Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1901-03-09
Special Correspondence.
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Special Correspondence
Cambridge. March i-"Unprepared
Anderson Edinburgh vogrant bardlto
azucana In Perseus unsettled bascar
blush white
The above Is the cablegram received
at the Astronomical observatory OF
Harvard college in Cambridge Febru-
AIRY %, 1901, officially announcing to the
western continent the appearance OF the
"new" star in the constellation Pcrseus'
and Immediately transmitted to the
other obseryatorles Of the continent
Translated by the code used at the oo'
seryatory II reads AS follows' "A new
star has been discovered by Anderson
at Edinburgh, in the constellation fer-
seus The position is h. a. h. "a M
olssc and Dec. 1904 It's magnitude
on February q was a. Blush white
This translation. sent out more slowly
in the form OF bulletins, then carried
the tldings Of the discovery to all other
persons in this country interested IN as
tronomy.
such news comes first TO the Harvard
observatory as the distributing center
Of astronomical intelligence on this SIDE
~ the water II IL here that all sueh
Intelligence Is reported from the various
stations on the western continent, such
60 heins then transmitted to the
Ria, observatory In North Germany
which holds the same relation to the as
tronornIc interests Of the old world. In
i've fashion the Kiel observatory re-
nnrts 10 Cambridge and the latest as
trnnomlr news OF Europe becomes ~,
meet an the instant familiar TO AL
American astronomers.
The discovery Of new star IL an
event Of great Importance to the large
army OF astronomers, professional anu
amateur. constantly scanning the
heavens In the last fourteen years
only eight new stars have been as
covered and the receipt of such mes
enee as the above Is, therefore SUI
0pientIy Infrequent 20 stir observatorles
ia Unusual and pleasant activity
Modern astronomy, with It's indefatlB.
able photographic photometrlc ana
visual instruments, works continuously
and the Ending OF new star IL break
In tho night and day routine of ordinary
observation somewhat comparaple 10
the finding Of an occasional nugget III
community Of conscientious god-seek-
ers. In the Harvard observatory ior
example, the instrurs ITS were turheo
Immediately upon constellation
Perseus although the night was lar
from being Ideal for astronomic obsei-
walton. the star was only occasionally
visible through the clouds and railing
snow made Il twice necessary TO cover
and protect the Instruments.
Al the present time the discovery OF
new stars Is more often made By the
study of Photographic plates OF the
heavens than by visual examination Of
the sky itself. such plates being taken
constantly. and any new star thus reg
istered Immediately upon its appear
ance. The result Is not always as Inn
mediate as that Of the more personal
scrutiny but It's advantage lies In the
fact that no star can appear and disap'
pear. as might otherwise sometimes be
the case, without leaving proof OF lbs
presence In 1891, after the discovery OF
Nova Auriga by the same Dr. Ander-
son who has now, in 1901. found Nova
Persel an examination OF the photo
graphlc plates at the Harvard Obser-
yatory proved that the new star had
been I'm existence for six weeks before
the eye of the astronomer observed H.
DR.. T, ID. Anderson, the discoVerer
despite the fact that h. has already
added a star In the constellation Aur-
ige, In not a professional astronomer
his real profession Is the ministry. AS
As the case with many another In Great
Britain, astronomy is simply personal
pleasure amounting practically to an
avocatien. II Is interesting to note that
I'm his first discovery he so doubted the
possibility Of having been the first as
tronomer 10 notice Nova Aurlg9 that he
announced the fact to the obserVatories
on q modest and ANONYMOUS post caro-,
conceallnp his own Identity until the
value OF his find made 1t impossible
longer TO conceal Il. Nevertheless, al.
though the Photographic plates would
eventually have told the same story
the value Of his present discovery was
none the less important for IT served
Immediately 10 focus on that one por-
ton Of TIE heavens the entire astrono-
mical observation Of the earth.
When a new star has been discovered
Inc nINI uufNAlNliN nhAhlhhs NphiNNA'
location in the armament and Its com
narrative brightness. Therefore. while
the first technlcalities Of the science
are familiar to many readers, II may be
interesting TO others to follow roughly
the process upon which DR. Anderson,
having discovered Nova Persei. based
his figures. "R. A. 3h Fam. 2ts and
Dec. \ 80 81" The exact situation may
be seen most readily by examination OF
an ordinary globe. bearing in mind that
IN Or. Anderson the heavens are the In
side surface of such a globe. enlarged
enormously and the earth from which
he makes his observations an inhnltesl-
maly smaller globe exactly In the CEN
that a great plane passing through both
ter OF II Granting this II will be seen
globes like an enormous sheet OF pa
per and dividing the earth al the eaua-
tor into two hemspheres, would make,
on the surface Of the other globe a great
circle comparable on an enormous scale.
10 the equator Of the earth and called,
In fact. the celestial equator, that other
planes cutting the earth at the poles
would make upon the outer globe other
great circles comparable TO the earth's
own circles OF longitude; and that the
sun as seen from the earth would. as
the earth makes its yearly revolution.
trace on the outer sphere another enor-
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES Observation-Disclosures,