Introduction
Three kinds of astronomy -- Progress of the science
during the eighteenth century-- Popularity and advance
during the nineteenth century
Progress of Astronomy During the First Half of
the Nineteenth Century
Foundation of Sidereal Astronomy
State of knowledge regarding the stars in the eighteenth
century -- Career of Sir William Herschel -- Constitution
of the stellar system -- Double stars -- Herschel's
discovery of their revolutions -- His method of
star-gauging -- Discoveries of nebulae -- Theory of their
condensation into stars -- Summary of results
Progress of Sidereal Astronomy
Exact astronomy in Germany -- career of Bessel -- His
Fundamental Astromiae -- Career of
Fraunhofer -- Parallaxes of fixed stars -- Translation of
the solar system -- Astronomy of the invisible --
Struve's researches in double stars -- Sir John
Herschel's exploration of the heavens -- Fifty years'
progress
Progress of Knowledge Regarding the
Sun
Early views as to the nature of sun-spots -- Wilson's
observations and reasonings -- Sir William Herschel's
theory of the solar constitution -- Sir John Herschel's
trade-wind hypothesis -- Baily's Beads -- Total solar
eclipse of 1842 -- Corona and prominences -- Eclipse of
1851
Planetary Discoveries
Bode's Law -- Search for a missing planet -- Its
discovery by Piazzi -- Further discoveries of minor
planets -- Unexplained disturbance of Uranus -- Discovery
of Neptune -- Its satellite - An eighth Saturnian moon -
Saturn's dusky ring - The Uranian system
Comets
Predicted return of Halley's Comet -- Career of Olbers --
Acceleration of Encke's Comet -- Biela's Comet -- Its
duplication -- Faye's Comet -- Comet of 1811 --
Electrical theory of cometary emanations -- The Earth in
a comet's tail -- Second return of Halley's Comet --
Great Comet of 1843 -- Results to knowledge
Instrumental advances
Two principles of telescopic construction -- Early
reflectors -- Three varieties -- Herschel's specula --
High magnifying powers -- Invention of the achromatic
lens -- Guinand's optical glass -- The great Ross
reflector -- Its disclosures -- Mounting of telescopes --
Astronomical circles -- Personal equation
Recent Progress of Astronomy
Foundation of Astronomical
Physics
Schwabe's discovery of a decennial sun-spot period --
Coincidence with periods of magnetic disturbance --
Sun-spots and weather -- Spectrum analysis - Preliminary
inquiries -- Fraunhofer lines -- Kirchhoff's principle --
Anticipations -- Elementary principles of spectrum
analysis -- Unity of nature
Solar Observations and Theories
Black openings in spots -- Carrington's observations --
Rotation of the Sun -- Kirchhoff's theory of the solar
constitution -- Faye's views -- Solar photography -- Kew
observations -- Spectroscopic method -- Cyclonic theory
of sun-spots -- Volcanic hypothesis -- a solar outburst
-- Sun-spot periodicity -- Planetary influence --
Structure of the photosphere
Recent Solar Eclipses
Expeditions to Spain -- Great Indian eclipse -- New
method of viewing prominences -- Total eclipse visible in
North America -- Spectrum of the corona -- Eclipse of
1870 -- Young's reversing layer -- Eclipse of 1871 --
Corona of 1878 -- Varying coronal types -- Egyptian
eclipse -- Daylight coronal photography -- Observations
at Caroline Island -- Photographs of corona in 1886 and
1889 -- Eclipses of 1896, 1898, 1900, and 1901 --
Mechanical theory of corona
Solar Spectroscopy
Chemistry of prominences -- Study of their forms -- Two
classes -- Photographs and spectrographs of prominences
-- Their distribution -- Structure of the chromosphere --
Spectroscopic determination of solar rotation --
Velocities of transport in the Sun -- Lockyear's theory
of dissociation -- Solar constituents -- Oxygen
absorption in solar spectrum
Temperature of the Sun
Thermal power of the Sun -- Radiation and temperature --
Estimates of solar temperature -- Rosetti's and Wilson's
results -- Zöllner's method -- Langley's experiment
at Pittsburgh -- the Sun's atmosphere -- Langley's
