The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-04-29

the disks Of the sun and moon, and also
the second when they separate. This is
done to verify the schedules of contact
and separa ton as calculated by them and
given above.
To the astronomers on the belt of total
obscurity the eclipse will be vastly in
teresting. The moons shadow touches
the United States first at the southwest
ern corner of Mississippi and then sweeps
northwardly across Mississippi, Alaba-
ma, South Carolina, Georgia, North Ca
rolina and Virginia, kissing the Continent
sood-by at Cape Henry and vanishing into
the Atlantic on its trip TO Portugal.
FOREST OF TELESCOPES.
All along this route will be stationed
astronomers with telescopes pointing up
ward from improvised observato tories, with
specially constructed cameras orientated
to the exact part Of the sky where the
sun will be in total eclipse, with instru-
GnentS for spectrum and pnotometric OBJ
servatons, and with numberless other
astronomical instruments with names
which are meaningless to the layman.
If the weather is at all fine the eclipse
will be the best recorded and observed
one that ever occurred. One of the most
interesting features of the work on the
eclipse to the person who has only pass
ing knowledge of astronomy viii be the
search for two planets, said to exist near
the sun, and which have not previously
been observed, save in one instance, du-
ring the total eclipse in July, 1873. Prof.
Watson, of Ann Arbor, observing closely
through his telescope, saw, or thought he
saw, two small planets revolving about
the sun in paths far inside Of that of
Mercury the nearest one of the system
A SEARCH FOR WATsON'S LITTLE
WORLDS.
At ordinary times these two little but
terffies Of the great solar system, If theT
exist, would be totally drowned out in
the flood of light caused by their prox-
unity to the royal orbit. No other as
tronomer save Prof. Walton observed
these new planets, and as subsequent
eclipses failed to reveal them it is be-
lieved that Prof. Watson mistook two
fixed stars for new planets. But Prof.
Watson was a careful, patient observer,
and enough credence is given to his re-
port to have the search renewed at this
opportunity. and every astronomer will
be on the alert for two little dazzling pin
head points of light beyond Mercury that
indicate the location Of the lost planets
PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORDS.
The camera will play an important
part in this eclipse. At such times only
is the dazzling corona" of the sun visi-
bic, and the camera is relied upon to fix
indelihly features Of this vague atmos-
be taken of the stars in the Immediate
neighborhood of the sun, whereby it IS
hoped, among other things, to locate the
intra-mercural planets referred to above
Cameras with moving films will be enl-
ployed to obtain a continuous record OF
the eclipse from first contact to ending,
something on the order of moving pic
ture machine. Other features to which
attention will be given will be the reia-
tive position of the sun and moon, draw
ings of the corona, distribution of the
"coronium,' position Of the green coronal
line, a spectrum of the flash" heat ra-
diation of the corona, photometric obser-
walton Of the corona, and many other
tasks. These duties will be divided up
among the astronomers, and when the
various reports are collated and the in
ference drawn several interesting dis
coyeries are expected to be made.-Cin-
cinnati Enquirer.