The heavens are peculiarly splendid at this season.

ORION.

In addition to

many of those constellations already described, Orion and the Great and Little Dog bespangle the sky. Orion is easily known by the 3 stars in his belt and the 3 in his sword. The brightest nebula in the heavens is situated on the middle star of the sword. The stars Betelguese, a, and Bellatrix, 7, point in a manner nearly direct to the bright star Procyon in the Little Dog, and the three in his belt point to Sirius in the Great Dog, the most brilliant of all the stars. The constel. lation of the Hare is beneath the feet of Orion.

3. Required the situation of the stars at Newcastle, on March 21st, at 9 in the evening.

The constellation Leo Major is seen to advantage at this time. The

LEO MAJOR.

head and fore quarters are indicated by a group of stars in the form of a reaping hook, the brightest of them is Regulus, «; a right angled triangle marks his hind quarters; the bright star in the tail is Denebola.

4. What are the principal constellations that will be above the horizon of Edinburgh, on May 1st, at 10 o'clock in the evening ?

PROBLEM XIII.

To find what Stars never rise, or never set, to any place. BY THE GLOBE.-1. Elevate for the latitude.

2. Hold a pencil at the north point of the horizon, and by turning the globe round, draw a circle; then all the stars between it and the elevated pole never set.

3. Hold a pencil at the south point of the horizon, and draw a circle as before; then all the stars between that place and the depressed pole never rise.

4. If the place has S. latitude, to find those stars that never set, hold the pencil at the south point of the horizon; and for those that never rise, at the N. point.

WITHOUT THE GLOBE.-1. Subtract the latitude of the place from 90°, and the remainder is the co-latitude.

2. If the declination of the star is greater than this, and of the same name, it will never set; if it be greater, and of a contrary name, it will never rise.

EXAMPLES.

1. What constellations never set at Newcastle, and what principal stars are always visible there?

Ans. Constellations.- Ursa Major, part of Auriga, Perseus, part of Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Cygnus, Lyra, Draco, part of Hercules, Ursa Minor, part of Boötes.

Stars.—Lyra, Arided, Alderamin, Almaach, Algol, Capella, Dubhe, Alioth, Benetnasch.

2. What constellations never rise to Newcastle?

Answ. Phoenix, Eridanus, Horologium, Cela Praxitelis, Equuleus Pictorius, Dorado, Argo Navis, Piscis Volans, Centaurus, Crux, Chameleon, Lupus, Norma, Indus, Triangulum Australe, Ara, Telescopium, Pavo, Grus.

3. Are there any stars that never set at Jamaica ? Answ. Ursa Minor, part of Cepheus, part of Camelopardalus. 4. Are there any stars that never rise at Otaheite ? Answ. The same that never set at Jamaica.

5. How far N. must I go never to lose sight of Arcturus?

6. How far south of the equator must those people live who never see any part of the Great Bear?

7. In what latitude must I be never to see Lyra? 8. Where must I be never to see Sirius?

9. Whither must I go never to lose sight of Sirius?

QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION IN SECTION I.

What is the celestial globe? What is the solar system? What are the fixed stars? What is a constellation? What are the primary planets? What are satellites? What are comets ?

What are the celestial poles? What is the equinoctial? What are parallels of declination? What are celestial meridians?

What are the declination and right ascension of a heavenly body? What is oblique ascension and ascensional difference? What are right and oblique descension, and descensional difference?

What are the latitude and longitude of a celestial body? What are parallels of celestial latitude, and circles of celestial longitude?

What is meant by the culminating of any celestial object? What is the azimuth of a heavenly body? What is amplitude?

What is the zodiac? How many degrees is it broad? Into how many signs, or constellations, is it divided?

What is meant by altitude and zenith distance? What is the orbit of a planet? When is a body in conjunction with the sun, and when is it in opposition? What is meant by occultation?

What is meant by the geocentric and heliocentric place of a planet? How are stars classified? What is the lowest magnitude visible to

the naked eye?

How many can be seen at any one time?

At

What is the milky way? What is the supposed distance of the nearest fixed star? What is the velocity of light? How long would a ray of light be in passing from the nearest star to the earth? what rate does a ball fired from the mouth of a cannon move, and how long would it be in passing from the earth to the nearest star?

Are the stars all placed in the same concave hemisphere, at the same distance from the earth? What is meant by a temporary star? Who

observed the earliest on record? When did the last remarkable one appear? When may it possibly reappear? What is remarkable about the star Algol? Name another variable star? What is a double star? Name one. What is the distinction between binary and double stars? What are nebulæ ? Name one of the most remarkable of the resolvable nebulæ ? What does the zodiacal light consist of?

