Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-08
THE COMING ECLIPSE
Great Interest in the Scien-
tifc World.
LABRADOR AND SPAIN
THE CHIEF GOALS OF THE Elk
petitions.
But Stations Will Also Be Made in
Africa and in Other
Localities.

Labrador and Spain seem to be the goals
of scientists and tourists interested in the
total eclipse of the sun August $3.50 The
great spectacle, previously described in The
Star Of June 3, is bringing about queer as
sociations of names, for it is attracting at
tention from all kinds and conditions Of
men. Dr. Wilfred T. Greenfell Of the Royal
National Mission to Deep Sea Fishermen is
preparing to aid the scientists whose sta
tons will be scattered along the Labrador
coast. His own stanch steamer, built for
service along the rock-bound coast, Is to
render special service. 1t Is guessed that
the trip Of Secretary Root to Labrador may
have been determined by purpose to view
the splendors of the rare phenomenon soon
to occur in that latitude
The special service squadron, under Rear
Admiral c. NJ. Chester, sup erintendent Of
the United States naval observatory, made
up Of the Minneapolis the Dixie and the
Caesar reached it's rendezvous at Gibraltar
as collier and transport, left Washington
June % with all apparatus necessary for
the three stations to be operated by the
party from the United States naval OBJ
servatory The Dixie left League Island
Philadelphia, July 2 which same date
the Minneapolis left New York. By July Is
Admiral Chester was ready to issue the
station bill for the United States eclipse
station, No l, to be near what is known as
the central line of totalty.
The Stations Decided On.
The Caesar has become the station ship
at Valenta, Spain, the Dixie is at Bona
Africa. where the Minneapolis is at present,
to return TO Valentia five days before the
eclipse in order to land the large party to
Ia reruoape Three Statiops
will be operated by the party, two in Spain
and one in Africa. The Spanish stations
will have separate purposes, one being in
the interior, the other on the coast. 1t will
be so situated as to observe conditions near
the edge of the path of totalty which
position is particularly suitable for spec
troscopic work. The African station land
ed at Bona, will proceed inland and will be
near the western part of the province of
Tunis.
Admiral Chester has with him about
seven members of the scientific staff of the
naval observatory and a number of uni
versity professors. Prof. w. S. Eichelberg-
er, L. S. N, will be in charge of station
No l; Computer E. l. Vowel and Assistant
on Equatorial L. G. Hoxton, from the OBJ
servatory, DR.. S. A. Mitchell of Columbia
University, New York, and DR.. F. H. Bige-
low of the United States weather bureau
Will take charge of special work In all
ABOUT nfty-tWo men have been detailed TO
station /. The opportunities afforded nv
a position along the central line of totality
for certain kinds of research is indicated by
the names of the Instruments which have
been carried into the interior Of Spain from
Valentia to the neighborhood of Daroca
DR.. Eichelberger will have charge of the
five-inch equatorial
The great 4O-foot photoheliograph will be
under the care of Mr.. L. G. Hoxton. The
polar axis, Smithsonian grating nlane
and parabolic grating spectroscopes transit
instruments, cameras of all sizes binocu-
lars and other Instruments entirely nm
known to the laity make proud the initial
ed, who boast that the 5000 appropria ed
by Congress has been we'll laid out There
will be special efforts made to photograph
the awe-inspiring steamers of the corona
TO test Its color and even to draw It DR.
Bigelow will have charge of the meteor
illogical observations. Box kites bearing
thermometers and other weather gauges
will be put into requisition in order to test
the atmospheric changes.
At station two near the edge of the to-
tally band in the vicinity of Valencia will
be Prof F. B. Littell, United States Naval
Assistant Astronomer G. A. Hill
in Spectroscopic Work j. A. Ander-
son and a similar contingent of seamen
marine corps men. ensigns and officers from
the squadron. DR.. N E. Gilbert from
Dartmouth College, Hanover, N. H., and
Mr.. l.. E. Jewel of the Johns Hopkins Uni
versity are with the party.
Opportunity for Investigation.
In opposition to the general notion the
edge of the totality band offers opportuni-
ties for investigation quite impossible on
the central line The shadow of the moon
appears so much larger than the sun that
about the moment of extreme contact there
are peculiar chances for spectroscopic work
for the study of the suns atmosphere and
the detection of intermercurial planets The
detection of the hypothetical planet Vulcan
and any possible companions will be at
tempted at this station. Capt ]. A. Norris
U. s. N, and Computer w. w. Dinwiddie
will have charge Of the African station.
1t is the plan of the astronomers to place
their stations at great intervals in order
to observe the mutations of the corona. The
parties sent out from the Lick observatory
Mt. Hamilton, Cal. will thus operate three
stations One at Cartwright, Hudson Bay
Company's post. in Sandwich bay, Labra-
dor, under DR. Heber Curtis and Prof Joel
Stubbins, will seek the planet Vulcan while
spectroscopes Will be used to obtain a con-
tinuous record OF changes in the spectrum
of the suns edge at the time of the second
and third contacts. Two other Lick sta
lions will be in Spain and In Egypt the
records of observations thus covering the
early hours, the noon and evening hours
of the eclipse.
Admiral Chester's Views.
THE path of the shadow of the moon
during the eclipse Is conveniently accessi-
BILE at several points; that fact" says Ad-
miral Chester. together with the large du-
ration for totality, which for the maximum
is three minutes forty-hye seconds, renders
the observation of this eclipse desirable"
The width of the shadow path is approx
mately 100 geographical miles The moons
shadow strikes the earth at sunrise in the
province of Manitoba near the south end OF
Lake Winnipeg. 1t sweeps over the penn-
sula of Labrador about 100 miles north of
the eastern entrance of the Strait of Belle
isle, which separates Labrador from the
Island of Newfoundland. 1t crosses the At
iantic and Spain southwestwardly, leaving
Madrid about forty miles and Valencia
about two miles distant from the southern