Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1909-04-14
A POPULAR COURSE
IN ASTRONOMY
THE EVENING STAR JUPITER
Contributed by
u. C.. COOper, B.S.)

AS t0lS article IL JuteuOeU W ln.I|
terest and aid school pupils and
persons of common school educa-
ton. l shall purposely avoid the use
Of scientific terms and discussions
as far as possible and confine my
self to the explanation and use Of
simple terms and facts which can
be easily understood and put into
practice by any person Of ordinary
intelligence. The first thing to be
done in observing q planet or star
is to find it. e., to see it with
your eyes"
We can easily find a heavenly
body if we know its altitude and
azimuth or declination and right
ascension. Hence it is absolutely
necessary to know the meaning of q
few scientific terms before proceed
ing to furhtre discussion.
~ The Zenith is the point ver-
tically straight up) overhead in the
sky.
(2) The visible Horizon is the
line where the sky and earth seem
to meet.
(3) The celestial Equator is the
projection (extension) Of the earth's
equator upon the sky.
az Altitude of q heavenly body
is its angular distance above the
horizon.
(5). The Azimuth of a heavenly
body is its angular distance meas
ured from the south point (south
cardinaD clear around thru the
west the foot Of the vertical circle
passing thru the body.
(6) Defamation is the angular
distance of a body above the celes-
tial equator.
G.! Right Ascension is the angu-
lar distance Of a body measured
east from the Equinoctial colure to
the foot Of the body's vertical circle
on the celestial equator. Each pu-
pill or other person must study these
definitions till he understands them
before he attempts to find the
stars.
The planet Jupiter which is now
our brilliant Evening Star can be
seen any clear night at 8 or better
at 9 o'clock in altitude about 81 de-
xrees north and in azimuth 3l5 de-
Igrees, or in the southeast about
two-thirds up the sky from the hor-
lion to the zenith. It is in the
most favorable position for observa-
ton as it is now very near its clos
est possible position to the earth.
viz, 1863, 100000 miles away. Its
golden disc encircled by rose-colored
bands forms the most beautiful OBJ
Iject of study of all the planets. It
is 16 times as bright as Aldebaran, a
standard star of the first magnitude
I(Aidebaran is the brightest star Of
the constellation Taurus) and
about 5 times as bright as Sirius,
the DOG STAR" which is the near
est fixed star and is now an even
ing star seen in the southwest
about "a degrees in altitude or one
fourth up in the sky. Jupiter
day is about 10 hours long and his
|year is IL of the earth's years in
length. His surface is 119 times as
large as the earth's, being by far
the largest of all the eight planets.
| Careful observations with the
largest telescopes show this large
globe consists principally, if not en-
tirely, of vapor. Jupiter was
known to the ancient Chinese.
Egyptians, Greeks and Romans.
Both the Greeks and Romans wor-
shipped him as their chief god.
Astrologically he was the "Greate1
Fortune" When we'll aspected he
is magnanimous, a lover of the
square deal," wonderfully indul.
gent to wife and children and al
to the good" But when afflicted
by the malign planets he is "all tt
; the bad"
) The purpose Of this article il
solely to get pupils and others tt
, observe the planets and stars and tt
, tell them how they may be found
Now, pupils and others, while yor
are out taking your evening walk: