Bright meteor seen over Manchester in 1902

 On March 29th 1902, Mr J. Halton of Manchester saw a meteor brighter than Sirius shooting across the sky towards the head of Serpens.

Eli Shaw and a Cooke in Barnsley

 

 Eli Shaw (1821-1869) was a self taught mechanic from Barnsley. He had a Thomas Cooke & Sons 3 feet achromatic telescope. I would assume that this would have a lens of around 3 inches but I have no definite proof of that just the length of the telescope to go by. He observed the Sun, Moon and planets.

He made his own reflecting telescope, I do not know the size of this instrument. He also made his own astronomical clock. On his death he left a large scientific library and various scientific instruments.

The Astronomy Show

 

Join me, Martin Lunn tonight and every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the Astronomy Show, 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 and the Messier Marathon.

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio 102 and 103.5 FM the show can be heard live on line at www.drystoneradio.com and the show can be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

John Joynson, Liverpool observes occultation using a Cooke

 On March 28^th 1868 Mr John Joynson (1820-1895) of Waterloo near Liverpool observed an occultation of the star gamma Taurus by the Moon. The star disappeared at 9 hours 02 minutes 48.5 seconds and reappeared at 9 hours 58 minutes and 04 seconds according to Greenwich Time. Joynson was using a 3.5 inch telescope made by the York based telescope maker Thomas Cooke.

An occultation occurs when a body such as the Moon or a planet passes in front of a star, sometimes the Moon passes in front of a planet and very rarely a planet will pass in front of another planet.

Joynson also had 6 inch Cooke telescope that he brought in 1863, in 1930 after Joynson’s death the 6 in Cooke was given to the University of London Mill Hill Observatory which had been opened in 1929.

 The Joynson telescope was used extensively particularly between 1982 and 1997 when their 8 inch Cooke was being restored. The |Joynson telescope is now in store.

A Cooke for Old Trafford

 

In 1856 the  Rev Thomas Buckley of Old Trafford Manchester purchased a portable 3.5 inch Thomas Cooke telescope for £50. I have not been able to discover any references to observations he might have made with the Cooke telescope.

All I know regarding Buckley is that he appears to be the Honorary Secretary of the school for deaf children in Old Trafford. The school was built in 1860 and adjoins the Botanic Gardens in Old Trafford

Early photos of the Moon taken from York with a Cooke

 

John Phillips 1800-1874 was an eminent geologist. He would become the first keeper of the Yorkshire Museum which was built by the Yorkshire Philosophical Society in 1829, he also had a great interest in astronomy and photography.

He brought a Thomas Cooke 6.25 inch telescope in 1852 which he set up in the Museum Gardens and in 1853 took some of the earliest photographs of the Moon. He was a keen observer of the Moon and the Sun. He used the 6.25 inch Cooke to observe both objects.

He left the Yorkshire Museum in York around 1854 and moved to work at the University of Oxford firstly as deputy reader in geology and then in 1856 he became professor of Geology.

He was still using the 6.25 inch in the early 1860s, but as with so many Victorian telescopes after his death in 1874 it just disappeared and I have no idea what happened to it.

Comet Morehouse observed from Australia with a Cooke

 

James Nangle observed comet Morehouse on March 19^th 1909 form his observatory at Marrickville New South Wales. He had a 6.25 inch Cooke telescope.

Nangle described the comet as having a long tail that was distinctly seen. He said that the telescope was not that well equipped for studying comets as the lowest power on the 6.25 inch Cooke was 150 magnification. With this power the comet was a very unsatisfactory object, the head only being slightly visible, and that an indistinctly defined mass showing a bright condensation at the centre.

James Nangle 1868-1941 would go on to become Government Astronomer for New South Wales in 1926. One point of interest about the 6.25 inch telescope is that Nangle refers to the lens of his telescope being made by the elder Cooke. This suggests that this is a pre 1857 telescope made before the firm became Cooke & Sons. It also suggests that the telescope was made for someone in the UK and then made its way to Australia.

In 1910 Nangle worked out that to reduce the glare of an object he was looking at it was useful to place a piece of mosquito netting in front of the lens. Simple but effective!!

The Newcastle University Cooke

 

In 1871 the foundation of the College of Physical Sciences was founded in Newcastle in 1871, it was renamed the Armstrong College in 1904 after William George Armstrong the engineer and industrialist. I 1908 it would become part of the university of Durham.

