Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1897-10-07
THE SKIES DURING OCTOBER
Venus and Jupiter Approach
ing Each Other.
SATELLITES OF PLANET URANUS
Their Movement Peculiar, is
Backward.
Autumnat Consultations which Give a
Fresh Interest to the Evening skies-Pe-
gasus and the Great Square--Aqaarius, or
the Water Bearer-The Southern Fish.



Full on the 18th, last quarter on tile 18th,
and new on the 25th. She will be in apogee
on the 18th at 3 p. IN. and in perigee OH the
26th at 1924 p. m. AT the beginning OF the
month the sun will be degrees - minutes
"a seconds south Of the equator and at its
termination 14degrees, lImlnutes ~ seconds.
The planet Mercury will be in Leo during
about one-third of the month and in Virgo
during the remainder. Venus will be in Leo.
during the greater part of October, but enter
toward the last into Virgo. Rising between
and o'clock a. M. she will shine as a
morning star. Mars will also be in Virgo.
not far from Splca, the most prominent star
Ill that constellation. Jupiter is still in Leo,
and will rise soon after o'clock in the
morning and also act in the capacity of
morning star. These two magnificent
planets, Venus and Jupiter, approach each
other very closely, and ON the 10Th of the
month are only degree 80 minutes distant
from each other, a distance somewhat less
than one-third that OF the two Pointers in
the Great Bear.
Until the dawn of modern and from
primeval times the planets Mercury, Venus,
Jupiter and Saturn were known and with
the sun, earth and moon, these seven bodies
were considered as the only existing planets,
= the sun not being recognized in its superior
capacity of central body compelling all
the others to revolve about it in their i'm
mutable orbits. The satellites of Jupiter
bodies. The fact that the number seven,
which was regarded as almost sacred, no
longer designated the number of the
heavenly bodies, produced at those times of
blind fanaticism and narrow scholasticism
no little excitement and anger. The satel-
lites of Jupiter were discovered at the be-
ginning. of the seventeenth century, then
followed at the middle of that century the
discovery of the largest of Saturn's satel-
lites, but it was not before the year 1881
that Sir William Herschel made the great
discovery of the large planet Uranus. The
orbital motion OF this planet is so slow that
the great astronomer was ut first deluded
into the belief of its being comet. Soon
after, however, he detected his error and
became convinced that the newly discovered
object was planet, and, indeed, its plane
tary nature became a matter of absolute
certainty when the necessary calculations
were made as to size, period; in short all
these points which constitute the elements
of planet,
The discovery of large plant, the mag
nitude of which is GO times that of the
earth, caused an enormous sensation at the
time. The King of England raised the
famous discoverer to knighthood, granted
him life pension, 'and allowed him a sulli-
Gent sum Tor the construction of a large
telescope, by means of which so many
Other discoveries were made.
The planet is at the stupendous distance
of nearly two billion miles from the sun,
and appears as star OF the sixth magnl-
tude, visible to keen eve in clear and
moonless night. Spsctroscopic observations
prove beyond doubt that the planet has
dense atmosphere. Uranus, like Jupiter,
presents certain belts, the exact nature of
which has not yet been fully ascertained.
AS far as known the planet has four
satellites, which, in order of distance from
their primary, are called Ariel, Umbrlel,
Iltania and oberon, the last two being the
brightest and having been discovered by
the famous discoverer of the planet himself.
The first two were not discovered before the
year 1851 by Lassell.
There is one popularity of the satellites of
Uranus that proved somewhat perplexing to
astronomers and almost threatened to over
throw the celebrated cosmogonic theory of
Laplace. This popularity consists in the
fact that satellites of Uranus move back
ward. 1t has been said that Laplace, had he
known this retrograde motion OF those
satellites, would have abandoned his theory,
but, in IL +. the latter is not so utterly op-
posed to at motion as at first sight might
be supposed. Certain disturbing causes, to
which Uranus must have been exposed for
longer time than any planet within his
orbit, probably carried the inclination of
the planes of the orbits of the satellites to
the equatorial plane of Uranus beyond a
right angle, so that the retrograde motion in
reality becomes direct one in a plane in
clined at an angle of l0l degrees minutes to
the ecliptic. At any rate an exception does
not necessarily upset the rule, and Laplace )
great theory has not lost credit on account
OF this exception, ii exception there be.
The established facts that all the planets
all the numerous asteroids, and with the
exception of Uranus, all the satellites re-
volye in the same direction is an almost
overwhelming proof Of the truth of La
places theory in its essential features and
points out common origin and cause in
nOSmnuOnV
as Laplace taught it, than whom there has
never been u man of subtler ANALYTICAL
power in the field of mathematics and
celestial mechanics.
The consultations that are on the merid.
ian OF our latitude during the month of
October at about 8 o'clock in the evening
are Pegasus Aquarius, Piscs Australis and
Lacerta. The constellation Pegasus is a
very conspicuous one on account of the
Great Square, three vertices of which be.
long to Pegasus. These three vertces are
marked by the stars Alpha pegasi, or
Markal, Beta or Scheat, and Gamma, or
Algonil. while the fourth vertix is generally
considered as pertaining to Andromeda.
Pegasus extends from Markal in a south
westerly direction, and this extension forms
kind of handle like that of Andromeda.
The star that marks the point where the
handle bends in northwesterly direction
is called Theta, and the last star in the
handle is Epsilon, or Emf, and this marks
the nose OF the Winged Horse
South of Theta Pegasi we see Aquarius
or the Water-Belrer, the last of the 2udiacal
consultations. The northernmo.t part i,
formed by three stars of the third and
fourth magnitude. forming small arc and
marking the urn from which Auuariu.
pours the water. The body of this constel.
laton consists of quadrilateral of fouI
stars. Aquarius has not one really con
spicuous star. but it is important as one 81
the II consultations of the zodiac
South OF Aquarius there is a star Of thf
first magnitude which is the only promi
nent one in the constellation iscs Aus
trails, or the Southern Fish. This is Fomal
haut, name to be pronounced as a Frencl
word.
Between Cygnus and Andromeda Their,
is small and unimportant constelluti0r
OF modern origin. This is Lacerta, or III,
Lizard, the brightest of whose stars is only
OF the fourth magnitude. Toward Thu
middle of the month the beautiful star
Arcturus and Antanes will have set I'm,
finest OF all summer cont relations, Scorpio
Will remain invisible until Nav, Cygnts
with its striking crusS-like form, bend
toward he vest, and Lyra. with Vega, il
approaching the horizon, while Hercules i
closely lowering above il, Down IN III
southwest Sagittarius may yet be seen
Auriga, with brilliant CupeIla, is rising il
the northeast, and Taurus. with the I'm
groups OF the Hyades and Pleiades, are ais
appearing ON the eastern horizon Thetw,
bright second magnitude stars in Aries ar
high up IN thcnortheast. while in the south
east Cttus may plainly he seen. The ap
prnacilIhg winter consultations announce
that The autumnal season has come.
--
MoguIliuns TO Entertain.
Wilmington ConGavo of Mogulionl