A Short History of Astronomy - Arthur Berry (read along books .txt) 📗
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planets in opposition: diurnal method: gravitational methods, lunar and planetary: methods based on the velocity of light: summary of results
363
§ 285.
Variation in latitude: rigidity of the earth
367
§ 286.
Gravitational Astronomy. Lunar theory: Damoiseau, Poisson, Pontécoulant, Lubbock, Hansen, Delaunay, Professor Newcomb, Adams, Dr. Hill
367
§ 287.
Secular acceleration of the moon’s mean motion: Adams’s correction of Laplace: Delaunay’s explanation by means of tidal friction
369
§ 288.
Planetary theory: Leverrier, Gyldén, M. Poincaré
370
§ 289.
The discovery of Neptune by Leverrier and Dr. Galle: Adams’s work
371
§ 290.
Lunar and planetary tables: outstanding discrepancies between theory and observation
372
§ 291.
Cometary orbits: return of Halley’s comet in 1835: Encke’s and other periodic comets
372
§ 292.
Theory of tides: analysis of tidal observations by Lubbock, Whewell, Lord Kelvin, and Professor Darwin: bodily tides in the earth and its rigidity
373
§ 293.
The stability of the solar system
374
§ 294.
Descriptive Astronomy. Discovery of the minor planets or asteroids: their number, distribution, and size
376
§ 295.
Discoveries of satellites of Neptune, Saturn, Uranus, Mars, and Jupiter, and of the crape ring of Saturn
380
§ 296.
The surface of the moon: rills: the lunar atmosphere
382
§ 297.
The surfaces of Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn: the canals on Mars: Maxwell’s theory of Saturn’s rings: the rotation of Mercury and of Venus
383
§ 298.
The surface of the sun: Schwabe’s discovery of the periodicity of sun-spots: connection between sun-spots and terrestrial magnetism: Carrington’s observations of the motion and distribution of spots: Wilson’s theory of spots
385
§§ 299-300.
Spectrum analysis: Newton, Wollaston, Fraunhofer, Kirchhoff: the chemistry of the sun
386
§ 301.
Eclipses of the sun: the corona, chromosphere, and prominences: spectroscopic methods of observation
389
§ 302.
Spectroscopic method of determining motion to or from the observer: Doppler’s principle: application to the sun
391
§ 303.
The constitution of the sun
392
§§ 304-5.
Observations of comets: nucleus: theory of the formation of their tails: their spectra: relation between comets and meteors
393
§§ 306-8.
Sidereal astronomy: career of John Herschel: his catalogues of nebulae and of double stars: the expedition to the Cape: measurement of the sun’s heat by Herschel and by Pouillet
396
§ 309.
Double stars: observations by Struve and others: orbits of binary stars
398
§ 310.
Lord Rosse’s telescopes: his observations of nebulae: revival of the “island universe” theory
400
§ 311.
Application of the spectroscope to nebulae: distinction between nebulae and clusters
401
§ 312.
Spectroscopic classification of stars by Secchi: chemistry of stars: stars with bright-line spectra
401
§§ 313-4.
Motion of stars in the line of sight. Discovery of binary stars by the spectroscope: eclipse theory of variable stars
402
§ 315.
Observations of variable stars
403
§ 316.
Stellar photometry: Pogson’s light ratio: the Oxford, Harvard, and Potsdam photometries
403
§ 317.
Structure of the sidereal system: relations of stars and nebulae
405
§§ 318-20.
Laplace’s nebular hypothesis in the light of later discoveries: the sun’s heat: Helmholtz’s shrinkage theory. Influence of tidal friction on the development of the solar system: Professor Darwin’s theory of the birth of the moon. Summary
406
List of Authorities and of Books for Students
411
Index of Names
417
General Index
425
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FIG.
PAGE
The moon
Frontispiece
1.
The celestial sphere
5
2.
The daily paths of circumpolar stars
To face p. 8
3.
The circles of the celestial sphere
9
4.
The equator and the ecliptic
11
5.
The Great Bear
To face p. 12
6.
The apparent path of Jupiter
16
7.
The apparent path of Mercury
17
8-11.
The phases of the moon
30, 31
12.
The curvature of the earth
32
13.
The method of Aristarchus for comparing the distances of the sun and moon
34
14.
The equator and the ecliptic
36
15.
The equator, the horizon, and the meridian
38
16.
The measurement of the earth
39
17.
The eccentric
44
18.
The position of the sun’s apogee
45
19.
The epicycle and the deferent
47
20.
The eclipse method of connecting the distances of the sun and moon
50
21.
The increase of the longitude of a star
52
22.
The movement of the equator
53
23,
24. The precession of the equinoxes
53, 54
25.
The earth’s shadow
57
26.
The ecliptic and the moon’s path
57
27.
The sun and moon
58
28.
Partial eclipse of the moon
58
29.
Total eclipse of the moon
58
30.
Annular eclipse of the sun
59
31.
Parallax
60
32.
Refraction by the atmosphere
63
33.
