Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1910-08-09
AUGUST METEORS
Display Looked For Before
Middle OF Month
VISIBLE FROM lIth TO 18th
Displays Also Expected In October Aud
NOvember--A Few Interesting Facts
About The Heavenly Bodies

The August display of meteors
may be looked for at any time be-
tween the present and the 18th of
the month, but most likely from the
l1th to the 18th. An October display
is also to be expected, and there will
also be another in November.
The many meteoric phenomena on
record show not only that there are
meteoric bodies in all the regions of
space known as those of our solar
system, but that they have paths.
or orbits, which intersect the earth 5
orbit at intervals. Thus one set
appears in April and other sets in
July, August, October and Novem-
Der. When meteor is moving
rapidly toward the earth it appears
to move slowly, or even to stand
still, until its motion again becomes
apparent on account of the change
in the position of the observer, as
he looks at the meteor from the
rapidly moving earth.
The meteors are named from the
consultations from which they appear
to descend. The Aquarids appear to
come from the constellation Aquarius,
the Leonids from Leo and the Per-
seids from Perseus. But none of the
meteors come from anywhere near
the consultations, as these are bill
lions of miles away. while the meteors
appear at most few thousand miles
before coming to their finish by fall
ing on the land or water of our
planets. The satisfactory proof that
they belong to our own solar system
is that they cross the paths of the
earth and other planets at several
periods each year.
Meteors have been scientifically
observed and recorded as far back as
644 B. c. by the Chinese. Between
that time and A. d. 333, sixteen
great showers of meteors were re-
corded in the astronomical annals of
that very studious people. They were
also observed by the Greeks and the
Romans, who were always careful to
work them up in politics, to influence
and awe the superstitious. Meteoric
showers were doubtless looked for
during the "ides of March" in julius
Caesars time, when all astronomical
phenomena were called upon, as they
are sometimes today, to do church
and political duty.
Meteors are of all sizes. One weigh
ing 90 tons is now on view at Port
land, Ore. The astronomer, HALEY,
saw a very brilliant meteor that sud
denly illuminated the streets of Lon
DON On August Is, 1888, meteor
was observed all the way from Rome
to the north of Ireland At Edin-
burgh it appeared as single, but at
Greenwich it had split into two bright
balls, and they were followed by
other luminous bodies. Itwas be-
yond the earth's atmosphere, and had
speed Of 1000 miles a minute. On
November 21, 1919, a meteor was
seen from Danvers, Mass, and this
city. 1t was descending toward the
earth, and two minutes after it's dis
appearance a rumbling noise was
heard which lasted more than a min
ute.
On the evening Of July 20, 1860, a
meteor passed over the State of New
York, coming from the West. 1t was
seen over Lake Erie. and soon after
at Buffalo, Albany, New York City,
New Haven, Newport, R. l., and New
Bedford, Mass. 1t was also visible
from Delaware. From a vessel off
Sandy Hook it appeared to fall into
the sea, after splitting into two parts,
which emitted sparks and flames.
The larger meteors generally make
their appearance at one of the peri
odical times, as in April, July orr Oc-
tober, more rarely in November.