bolometric researches -- Selective absorption by our air
-- the Solar constant
The Sun's Distance
Difficulty of the problem -- Opposition of Mars --
Transits of Venus -- Lunar disturbance -- Velocity of
light -- Transit of 1874 -- Inconclusive result --
Opposition of Mars in 1877 -- Measurements of minor
planets -- Transit of 1882 -- Newcomb's determination of
the velocity of light -- Combined result
Planets and Satellites
Schröter's life and work -- Luminous appearances
during transits of Mercury -- Mountains of Mercury --
Intra-Mercurian planets -- Schiaparelli's results for the
rotation of Mercury and Venus -- Ashen light -- Solidity
of the Earth -- Variation of latitude -- Secular changes
of climate -- Figure of the globe -- Study of the Moon's
surface -- Lunar atmosphere -- New craters -- Thermal
energy of moonlight -- Tidal friction -- Analogy between
Mars and the Earth -- Martian snowcaps, seas, and
continents -- Climate and atmosphere -- Schiaparelli's
canals -- Discovery of two Martian satellites --
Photographic detection of minor planets -- Orbit of Eros
-- Distribution of the minor planets -- Their collective
mass and estimated diameters -- Condition of Jupiter --
His spectrum -- Transits of his satellites -- Discovery
of a fifth satellite -- The Great Red Spot --
Constitution of Saturn's rings -- Period of rotation of
the planet -- Variability of Japetus -- Equatorial
markings on Uranus -- His spectrum -- Rotation of Neptune
-- Trans-Neptunian planets
Theories of Planetary Evolution
Origin of the world according to Kant -- Laplace's
nebular hypothesis -- Maintenance of the Sun's heat --
Meteoric hypothesis -- Radiation as an effect of
contraction -- Regenerative theory -- Faye's scheme of
planetary development -- Origin of the Moon -- Effects of
tidal friction
Recent Comets
Donati's Comet -- the Earth again involved in a comet's
tail -- Comets of the August and November meteors -- Star
showers -- Comets and meteors -- Biela's Comet and the
Andromedes -- Holmes's Comet -- Deflection of the Leonids
-- Orbits of meteorites -- Meteors with stationary
radiants -- Spectroscopic analysis of cometary light --
Comet of 1901 -- Coggia's Comet -- Forms of comet's tails
-- Electrical repulsion -- Brédikhine's three
types -- Great Southern Comet -- Supposed previous
appearances -- Tebbutt's Comet and the Comet of 1807 --
Successful photographs -- Schaeberle's Comet -- Comet
Wells -- Sodium blaze in spectrum -- Great Comet of 1882
-- Transit across the Sun -- Relations to Comets of 1843
and 1880 -- Cometary systems -- Spectral changes in Comet
of 1882 -- Brook's Comet of 1889 -- Swift's Comet of 1892
-- Origin of comets
Stars and Nebulae
Stellar chemistry -- Four orders of stars -- their
relative ages -- Gaseous stars -- Spectroscopic
star-catalogues -- stellar chemistry -- hydrogen spectrum
in stars -- the Draper Catalogue -- Velocities of stars
in line of sight -- spectroscopic binaries -- Eclipses of
Algol -- Catalogues of variables -- New stars --
Outbursts in nebulae -- Nova Aurigae -- Nova Persei --
Gaseous nebulae -- Variable nebulae -- Movements of
nebulae -- Stellar and nebular photography --Nebulae in
the Pleiades -- Photographic star-charting -- Stellar
parallax -- Double stars -- Stellar photometry -- Status
of nebulae -- Photographs and drawings of the Milky Way
-- Star drift
Methods of Research
Development of telescopic power -- Silvered glass
reflectors -- Giant refractors -- Comparison with
reflectors -- the Yerkes telescope -- Atmospheric
disturbance -- the Lick Observatory -- Mechanical
difficulties -- the equatorial Coudé --
the photographic camera -- Retrospect and conclusion
Appendix
Chronology, 1774-1893 -- Chemical elements in the Sun
(Rowland, 1891) -- Epochs of sun-spot maximum and minimum
from 1610 to 1901 -- Movements of Sun and stars -- List
of great telescopes -- List of observatories employed in
the construction of the photographic chart and catalogue
of the heavens
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