The Astronomical Calculations have been made expressly for this ALMANAC, by SAMUEL HART WRIGHT, M. D., A. M., Penn Yan, N. Y. Eclipses for the Year 1868. There will be only two Eclipses this year, both of the Sun, and neither of them visible in the United States. I. An Annular Eclipse of the Sun, February 23. Visible in South America, Africa, and Southern Europe. II. A Total Eclipse of the Sun, August 18. Visible in Eastern Africa, Southern Asia, and in Australia. A TRANSIT OF MERCURY over the Sun's disc, will occur November 5. Invisible in the United States. The Planets. MERCURY () will be at the most favorable stations for visibility, February 17, June 13, and October 9, being then Evening Star, and appearing in the west just after sunset; also April 7, August 5, and November 24, being then Morning Star, and appearing in the cast just before sunrise. VENUS (9) will be in the constellation Capricornus until January 20, then in Aquarius until February 15, being directly south of the Urn January 23. It passes the equinoctial February 15, rising exactly on the east point of the horizon, and setting squarely in the west. It will be in Pisces from this time to March 12, then in Aries until April 6. On the 4th of April it will be 2° south of the brightest star in the Pleiades. April 14 it will be 8° north of Aldebaran, and on the 25th it will be 2° 22′ south of ẞ Tauri. It passes the solstitial lure May 4, and will be farthest north May 6. May 7 it reaches its greatest eastern elongation from the Sun, 45° 31'. On the 26th it will be 7 south of Castor, and on the 80th it will be 4° south of Pollux. June 9 it will be brightest; after which it approaches the Sun, and daily loses its splendor. June 23 it becomes stationary, having been moving direct, or eastward, since its last superior conjunction, but now it begins to retrograde, and is situated a little southwest of the nebulæ in Cancer. It passes Pollux again July 18, 12° 28′ to south of it; but this will not be visible, as Venus will be in inferior conjunction with the Sun on the 16th, and itself invisible. It now moves off from the Sun westward apparently, and increases in beauty as a morning star. On the 7th of August it becomes stationary again, and begins to pass the stars eastward, and reaches its greatest splendor again on the 21st. On the 25th of September it reaches its greatest western elongation, 46° 9'. October 6 it will be 1° sout) of Regulus. November 7 it crosses the Equator southward; November 21, 4° north of Spica; December 10, enters Libra's Square; and on the 15th is near the middle of it; December 29, 6° 12' north of Antares. MARS (6) will come to the meridian during the daylight for the first nine months of the year. It has no opposition this year, and will not be an object of much interest until near the close of the year. November 27 it will be 2° north of Regulus in the handle of the Sickle. It will be near the Sickle during November and December. JUPITER (24) has been traveling northward since May 8, 1865, and on the first day of May it crosses the Equator, and rises exactly in the east at 3h. 32m. morn. It will be southeast of the Urn in the first part of the year, but directly east of it May 1. October 1 it will be brightest and in opposition to the Sun, rising at sunset and setting at sunrise. On the 8th of April it will be very close to Mars. SATURN (?) will be in opposition May 23, and brightest, rising as the Sun sets, and setting as the Sun rises. It will be in the region 10° or 12° north of Antares all of the year. OCCULTATIONS.-The Moon will occult or eclipse the bright star a Tauri, or Aldebaran, January 7, at 1h. 17m. morn., at Washington, the star reappearing at 2h. 20m. The same star will also be occulted again November 29, at 5h. 54m. eve., at Washington, and reappear at 6h. 51m, eve. These occultations are interesting to witness CHARACTERS EXPLAINED.