Denning says, —111
“A few years ago, when christening celestial formations was more in fashion than it is now, a man simply had to use a telescope for an evening or two on Mars or the moon, and spice the relation of his seeings with something in the way of novelty, when his name would be pretty certainly attached to an object and hung in the heavens for all time! A writer in the Astronomical Register for January, 1879, humorously suggested that ‘the matter should be put into the hands of an advertising agent,’ and ‘made the means of raising a revenue for astronomical purposes.’ Some men would not object to pay handsomely for the distinction of having their names applied to the seas and continents of Mars or the craters of the moon.”
An occultation of Mars by the moon is recorded by Aristotle as having occurred on April 4, 357 B.C.112
Seen from Mars the maximum apparent distance between the earth and moon would vary from 3½′ to nearly 17′.113
CHAPTER VII
The Minor Planets
Up to 1908 the number of minor planets (or asteroids) certainly known amounted to over 650.
From an examination of the distribution of the first 512 of these small bodies, Dr. P. Stroobant finds that a decided maximum in number occurs between the limits of distance of 2·55 and 2·85 (earth’s mean distance from sun = 1), “199 of the asteroids considered revolving in this annulus.” He finds that nearly all the asteroidal matter is concentrated near to the middle of the ring in the neighbourhood of the mean distance of 2·7, and the smallest asteroids are relatively less numerous in the richest zones.114
There are some “striking similarities” in the orbits of some of the asteroids. Thus, in the small planets Sophia (No. 251 in order of discovery) and Magdalena (No. 318) we have the mean distance of Sophia 3·10, and that of Magdalena 3·19 (earth’s mean distance = 1). The eccentricities of the orbits are 0·09 and 0·07; and the inclinations of the orbits to the plane of the ecliptic 10° 29′ and 10° 33′ respectively.115 This similarity may be – and probably is – merely accidental, but it is none the less curious and interesting.
Some very interesting discoveries have recently been made among the minor planets. The orbit of Eros intersects the orbit of Mars; and the following have nearly the same mean distance from the sun as Jupiter: —
Achilles (1906 TG), No. 588,
Patrocles (1906 XY), No. 617,
Hector (1907 XM), No. 624,
and another (No. 659) has been recently found. Each of these small planets “moves approximately in a vertex of an equilateral triangle that it forms with Jupiter and the sun.”116 The minor planet known provisionally as HN is remarkable for the large eccentricity of its orbit (0·38), and its small perihelion distance (1·6). When discovered it had a very high South Declination (61½°), showing that the inclination of the plane of its orbit to the plane of the ecliptic is considerable.117
Dr. Bauschinger has made a study of the minor planets discovered up to the end of 1900. He finds that the ascending nodes of the orbits show a marked tendency to cluster near the ascending node of Jupiter’s orbit, a fact which agrees well with Prof. Newcomb’s theoretical results. There seems to be a slight tendency for large inclinations and great eccentricities to go together; but there appears to be no connection between the eccentricity and the mean distance from the sun. The longitudes of the perihelia of these small planets “show a well-marked maximum near the longitude of Jupiter’s perihelion, and equally well-marked minimum near the longitude of his aphelion,” which is again in good agreement with Newcomb’s calculations.118 Dr. Bauschinger’s diameter for Eros is 20 miles. He finds that the whole group, including those remaining to be discovered, would probably form a sphere of about 830 miles in diameter.
The total mass of the minor planets has been frequently estimated, but generally much too high. Mr. B. M. Roszel of the John Hopkins University (U.S.A.) has made a calculation of the probable mass from the known diameter of Vesta (319 miles, Pickering), and finds the volume of the first 216 asteroids discovered. From this calculation it appears that it would take 310 asteroids of the 6th magnitude, or 1200 of the 7th to equal the moon in volume. Mr. Roszel concludes that the probable mass of the whole asteroidal belt is between 1⁄50th and 1⁄100th of that of the moon.119 Subsequently Mr. Roszel extended his study to the mass of 311 asteroids,120 and found a combined mass of about 1⁄40th of the moon’s mass.
Dr. Palisa finds that the recently discovered minor planet (1905 QY) varies in light to a considerable extent.121 This planet was discovered by Dr. Max Wolf on August 23, 1905; but it was subsequently found that it is identical with one previously known, (167) Urda.122 The light variation is said to be from the 11th to the 13th magnitude.123 Variation in some of the other minor planets has also been suspected. Prof. Wendell found a variation of about half a magnitude in the planet Eunomia (No. 15). He also found that Iris (No. 7) varies about a quarter of a magnitude in a period of about 6h 12m.124 But these variations are small, and perhaps doubtful. The variability of Eros is well known.
The planet Eros is a very interesting one. The perihelion portion of its orbit lies between the orbits of Mars and the earth, and the aphelion part is outside the orbit of Mars. Owing to the great variation in its distance from the earth the brightness of Eros varies from the 6th to the 12th magnitude. That is, when brightest, it is 250 times brighter than when it is faintest.125 This variation of light, is of course, merely due to the variation of distance; but some actual variation in the brightness of the planet has been observed.
It has been shown by Oeltzen and Valz that Cacciatore’s supposed distant comet, mentioned by Admiral Smyth in his Bedford Catalogue, must have been a minor planet.126
Dr. Max Wolf discovered 36 new minor planets by photography in the years 1892-95. Up to the latter year he had never seen one of these through a telescope! His words are, “Ich selsbt habe noch nie einen meinen kleinen Planeten am Himmel gesehen.”127
These small bodies have now become so numerous that it is a matter of much difficulty to follow them. At the meeting of the Royal Astronomical Society on January 8, 1909, Mr. G. F. Chambers made the following facetious remarks —
“I would like to make a suggestion that has been in my mind for several years past – that it should be made an offence punishable by fine or imprisonment to discover any more minor planets. They seem to be an intolerable nuisance, and are a great burden upon the literary gentlemen who have to keep pace with them and record them. I have never seen, during the last few years at any rate, any good come from