Should it be called pi or Fl18 UMi

 

Should a star be labelled with its Bayer label i.e. its Greek letter or should it have just its Flamsteed number.

The star Flamsteed 18 Ursa Minor is also pi Umi or struve 1989 which indicates it is a double star.

Star atlas 2000 shows the star as 18 rather than pi and of further interest in the star atlas 2000 catalogue it is neither shown as 18 or pi but by just its HD number which is HD141652 for pi 1 and HD 139777 for pi 2. Pi 2 is the brighter of the two components. I have no idea what is going on here.

I have checked numerous double star catalogues for struve 1898 i.e. pi Umi and as you might expert I discover a wife range of observations for the brightness of this pi or 18 Umi.

More Flamsteed intrigues

 Here is another Flamsteed anomaly. The stars Fl 10 UMi magnitude 7.2 and Fl 14 Umi magnitude 7.4 are shown on sky atlas 2000 although interestingly they are only listed in the star catalog 2000 under their SAO numbers! 

However the nearby star SAO 8211 which has a magnitude of 6.6 does not have a flamsteed number yet it is brighter than both 10 and 14 UMi.

It really is all very confusing really.

More Flamsteed Anomalies

 On February 1st 2022 I blogged about an anomaly I had come across with Flamsteed star numbers, well they seem to be flying in fast and furious at the moment. I have no idea what is going on.

I was searching part of Auriga when I came across  the star marked as Flamsteed 17 or to give it's variable star designation of AR Aur which is a binary formed of two stars with spectral types of  B9 + Bp  stars, the magnitude varies between 6.1-6.8 in a period of 4.1 days.

However the real story is with the star next to  fl17 which is HD 34452 or SAO 57884 and is brighter than fl 17 but has no flamsteed number. 

This star which is also a variable star, this time an alpha2 Cvn type with the designation of IQ Aur. It varies between mags 5.3-5.4 in a period of 2.4 days.

Stay tuned there are more to follow

Swift's comet and a Cooke

 

TW Backhouse of Sunderland using his 4.5 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope reports on comet Swift 1892. He says that there appeared to be little notice of this comet. Backhouse said that he saw the comet on April 26^th 1892 through a miniature spectroscope on his Cooke telescope. Although the best views of the comet so far were obtained on April 29^th when although faint it was visible to the naked eye. The comet had a tail 11 degrees long. On April 30^th the head of the comet was about 4^th magnitude and was seen between mu and lambda Pegasus.

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.

A Cooke telescope and early photographs of the Moon

 

In 1857 Charles Howell (1783-1867) of Hove, Brighton purchased a 6.25 inch Thomas Cooke of York telescope, it was similar in design to the one that was exhibited at the Paris Exhibition in 1855.

The telescope would be placed into an observatory, which I believe was built locally and not a Cooke observatory. Later after 1864 he also purchased a 7.5 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope. It was this telescope that Mr Fry used to photograph the Moon with in 1865. This telescope was housed in a separate observatory and again this observatory appears to be locally made.

He was also interested in double stars and planets, and because of his age he often let his many friends in the Brighton area use his telescopes.

A Cooke for Wetherby

 

In 1864,  Rev J Holroyd of  Bardsley, Wetherby, Yorkshire purchased a 3.5 inch telescope, it was fitted up in way shown on visit. I assume this means that the Rev Holroyd had visited the Buckingham Works in York before he purchased this instrument. 

A Cooke for London

 

In 1866 Charles Holmes, of  Wilton Road, Dalston, London purchased an educational telescope with one extra eyepiece from Thomas Cooke & Sons York. I am not sure of the size of the OG, an educational telescope usually had a 2, 3 or 4 inch OG.

Thomas Cooke becomes known in Europe

 

The last French Monarch of France Napoleon III who was nephew to the Emperor Napoleon was rebuilding Paris in 1855 and wanted he Exposition of that year to be the most impressive. The Paris Expositions were begun in 1789.

Although Napoleon wanted it to be the greatest art and industrial event ever staged it had already been eclipsed by the Great Exhibition at Crystal Palace in Britain in 1851. The exposition would run from June to November 1855.

Among the exhibitors was Thomas Cooke of York who took the brave step of exhibiting a variety of optical equipment including a 7.5 inch equatorial with a clock work drive.

Cooke was exhibitor No. 392 and was described as selling astronomical and nautical instruments. He was in the 8^th section ‘Arts connected with Science and Education’.

For Cooke it was a great success not only because he won a First Class Medal for his 7.5 inch telescope he also made some very good contacts. He met the astronomer Warren De La Rue and Lt Gen Edward Sabine, astronomer, geophysicist and explorer and Lt Col Strange from the East India Company, the latter two would be very important in ensuring that Cooke theodolites being used in the great survey of India.

He also introduced himself to the astronomers of Europe and in the following years there would be orders for telescopes and observatories from countries such as Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, Russia and Sweden.

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.

Two transits of Mercury seen with Cooke telescopes

 

Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun in our solar system and there will be times that it will pass in front of the Sun and can be seen as a small dot slowly moving across the face of the Sun. This is a Transit of Mercury, they occur on average 13 times per century, the last was in November 2019 the next will be in 2032. Here are  two transits of Mercury separated by 46 years which occurred on the same date and were both seen using Cooke of York telescopes.

The transit of Mercury on May 7^th 1878 (it was May 6^th in the UK) was observed at 06 hours and 40 minutes as the Sun rose in Australia, with Mercury already half way across the surface of the Sun, this observation was made by W J MacDonnell at Sydney using a 4.25 inch Cooke telescope.

