The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-01-29
AT HARVARD
A Vast Mass Of Observations in
North and South America.
New and Variable Stnrs-The Inves-
LEGATIONS in the 3IeasUrement OF
Light Have Reached "A Total Of
Nearly One HiIIion-The Annual
Report Of Researches just Issued.

CAMBRIDGE. Mass, Jan. 29-The an
nuai report of the Harvard College As
Economical Observatory. which has just
been issued, includes the record Of the
work with various Instruments in Cam
bridge and at Arequipa.
The total number Of photographs tax
en- with the 11-inch Draper telescope
since its installation in Cambridge IS
given as 12.S72. and with the S-inch
Draper, p. $50 On these photographs
and on the ones sent up from Peru TWEEN
ty-ore new variable stars have been
found during the year. in addition 10 a
new star il the constellation Aquila,
making the sixth nova discovered Al
Harvard by means Of photography
In photometry the total observations
now recorded at the observatory is $685.
S64
In Peru conditions were remarkably
favorable. the sky at Are4uipa during
the rainy season in the latter part Of
1899 having been exceptionally clear. so
much so that it was not necessary, as
was intended. to remove Iht meridian
photometer to the desert Of Atacana, in
Chile, where clear sky may be expected
during the periods of cloudy weather at
Arequipa. The total number of photo
graphs taken AT AreQuipe during the
observatory's year amounted to $3.50. by
the Bruce. Boyden, and Bache tele
scopes. This makes the total with these
instruments 4, $50.
Particularly interesting work was done
with the Bruce telescope on the planet
Eros, a photograph Of which was obtained
as early as April q. or a month before it
had been noted even geographically, al
any station 4 long series Of negatives Of
the planet Saturn was made by the same
telescope. TO Determine II possible the or
bit CT its satellite. Phoebe.
Meteorological work was carried on as
usual. both at Arequipa and at the Blue
Hill observatory, ten miles south OF BOs-
ton In Peru stations we're maintained
at various heights, ranging from MOleHde
400 feet TO EI MIST (19, 200)- In spite
Of great watchfulaess and the use OF self
registering instruments there was natu-
rally much difficulty IN carrying on the
work at the loftfeT mountain stations but
Il is believed that the personal obserya-
lions. combined with the records obtained
from the instruments, viii furnish v@lua-
BILE information TO meteOrOlOgISts concern
ing a region about which little was pre-
viously known
AT Blue UiH. apart from routine OBJ
servations, the chief work was the con-
tinued exploration Of the air by kites.
Twenty-Five fights were made. the aver
age height of ascension BEING 1913, and
the greatest height L. SEQ feet It is noted
in this connection that this method of
lighting self-recOrdins instruments into
the free air, which originated in 1894. is
now being extensively employed by Eu
ropean meteOrOlOgists.
other matters treated in the report are
the official distribution OF astronomical
news. which in this country deyolves upon
the Harvard Observatory. as in Europe
on that of Kiel; the new Photographic
telescope sent TO the temporary station al
Vaudeville. jamaica. the exhibit OF as
Economical negatives and prints sent to
the Paris Exposition. where the ObseTVa-
tory gained the Grand PTix; the expedi-
ton. sent to Georgia TO ohservy Ice total
eclipse OF the sun last spring. without any
considerable results. and the near ap-
preach to the earth during the past month
or two of the planet Eros. Concerning
this last matter Professor Pickering says
This is generally regarded as the most