Abstract
THE COMET (1882 a).—In a circular issued from Lord Crawford's Observatory on May 29, Dr. Copeland remarks that the spectrum of the nucleus of the present comet deserved the closest attention, as it showed “a sharp bright line coincident with D, as well as strong, traces of other bright lines, resembling in appearance those seen in the spectra of γ Cassiopeiæ and allied stars.” For some weeks the head had exhibited white light, which might be inherent in the comet or the reflected light of the sun; on May 28 the nucleus began to throw out yellow rays, which on June I were also given out by parts of the tail immediately behind the head. Of γ Cassiopeise, Secchi writing in 1877, says: “Le plus remarquable de ces étoiles exceptionelles est γ de Cassiopée, qui présente les raies spectrales de l'hydrogene, non pas noires, par renversement, mais directement brillantes, curiosité unique jusqu'ici dans tout le ciel. 11 n'y a que β de la Lyre qui ait quelquefois les raies brillantes, et encore pas toujours, parce qu'elle est variable”; and he further writes of β Lyræ, “Elle nous a montré une fois, an maximum d'éclat, les raies brillantes de l'hydrogène, comme γ de Cassiopée, chose que nous n'avons plus vue ensuite, bien que nous l'ayons souvent cherchée.”
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Our Astronomical Column . Nature 26, 137 (1882). https://doi.org/10.1038/026137a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/026137a0