ECLIPSE OF THE SUN.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 813, 10 May 1910, Page 7

ECLIPSE OF THE SUN.

fr —— NOT VISIBLE. OWING TO 1 . CLOUDY WEATHER. By Telegraph—Press Associatlou— Copyright. (Rec. May 9, 9.15 p.m.) HObart, May 9. There oould not have been a gloomier day for the eclipse - of the sun. The eclipse was not discernible here. Sydney, May 9. Owing to cloudy weather tho eclipse of the suit was only imperfectly seen here. SEEN IN SOME PLACES. THE FAILURE AT BRUNI ISLAND. • (Rec. May 10, 0.25 a.m.) Sydney, May 9. Tho eclipse was well observed in some parts, of the country. / Melbourne, May 9. Tho eclipse of tho sun was spoiled from a scientific standpoint by dense clouds, which .flitted across the sun. It was seen well ill the country. , . . Adelaide, May 9., Though the day was cloudy, it cleared during tho eclipse, and a good view was obtained. Hobart, May 9. After tho most elaborate preparations to observe the eclipse at Bruni Island, tho sky was completely oycrcast, and there was a drizzling rain. The darkness. during tho totality of eclipse was comparahlo to a starlit night. Twenty : six observers were engaged, but all* their efforts were in vain. IMPORTANCE OF OBSERVATION. i ; THE ARRANGEMENTS. N-; How greatly the w:eather lias disappointed astronomers may bo gauged fttrfri tho.following details, recently pub-' lished in an Australian paper A. total eclipse of the suit Will take place on the afternoon of Monday, May 9. It will .be visible. as'a ' partial eclipse over the whole of Australia and the northern half of'Tasmania,;but the only portion Of. the globe on land from which the phase of totality (namely, the eomploto obscuration of tho Sun) may be seoii is that ! part of Tasmania which lies south of an imaginary line running across tho State from Cape Bougainville on the oast coast, through Parattah and the southern slopes of the Zeehan Ranges, to Harbour Signals on the West coast.

Along this limiting line the duration of totality will bo only 'momentary,'but will gradually increase at localities fur' their south; and will last from nearly three to three, aud a half minutes ai? such places aB Hobart, Bfiini Island, and others on the South coast, The occasion must be regarded as offering to those who will be within this restricted area on May 9 the . rare opportunity of witnessing what is generally admitted to be the most imposing of all celestial phenomena. : • It is only during the precious moments of a total solar' cclipso that certain phenomena of tho highest importance for tho advancement of our know; ledge of the sun can bo seen and recorded. For this purpose many great expeditions went out from Europe and America to observe the eclipses of the last -60 years, which involved extensive preparations, lfing journeys to distant lands, great expenditure of time, energy, and money, and, not infrequently, hardship and risk to health. In the present case, however (savs the "Adelaide Advertiser"), no official oxpeditious are to be dispatched to Tasmania from tho older countries, owing, partly, to the low altitudo of the sun at th 6 time of tho'Cclipso and the probability of bad weather, which will considerably reduce tho chances of obtaining gooS results, and also to the circumstauco that a more promising total eclipse of tho sun will take placo next year, for the observation of which European and American astronomers arc already preparing to send expeditions to tho Tonga Islands. Australian astronomers tire thus expected t6 undertake tho responsibility of carrying out tho duties demanded bv the cclipso of May 9.

This matter was i considered by the Australasian Association for the Advancement of Scienco at its Brisbane mooting in January, 1000, with the result that an cclipso committee was'ap-1 pointed by tho council for the. purpose of organising an expedition of Australian astronomers to observe the Tasmanian' eclipse. The committee consists of Messrs. I'. Bnracehi (Clovernment astronoinei, Victoria;, 0. H. Knibbs (Fed-' eral Statistician), Senator Keating (Lauliceston). Professor Pollock (Sydney University), Professor M'Auley (Hobart University), Professor Chapman (Adelaide University), 10: W. Cooko (Government Astronomer), West Australia), C«. F. Dodwell, Government Astronomer (South Australia), It. H. l!oo (Director of Education, Queensland), J. M. Baldwin, M.Sc. (Melbourne Observatory), C. J. Merficid, F.R.A.S. (Melbourne Observatory), Lieutenant Picsso (Hobart), Dr. Coleridge Farr-(New Zealand), and Dr. W. G. Dufliekl (lion, secretary). ' . It was arranged that an official expedition froni the Melbourne Observatory should go to Bruni Island, Tho observatories of the other States wore invited to join. Experienced astronomical observers, not officially connected with these institutions, and who possess suitable cclil>so instruments, were also invited to join.