Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1892-12-11
STARS In DECEMBER.
ASTRONOMICAL WINTER BEGINS ON
THE TWENTY-FiRST.
When the New Year Comes In There win
Have Beea an Increase OF Daylight of
over Three Minutes.

The Gun enters the sign Capricornus on
the 21st at O'Clock in the morning, at
which timo Astronomical winter begins,
says the New York Times. Tine sun, as the
VOID solstice implies. seems to stand still
for two or three days, and thus turns his
face TO bless with his light and heat those
! living in the northern hemisphere. Months
/ will pass, however. before tho change is
perceptible. storms will lower. tempests
rage and cold CONCEAL us, but the do
minioD OF ice and snow is shattered, and
| each succeeding day brings us nearer 10
! the day when winter and spring will en-
/ brace each other.
While the Christian year does not begin
| at this great physical epoch ii Is none
! the less the beginning Of the natural year.
| The oldest nations Of the earth. heather
| though they were, lived far nearer to ma
! ture than do we Of this supposed to be more
civilized period Their year began when
the sun had reached bis furthest point
south. 1t was the jubilee of the year to
I their sImple natures the long-anticipated
| hour when, with music, dancing and fes-
/ tive offerings, they paid homage TO the
| rude deitics they wOrshipped, and on
| whose power they relied with unquestion-
| ing belief. The sun was 10 their simple
/ faith the great representative Of deity, and
| the winter solstice the time particularly
| devoted to religious worship.
The diminution in the amount Of day
| light is but slight in December compared
/ TO what il was in October and November,
| and about tho time of the solstlce there Is
! practically no difference for several days.
| The equation OF time OF the difference be-
| tween mean and apparent time, IS also at
! a minimum. 20 that the time Of sunsetting
and sunrsing shows but little change.
/ hot he in
! there will have been an increase OF day.
| light amounting to over three minutes.
THE TENTH MONTH.
II seems very odd 10 us nowadays that
| the twelfth aud last month Of the year
should be taken from the Latin word
! meaning the tenth month. But IL was the
/ name gwen TO IL when the year began in
! March with the vernal equinox. Since
| January has been considered rs the
| first month, and it and February
have been placed before March, this
/ months name ~ in reality q mis-
| nomer, but IT was retained TO pre-
vent greater confusion than that which
! existed. The moon which fulled on the
| Sd can hardly be considered as the De-
! cember moon, az it began on November
| 18th. The last moon for this year is usher
| ed in on the 18th instant, away down IN
| southern declinatlon. This makes II
/ twelve DAYS old when 1893 comes in, and
| gives US in consequence the number twelve
as the exact number for the coming year.
! On the 18th the moon occuits Saturn at
! 4:40 in the morning. Washington mean
! time, for which time the elements for tho
! prediction OF OCCUPATIONS are given.
! Washington time IL eight minutes twelve
| seconds slower than our seventeen merl-
| dian. or eastern standard time. Uranus IL
! occulted on the 1lth and Jupiter on the
Goth. On the 10th there IL con junction
/ with Venus, on the 18th with Mercury, Oh
| the 2jth with Mars, the monthly rs well "a
the annual record being closed on the
| Goth. or, at least, very early on the morn
! ING of the 3lst. by q second meeting for
| the month between Neptune and the
moon.
Jupiter's claim 10 the rank Of being the
most imuOrtan' of the evening host "a far
! beyond dispute. for although he is getting
| further and further from US, his brilliancy
| causes him far to Outshine all surround
ings and renders it very easy to distin-
| puish him, and makes it very simple
matter to see why the Romans designated
| Jupiter as the god of the air.
Beyond the pleasure usually melted by
glimpse at this wonderful planet, our lnte-
| rest Is intensified by the news quite re-
| Gently received Of the confirmation Of the
| report Of the discovery of q fifth satellite.
| The little moons are situated IN Temarke-
| bic manner on inc bpIutE llue huLNL
! divides the objects visible to the unaided
/ eve from those which require telescope
| aid. IL has been stated frequently that
| those moons have been seen with the TN
/ aided eye: but, without entering into any
| controversy on the matter, IL IS sui1cient
TO recite the well-known, fact that, not
withstandiug Jupiter has been familiar TO
the unaided eve for countless centuries
and in the clearest skies vet no one ever
discovered the satellites until Calico
turned his uewly-inyented telescope upon
| them.
THE MOONS.
This telescope was no dOnbt very
/ feeble instrument. but the feeblest instru-
ment is quite adequate to show objects 50
| close to the limit of visibility. These Ut
/ tie objects resemble stars, but they can be
/ distinguished from stars by their cease
| less movement around the planet. which
| they never fail to accompany during ms
/ entire circuit of the heavens. Tho
| eclipse of satellite must not be attri-
! buted TO the Intervention OF the BODY
| of Jupiter between the satellite and the
| earth, which occurrence IS called an oc-
| cultation The eclipse IS the more striking
phenomenon of the two, because the satel-
! lite. at the moment 1t plunges INTO the
| shadow, is still at some apparent distance
| from the edge OF the planet, and IS thus
| seen clearly up to the moment OF the
| eclipse. In an occultRtion the satellite,
/ in passing behind the planet, Is at the
| time Of disappearance close TO the planets
| bright edge, and the extinction or the
! light of tho satellite cannot be observed
with the zane dIstlnctnesj as the occur
renee OF M eclipse.
The velocity of light can be ascerteined
! nv observations Of eclipses Of Juplter'S
| satellites If We calculate the moment
| at which the eclipse takes place, and Oh
| serve the moment 1T which II IL seen, tho
| difference between the two gives the hme
which the light occupies on Its journey.
| This can be found with some accuracy,
| and. az we already know the velocity of
| light, we can ascertain the distance OF Jul
| plier from the earth, and hence deduce
( the scale Of the solar system.
Venus has drawn somewhat nearer the
sun than she was at tho beginning OF last
month. and she is getting perceptbly
| smaller in size. her disk measuring barely
| oue-fifth of what it did In midsummer.
| She is still beautiful IN the early morning
| hours. and as she peeps out over the water
! from behind cloud she casts sheen OF
| which the young moon might well DE proud.
| To-day Venus and Neptune are IN con-
junction, being but degree ana nan IN
| declinatlon apart. Tomorrow morning the
| two will be still sufficiently close 10 one
| another for q fair indication OF the LOCALITY
! of the more distant planet winch we are
| not ALWAYS permitted TO sec with unaided
vision. Venus and the waning crescent of
the old moon are in conjunction on the
10th. but their meeting IS not at oil close.
| Mars, we remember, was, In opposition
10 the sun IN August last, and was
then glorious liz his dazzling Ted;
meas. Since that time he has travelled
! a long distance. and on the 9th will be IN
! onadrature with the sun. This means that
| the two are now separated by 80 degrees
| instead of low $50 degrees. Mars is still one
Of the evening stars, but he is drawing
close TO the sun, and in the course of few
months win have passed to the other side,
TO be classed among the morning stars.
On the 26th Mars and Luna are IN con
innction. but the distance separating the
two is far too great 20 be of any marked