The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-07-13
GLORIES OF THE HEAVENS DURING THIS MONTH
SATURN TO IN oPPOSTIoN-VENUs IN CONJUNCTION WITH


The duration of Old Sol's stay above
the horizon reached it's maximum
June %, and henceforth and until June
next we shall see less of him than
| has been our pleasure the last few
weeks. The difference in the length OF
| the daylight period, however cannot
yet be discerned by the average per-
son. When the days were at their
longest the sun rose few minutes af-
ter o'clock and set at 1924, giving us
daylight for fifteen hours and seven
teen minutes, to which twilight made
sufficient addition to call the days six
teen hours long. On July the later
rising took away four minutes 1t will
be observed that the setting for several
days is 7:25, a minute later than at
the time OF the summer solstice. This
is> due to the gradually increasing
equation of time, which for these few
days is a greater factor in the local
time of the suns setting than the
| earlier moment of the actual disap-
pearance of the sun itself as timed by
the astronomical measure.
Around the beginning of July the
earth will be at it's greatest distance
from the sun. AT that time it will be
about 100000 miles further away
from the great central orb of the sys-
tenn than 1t will be six months hence
The fact that the sun is nearer to us
In mldWinter than 1T is in midsummer
may offer some difficulties to the ord
mary understanding, but a simple ex-
PLANTATION is possible. The rate of the
temperature on the earth is determined
less by the distance of the heat-dis-
turbing body than it is on the angle
at which the heat rays strike us and
the length of time which they are felt
In summer the sun is higher above the
southerly horizon at noon than it is
| IN winter, and it is visible longer. Con-
sequently its rays do not have to pass
through so much atmosphere in reach
ing US They come to us more directly
and. they stay with us for a greater
length of time, and hence, although the
sun is more distant from us than in
December, it's effect on us is greater.
Reference is here made to the globe
north of the equator, below which line
the conditions are as we know, revers-
ed. When summer is in this section of
the earth winter is in the other, and
wee versa. The month of January
when the earth is nearest the sun, is
| the middle of the summer season in
| the lower half of South America and
Africa and in Australia. IN those re-
| g1onS the direction and duration of the
suns rays at that time are reinforced
| by the nearness of the body from
which they emarata. Therefore the
summers in the south temperate zone
| are usually hotter than they are in
the north temperate. AS the winter
on the south side of the globe comes in
June and July, when the sun is farth-
est away, the season is generally cold
er in that section than it is with us.
| The scene in the armament at 9
! o'clock in the, evening of the opening
days of July will be materially differ
| ent IN some respects from that which
| presented, itself at the same hour a
| month earlier. Regulus, which then
| was high above the horizon in the
southwest, will now be so near the
| horizon that it can barely be discerned.
and the stream of small stars to the
| north and east of it, which formed the
| sickle, will not be as readily traced
out. All the stars visible at that time
| will be noticed to have shifted west
| ward in these four weeks. Spica, the
| leading star in the constellation of the
! Virgin, is in the southwest. Castor and
| Pollux, which were in the west north
| of Regulus month ago, have vanish
| ed, and the only bright star passing
| anywhere near the zenith which will
be west of the point overhead at that