A 4.5 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons was presented to Armstrong College in 1915 possibly by a local historian J A Wellford.

The telescope was still in use in the 1960s when land at Close House Mansion, Heddon on the Wall, Northumberland was acquired by Kings College Newcastle, later renamed Newcastle University. This was known as the Espin Observatory.

The Espin Observatory contained telescopes used by the Rev THEC Espin 1858-1934 of Tow Law in County Durham including a 24 inch reflector made by George Calver in 1914.

The Cooke was in use until the early 2000s until the site was sold for re development the Cooke was removed and I don’t know where the location of it is today.

Edward Pigott discovers the Black Eye Galaxy

 

Edward Pigott together with John Goodricke would become what I called the ‘Fathers of Variable Star Astronomy’ because of the work they would do for a brief moment in time between 1781-1786 in York on the subject of variable stars.  However Edward Pigott had already made significant contributions to astronomy before he arrived in York.

On March 23, 1779, from Frampton House in Glamorganshire Edward Pigott discovered a "nebula" in the constellation of Coma Berenices. Many references suggest that it was the German astronomer Johann Bode who discovered . However Pigott made the discovery 12 days before that by Bode.

The following year 1780, the French Comet hunter Charles Messier saw this object, he found around a dozen comets none that were particularly important. He did however discover many nebulous objects which he were not comets. He drew up a list of these objects so as to not get confused with real comets. And although most of his comets are forgotten his list of non comet objects, his Messier list is still used by astronomers today.

Pigott’s nebula is number 64 or M64 in the Messier list, it is a galaxy around 17 million light years away, and is often called the ‘Black Eye Galaxy’ due to the vast amount of dust that blacks out the centre of the galaxy that resembles a black eye!!.

Alfred fowler 1868-1940, Bradford Astronomer

 

Alfred Fowler was born on March 22^nd 1868 at Wilsden on the outskirts of Bradford and would become one of the most important astronomers of the first half of the 20^th century. His work in the field of spectroscopy would lay the basis of modern physical astronomy.

He was educated at the Keighley Trade and Grammar School and at the age of 14 he obtained a scholarship to the Old Normal School of Science, now known as Imperial College, South Kensington in London. Being of a sturdy Yorkshire character Fowler was not to be ruffled by all that would happen around him.

In 1888 at the age of 20 he was working as a demonstrator in astronomical physics, among the people he worked with was a Mr H G Wells, and although Wells was not able to pass all his exams his career took another course in writing, his astronomical knowledge was useful in the ‘War of the Worlds’

Fowler soon found himself working under Professor Norman Lockyer one of the most important astronomers studying the Sun in the later part of the 19^th century. When Lockyer retired in 1901 he took most of the astronomical equipment with him so although Alfred Fowler was appointed Assistant Professor of Physics he had very little equipment to work with. This did not cause Fowler too many problems he started working with spectroscopes which can split white light into the colours of the spectrum.

He developed a great interest in eclipses of the Sun, the eclipses of 1896 and 1905 were affected by bad weather but those at West Africa in 1893 and India in 1898 were more successful and he was able to examine the spectrum of the Sun during the eclipse. The eclipse of 1914 in Russia could not be reached due the start of World War 1.

By his services to science not only in the field of research but also teaching he received many awards including in 1915 the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society, in 1918 the Medal of the Royal Society, the Henry Draper Medal from the National Academy of Sciences, and in 1935 he was awarded a CBE.

In 1919 he would become the first General Secretary of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) an association of professional astronomers active in research and teaching. The IAU still today the body that represents professional astronomers.

Alfred Fowler died on June 24^th 1940 in Ealing, London, He was a most remarkable man from Wilsden, of whom little is known, this is partly due to his modest kindly demeanour and the quiet way in which he would speak of his most important discoveries.

The Astronomy Show

 

Join me, Martin Lunn tonight and every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the Astronomy Show, 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 and the Messier Marathon.

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio 102 and 103.5 FM the show can be heard live on line at www.drystoneradio.com and the show can be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

Mr. Joynson, Liverpool, Mars and a Cooke

 

My Joynson of Liverpool on the opposition of Mars in 1865 using a Thomas Cooke and Sons 6 inch telescope which had a focal length of 7 feet and 6 inches and with eyepiece powers from100 tom 550, he also used a Barlow lens up to 1,100.

