
narrow crescent of her surface is illu-
mined, allows US to form an idea of
what superb object she would be if
we could see her bright side instead Of
her dark one as she passes between as
and the sun.
No one can form any conception Of
the beauty Of tlis planet who has not
had a view Of her in crescent form
through good telescope. A few OBJ
servers gifted with exceptional eyesight
have seen her as crescent with the I'M
aided eye. The crescent has thus been
visible in the sky Of Chill, and, with
dark glass, in Persia. Theodore Parker
saw the crescent form in this country
when twelve years old. being ignorant
Of its existence. and when no one else
could perceive it. The present is ia
vorable time for trial Of visual power
in this respect, but it will require
youthful, sharp-sighted, and practiced
eyes for any promise Of success. OBJ
servers who can see Jupiter's moons,
or an elongated Saturn, may hope to
behold the Crescent Venus.
On the 9th, at o'clock in the
morning, Venus is perihelion, but her
orbit is so nearly circular that she is
only about million miles nearer the
sun than when in aphelion. When she
is nearer the sun she is farther from
the earth, and her apparent diameter
at inferior conjunction is not quite up
to the maximum it is G2|. A.
Venus sets two hours after the sun on
| the LIST, and rises one hour before the
sun on the 2Sth.
The right ascension of Venus on the
LIST is ooh. 29m., her declinatiOn is g
II south, her diameter is 81, and
she is in the constellation Aquarius.
Venus sets on the lst. at a quarter
after : o'clock in the evening; on the
28th she rises at 5 o'clock in the
morning.
JUPITER is morning star. lie ranks
next in interest to his fair rival, for
though technically numbered among
the morning stars, the starlit nights of
February will be made beautiful by his
presence during nearly the whole night.
This lordly planet makes his appear
ance, almost due east, at half-past 9
o'clock in the evening on the first Of
the month, rising earlier every evening,
until on the last day of the month he
comes bounding above the eastern hori-
ION at halfpast o'clock. Four bright
stars now form starry curve or arc
that may be easily traced late in the
evening. The four stars are Regulus,
Mars, Jupiter, and Spica, in the order
mentioned. Regulus may be known
as the bright star in the handle
Of the Sickle, and the other three are
readily recognized. Uranus is at lit
tie distance southeast of Jupiter, and
is coming into good position to be seen
with the naked eve as star of the
sixth magnitude. There are compensa-
tons in affairs celestial as we'll as ter
restrial. Jupiter will soon take the
place in the east that Venus has de-
serted in the west. If he is not as re-
splendent, he is less fitful. for rising in
the east as the sun sinks below the no.
ri2on in the west, he will soon shine
during the liyelong night. But Venus
can never be seen against the midnight
sky the invisible chain that binds her
to the sun reaches but half the distance
from horizon to zenith.
The right ascension Of Jupiter on the
LIST is l2h. 23m., his declination is o.
Sc south, his diameter is 39".2, and
he is in the constellation Virgo.
Jupiter rises on the LIST few minutes
before halfpast Q o'clock in the eve
ming; on the 2Sth he rises about half
past = o'clock.
SATURN is evening star He ranks
the third in interest on the celestial
calendar for February. He is still a
brilliant star, shining serenely on win
ter nights, and looking down with
friendly eyes from the zenith at 10
o'clock in the beginning of the month.
lie has travelled far away from his
friends, the PleiadeS and Aldebaran,
but has lost nothing by the change, for
Capella and Betelguese are his body
guard on the north and south, Sirius is
nearly due south, and Castor and Pol
lux guard him on the east. Have these
brilliant suns of space families Of worlds
revolving around them, and is the
ringed wonder Of our solar system
repeated in the spheres that wend
their way where their feeble light
may never be discerned by NOR
tails on this side of the eternal
gates: Few lovers Of the stars can