Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-12-02
DECEMBER HEAVENS
PARTIAL LUNAR ECLIPSE

L ~ II ! ~ Il l. I ~ AN Il il l.
Written for The Evening Star.
Facing the east at about 0 o'clock this
evening We may count seven stars of the
first ma gnftude. The Iowermost, situated
almost exactly in the east, IS Procyon, in
the CAMS Minor or Little Dog. AT the
same low altitude in the southeast lashes
Sirius, the splendid Dog Star, nine Zines
as bright as an average star Of the first
magnitude and five times as bright as Vega
or Capella. Above Sirius reclines the
mighty" Orion. with its two brilliants
Betelgeuse, in the right shoulder, and
Rigel. IN the left foot Above Orion is
Taurus, the Bull, containing the bright star
Aldebaran, the Bulls Eye" and marked
moreover. by the finest two Of the naked
eye star clusters, the Hyades, which form
the Bulls face, and the Pleades, in his
shoulder. On our left, at a low altitude be-
tween east and northeast, are the Twins
(Geminf), of which the upper Castor, IS a
bright second-ma gnitude star, while Pollux
the lower, is commonly regarded as of the
first magnitude, Above the Twins, at
about the same altitude as Aldebaran,
stands Capella, in the left shoulder of Au-
riga, the Wagner, one Of the three stars
which hold between them the honor of be-
ing the brightest star in the northern hem
isphere. or the two rivals of Capella,
Vega, In the Tyre, is about setting in the
northwest, while ArCtUrus, which lies
a continuation Of the curve of the Dtpper's
handle. is away below the horizon, In the
north Near the horizon in the southwest
is FomaIhaut which brings the number of
first-ma gnitude stars now above the hOri-
zon-at Q o'clock-up to nine, or TO ten if
We add TO the list Deneb Cygni, the bright
star in the head of the Northern Cross-the
tail of the Swan-which now stands above
| the northwestern horizon. Only ltteen
stars Of this order OF brilliancy are ever
visible to observers in the mean latitude Of
the United States.
The Daughters of PIcione.
One of the most interesting of the celes-
ttaI objects now visible is the cluster of
the Pleiades-the seven tabled daughters
of Atlas and the ocean nymph Pleione
placed by Jupiter among the stars to save
them from the pursuit of the wild hunts
man Orion, and one of which has been
mysteriously lost" wasted away, as some
say, through weeping over the fail of Troy.
This sparkling little cluster of sister stars
seems to have caught the eye and to have
become a subject of speculation in the
earliest times. The sweet Influences of
the Pleiades were known to others than
the ancient Hebrews The Berbers and
Dyaks believe them to be the center of the
world and the abode OF the Deity. Many
primitive peoples have begun the year with
the day of their midnight transit across the
meridian, November II, and the feast of
Isis began at BusiriS on the occurrence Of
this same event. Throughout the southern
hemisphere their last visible rising after
sunset is or has been celebrated with re-
joicing, as marking the opening Of the ag-
ricultural season.
The Lost PIeiad."
What became of the lost Pleiad" is stnl
an undecided question. Ancient astrono-
mers reckoned seven stars in the cluster,
while but six can now be seen by eyes Of
Vet hal
the limit of ordinary vision are several
stars which can be perceived by persons Of
extraordinary sharpness Of eyesight.
Maestlin, the tutor Of kepler, counted four
teen Pleads and mapped eleven before the
invention Of the telescope, and Miss AIRY
also saw fourteen with the naked eye and
mapped twelve. The brightest Plead now
is Alcyone, of the third magnitude. But
there are reasons for thinking that this
was not the brightest star in the cluster in
the time Of Ptolemy, and it Is not i'm
probable that others of these stars have
changed in brilliancy within historical
times. and that the loss of the one Pleiad
was simply a case of diminution of SPLEEN
dor.
With an opera glass one can count easily
twenty or thirty stars in this cluster A
two-inch telescope reveals over sixty, and
a larger telescope brings Pleads out by the
hundred, while photography has shown
that there are here within an area which
might be covered by SIX full moons be-
tween 1900 and 5000 stars down to the
sixteenth magnitude. Inclusive, of which
number about 200 lie within the limits of
the little group seen with the naked eye.
Photography has shown, too. that the clus-
ter Is imbedded in nebulous matter; that,
IN fact, il is very faint nebula intersprin-
kled with stars.
Distance From the Earth.
An estimate of the distance OF the Pleads
from us-based, however, upon rather I'M
certain data, and therefore little better
than a random guess-has resulted in
figures which are calculated to heighten
very greatly our respect for this tiny con-
stellation. This distance is, in round num-
bers, $50 "light-years." That is to say, the
light of these stars flashing through space
with the speed OF 1S6, 800 miles a second,
requires that number of years to cross the
gulf which separates the stars from us.
The cluster is roughly globular, and its dis
lance being known its size be calculat-
ed from its apparent size. 1t is such that
light requires seven years to speed across
the cluster from side to side. The cluster
would just about fill the space which in
tervenes between us and the star Sirius.
Pleiades, to assume that this distance is as
above given would dwndle TO star of the
tenth magnitude. 1t would take at least
two-fnch telescope to find it. Alcyone
must surpass the sun in actual splendor. if
these figures are correct, at least 1000
times.
The astronomer Maedler selected Alcy-
one, in the Pleiades, probably the CEN
trail sun of the universe, about which all
the other stars, or suns, revolve, as the
planets in our solar system revolve about
the sun This opinion, however. found no
favor with other astronomers, though II
has gained wide currency through popular
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