Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1897-09-02
THE SKIES IN September
Sun Will Reach Equator Latter
Part of the Month.
THE OBLlQUlTY OF THE ECLlPTIC
Upon This Seasons of the Year
Depend.
Is Decreasing, and wiz Continue Doing 80
for About Fifteen thousand Years - The
Enrth's Atmosphere Not Affected by the
Planets-saturn's Wonderful Rings.


Enrth's Atmosphere Not Affected by tho
Planets-saturn's Wonderful Rings.
Baltimore sun.
In the course of the month of September
the phases OF the moon will be rs follows
Full OF the 10th, last quarter on the 18th
and new on the 18th, On the 2Stli at p. m.
it will be in perigee, and on the 10th at p
m. In apogee.
The sun will reach the equator about
p. m, on the I'D. On the last of the month
it will be 30 degrees south Of the equator.
thus sweeping In course of the month
through an arc Of little more than II de.
grees Of decluation, which is but little less
than half of the whole extent of its course
either north or south,
The reason why the sun cannot get higher
than % degrees, ~ minutes above The equator
hes in the fact of the ecliptic cutting the
equator under that angle, which is called
the obliquity of the ecliptic. Upon this
obliquity the seasons of tie year depend.
change in the obliquity of the ccliptic
would produce corresponding change in
the seasons. and il is, therefore. quite
pertinent question whether this important
angle which the plane of the equator makes
with tliat of the ccliptic is subject to any
changes.
The ancients labored under the disad-
vantage of making their measurements OF
N.
with n very crude instrument, the gnouon.
which must be considered the sim lest Of
all astronomical instruments. In fact the
gnumon is nothing more than Il pole, or
column OF known height, erected on Il per-
fectly horizonal plane. by measuring the
length Of the shadow cast at noon at definite
times uf the wear they succeeded in arriving
at tolerahly correct results, In this way they
determined the maximum height OF the sun
in definition, which is. rs said before, the
Obliq1ity of the eclipic This nbliquitv is
AZ present "a minutes less than ii was 200
wears ago. and it decreases about half a
second each year. This constant decrease
will continue for about l5.OUU years, after
which period it will increase again. The
minimum obliquity will be % degrees. Is
minutes, while at present it is % degrees, ~
minutes.
The effect of this diminution in the OBJ
liqulty Of the ecliptic Will be a slight de-
crease in the temperature in the temperate
and flgid zones and an increase in that of
| the turrid. This change in the obliqnity,
| like that in the eccentricity of the earth S
orbit and the revolution of the lines of ap.
| sides, is caused by the action which the
| planets exert upon the earth. We here
| reierate that the slight changes in the
| aforementioned quantities are the only
| ones the planets exert upon the earth. and
| the assertion we so often meet with ut their
/ exercising an Influence upon our atmos.
| phere aud the condition OF the weather is
4 absurd and savors of gross ignorance. At.
| muspheric disturbances are due to causes
| that have absolutely nothing To do with the
/ planets and the phases Of the moon. OF
| course. all .he planets. by virtue of the
mutual attraction that prevails among them
produce certain disturbing effects called per.
turbations, but these effects manifest them.
selves by certain changes in what is called
| the elements Of the planet, but in nowist
by the rise and fall of the temperature OF
the currents of the air.
The planet Mercury will enter the con
stellatiOn Leo in the early portion Of the
month and remain in the same until its ter
| minatiun. So will the planet Venus aftei
lingering for Il brief time in Cancer. 1t rise:
between . and g. O'clock a. m.. and conse
quently will shine ms a morning star. TIL,
planet Mars is IN Virgo and Jupiter in Leo
saturn may still be seen until nearly II
o'clock IN the evening in the boundary lin,
of Scorpiu and Libra, both of which constel
latiOns are bending toward the western
horizon. The planetary aspect of tn,
heaSens during the month Of September il
therefore not as favorable this year as j
will be at other times.
The next planet in distance and size afte
Jupiter Is Saturn. BY the ancients Il wa
considered the remOteSt OF all the planets
Its mean distance from the sun is about 8
times the distance of the earth from the sun
or, in technical language. % Astronomical
| UNITS, Its mean diameter Is about nine time
the earth switch makes ITS volume 500 time
the earih's. Saturn performs Il revolution
about the sun in the long period of 29l years
which causes its slow motion among the con
stelluIions of the zodiac. Its synodic period
however, Is but US days. One of the variou
peculiarities of the great planet is its small
density, being but one.eighth that of tn
earth, and, therefore, its mass is only .
times that OF the earth. OF all the planet
saturn is the least dense. 1t turns on it
axis in very nearly 10 hours, so that poin
on its equator revOlves % times as fast Us
point OH the equator OF the earth.
There is, however, one popularity atiache
to the planet which renders it the most mag
niliCent and unique of all celestial Object
known, Jupiter, with its four large safe
, lites and the lately discovered small one
certainly presents fine spectacle, but whi
can express the grandeur of 4 large plane
that is gracefully poised within three fier
rings and encirclcd by eight stately safe
/ lites? Viewed with telescope this uniqu
Saturnian system presents panorama III
beauty and grandeur of which the mo.
skitu pen is unable 10 describe in adequat
Language,
When Gallileo, the first that ever observe
! with naguiiylug lenses. saw two of the ring
that are brighter than the third. he WI
completely puzzled. and so were all the a
tronomers sIr many years afterward, In fac
, he did not see these rings as rings but SUI
: posed the planet to be triple. The enign
deepened when some time nfterward II
, rings disappeared IL was not before 80 veal
t had elapsed since the first discovery OF tho
/ strange and until then inexplCable appeI
D pages of Saturn that the Dutch astronome
HuyBhens, explained the true structure
those rings, and not before the comppr
lively recent year, 1850 that the third rim
was discovered by Prof W. G Bond ,
Harvard College in the United State
Q though Two weeks later the English astrol
omcr, Dawes who had not heard Of Bond
] discovery discovered it also
o Saturn cornpe!s eight moons to reyol'
about il. These, in ascending order of u
: distance from their primary. are callC
:, Minus, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhe
Titan, Hyperion aud Japetus of which,
y the name seems 10 indicate, Titan is Il
d largest, whilst Mimas is the smallest.
Tho consultations Delphinus, Cygnus al
IS CaNricornus Will be on or very close to Il
If meridian in the September evenings. De
phinus. or the Dolphin, is not large co
stellatlon, but an ancient one, and one tn
VI shaped llgnre. IL is also known by the nan
j. Of Jobs Coffin, though the origin of th
singular appelation is utterly unknow
!. The four stars forming the diamond be
/ the names Of Alpha. Beta, Gamma al
Delta, OF which the third Is double. u,
:, phinus lies about 10 degrees northeast
Aquila,
n Due east of Lyra and situated in the Mil
J, Way, large constellation. strikingly reseI
}, bling cross, presents itself tothe eye. III
IS Cygnus or the swan. The top of Il
v cross is marked by the bright first magT
e tude star or Alpha or Deneb. and its lowe
- point by Beta or Albireo, fine double Sta
l. the two comDOnents being blue and oranp
The star in the middle is Gamma, and 1
lt ends OF the cross, piece are marked by Del