Rensselaer Union, Volume 1, Number 50, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 September 1869 — The Comet. [ARTICLE]

The Comet.

Winnecke’s comet is now visible in the constellation Taurus, by those who possess a telescope, and use it about 3 o’clock in the morning. At that hour, Friday, September 3, it will be in 3 hours minutes of right ascension, and 7 degrees 59 minutes of north declination. This colnct was first observed in 1819, by M. Pons, at Marseilles, and was rediscovered in 1858, by Dr. Winnecke, at Bonn, who computed its elements. Its period is five years six and a half months. Its nearest distance (perihelion) from the sun is. about 70,000,000 miles, and its greatest (aphelion) about 505,006,000 miles; it, therefore, passes some distance outside the orbit of Jupiter. It passes its perihelion this year about the 2d of June, its longitude being,then 279 degrees 51 minutes, while that of the earth was about 263 degrees. Hence the comet was then only a little more than 20,000,000 miles^rom the earth, but was Invisible, owing to the fact that it was nearly between the earth and the sun. The earth has now advanced about 90 degrees in her orbit, and the comet has followed in the same direction, being now nearly on the earth’s path, but before her, and is rapidly passing out towards its aphelion. It is now much nearer to us than at the time of perihelion,. but' there is no danger of a collision, and it is so small that there is little danger of its being seen by the naked eye. The orbit, of the comet is inclined 10 degrees 49 minutes to the plane of the dip tic, and cuts it, ascending into north latitude, in 113i£ degrees of longitude. The motion is direct. —Chicago Trumne,