Cooke Telescope Tales - new telescope for Greenwich Observatory in 1888

 London Daily News Thursday 8^th March 1888 

An Addition to Greenwich Observatory. 

FLAMSTEED’S famous institution on  Greenwich Hill has been crowned with another dome. Nine or ten years ago Professor GREENE  of the Polytechnic  Institute at Troy, desiring to construct a dome on a somewhat larger scale than usual, found  that the heavy metal roof ordinarily set up would require a more substantial  structure  than he co could conveniently provide, and that powerful of machinery would be necessary for making it revolve. He determined to try what could be re done with papier mache. The experiment was a complete success. His dome proved as strong as though constructed of wood and iron, and so light that it could be turned without machinery  of any kind. 

Greenwich shortly after had  occasion to construct, a dome, and very wisely adopted the new material.  The one just now completed is the second constructed during Mr. CHRISTIE'S regime. It is eighteen feet in  diameter, and is designed for the Cooke  6-inch  equatorial telescope, with a photo-heliograph  tube attached to the same mount.  This combined instrument is to be carried on a huge as block of stone weighing 3 tons, and will stand at a sufficient elevation above the other  buildings and the surrounding trees to command a complete view of the sun throughout in the day. 

 This is what Greenwich has been unable to do hitherto, and in his last report to the Board of Visitors the ASTRONOMER ROYAL draws attention to the difficulty under which  the work of the photo-heliograph has been n carried on in past years owing to the want of  such an observatory as he has now succeeded in  setting up, though as yet unfortunately the funds for the complete equipment of the new al building are not forthcoming. It has been hinted, by those who certainly are in a  position to be well informed, that unless somewhat greater liberality be extended  to the Observatory it may become necessary to discontinue the time signals, upon which the country has come to rely almost  as implicitly as on the rising and setting of the sun. 

 It would certainly be a novel sensation for the public to find their supply of Greenwich time cut off, after the manner of the water companies when they cannot get their money. This is certainly rather a formidable screw  Mr. CHRISTIE has at command, though it is to be hoped he may not have occasion to apply it to  the Treasury. There is no doubt, however, that to stint funds at Greenwich Observatory is very  poor policy. Its practical utility in all sorts of ways is simply incalculable. 

 We may add to what has been stated about the new building, that it is here that Greenwich will take its a share in the projected complete photographic  map of the starry heavens.

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A Little Ramble Through 19th Century Astronomy - star 27 Canis Minor in 1875

 Nature June 17^th 1875

Mr J E Gore (Umballa, Punjab) writes, under May 5^th 1875 that he believes that the star 27 Canis Minoris to be a variable star. It is 4 in Hardin’s Atlas but at present about 5.5 or 6, and much inferior to 28 Canis Minoris which Harding rates at 5.

The change in Brightness was first noticed in 1874. This star is 4.5 in the Radcliffe Catalogues, % in Arg Zones, 5.5 in Lacaille and 6.5 in Heis’ catalogue; Behrmann has 6, and the lowest estimate of magnitude 7 is in Flamsteed’s catalogue, with respect to which Baily remarks that there is  no magnitude recorded in the original observation book, and that the modern observation makes it 4.5.

Mr Gore states he has also suspected some variations in light in the red star 22 Canis Majoris; it is usually rated as of magnitude 3 or 3.5, but for some time past it has seemed rather fainter than an ordinary star of the fourth magnitude. Bradley and Piazzi have this star 3.4 magnitude, while Flamsteed, Brisbane and Heis have it at 4, the Washington General 5, and it is so rated once by Argelander; in Behrmann it is 4.5.

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A little Ramble Through 19th Century Astronomy - T Corona Borealis

 Astronomical Register August 1866

To the editor,

Sir- So interesting have been the phenomena attending the extraordinary increase in brightness of the small star in the Bonn Catalogue known as T Coronae, that an enumeration of its successive independent discoveries can hardly fail to be acceptable.

The first discoverer was Mr Birmingham of Tuam in Ireland who saw it about midnight on the 12^th May and described it them as of the 2^nd magnitude.