- Mercury, Venus, & Mars, 24 Jupiter, Saturn, Moon, Sun 8 opposition or half a circle apart, I quadrature or quarter of a circle apart, ¿ conjunction or together, having the same right ascension; the word near used above means the same and indicates that the two bodies are then on a line running from the North Pole through both gr. elon., greatest elongation or farthest distanc from the Sun stationary, when the planet is without apparent motion, and is about to move in a direction contrary to that it last had. The above table enables us to find the planets throughout the year. New and Valuable Tide Table for 110 Places. To find the time of high-water at any of the places named in the following table, add time indicated in the first column of figures to the time of "Moon South," found in the calendar pages. If the result is more than 12 hours from noon, the time will be the next day in the morning, and if more than 12 hours from midnight, the time will be in the atternoon of the same day. The tide thus found is the first after the Moon's culmination. The second tide occurs 12 hours and 23 minutes later than the first. The year 5628 of 12 months began September 30th, 1867, and ends September 16th, 1868. The year 1284 began May 5th, 1867, and is intercalary. The year 1285 begins April 24. LENGTH 30 29 30 3830 29 29 DAYS. LENGTH July 22.. October 18.... November 17. A Table of Sixty-one Bright Stars. To ascertain when any Star or constellation found in the following Table will be on the upper meridian, add the numbers opposite in the left-hand column of figures to the time of "Sidereal Noon" found in the calendar pages. For the RISING of a star, subtract the number opposite in the right-hand column of figures from its meridian passage. For the setting of a star, add the same number to its meridian passage. Those marked (....) revolve in a circle of perpetual apparition, and do not rise or set north of the latitude of New York (40° 42′ 40′′), for which latitude the semidiurnal arcs are calculated. The civil day begins at midnight, and consequently 24 hours after midnight, or 12 hours from noon, is morning of the succeeding day; and more than 24 hours from noon, is evening of the next day. This table is arranged in the order of culmination. Surveyors and Civil Engineers may obtain the variation of the magnetic needle by observations on the Pole Star when upon the meridian, or when at its greatest elongation east or west. POLARIS and other stars pass the lower meridian 11h. 58m. after their upper transit. To the time of upper transit of Polaris, add 5h. 54m, and it gives the time of greatest western elongation. If the 5h. 54m. be subtracted from the time of upper transit, it will give the time of greatest eastern elongation. Observations made at the time of greatest elongation are less liable to error than those made at the time of transit. The mean distance of Polaris from the pole this year is 1° 23' 40". To find its azimuth for any latitude, take from 18.386236 the logarithmic cosine of the latitude, and the remainder is the logarithmic sine of the azimuth. Winter begins, 1867, December 22d. 1h. 31m. morning, and lasts........89d. Oh. 56m. Winter 1868, December 21d. 7h. 20m. morning, Trop. year.....365d. 5h. 49m. Boston; N. England, N. York N. York City; Philadelphia, Washington; Mary- SUN SUN MOON H. W. SUN SUN MOON H. W. SUN SUN MOON RISES. SETS. SETS. SETS. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. H. M. 1 W 5 17 5 7 7 304 38 11 13 3 28 7 254 43 11 13 0 14 7 19 4 49 11 14 2T 5 14 5 52 7 304 39 morn 3 F 5 9 30 T 3 23 4 34 7 165 12 11 31 F 3 19 5 21 7 15 5 13 morn MOON.-Perigee, 9th; apogee, 23d; on equator, 2d, 14th, 29th; highest, 9th; lowest, 22d. GIVING NAMES TO CHURCHES.-A newspaper furnishes the following item, which is entertaining and has a moral to it: "In the outskirts of an American city [Philadelphia] there is a very small Episcopal Church entitled 'The Church of St. James the Less,' but the irreverent urchins of the neighborhood call it 'The Little Jimmy.' In the neighborhood of the same city, there is a church which was largely built by the funds of an eminent American financier, who sold great quantities of Government bonds, and this church, by the irreverent, has been dubbed 'The Church of the Holy Five-Twenties.'" We may add that a third church, near the center of the same city, is called on account of the striking proportions of its lofty spire, "The Church of the Holy Toothpick." A BOOKSELLER in Paris, being asked for a copy of the French Constitution, replied, "Sir, I keep no periodicals. |