Joynson found that no increase of power altered the aspect of Mars, nor did he detect any difference in the markings of Mars since 1862. The snow at the North Pole was not visible in 1864. In 1865 the snow at the pole was not so surprisingly marked as usual, and a nearly equatorial belt was very prominent.

A Cooke finds a moon of Jupiter in the wrong place

 

The Rev RJ Gould (1802-1880) Windsor Lodge Taunton, Somerset purchased a 5 inch telescope from Thomas Cooke & Sons in 1864, complete with an iron pillar for an observatory.

Soon after he purchased the telescope he became vicar at Mortimer Vicarage, Reading where he would spend the rest of his life.

While using the 5 inch telescope and he was observing Jupiter on October 7^th1868 at 11h and 43 mins when he noticed an error in the Nautical Almanac on page 480.

It stated that the 3^rd satellite will be on the west side of its primary in company with the 2^nd and 4^th; The fact was that it was on the east side with satellite number 1. The places of 2 and 4 were right enough but number 3 was certainly not so.

Gould goes on to say that we have no right to expect even the Nautical almanac to be absolutely free from errors and misprints, but I should like to know whether others have observed this or whether it can be shown to have been a mistake on the part of myself.

During the following days several observers confirmed Gould’s observations that the satellite was in the wrong place.

Following his death in 1880 the Cooke 5 inch telescope together with an observatory was offered for sale. I don’t know if this was a Cooke observatory or a home made one.

Comet Morehouse observed with a Cooke from Australia

 

James Nangle observed comet Morehouse on March 19^th 1909 form his observatory at Marrickville New South Wales. He had a 6.25 inch Cooke telescope.

Nangle described the comet as having a long tail that was distinctly seen. He said that the telescope was not that well equipped for studying comets as the lowest power on the 6.25 inch Cooke was 150 magnification. With this power the comet was a very unsatisfactory object, the head only being slightly visible, and that an indistinctly defined mass showing a bright condensation at the centre.

James Nangle 1868-1941 would go on to become Government Astronomer for New South Wales in 1926. One point of interest about the 6.25 inch telescope is that Nangle refers to the lens of hi telescope being made by the elder Cooke. This suggests that this is a pre 1857 telescope made before the firm became Cooke & Sons. It also suggests that the telescope was made for someone in the UK and then made its way to Australia.

In 1910 Nangle worked out that to reduce the glare of an object he was looking at it was useful to place a piece of mosquito netting in front of the lens. Simple but effective!!

A Cooke education telescope for Northants

 

In 1865 the Rev J H Glover of Kingethorpe, Northants brought a 4 inch educational style Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope with a finder. The tube was painted black. The telescope came with an equatorial mounting plus a sun prism and 4 eyepieces.

Sunspots seen from Manchester

 

Mr Henry Ormesher, Manchester, observed a spot on the Sun on March 10^th 1870. The penumbra of which enclosed 2 umbrae, and in one of the umbrae 2 nuclei were plainly seen.

 On this day 12 groups of spots were visible on various parts of the Sun.

A Cooke Dome for Southampton

 

Thomas Cooke & Sons not only made optical instruments but also observatories. Here we have in 1866 an observatory dome with an inside diameter of 9 feet made for William Gillett of Harefield, Bittern near Southampton.

A Cooke for Peckham

 

William B Gibbs of Peckham, London purchased in 1865 an educational 4 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope. There were 4 eyepieces and a sun prism. In 1866 he further purchased an equatorial mounting for the 4 inch telescope.

William Gibbs was a good friend of James Buckingham who used the massive 21 inch refractor on Wandsworth Common in London.

In later years he purchased a 5.5 inch telescope, I don’t know if this was a Cooke telescope. He used it in a wooden observatory that he built until he was 87 years old.

A Cooke for East Grinstead

 

An educational telescope I don’t know the size of the og was brought from Thomas Cooke & Sons, York by Dr. C H Gatty of Felbridge Park, East Grinstead in 1867. The telescope came with a finder, 3 astronomical eyepieces, solar prism and pancratic eyepiece. The cost of the telescope was £40.

In 1868 a telescope stand with horizontal and vertical motions was purchased.

Another astronomer in Cockermouth

 

Dr Henry Dodgson FRAS a medical practitioner form Cockermouth, Cumberland in 1865 purchased from Thomas Cooke & Sons York an astronomical eyepiece for a reflector with an aperture of 8 inches and a focal length of 69 inches,  plus an 8 inch aperture prism.

