Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-12-01
AN OPPORTUNITY FOR SOME VERY
INTERESTING STUDIES.
The POSITION OF THE sun
And Movements of the PInncts-A
Solar md n Lunar Eclipsc--Only
the Lunar VIII lie Visible in
Baltimore.
Baltimore Sun.)

VIII be in arogee on the %. and in peri
gee on the 18th and 10Th.
The sum- which on the first of the month
is but IL degrees distant from the ex-
IRENE southern limit his declination can
attain. will reach the winter solstice on
the 2lst, and from that slowly turn north
ward again. On that day the sun will rise
and set nearly 81 degrees south of the
true east and west points Of the horizon
OF Baltimore, shining during nearly nine
and one-half hours. On the arctic circle
the sun will torch the horizon on that day,
but not rise. while on the antarctic circle
ne VIII not set presenting then the i'm
pressive spectacle CT the midnight sun"
Inc regions north Of the arctic circle will
De wrapt up In darkness and remain so
untll the sun on his return trip reaches
the equator while south Of the antarctic
circle conditions Will be reversed.
The planet Mercury will be in Sagitta-
RUS most of December, while Venus will
Hnger i'm the constellation Scorpio during
the mouth, and begin TO shine again as a
morning star, though by no means being
in favorable position for observation
Mars Is in Cancer. shining as an evening
star, though at present his brightness is
hardly greater than that Of second mag
respect
stripped by the numerous first magnitude
stars that now adorn the evening skies.
Jupiter is in Virgo. acting. like Venus, as
a morning star. The great planet rises be-
tween and o'clock in the morning, and
may be seen in the eastern skies, shining
with his inherent lustre until it has To
yield to the superior light of the rising
sun. Saturn is still in Scorpio and in
visible during the nocturnal hours.
In course of December two eclipses will
take place, a partial solar eclipse on the
18th, not visible in our latitude, and
total lunar eclipse on the 9th. visible
here. She will rise very nearly o'clock
Z. NJ, eclipse, the eclipse lasting about an
hour and half This year has been
much favored by eclipses, as at its termi-
nation six will have taken place in its
course. The least possible number of
eclipses during the period of one year is
two, and in this case they must both be
central eclipses of the sun, while the
largest possible number is seven. five OF
these being solar and two lunar. For rea-
sons into which we cannot enter here, as
discussion of this subject would require
more space than Is at our disposal, two
solar eclipses must occur with absolute
certainty within one year, while whole
year may pass without the occurrence Of
lunar eclipses in one year are OF very
rare occurrence, and possible only under
particular circumstances and conditions.
The first eclipse in this case must hap
pen near the first day OF the year II,
then, a second eclipse occur on June 18th,
the third must take place In the latter
part of December. Since the year 1851
such a thing has not occurred again.
There prevails the erroneous impression
that total eclpses of the sun are Of rare
occurrence. In average ten will happen in
eighteen years, but they certainly are
rare for any given place, since the track
Of the shadow is less than one hundred
miles wide. At any given place one total
solar eclipse will occur in average every
$50 years. The next total eclipse Of the
sun that will be visible within the boun-
Diary lines of the United States will
take place on May q, 1850. 1t will be
visible from Louisiana TO Virginia, and
the totally will last two minutes.
Another wrong idea seems 10 have
taken a tenacious hold of the minds Of
many persons-viz. that the proper
motion of the sun must affect the rela-
two position of sun and planets. 1t has
been demonstrated conclusively that the
sun moves through space in the direction
Of the constellation Hercules. In former
why there is such motion In such
direction, though II is hardly yet possible
to establish the rate OF this motion with
the accuracy with which the motions Of
the planets have been determined. we
find occasionally the statement that the
sun moves at the rate OF sixteen miles
per second. but such statements must be
received with some caution. BE this,
however, as II may, one thing is GER
tain-Viz that the sun moves through
space at great rate, carrying all the
planets, satellites and other cosmical
bodies along with 1t. This motion or
our great luminary. Of course, affects the
real motion of the planets in space, but
does not in the slightest degree affect the
relative motion OF sun and planets. 1t
causes no little perplexity to some that
the SUMS motion, which unquestionably
and undisputably is extremely quick,
does not change the relative position OF
the solar system 10 the fixed stars and
the consultations more than II actually
does There are even few that on
this account ale inclined TO doubt the
actual motion of the sun in space. Ihese
forget, or, rather, do not realize, that
even under the supposition OF so great
rate as sixteen miles in one second the
relative position Of the sun TO the nxed
stars would be hardly perceptible in a
century on account Of the almost incon-
ceivable distances Of the latter 1t will
take many hundreds, nay, many thous-
ands of years before the SUMS proper
motion in space will change the conflGu-
rations Of the star groups. From de-
scriptions OF many consultations given
by men who lived long before the be-
ginning of the Christian era We can draw
hut the one conclusion: That any changes
in these CONGREGATIONS from that remote
perlod to the present time must have
been so exceedingly slight as to escape
detection.
II the planetary aspect OF the heavens
is rather unfavorable in the December
of this year, the stellar panorama Is the
more beautiful and grand. The principal
that come TO the meridian
M about o'clock in the December eve
ming are Aries. Cetus. and Perseus.
Aries. or The Ram, is the nrst OF the
twelve considerations of the zodiac, but
In consequence OF the procession or the
eouinoxes occupies the sign OF Taurus
now. since through that cause the vernal
equinox shifts westward. Almost due
south Of Gamma Andromedee, where the
Andromedae handle of the Great square
OF Pegasus bends in southeast direction, |
we see three small stars, forming little |
right triangle. the principal configuraton |
Of the const relation called Triangular, or |
the Triangle which would scarcely be |
worth mentioning were IL not for the fact !
of its being GRE OF Ptolemy's ancient ia /
nous forty-eiSht consultations. South OF |
A. ,hro. stare will he poticad that are the !