The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1897-05-31
BEAUTY OF THE JUNE SKIES.
Jupiter and Saturn VIII Cha rm the
Eye With Their Brilliancy,

Eye With Their Brilliancy.
In course of the month Of June the moon
will be in her first quarter on the 9Th, full
on the 18th, In her last quarter
Oh the 21st, and new on the 29th
she Will be nearest the earth on the 18th
at 10 a. m. and remotest on the 10Th at
p. IN. On the 1st of the m onth the sun
will he but little more than l degree
10 minutes south of the summer soistice,
which it will reach on the 21st, whence it
will almost imperceptibly move southwark
again, but make less than half a degree
during the remainder of the month.
The planet Mercury is in Taurus, i'll
which extensive consolidate it will remain
throughout the entire month. Venus VIII
be in Aries during the greater part of the
month, but enter Taurus tow ard its termna-
tion. 1t Will shine as a morning star,
rising about 3 o'clock in the morning su
that it may be seen ere the morning
twilight begins, and ON account Of its
hrilliancy even at a time when the twilight
ahsorbs the light of all the other stars.
The planet Mars win first be i'll Cancer, but
later in the month pass into Leo 1t will
set little before II O'Clock in the eve ning
Jupiter will fornfth host brilliantobjec
in the nocturnal Sky. 1t is still in close
proximity to tie star Regulus in Leo, ant
will reach the western horizon about 1
O'Clock Saturnis in Libra and will not set
before 8 o'clock in the morning, so that il
will presentitself to the eye nearly through
out the entire night. Saturn, though per
tanning TO the bright planets, can scarcely
vie in brIllianCy with Jupiter, and for this
reason both planets, which for some hours
II the evening maybe seen simultaneously
maveasily be distinguished from each other
Looking at the sky with the unaided eye
anyone not familiar with the shape OF the
considerations and the position of certain
stars ana planets, visible at the different
seasons Of the year, may possibly cOnfonnd
such planets as Mars, when notin afavOr-
able position, and Saturn with such first
magnitude starsas Sirius, ArCtuTus, Capella,
Vega, BetelgueZe, Rigel, Affair, Antares,
bat this will no longer be the case after he
has faniliariZed himself with the peculiar
shape OF the constellation. When now with
his acquired kno Wedge ne sees new bright
object In these consultations ne is forced To
draw the conclusion thatit cannot be any
thing else but planet
AS to Venus, he will not likely be in
bOuDb, fAN iIS nuGp bflillduSy INC
fact that it can act only as either a morn
ing or an evening star renders it too IA
mlliar an object to even the host ignorant
in the knowledge of the starry heavens TO
be taken for anything else. AS regards
briliance, the same remark applies to
Jupiter. The peculiar red tinge Of Mars
renders this planet easily dstinguishabie.
The long sidereal period of Saturn, being
about twenty nine years, causes it to
change its position among tie stars very
Slo WY, so that il is an easy task to follow
it from year to year. The same remark
may be applied TO Jupiter, whose sidere1I
period S twelve years AS all the planets
move in the narrow belt of the zodiac, none
must be sought outside of it
When viewed through a magnifying
glass, AL the planets, with the eXcop-
tion of the asteroids, present very per
Ceptihle disk, which fixed stars can never
do, eyen when observed with the most
powerful telescopes.
Mars being superior planet, that's, one
the orbit of which enYelOps that OF tie
earth, the reader will readily comprehend
whyini tsv various pha SEES itcan never assume
the crescent shape, but only the gihbous ana
lull. The time Of it's axial rotation does not
differ much from that of the arth We
have once teforc remarked that in general
it is no easy task TO determine the time OF
the rotation of planet abont its axis, but
The disk of Mars is SO strongly marked as to
.enable astronomers to solve this OIoblen
in the case Of this planet with great acctl-
racy Not until ST. the discovery was
made by Prof Asaph Hall, the director Of
"a ~ for hot Ma B.as
two satellites, the exceeding smallness OF
which had eluded till then the searching
eyes of astronomers.
a map OF the surface of Mars presents a
very strange picture OF very numerous
small arms ofthe sea, and aSnumerouss small
bodies of land, but few of which, if any
rise to the dignity OF an ocean or d Conti-
nent.
According to more or less reliable OtSer
vaiions, the climate of this interesting
planet, must be, for some reasons or other,
so mid as almost TO justify a belief in the
possibility OF it's habitability by beings
physically and mentally constituted like
ourselves Some of our readers win per
maps recoIIect that in the year 1877 and
again in 1881 certain Canals connect
ing the larger bodies of water on the sur
face of Mars, were seen, a circumstance
which excited no little interest and no few
discussions in the papers This discovery
gave rise to A great deal of speculation,
and led not few to the belief that these
canals were the work of Martial engineers.
Just Ike that of SueZ, on our own globe
The Availability OF the planets and of the
stars too, has always been matter OF great
CURIOSITY and these canals of Mars SEEM
ingly being the work of intelligent beings
and not Of nature, gave kindof plausibility.