THE LUNAR ECLIPSE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8208, 11 August 1906, Page 7

THE LUNAR ECLIPSE.

The morniug of the 4th was marked by almost continuous rain storms «ind high wißd, so muoh so that foay chance of seeing the total BOlipse was lboked upon as a very forlorn hope indeed, . Nevertheless towards evening the skies cleared, and with the exception of a littl° light oloud, at times, the phenomenon was seen to great advantage in Wanganui. Owing to a derange--1 ment in the nhutter in the dome of the Observatory in Cook's Gardens, necessitating slight repairs, it was thought best to abstain from using it until those were effected, and the following observations were obtained with the aiC of a Reflecting telescope, the property of the writer.

The Moon riding near the zenith, In the oonstellation Capricornus, was watched at the computed time lor entry into the shadow cone, \ Vfhiofi WAS somewhat difficult tc mark, but it was unmistakable at 10 ' hooM 40 minutes rolling in on the Sioutn east quadrant, and of a very dusky hue. It was oonsidored that the advancing edge of the shadow appeared to be rolled i|"p, and of much greater density than tbatjmmediately following it. The } crater Aristarchus was resched at 10 hours 50 minutes, and at this stage a fairly luminous appearanoe was noted arbund the south-eastern limb though within the shadow, Coperni ous (a prominent crater foim) was leached at 10 hours 52 minutes, and Tyoho at 11 hours, when it was noted that the shadow appeared of a dusky hlHck, no trace of the osual coppery tinge'being apparent at this stage, though the south east limb oontinued very bright by contrast with the rest of the eclipsed anrfaoe. Third magnitude stbrs began to appear at this stage. At 11 hours 10 minutes, moon half immersed, fourth magnitude stars appeared as well as the brightei regions of th 9 Milky Way in Sagittarius. At 11 hours 15 minuteb the eclipsed high levul formation appeared of a distinctly coppery tinge, and at this time the Milky Way was distinct from Argo, near the southern horizon to Sagittarius. At 11 hours 20 minutes twotniiris of the moon were within the shadow, when it was noted as especially remarkable that the southeastern limb was quite oright, from aboat 30 to 70 degrees south, as compared with the rest of the surface in the shadow. At 11 hours 25 minutes the shadow approached the westero limb; tho sky perceptibly darkened, fifth magnitude starj were easily discerned, and the Milky Way was visible in its entire length across the sky. At 11 hours 39 minutes all trace of tne directly surface of the moon vanished but the remarkable feature of tUe eolipsed moon, at this stage, was its brilbancy. There have been eclipses whqn the surface of the moon, at totality, has been well-nigh invisible. Not so this occurrence, for when completely within the shadow oone, thrown by the earth, she was still quite a brilliant body, more especially the highlands which came out in sharp contrast with the lower surfaces at this stage. All the principal naked eye features could be discerned quite dietinotly, while in the telescope the , brilliant crater Aristarchus was very disfcinofc. This appeared somewhat remarkable, as when the shadow only extended so far as Tyoho, this object though looked for, could be barely discerned. At 12 hours 30 minutes the great brillianoy of first total immersion had disappeared, excepting at the southern polar region, whioh was very bright near the limb. At about 13 hoars tho solitary observer left the temple of Uranus, and wended his way to the shrine of aflorpheus. TH.EJ HON. DIKsIOTOK, Waugauui Observatory. August 6th, 1906.