The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-07-23
THE ECLIPSED MOON.
AN INTERESTING SPEc1AcLK PRE-
SFNTFD LAST NIGHT

A Uesr lvcning and the Time faN"ra-
tJc f,r Observation Eclipse From
,,.sirutiI 2.8b-Ias visible Eclipse "
the Year.
The Times Yesterday contained full ac-
count of the luna eclipse which occurred
last night. since, thanks 20 as'rohoihi-
cal sciences. an such celestial phenomena
can be predicted with absolute accuracy
yb, eclipse was Of more ihan or
dioarv interest because Of the time
M which II occurred and iis dura-
ton The full moon entered the shad'
ow of the earth, and ils brightness began
10 grow dull a. 10j5 last night, eastern
time At 1l54 the total aclipse began
Then the entire surface of the moon be-
came of "a dark copper hue, ana me
lasl line of light disappeared. me
moon remained i'm ihcplnne OF lolalltV
untilv 36 IN, when IL began TO emerge
from ihe total shadow into the penum Dla
or outer shadow The middle ol the
eclipse began at l2.15, and the moon lei'
the shnd " finally go $50.
THE AsTEoSOMERs.
This eclipse was not observed IN W ash
iprton M the NayM observatory, for
there WAS no special work on hand which
could DE- aided thereby Last January
there WI, % total eclipse of the moon,
which was regarded as highly important,
because hv the precautions Of Russian
astronoucra large number of Obserya-
tories iu Europe and America took OBJ
scryatious of certain stars, noting the
occultaiions, or times of leaving the
shadow, for the purpose OF determining
The exact distances of the sun ana moon
from the earth The results of the oh
serya'ions are now being computed, ana
il will probably be several years before
any definite results are reached. About
the only work that j. proposed Oh this
eciip,e was ~ lIayard College and Pits
burg At the former place something
vas done i'm the way of phO'ographing
the light from the moon during the total
cciuse with view of determining It's
exact nature. This light, OF copper
color. /. that which is reflected from the
sun rays by the atmospheric dust par.
ticlcs and other matter that floats around
the earth
MEASURING HEAT FROM THE MOON.
The ScfAtf, J,vfuals state that at
Allegheny Observatory, Ptlsburg, obser'
yalions were with the spectroscope that
may possibly give some data as TO the
actual heat Of the moons rays that are
reflected from The sun-beams Professor
Langley. now secretary of The ~mithsOn-
ian Institution, is in charge Of this OBJ
seryaiorv. bat the work will probably he
done hy Professor +. A. Very. his assist
ant there. Professor Langley has done
greet deal in this line and has devised an
instrument called the fol0meter, which
registers wave lengths from heat when
there is really so little heat that 10 seems
cold. lie has done finer work in this
line than any on else This instrument
consists of huc strips of steel that, by
their expansion and contraction under
the effect of heat or cold, assist or rctard
the flow D. am electric current and thus
move The needle of the galvanomeier so
as 90 indicate the exact degree. II has
heea stated that ihOusandih of degree
Farenhcit can bc thus measured.
This eclipse was the last one that will he
visible here this year. The moon WAS full
and quite high in the sky, so that the full
benefit of the eclipse was witnessed by II
large number of our citizens