The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-04-06
THE PLANETS IN APRIL.
Movements of the Stellar Worlds in
Springs Second Month.


Jupiter closes his career as the most brill
liant of the morning stars at the end of
April, being forced into second place by
Venus, the two continuing as morning
stars until June "a, when Jupiter joins the
evening planets for the remainder of the
year.
Saturn, the champion of Jupiter as morn
ing star for brief interval, is, according
| to its position in regard to the sun, ranked
among the coming planets, and is to be
found among the lesser lights of the con-
stelation of Cancer, not very far from the
bright star Regulus, from which he is quite
easily distingui he'd by his steady, serene
light and soft tint Of pale yellow.
Mercury is morning star until April "a,
when it becomes evening star. On the 18th
it is in superior conjunction with the sun.
1t rises about o'clock in the morning, and
even were its declination more favorable
for observation it would be most difficult to
| find, owing to the suns rising at about the
same hour.
Uranus, one of the evening stars, sets
about the time that Mercury comes up in
the eastern sky, and on the 9th of the
month is in opposition to the sun-that is,
| Uranus, the earth and the sun are in line in
| the order named. Throughout the month
the planet rises at about the time the sun
sets, but its great distance from us prevents
| its being easily seen. Its position, however,
| is in the constellation Virgo, not very far
| from Spica, the brightesg star of that
group, which is about 50 farther to the
| southwark.
Mars, also an evening star, is lost in the
| glow of the sunset, as it disappears below
| the horizon soon after the sun goes down.
Even though such were not the case the
| diameter of the planet places it beyond the
| range of visibility to the naked eye.
Neptune, another of the evening stars.
| the last known member of the solar family,
| is somewhat larger than Uranus, and il the
earth were represented by ball one inch
| in diameter, Uranus would be the size of
an orange, and Naptune that of
a cocoanut. Such is its distance from the
sun, the latter, as seen from the planet
would be no larger than Venus, at her
brightest, appears to US. Neptune is In con-
| junction with the moon on the 4oh.
Venus, whose light has shown 50 glori-
ously throughout the winter as queen of the
evening stars. continues in that role OILY
| until the close of the month, when she joins
the morning stars, outshining Jupiter, who
continues his rivalry until the close OF
June, when he leaves her in undisputed pos
session as the most brilliant object in the
morning skies.
| The sun, after announcing his having
crossed the line in a manner strangely
| familiar in its bluster and wetneSS to those
who have been visited by Father Neptune
on first crossing the equator, has managed
| to bring increasing warmth with the length.
| ening days, which, before the month closes
| will be somewhat over an hour and 6
quarter longer than they were at the com
| mencement. The increase in altitude of tbs
monday sun is quite perceptible, and with
vegetation springing up around us, we are
made fully aware that winter is over
The moon quarters on the Sth, is full on
the 18th, enters last quarter on the 22d, and
| becomes new again on the 29th. 1t is
| farthest from the earth on the 9th and near
est on the 18th. The Importance of the full
moon this month is, probably, far beyond
that Of any throughout the year, as from il
is reckoned Easter, which in turn deter
mines the limits of the lenten season a
| well as the time of all the movable feasts OF
the Christian church. 1t must be remem-
bered however, that it is not the actua
| moon in the heavens that regulates the time
of Easter, but an altogether imaginary
| moon, SO contrived that the calendar new
| moon always follows the real new moon, 81
| that it sometimes happens that Easter day
| as thus determined is different from what i
| would be if by "ful NOON were understood
| the astronomical full moon. One object il
arranging the calendar moon instead of the
| astronomical moon was that Easter NIGH
never fall on the same day as the Jewish
| Passover. This failed in its entirety
| although 1t is only at rare intervals thai
| the two happen at the same time.