Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1899-07-06
TIE WILMINGTON DELAWARE, THURSDAY


have been obtained by the aid of
photography in determining the annual
parallax Of stars.
On the 14th of August, 1898, new
planet was discovered by means OF
photography at the Urania Observa-
tory, in Berlin, by Herr G. Witt. The |
same night it was also caught on q |
Photographic plate by Charlois of Nice,
but does not seem to have been de- |
tected on the plate until after the |
announcement of Wits discovery. |
The newly discovered planet was for
some time Professionally designated as
d. O., but is now called Eros 1t
was so faint as easily to escape notice,
and since its firss discovery has been
| detected on at least 20 or 30 plates,
made at Cambridge, United States,
and other places before Witt found 1t.
The eccentricity of the orbit OF Eros is
extraordinarily large in consequence
of which there is great difference
| between its maximum and minimum
distances from the sun. Its aphelion
| distance is 166, 305, 900 miles and its
perihelion distance l04, 56l, 900 miles,
making its average distance 135, 433, 600
miles, while the average distance of
| Mars is 141, 500,0 900 miles, SO that
about half of the orbit of Eros is
within that Of Mars. 1t would not
be proper to say, as occasionally it
has been said, that the path Of Eros
| lies within that of Mars. The eccentri-
city of the orbit is SO considerable
as to make the planet approach within
| IA, 900, ZOO of miles of our own path
around the sun. The synodic period
of Eros, that is, the period between
two consecutive coniunctions or OPP
I = L.
by 30 days that of Mars, which, before
the discovery of Eros, enjoyed the dis
tinction of having the longest synodic
period of all the planets. The most
favorable position for observation
which a superior planet can have is
when opposition occurs near its peri
helion, since in this position the
planet is nearest to US. In the case
of Eros this must have been in 1894.
when its stellar magnitude was about
the seventh, or almost within naked
eye visibility. This will again happen
in 1924, and in that year astronomers
will be enabled to provide more
accurate value OF the SUMS distance
than has been obtained by any other
method. Eros will then come within
1900, 600 miles nearer the earth than
Mars ever does and thus present most
| lhNUrdDl0 EOSltlUu lOT ODtbTValluu. Lis
sidereal period of Eros, within which
around the sun is 642. 90 days, thus
being by about "A days shorter than
that of Mars. Though the size of
Eros has not been accurately deter
/ mined, it is In all probability not
, exceeding 20 miles In diameter.
The principal consultations that will
come to the meridian at about o clock
in the July evenings are Scorpio,
! Hercules and Ophiuchus. OF all the
, IL consultations of the zodiac Scorpio
is indisputably the most brilliant. The
, peculiar oontiguration of its more
prominent stars is an unmistakable
resemblance to boys kite with long
tail. The principal star is Antares, OF
the first magnitude, and in its intense
redness resembles the planet Mars. In
fact, from this resemblance in color ~
received its name. which means equal
, for Mars. Antares is pretty double
star, though the duplicity is not sc
, easily detected by means of a small
telescope. Northeast of Antares il
? Beta, of the second magnitude, aud
between these two there is situated
: one Of the finest star olusters, easily
! seen with small telescope. The tai
of the kite extends far down to the
south and east. ! The line passing
8 through Antares and Beta will, wher
produced in northwestery direction
pass through Beta and Gamma Of the
9 constellation Libra There prevails
: 10 fact, some confusion among urano
J. graphers in regard to the boundar,
: between Scorpio and Libra. West o.
. Corona Borealis, between that constel
I la. rNkae nf ~
. evening skies cannot fail to notice {
!. somewhat large quadrilateral of star
and still larger triangle, the chic
J, contiguration Of the fine constellation
q Hercules. Tho three stars in tn,
9 triangle are Alpha, Beta and Gamma
. the first of these marking the head o
2 the deni-god, while the stars Of tn,
y quadrilateral are Epsilon, Zeta, Ell
!, and Pi. Alpha Hercules. also callet
: Ras Algethj, Is fine double star
q The constellation Hercules has
u special interest for US, because il ha
I, oonclusively been proved that our sui
y with his whole noble retinue of planet
y moves toward point in that constel
y latiop which is called the ''apex of th
. SUMS way,''' Between Hercules an,
y lations of Ophiuchus and Serpens, til
d former being a Greek word meanin
= the serpent Both constellation
% are so closely connected as to make i
y best to describe them together. At
y short distance east of Alpha Hercules
y a little toward the south, is Alph
!. Ophiuchi, marking the head Of tn
y hero, probably referring to the grea
u physician Esculapius. The shoulder
TX are each marked by pair of stars
.. those on the right side being oalle
20 Kappa and Ell, and on the left Bet
as and Gamma. Zeta is in the right lie
~ due south Of Antares, and Eta an
pa Theta mark the left leg, the latte
le being due east of Antares. The hea
W OF the serpent is marked by sma
g triangle of stars Of which Beta is on
" of the brightest in the constellation
O. About 10 degrees south of Beta
tn Alpha or Unuk, of the second magni
Sc tude. which may also be recognized b
~ small star, Lambda, near it. All tn
81 stars in the serpent form large bu
n. somewhat irregular semicirole, the ez
ne tremity of the tail being marked b
y. Theta not far from the oonstelatio
~ Aquila. Our attention has recent
D. been called by gentleman from Mas
D. sachusetts to group Of stars partly
an Ophiuohus and partly in the serper
'r- which certainly bears a resemblance
on what he has named it. a ''Hangin
~ Lamp" The topmost star is Deli
On Serpentis, to which the imaginaI
$50 chains are fastened, and Alpha form
n- Al So -. 4.