The next evening, May 13^th it was independently discovered by Herr Schmidt, the director of the observatory at Athens, who saw it about 9h local time, as soon as the clouds broke, and calls it a little fainter than alpha coronae; and by M. Courbe-Caisse at Rochefort.

On the night of May 14 it was detected the other side of the Atlantic by Mr S C Chandler, assistant to Mr Gould, on the United States Coast Survey. He starts that in magnitude it was between beta and gamma Herculis-nearer to gamma.

The last independent discoverer, so far as is yet known, was Mr Baxendell of Manchester, who discovered it on May 15.

On May 16 the spectrum was observed by Mr Huggins and Dr Miller, and those extraordinary phenomena noticed which are known to astronomers.

I am Sir, yours faithfully W T Lynn

Greenwich July 6 1866

PS- July 19.

This morning, I have received No 1597 of the Astronomische Nachrichten, in which another independent discovery of T Coronae is announced in America. Being made at Washington on the night of May 12^th, corresponding to the morning of May 13^th in Europe, it ranks second or next to Mr Birmingham’s in order of priority. The discoverer was Mr Farqubar , as the name is printed in the Ast Nac; it should probably be Farquhar of the Patent Office.

I had overlooked that besides Mr Chandler, another gentleman in the western hemisphere – Mr Barker of London, Canada West- detected the star on May 14.

My list is now, I am pretty confident, complete unless we hear of earlier discoveries in Asia, which however, cannot anticipate Mr Birmingham’s by more than an hour or two.

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The Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio

Join me, Martin Lunn MBE every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the award-winning Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio, 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 latest news from the astronomical societies in the north of England.

 

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio live online 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.

 

 

Cooke Telescope Tales - telescope for sale in Liverpool 1885

 Pall Mall Gazette Friday 2^nd January 1885 

 ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY WITH  TELESCOPE AND APPOINTMENTS COMPLETE. 

To be SOLD, a bargain, on account of the owner's eyesight, an excellent Equatorial-mounted  TELESCOPE by Cooke, 4.5 inch diam.; Dawe's solar and numerous other eyepieces, micrometer, induction  coil and battery, automatic and star spectroscopes, spark condenser, clock by Cooke, barometer 7-10  diam., observing chair, complete sets of the memoirs and monthly notice's of the R.A.S., Astronomical Register and Observatory,  with indexes, and a number of other astronautical works, all in the best possible condition. The above presents a very rate opportunity  to astronomical students 

Address  "Telescope," care of Lee and Nightingale, Advertising Agents,  Liverpool

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Cooke Telescope Tales - observatory and telescope for sale in Liverpool in 1885

 Pall Mall Gazette, Friday 2^nd January 1885 

 

ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY WITH  TELESCOPE AND APPOINTMENTS COMPLETE.

 

To be SOLD, a bargain, on account of the owner's eyesight, an excellent Equatorial-mounted  TELESCOPE by Cooke, 4.5 inch diam.; Dawe's solar and numerous other eyepieces, micrometer, induction  coil and battery, automatic and star spectroscopes, spark condenser, clock by Cooke, barometer 7-10  diam., observing chair, complete sets of the memoirs and monthly notice's of the R.A.S., Astronomical Register and Observatory,  with indexes, and a number of other astronautical works, all in the best possible condition. The above presents a very rate opportunity  to astronomical students

 

Address  "Telescope," care of Lee and Nightingale, Advertising Agents,  Liverpool.

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Cooke Telescope Tales - Sunderland Scientific Exhibition 1882

 Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette Friday 17^th February 1882

 The Sunderland Scientific and Industrial Exhibition 

The exhibition will be held at the Skating Rink Hudson Road and included Mr John G Allison of the Old Rectory Monkwearmouth, who exhibited a portable telescope which will be found worthy of our astronomical students.

 The object glass in 4 inches in diameter and 5 feet focal length withy polished brass tube and finder attached. It has 4 eyepieces powers from 80 to 300 and is fixed on a strong polished walnut tripod stand. 

I believe this the telescope purchased by John G Allison in 1866 from Thomas Cooke and Sons when Mr Allison was living at 12 Cumberland Row Newcastle.

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