ASTRONOMICAL NOTES FOR JULY.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8172, 2 July 1906, Page 3

ASTRONOMICAL NOTES FOR JULY.

The SUN is in the constellation 'Gemini till the 10Lb, when he enters Oahcor.. His nurtneru declination 'decreases by about sde» -riurim; the month, and hia altitude at noon increases in our latitudes by tho • j»amo amount during that period. The beginning of Juno was marke l by an exhibition of intKiieo solar activity, several fine streams of spots, as viell as other ifola'od centres, bein// seen at that time. Faculrm wore especially prominent a I: tint same time. There will be tin eclipso of tho Sun on tho 21st, which, however, will not be visible id .\>.>vv Zsi.iiuni, 'tho area of visibility boiuy .withiu the Antarctic Circl'i. Tlie ftiOO.V, in her monthly eir cuit of tan o.iines into the vicinity oi the piano's mid soma of the brighter s-'tsre, mid psrveij as u <jonveuioat pointer to tliem. She will ba near Uianu/i on tho morning of tho ur.h, to tin north; Saturn ■ on the morning of lh* !lth, to {he south; the minor planet; Oregon tile morning of the 17th to the north; Jupiter, un the lGtb, to the south; Neptune on tho evening of the 20th, to tho south; Miirs on tho -evening of the *2lst; Mercury on the '24 th; Biid Venus on the evenings of the 24t,h and 25cb, when the western pky, containing these two interesting bodies in close proxi mity, will present a most attractive appearance to tho casual stargaze r, as well as those who make a closer of the subject, She will pass through U e following constellations on the evenings mentioned and in the oraer given:—in Virgo on the Ist, Libme on the 2nd and 3rd, Ophiucbus on the 4th aud stb, Sagittarius on the 6th, OapricornuSoa the 7th, Bth, and Utb, Aquarius on the 10th and 11th, and again her first quarter in Leo on the 25th, Virgo on the 26th to the r2Btb, and Libra to the end of the month. PhRSbS of the Moon in New Zealand mean (oivil) time:—Full moon, 6 days 3br 57min p.m ; last quarter quarter 13 days 9hr 42min p.m.; rtiew moon, 21 daysl2hr 29min a.m.; rflrst q.iarter, 29 days 7hr 26min p.m. MEKOURY is an evening star 'throughout the month, moving forward through tbeconstellations Cancer and Leo. He will be at bis de scending node on the night of the 12 th, at greatest elongation east •of the Sun on the morning of the 16th, when he will be removed 26.5 deg east, in Aphelion on the 23rd, in conjunction with the Moon on the 34th, the planet being 3B.Gdeg to , the south, and 1 stationary amongst the stars on the morning of the 29th. VENUS is now the brilliant star ■of the evening sky. Easily visible !□ the west iu the strong twilight, she becomes most noticeable as the darkness gathers. Her path Is a forward one through the oonstellation Leo, approaching the bright fctar.Regulus at the middle of the .month, and passing him slightly to •the "north, She will be in conjunction with the moon on the morning of the 25th at about 6hr 30min 3..4deg south, and will make an • attractive speotacle on the preceding and same evenings in company with our satellite in the northwestern sky. MARS iB moving closa to the Sun during the month through the constellations Gemini and Cancer. He .will be in conjunction with the <Sud on the 16tb, after whioh he becomes a morning star. He will te in conjunction with the Moon on the 21st. JUPITER 's p morning star throughout the month, moving forward through the constellations iaurua and Gemini. He may be seen in the early morning hours towards the •end of the month, rising shortly be- . lore the Sun. He will be In conjunction with the Moon on the ejpirly morning, of the 19th and will present an interesting appearance totbosawho catch a glimpse of him at that time in company with our satellite. SATURN is an evening star throughout the month, slowly retrograding in the constellation Aquarius. He will be in conjunction with the Moon on the morning ofllth, being oconlted by that body at 3hr 37min 54sec of that date, to southern observer?. He riees at this station shortly after 9 p.m. at the middle of the month, and his ring system, although rapidly closing, still presents n most attractive appearanoe in fair-sized telescopes. URANUS is an evening star in Sagittarius, moving forward. He is in conjunction with the Moon on the morning of the 6th, 3.4deg •south. NEPTUNE is moving forward in Gemini. He will be be in conjunc-tion-with Che Sun on the 3rd, after which he becomes a morning star. He is in conjunction with the Moon on the evenng of the 20tb, l.Sdeg ! north. METEORS.—- There is a welldefined shower of these bodies registered as aotire and long trains; the radiant is near the star Delta. . The OONSIELLATIONS for the of the month at about 8 p.m. are as follow:—In the North IS Hercules, east of the meridian! with Lyra and the brilliant Vega, and higher the Serpent Bearer, Opbiuchus, with the , Scorp'on and Balance. West of the meridian is Bootes, and the flae star Aroturus, with Ooma Berenices and the "Northern Grown. Aquiia and the bright Altair are rising in the eaet, with OspricornKs ani the Southern Fishes,, the brilliant Fomalhautt being conspicuous low down in the : : south-east. Setting in the west is Leo, with Virgo closely following, while above is Hydra and the two . smaller constellatioos, Grater and Oorvue. Argo and the bright star Oanopuß is skirting the southern. horizon, while the Gross rides high • over head, on the western Hide of the meridian, followed by the two bright pointers, Alpha and Beta OeataaraSi while Achernar is rising east under the Pole, about as far,[to the east as Oanopus is to the wesivqnjfcha other side of tba south- \ • •>era meridian. .. : - . The great catastrophe of San Francisco has famished a theme to many -writers and thinkers, and perhaps ope or two of an astronomioal significance may .not, be wittdut inter"'An English ,amatuer aetrondmer, well-known to readers of carrent astronomical literature, informs the Press that, observing with the speotroscope on' the morning of

April 18th, bo notified au'enormous prominance surmounting the »un's north-western limb. This formation measured over 20dc« of arc (solar limb), or more than 150,000 along the Sun's surface, %yhilo it extended outwards to over 50,000 miles from the Sun's purfaoo. This ptject is described as showing sifjni ot violont agitatiou, being interspersed throughout its aron by alt<i uhting lines of great brilliancy and dark patohos, By 1.3!5 p.m."the entiro formation had dipnppeaveil, but from tho Houfltevn p'nh> of t.!)v Sun there roso an arching pnuninanco which cxtendod outwards from tiio Sun's surface to a distance oi more than 70,000 milos. Mr Hti beliavps tho firrt prominence w > exploded by a sudden paroxysm 'it solnr energy, which wa.? posail;! communicated to the mirth, as it, took plaoo at tho time of the I'u'm*trophe at Wnn Fraocieco, allowing for tho difference in time between trie two places, It is also mod<jidored significant , liy anolher writer, that at the time of the disaster all the principal planets, with tho exception of Urn una. were all upon one side of the in spao , or within OOcleg of celestial longtitude The writer mentions soveral other occasions when the same conditions prevailed, and when earthquakes and volcanic outbursts occurred. But science moves slowly, demanding mnob proof, and although tho above and other facts and theories are of great interest, she will hardly accept any of them till fully weighed in the balance, her motto be ng "Festina Lente " .* HON DIRECTOR, Wanganui Observatory. June 30th, 1906.