A Cooke for London then Kent

 

In 1864 the Rev D A Freeman of Temple, London purchased a 4.5 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope with a finder and 4 astronomical eyepieces. Also purchased was a sun prism, parallel wire micrometer and illuminating apparatus. The telescope was on a stout tripod.

He moved shortly after the purchase of this telescope to Kent where most of his observations would be made.

The telescope would be used to observe the Sun and double stars.

An expensive Cooke for London

 

A 6 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope which was equatorialy mounted with a clock work drive and micrometre was purchased by Hamilton Field of Brixton, London. He was part owner of Kearns, Major & Fields, Wharfingers (owners of wharfs) of Upper Thames Street.

The telescope cost £300 which in 2022 prices would be an eye watering £40,000.

Another London Cooke

 

A telescope purchased in 1863 of 3.5 inches aperture from Thomas Cooke & Sons of York was for Richard Whiteman Fall, of 11 Kings Arms Yard, Moorgate, London. He worked for Dent, Palmer & Co, Merchants.

The telescope came with a finder, steadying rods, dew cap, vertical and horizontal screw motions, four astronomical, one day and one solar eyepiece. In red deal box.

Solar Eclipse observed from Manchester in 1867

 

Observations of the Eclipse of the Sun March 6^th 1867 by J B Dancer, Observatory, Old Manor |House, Ardwick, Manchester.

Just before first contact my attention was unfortunately taken from the telescope, and when got to the instrument again the eclipse had commenced.

The weather was very favourable and the atmosphere remarkably steady; clouds occasionally passed over the Sun, but did not obscure the disc for any length of time.

The telescope used was 10 feet 6 inches focal length and 7.25 inch diameter. The full aperture of the object glass was employed, with a power of 50, and using diagonal glass sun prism numerous groups of faculae were visible. One spot interested me, I have already stated that the atmosphere was very steady. Indeed I have very seldom seen the edge of the Sun so free from all disturbance.

When the Moon’s edge approached the dark spot suddenly became very tremulous and lighter in colour before it disappeared behind the body of the Moon, there were no visible cloud passing at this time and the Sun’s edge was sharply defined and perfectly steady.

During the progress of the eclipse the serrated edge of the Moon was beautifully distinct. I had several telescopes directed to the Sun; some of these had 4.5 inches and some 5.5 inches diameter object glasses. The value of aperture in observing the edge of the Moon and the faculae on the Sun’s disc was very manifest when using the 7.25 inch diameter glass.

A Cooke for Wales

 

In 1864 William Evans (1828-1904) from Llanerchymedd, Anglesey, who was a surgeon purchased a 3.5 inch OG for an old tube. I don’t know it this tube was a Cooke or not.

The cost of the OG was £16 and 10 shillings this was paid in three instalments of £5 and 10 shillings.

Earthshine seen from Leeds

 

In March 1911 J H Elgie in Leeds saw Earthshine on the Moon. Many people who saw it thought that an  eclipse of the Moon was in progress.

The first Thomas Cooke advert

 

Yorkshire Gazette Saturday March 4^th 1837.

T Cooke, Working Optician, &c, 50 Stonegate, Yorkshire

Mathematical and Philosophical instruments and and repaired on reasonable terms.

Rambling around Ursa Major 1

 

If you look close to Beta Uma or Merak one of the pointers you will see a star Flamsteed (Fl) 38 Uma then nearby a small triangle formed by the stars Fl 39,40,41 Uma.

On closer inspection it will be noted that stars 40 and 41 are to faint to be seen with the naked eye anf yet they have Flamsteed numbers.

Although Fl 40 is shown on the Star Atlas 2000 it is not listed in the Catalogue 2000 as Fl 40 but rather as HD 93075 (The HD stands for Henry Draper). It is listed in most catalogues with a magnitude of 7.1.

 This of course is below the limit of naked eye visibility. Although Flamsteed lists it as being of the 6^th magnitude. So unless Flamsteed used some sort of optical aid when he was studying Ursa Major there is no way that he could have seen this star. Now of course it is possible that the star has faded in brightness. There is a variation in the spectral class of the star in catalogues, ranging from F0v to A8v.

Just for good measure Fl 41 which is listed with a magnitude of 6.3 again below the limit of naked eye visibility. The star being reported with a spectrum class of M1 III. As a very large number of red giants are variable I would not be at all surprised if this star varied. The General Catalogue of variable and suspected variables however does not list this star.