Where is it seen in the evening?

What is it that occasions the apparent motion of the stars from east to west? How do the stars rise and set at the equator? Which star appears always stationary ?

How are the r. as. and dec. of any star found ? From what point on the globe is the right ascension reckoned? How is a star found from having its r. as. and dec. given? How are the lat. and long. of a star found? The day of the month being given, how is it found at what hour any star comes to the meridian? How is it found on what day of the year any star passes the meridian at any given hour? How are the altitude and azimuth of any star found? From having the azimuth of any star and day of the month given, how are the altitude of the star and the hour of the night in a given latitude found? From having the alt. of a star, the day of the month, and lat. given, how are the az. and time of the night found? Having the az., lat., and hour given, how are the alt. of the star and day of the month found?

How is the hour of the night found, by observing when any two stars have the same azimuth? How are the rising, setting, and culHow are the oblique ascension and descension found? How are the eastern and western amplitude?

minating of any star found?

How may the globe be made to represent the face of the heavens, for any given day and hour, in a given latitude? How is it found what stars never rise, and what stars never set, to any place?

Point out upon the globe, all the stars of the first magnitude. Which constellations in the heavens appear the most brilliant?

QUESTIONS FOR EXERCISE IN SECTION I.

1. Required the right ascension and declination of Alphard, Benetnasch, Antares, Canopus, Acubens, and their latitude and long.

2. At what hours do Algol, Dubhe, Arcturus, Pollux, Bellatrix, Sirius, Capella, appear on the meridian of London, March 24th ? 3. At what hours do they appear on September 25th?

4. When does Regulus come to the meridian on Jan. Ist, March 10th, June 14th, Sept. 25th, Oct. 25th, and Nov. 5th ?

5. What is the right ascension of ß, in Auriga?

6. What is the right ascension of ß, in the Northern Scale? 7. On what days will the following stars be upon the meridian at

midnight: - Capella, Aldebaran, Bellatrix, Arcturus, Fomalhaut, Pleiades, Vega, and Atair?

8. On what days do they come to the meridian at 4 a.m. ?

9. On January 1st, when it is 8 p.m. at London, what are the altitude and azimuth of the following stars :- Algol; Pleiades; Menkar; Aldebaran ; Sirius; Procyon; Taurus, ß; Capella; Leo, y; Cassiopeia, ; Cygnus, «; Vega, and Draco, «?

10. What are the alt. and az. of Cygnus, a; Corvus, a; Regulus; Cancer, a; Procyon; Dubhe; Perseus, a; and Capella, at London, May 1st, at 10 p.m.?

11. On October 6th, the azimuth of Menkar, at Newcastle, was S. 52o E.; required the hour and the altitude.

12. At London, on December 21st, the azimuth of Cor Hydra was S. 14o W.; required the hour and the altitude.

13. At the Cape of Good Hope, on June 21st, the azimuth of Spica Virginis was N. 89° W.; required the hour and the altitude.

14. On August 9th, the altitude of Phoenix, a, at Jerusalem, was 14o; required the hour and the azimuth.

15. At Quito, on March 22d, the altitude of Canopus (Argo, a) was 21°; what was the hour?

16. What was the hour at London, on September 1st, when the altitude of Arided was 80° ?

17. The azimuth of the brightest of the Pleiades, at Newcastle, was S. 8840 E. when it was 10 in the evening; what was the day of the month, and what was the altitude of the star?

18. At Boston, U. S., the azimuth of Rigel was S. E. by E. 7° E., at 8 hrs. 1 min. p.m.; required the day of the month.

19. What time does Dubhe set at Newcastle on February 28th? 20. When it was 5 in the morning at Rome, the azimuth of Capella was N. 60° W.; what was the day of the month?

21. Give the rising, setting, and culminating of Castor; Sirius; Corona Borealis, a; Arcturus; and Procyon; at London, Jan. 31st. 22. How long is Sirius above the horizon at St. Petersburg?

23. At what time does Achernar rise at York on September 2d? 24. What is the time of rising, setting, and culminating of Algenib, Menkar, Vega, and Cor Hydræ, at St. Helena, Oct. 6th?

25. What stars of the first and second magnitudes are above the horizon at London, on January 1st, at 9 o'clock in the evening?

26. Required the situation of the stars at York, on May 1st, when it is midnight?

27. What constellations never set and what never rise at Rome? 28. What stars never rise and what never set at the north pole?