. The century illustrated monthly magazine . ce. Its great sizepresents many difficult problemsfor solution. Correspondence hasbeen carried on by Captain Floyd,the president of the board of trus-tees, with the best-known astrono-mers of all countries, touching thevarious details of the work. Animmense volume of this corre-spondence has accumulated. Theoutcome of it all has been thedevising by Captain Thomas , a very clever young engi-neer, who has been in the employ of thetrustees as superintendent of constructionsince work began, of a dome which shall bea seven-eighths sphere, resting
. The century illustrated monthly magazine . ce. Its great sizepresents many difficult problemsfor solution. Correspondence hasbeen carried on by Captain Floyd,the president of the board of trus-tees, with the best-known astrono-mers of all countries, touching thevarious details of the work. Animmense volume of this corre-spondence has accumulated. Theoutcome of it all has been thedevising by Captain Thomas , a very clever young engi-neer, who has been in the employ of thetrustees as superintendent of constructionsince work began, of a dome which shall bea seven-eighths sphere, resting and revolv-ing on a tower seventy-five feet in circum-ference. The object of the seven-eighthssphere dome is manifold. In the first place an arc nearly corresponding with the arc ofthe eye-piece of the telescope. This chairwill be twenty-two feet in length and fivefeet in breadth. Shutter and chair will be ofnearly corresponding weight, and under thepersonal control of the observer. As the chairascends, the shutter will slide down into the. THE GREAT DOME AND TELESCOPE.(FROM A DESIGN DRAWN BY CAPTAIN THOMAS E. FRASER.) lower hemisphere, ascending again as thechair descends. By this arrangement, and withthe aid of a supplementary shutter overlap-ping the opening above, there will be only somuch of an opening in the slit of the domeas will be absolutely necessary to expose theobjective of the telescope. With the galleriesthe friction in moving it will be a minimum, and chair so arranged and adjusted, and theA hemisphere dome of the same diameter broad aisle under the framework, which haswould rest on a tower having a circumference a floor surface of two thousand square feet,,of two hundred and seventeen feet. The the seven-eighths dome will contain muchtower would need be of enormous strength to more spare room than a dome on the ordinarycarry the weight, and the friction in revolving plan furnished with a movable ladder-chair,the dome would offer a resistance over one The aisle
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectamerica, bookyear1882
