Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1900-03-08
THE SKIES IN MARCH.

the moon Will pass through her phases |
| as follows; First quarter on the Sth,
full on the 10th, last quarter on the
gath, and new on the 30th. She will be
nearest the earth on the LIST and the
Goth, and most remote on the 14th.
At the beginning of tho month the sun
will be yet 7 degrees, 3S minutes, 36
seconds distant from the equator, but in
| its motion of declination approach it at
| quick rate, reaching it on the Goth of
| the month at S.3S. ID p. M, at which
precise moment the astronomical spring
| begins. The almanacs generally express
| this by the phrase that the sun enters
| Aries, but 1t must be kept in mind that
| ut that moment the sun enters the con-
stellatiun Pisces, the sign of Aries
agreeing with the constellation of
Pisces This disagreement between the
constellation and signs Of the same
name is due to the procession of the
equinoxes, which is a retrograde motion
Of the points where the equator inter
scots The ecliptic. In consequence of
this westward motion of the eguinoxes
the sidereal and the tropical years do
not agree in length, the former repre-
senting the true orbital revolution Of
the earth around the sun, and conse-
! quently being independent of the posi-
/ tiou VI VIZ thb 'hbLcI boihB
the period occupied by the sun in pass
ing around the heavens from one
equinox to the same equinox again. As
the precessionlof the equinoxes amounts
to 80 seconds year, 1t follows that the
sidereal year is about 20 minutes %
seconds longer than tho tropical. As the
tropical year is the period within which
the Seasons are completed, it possesses
far greater interest than the 5idereal
year. though the latter is the true
period of the earth's revolution about
the sun. The procession of the equi-
noxes also causes change of the north
star. Polaris has not always been the
north star, nor will it always act as such,
though many thousand years will'elapse
before it must Ielinquish its claim to
being Of all the stars the nearest to the
true north pole of the heavens.
The planet Mercury will be In Pisces
and Aquarius. Venus will first be in
Pisces, but the greater part of the
month in Aries. Even a considerable
time before the last glimmer of twilight
vanishes from the sky, this ever beau
tiful planet can be seen high up in the
southwest, and 1t will adorn the
heavens until about $50 o'clock. 1t
will act as an evening star until the
| end of June. The planet Mars is in
Aquarius, and in a very unfavorahle
position for observation, as 1t cannot
, properly be said to act either as a
j morning or al evening star. The
, planets Jupiter and Saturn are in the
/ constellation Sagittarius, the former
! rising about quarter past midnight,
! the latter little after o'clock, thus
acting both as morning stars. Uranus
, is on the boundary line of Sagittarius
J and Soorpio and Neptune in Taurus.
, From this it may be seen that with
. the exception of Neptune the planets
! are not very far from one another, some
' even quite close. Eclipses and re-
, markable conjunction of the celestial
of ordinary laws, which nevertheless
: appear to break the regular course OF
I nature, yet they never fail to excite
0 surprise. Such events vary greatly in
o frequency. Some one of the satellites
q of Jupiter is eclipsed nearly every day
r but the simultaneous eclipse of three
a satellites can only take place, accord.
i. ing to calculation, after a lapse Of
o more than a million years. A clost
4 conjunction of two planets always ex
!. cites admiration, and yet these con
q functions must occur at intervals ir
+ the ordinary course of their motions.
=. | We caDlOt wonder that when three nj
= four njanets annroacb each other ulosel,
o the eyent is long remembered. <
g most remarkable conunction of Mars
:, jupiter, SatuIp and Mercury, which
. tooIs rlace in the wear DAG b. a.. wa,
. adonted by the Chinese Empetor
Ohuen Hin. az a nav enoch for tn,
chronology of his empire. though Their,
% is some DOUBT whether the conjunction
was really observed. or was calcularet
from the supposed law of motion of. tn,
nlanets. III Ia certain that on the iii
Of November, 1924. the planets Venus
a Jupiter and Saturn we're seen very clos
topether. while Mercury VAS only i
to degrees distant.
d Tn our article nm tho Dscemher sl,ie
D, WE inadvertenily omitted To call In
IS reader,s attention to the remarkabl
J. faot that ali the larger nIanets. with in
in exception of Meantime. we're eatbere,
nj topether In one OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES a
Ie Sapjttarius-that is, within a space O
r; about 40 deprees. There have beer
r, closer prosimities of some of them. Xix
'. those inst mentioned. hut still IN
(. assemhlape Of nearly all the prea
IN planets within comnaratiyely so sma
2. = snaoe as a constellation is a yery rar
and very renarkable event. and one Inn
s. viii nct easily biz FORGOTTEN. Tb
Mt astronomer IL able tn Commute suc
u ocourrenees in the past as we'll as i
n, tbe future. and IL has been ca lculate
Us that this Gathering of SO mar