Archive image from page 594 of Discovery Discovery discovery0304londuoft Year: DISCOVERY 245 tion. First of all is the nature of the corona. Alone of all the solar appendages, the corona has defied the advance of spectroscopy and can only be observed on the rare occasion of a total eclipse. As Mr. Fath, of Goodsell Observatory, Minnesota, remarks ; ' We know that a portion of its light is polarised, that its spectrum consists in part of reflected photospheric light and in part of bright lines, that it rotates in the same direction as the Sun, and that its general outline changes with the su
Archive image from page 594 of Discovery Discovery discovery0304londuoft Year: DISCOVERY 245 tion. First of all is the nature of the corona. Alone of all the solar appendages, the corona has defied the advance of spectroscopy and can only be observed on the rare occasion of a total eclipse. As Mr. Fath, of Goodsell Observatory, Minnesota, remarks ; ' We know that a portion of its light is polarised, that its spectrum consists in part of reflected photospheric light and in part of bright lines, that it rotates in the same direction as the Sun, and that its general outline changes with the sun-spot curve. We know practically nothing of the forces which determine the direction of its streamers ; nothing of the real nature of the sub- stances composing it, their source, or their motion in the streamers ; nothing about its rotation except direction.' Another problem is that of the existence of intra-Mercurial bodies. While it is certain that there are no objects of planetary dimensions beween Mercury and the Sun, it is not improbable that a number of asteroidal bodies may exist. Accordingly, it will be desirable to explore the solar vicinity with powerful instrumental aid. An interesting feature of the coming eclipse will be the presence of Venus in the near vicinit\' of the sun. Indeed, it will be possible to photograph the planet on the eclipse plates. Mr. J. H. Worthington remarks, in Monthly Notices, vol. Ixxxiii, p. 424, that ' it seems that Venus shining through the outer corona and an immense section of the zodiacal light on this occasion should offer an opportunity to study the absorption spectra of these solar appendages.' Another New Star Mr. Lampland, of the Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff. Arizona, discovered a new star on May 5 last. The nova is situated in the spiral nebula Messier 83 ( 5236) and is of the fourteenth magnitude. The nebula is described by Dr. Curtis, of the Lick Observatory, as a large and beautiful spiral with a very bright nucleus.
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