Evening journal., 1897-07-23
THE SUN AND THE MOON
There Viii Be an Eclipse
Next THURSDAY.
IT WILL OCCUR IN THE MORNING

wILMINGToNIANs SHOULD GET
THEIR SMOKED GLASS READY,
FOR THEY WILL NEED 1T TO
SEE THE PHENOMENON OF THE.
MOON, PASSING BETWEEN THE
EARTH AND SUN.
Great interest is always manifested
by Wilmingtonians in heavenly phe-
nomena, and nothing of this character
appeals more strongly to them ihan
when the moon passes across the face
Of the sun.
On the morning OF July 20, next
Thursday, will occur one of those i'm
posing celestial phenomena with which
astronomy perennially delights its ad-
miring votaries. The new moo2, sweep
ing onward in her eternal, eastern
course. will obtrude her conspicuous
and rugged personality between her
primary and the majestic lord of day
and thus while richly rejecting to the
imperial luminary some OF his own
golden beams. will exhibit TO terrestrial
view a disc OF inky blackness, sugges-
tive Of a coy yelling of PhOebus daz-
zling face by the fair but inconstant
Luna.
What wonder that superstitious saw
ages should regard a total eclipse of the
sun With terror. and with frantic cries
and martial clamor of rude instruments
endeavor to Brighten off a supposed
monster in its attack upon their deity.
Even to the educated minds the spec
tacle Is awe-inspiring and invested with
Rrandetits as an exhibition of the exact
ness OF natures laws.
The approaching eclipse, even where
central. will lack that climax of weird
ness which attends a total ObscuratlOn
of the sun, and at Wilmington will in
volye the darkening of little more than
a third OF the solar surface.
The word ECLIPSE" primarily signi-
des. faint" or "swoOn," and has been
appropriated by astronomy to describe
the darkening of any OF the celestial
bodies. In the case of the moon this is
caused by its transit Of the earths
shadow. while Il is the moons shadow
which engulfs the earth at the time of
aotOtal solar eclipse Conceding the
bodies in question to be absolute
spheres, the sun being infinitely larger
than either. the shadows produced by
the earth and the moon must be cones
and. as a matter of course. solids Since
the moons distance from the earth is a
mean OF 239 600 miles and the earth's
shadow cone is about S57 900 miles in
length, the diameter of the cone where
traversed by the moon is about 5,70C
miles varying, OF course, as the moon
happens to be in "apogee" or peri
gee.'). The elliptic orbit of our satel-
lite causes such variations in its dis
tance that the diameter of the. shadow
Is eaometimes three times. albeit al
others only twice, as great as that OF
the moon.
Since the moon has no light OF It's
own. being merely reflector of sun.
light. either received directly from the
great orb Of day, or, at second hand
from the earth. it follows that whi,t
trayersing the earth's shadow our sill
very attendant must be entirely invisi
ble; unless, as frequently happens. {
tolerably clear atmospheric rim" abOu
the earth refracts upon her "fainting'
surface a coppery illumination.
The conditions are exactly reversed
on the occasion Of solar eclipse, wher
rhe earth journeys through che noon
shadow, while the queen of night, witt
more.irapid strides. is insinuating her
Sui sbtlWttu IIiothuo anu HIS lluDllluu
satrap: only that the moon has no at
mosphere by whose refraction to palli
ate the terrestrial gloom
The orbit Of the moon. in common
with the planetary paths. is an eclipse
and as the earth in December is 5000,
600 miles nearer the sun Ots 'perihel
iion'O than in June (its "aphelion"), s,
Luna approaches the earth at "perigea'
much nearer than at "apogee" While
her mean distance is about 239 00i
miles. in apOgee she swings away som,
252, 600, and in perigee coquets as close
ly as 221. 900 miles (reckOned from th'
earth's oentre) Her apparent angula
diameter. therefore varies appreciably
the mean being 81 minutes Z seconds
not quite equal to that of the sun ,whicl
is 80 minutes O4 -four one-hundreths
seconds. When the moon is in perige
at the time of central eclipse. the SUI
will be entirely hidden for a period no
exceeding, under the most favorabl
conditions. minutes and So seconds
the diameter of the shadow being, a
its maximum. 167 miles.
But if the moon be in apogee at tn