GLORY OF THE STARS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22743, 1 June 1937, Page 16

GLORY OF THE STARS

HEAVENS IN JUNE ECLIPSE PHENOMENA VALUE OF OBSERVATION BY CRUX AUSTKAT/TS A thought that must sometimes arise in the mind of the layman, especially at times when solar eclipses occur, is why parties should go to great expense, ; travelling many miles to set up stations | for the observation of eclipses which j last at the best only some seven I minutes. Eclipses of the Moon are i frequently seen over large areas and ! it must he wondered why they are i almost totally ignored by astronomers, jin preference to tlio rarer solar phenomenon. The Sun is the one star of the mili lions that stud our sky as tiny points ' of light that can be observed at close : quarters, being only 93 millions of miles away, whereas there are only some ! forty stars within a distance of twenty 1 billion miles. The more that can be ascertained, therefore, of the nature and behaviour of the Sun, the more i will astronomers learn about the nature of the stars, one of the principal func- | tions of astronomy. Study ol Sunspots There are certain features of solar activity which can be, and are, studied from day to day in observatories all over the world. The growth and decay of sunspots, the variations in their size and number, have been studied ever since the invention of the telescope. The spectroscope also is put to daily use in observing the tremendous calcium and hydrogen eruptions which present-day researches indicate have such a vital influence on terrestrial conditions. The fainter solar appendages, however, remain inaccessible to observation, owing to the brilliance of the solai orb, except for those rare occasions when the Moon interposes itself between the Sun and the Earth, cutting off for a few short minutes the glare of our primary. Although astronomers miss no opportunity of observing all solar eclipses whose narrow tracks of totality pass over habitable land, it is not surprising, therefore, that the sum total of observations of certain solar features amounts only to a few hours' study. The Solar Corona When a total eclipse occurs the Moon gradually passes across the face of j the Sun," a rapidly narrowing crescent : of light being seen. When this crescent j js about to be completely hidden by ; the advancing Moon the light from the outer atmosphere of the Sun itself becomes visible for a few seconds. ; Shortlv afterward, the advancing Moon j completely hides this atmosphere and i the corona flashes out. : The faint, tenuous light of the corona, | extending some 10,000,000 miles from I the Sun, shining with a bluish light, is ! one of the most wonderful spectacles visible to man; For many years it was believed that one constituent of its light, named coronium, represented a new element which, like helium at the time of its discovery, had not been identified on the Earth. But our present knowledge of the atoms of the different elements reveals that there is no place in the scheme of things for an additional element, and coronium must represent a familiar element under conditions which cannot be duplicated on the Earth. Phenomena for June The Sun, at present in the constellation Taurus, will enter Gemini on June 20. Its noon altitude at Auckland to-1 day will be 31 degrees, but this will j decline to 29J degrees on June 22, i when the winter solstice will occur. The total solar eclipse which will occur| . on June 8 in the eastern Pacific will i be seen in the North Island as a small partial eclipse just after sunrise on the morning of the 9th. Sunrise will occur at Auckland at 6.58 a.m. on that day. and at that time about one-tenth of the solar diameter will be covered by the Moon. Eclipse will end about 7.20 a.m. . In the course of its circuit of the heavens, the Moon will be in conjunction with the naked-eye planets at the following times:—Saturn, 4th, 1.30 pm.; Venus. 6th. 9.30 p.m.; Mercury, 7th, 6.30 p.m.; Mars. 20th, 9.30 p.m.; Jupiter. 26th. 8.30 a.m. The two inferior planets, Mercury and Venus, are both situated in the morning sky this month. Mercury attaining its greatest elongation from the Sun on June 6 and Venus on the 27th. Saturn also is situated in the morning; sky. Mars and .Jupiter both are prominentlv situated in the evening sky. Mars in Libra, is just past opposition and is very close to the Earth in space. For this reason, and also on account of its great southern declination, it is an especiallv favourable object for telescopic scrutiny at present. Jupiter, in Sagittarius, rises later than Mars, and will not be in opposition until next month, but also is exceptionally we placed at present, and telescopists will find in the motions of its tiny satellites and the changing detail of its disc much of interest.