Parallax
68
34.
Jupiter’s epicycle and deferent
70
35.
The equant
71
36.
The celestial spheres
89
Portrait of Coppernicus
To face p. 94
37.
Relative motion
102
38.
The relative motion of the sun and moon
103
39.
The daily rotation of the earth
104
40.
The solar system according to Coppernicus
107
41,
42. Coppernican explanation of the seasons
108, 109
43.
The orbits of Venus and of the earth
113
44.
The synodic and sidereal periods of Venus
114
45.
The epicycle of Jupiter
116
46.
The relative sizes of the orbits of the earth and of a superior planet
117
47.
The stationary points of Mercury
119
48.
The stationary points of Jupiter
120
49.
The alteration in a planet’s apparent position due to an alteration in the earth’s distance from the sun
122
50.
Stellar parallax
124
51.
Uraniborg
133
52.
Tycho’s system of the world
137
Portrait of Tycho Brahe
To face p. 139
53.
One of Galilei’s drawings of the moon
To face p. 150
54.
Jupiter and its satellites as seen on January 7, 1610
152
55.
Sun-spots
To face p. 154
56.
Galilei’s proof that sun-spots are not planets
156
57.
The differential method of parallax
165
Portrait of Galilei
To face p. 171
58.
The daily libration of the moon
173
Portrait of Kepler
To face p. 183
59.
An ellipse
185
60.
Kepler’s second law
186
61.
Diagram used by Kepler to establish his laws of planetary motion
187
62.
The “music of the spheres” according to Kepler
190
63.
Kepler’s idea of gravity
196
64.
Saturn’s ring, as drawn by Huygens
To face p. 200
65.
Saturn, with the ring seen edge-wise
To face p. 200
66.
The phases of Saturn’s ring
201
67.
Early drawings of Saturn
To face p. 202
68.
Mars in opposition
206
69.
The parallax of a planet
206
70.
Motion in a circle
214
71.
The moon as a projectile
220
72.
The spheroidal form of the earth
234
73.
An elongated ellipse and a parabola
238
Portrait of Newton
To face p. 240
Portrait of Bradley
To face p. 258
74. 75.
The aberration of light
262, 263
76.
The aberrational ellipse
264
77.
Precession and nutation
268
78.
The varying curvature of the earth
277
79.
Tobias Mayer’s map of the moon
To face p. 282
80.
The path of Halley’s comet
294
81.
A varying ellipse
303
Portrait of Lagrange
To face p. 305
Portrait of Laplace
To face p. 307
Portrait of William Herschel
To face p. 327
82.
Herschel’s forty-foot telescope
329
83.
Section of the sidereal system
333
84.
Illustrating the effect of the sun’s motion in space
345
85.
61 Cygni and the two neighbouring stars used by Bessel
360
86.
The parallax of 61 Cygni
361
87.
The path of Halley’s comet
373
88.
Photographic trail of a minor planet
To face p. 377
89.
Paths of minor planets
378
90.
Comparative sizes of three minor planets and the moon
379
91.
Saturn and its system
380
92.
Mars and its satellites
381
93.
Jupiter and its satellites
382
94.
The Apennines and the adjoining regions of the moon
To face p. 383
95.
Saturn and its rings
To face p. 384
96.
A group of sun-spots
To face p. 385
97.
Fraunhofer’s map of the solar spectrum
To face p. 387
98.
The total solar eclipse of 1886
To face p. 390
99.
The great comet of 1882
To face p. 393
100.
The nebula about η Argus
To face p. 397
101.
The orbit of ξ Ursae
399
102.
Spiral nebulae
To face p. 400
103.
The spectrum of β Aurigae
To face p. 403
104.
The Milky Way near the cluster in Perseus
To face p. 405
A SHORT HISTORY OF ASTRONOMY.
CHAPTER I.
PRIMITIVE ASTRONOMY.
PRIMITIVE ASTRONOMY.
“The never-wearied Sun, the Moon exactly round,
And all those Stars with which the brows of ample heaven are crowned,
Orion, all the Pleiades, and those seven Atlas got,
The close beamed Hyades, the Bear, surnam’d the Chariot,
That turns about heaven’s axle tree, holds ope a constant eye
Upon Orion, and of all the cressets in the sky
His golden forehead never bows to th’ Ocean empery.”
The Iliad (Chapman’s translation).
1. Astronomy is the science which treats of the sun, the moon, the stars, and other objects such as comets which are seen in the sky. It deals to some extent also with the earth, but only in so far as it has properties in common with the heavenly bodies. In early times astronomy was concerned almost entirely with the observed motions of the heavenly bodies. At a later stage astronomers were able to discover the distances and sizes of many of the heavenly bodies, and to weigh some of them; and more recently they have acquired a considerable amount of knowledge as to their nature and the material of which they are made.
2. We know nothing of the beginnings of astronomy, and can only conjecture how certain of the simpler facts of the science—particularly those with a direct influence on human life and comfort—gradually became familiar to early mankind, very much as they are
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