A Cooke telescope in Angus

 John Robertson of Coupar Angus 1830-1920 owned a fine Thomas Cooke of York 3 inch refractor telescope. His interest in astronomy began in 1848 when he heard Dr Thomas Dick give a series of astronomical lectures.

He spent many hours observing the sky, including sunspot observations and comets and meteors. He was self educated and he had to fit all his observations of the sky around his work. He was employed by the Caledonian Railway.

He sent many articles to newspapers including the Scotsman and some of the Dundee Daily newspapers. Among the astronomers he correspond with were Sir W.H. M. Christie, Richard A Proctor, Sir Robert Ball and Ralph Copeland.

He was still using the 3 inch Cooke telescope as late as August 1917 to observe sunspots, with his advanced age his daughter had to help move and adjust the telescope.

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Transit of Mercury seen from Liverpool with a Cooke telescope in 1868

George Williams using a 4.25 inch Cooke & Sons telescope observed the transit of Mercury on November 5^th 1868 from 2, Devonshire Road, Prince’s Park, Liverpool.

Williams observed no apparent elongation or pear shape, or black drop at the egress of the planet; but the boiling of the limb, which was considerable, may account for the absence of these appearances.

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The Astronomy Show

 Join me, Martin Lunn MBE tonight and every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the Astronomy Show, probably the only regular astronomy show on any radio station in the country.

I will take my weekly look at the night sky and look at all the latest news in astronomy. There will be the astronomical anniversaries this week plus the A-Z of Constellations 

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio live on line at www.drystoneradio.com DAB radio in Bradford and East Lancashire, or 102 and 103.5 FM and can also be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

Martian moons seen with a Cooke telescope in Sunderland in 1881

On December 22^nd 1881 John Watson of Sunderland (more accurately Seaham Harbour, which is about 5 miles south of Sunderland) reported seeing two small points of light near Mars using a Thomas Cooke & Sons 12inch refractor. The positions of the moons were determined by using the ephemeris of Mars is indicated where the two satellite should be.

I have little more information regarding either this 12 inch telescope or observations made by it. Although it is mentioned in G F Chambers Handbook of Descriptive and Practical Astronomy vol. 2 Oxford 1890 page 297.

Watson had an 8 inch Wray telescope mounted on a metal pillar supplied by Thomas Cooke which he offered for sale in 1880 presumably to make room for the 12 inch Cooke.

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The full moon in April is the Egg Moon

 The Full Moon on April 23rd  is called the Egg Moon. This has nothing at all to do with Easter eggs but is due to the increasing amount of daylight which results in hens, ducks and geese laying more eggs.

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Astronomer restaurant closes in Halifax

 William Herschel (1783-1822) would become famous for his discovery of the planet Uranus in 1781. He did however have a connection with Yorkshire albeit musical rather than astronomical.

In 1762 he obtained the post of director of public concerts at Leeds a post that he held for four years. He moved to Halifax in 1766 where he was the organist at St John the Baptist church now Halifax Minster. 

In Halifax in 2022 a new restaurant called The Astronomer was opened to celebrate the connection between Halifax and Herschel. Sadly in April 2024 the restaurant which was in the Piece Hall the oldest surviving Georgian cloth hall closed due to financial reasons.

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Even a Cooke telescope cannot see through trees

 Mt T H Waller of York in 1865 using a 4.75 inch Cooke telescope was trying to observe the satellites of Jupiter when unfortunately the planet was obscured by some trees and he was unable to see the immersion of the second satellite or the transit of the third. Fortunately by the time that the fourth satellite was passing in front of Jupiter it had cleared the trees.

Mr Waller was also a very keen double star observer he would often the double star catalogue of Mr Brothers of Manchester and the Bedford Catalogue.

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