Then 46 years later in 1924 also on May 7^th A F Bennett this time using a 6 inch Cooke telescope started observing a Transit of Mercury from 16 hours and 57 minutes from his home in Suffolk.

Another bright meteor seen over Huddersfield

 

On April 22^nd 1903 Mr C L Brook at Meltham near Huddersfield, it was a greenish fireball which lasted for 3 seconds. It exploded twice like a flash of lightning.

The fireball seemed to explode at about delta Cepheus and to have been directed towards alpha Cepheus.

After falling for about 6 or 7 degrees it burst out again with a beautiful greenish light and exploded into a sort of nebulous halo.

Lyrid meteors seen over Huddersfield in 1903

 

On the night of April 21^st Mr C L Brook of Meltham near Huddersfield counted between 40 – 50 meteors including a number of Lyrids.

But the most interesting meteor observed at many stations including Meltham was that of a bright Cassiopeid which came into view at 11hr 22m. Its radiant point was near delta Cassiopeia and it descended from 66 to 44 miles over a path of 55 miles. 

It is remarkable that slow moving fireballs often take their flights from this radiant near delta Cassiopeia in the spring months of April and May. Fireballs had been seen on April 2^nd 1891, April 9^th 1876, April 10^th 1874, April 15^th 1893 and May 30^th 1877. There were various meteor catalogues from observers containing other brilliant instances of bright slow moving April meteors from the same radiant in Cassiopeia.

Bright Meteor seen over Bradford in 1902

 

On April 20th 1902, Mr G. Fisk of Eccleshill, Bradford saw a large meteor brighter than Venus. It appears to have travelled from alpha Draco and disappeared near gamma Ursa Minor.

Intensely blue in colour and the meteor cast a shadow, though the Moon was nearly full. The duration of the meteor was 1.5 seconds. It was not a Lyrid.

The annual Lyrid meteor shower peaks every year on the night of April 21st/22nd. The fact that Mr Fisk says it is not a Lyrid suggests that he had a knowledge of the night sky and knew about meteor showers.

A Cooke for a Herschel

 

In 1867 Alexander Herschel purchased a small telescope from Thomas Cooke & Sons of York. It was a small telescope with an object glass of just 1.5 inches with a large field and short focus. The instrument was painted black.

Alexander Stewart Herschel (1836-1907) was the son of John Herschel a polymath who spent time in South Africa cataloguing the southern sky. Alexander Herschel’s grandfather was William Herschel who in 1781 discovered the planet we now call Uranus.

Alexander was less well known than his father or grandfather but he undertook pioneering work in meteor spectroscopy and worked in trying to identify comets as the sources of meteor showers.

New Moon Map from Manchester in 1908.

 

A new map of the chief lunar features has been issued by Mr W Porterhouse of Manchester in 1908. The disc is 12 inches in diameter, and represents the formations as seen in an inverted telescope. Each feature is numbered, and in an index giving the corresponding name is appended on the side of the same sheet.

The whole is very distinct and easily readable by a small lamp. It would probably have added materially to the usefulness of the map if the chief dark features of the moon’s surface, such as the seas, had been either shaded or indicated, with a dark wash; when this is done it provides more definite landmarks for the recognition of the smaller features.

Another Scottish Cooke

 

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.

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.

A Cooke in Peebleshire

 

Robert Mathison of Innerleithen Peeblesshire observed the Transit of Mercury on May 6^th 1878 using a Thomas Cooke of York 4.1 inch telescope.

The transit was seen from the ‘observatory’ no trace of the planet could be seen outside the disk of the Sun. A small group of sunspots were seen on the Sun close to the planet at 4.40 pm.

One point that caught the attention of Mathison was that a bright white point of light which he followed until 5.30 pm when the Sun was covered by clouds. Other observers at this location confirmed the sighting of the bright white spot.

Transit of Mercury seen from Liverpool with a Cooke

 

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.

The Moons of Mars seen from Sunderland with a Cooke

 

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.

J L Stothert of Bath and his Cooke

 

I have only a small number of details regarding J L Stothert of Audley Bath, he had a 6 inch Cooke, I know he observed zeta Cancer on April 17th 1880.

I assume he died in either late 1880 or early 1881 because from an advertisement in April 1881 the executors of the late J L Stothert are offering an observatory with a 6 inch Cooke for sale.

 

Photography with a Cooke in Newcastle

 

In 1890 Lawrence Richardson of Newcastle on Tyne using a 4.5 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope undertook some research into astronomical photography using his telescope which was an achromatic. He was not that hopeful of getting really sharp images, the Cooke & Sons photo visual telescope would not be available until he mid 1890s.

Richardson found that he could take a photograph of Orion which would show hundreds of stars and which would take around about an hour. He went on to say that he thought that astrophotography was a very good field for amateur astronomers to work in and obtain good results.

Even a Cooke cannot see through trees

 

Mt T H Waller of York in 1865 and 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.

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.

A Dyer from Halifax and a Cooke

 

In 1859  Ehud Hanson (1826-1865) (Dyer) Hampden Place, Halifax brought a 2.75 in telescope from Thomas Cooke & Sons, it had a polished tube, finder, steadying rods, terrestrial and astronomical eyepieces in box for £21.

Ehud Hanson was a partner in Taylor & Hanson Dyers at Hampden Place, Halifax.

When the star 32 Cam is not 32 Cam

 

If you check star atlas 2000 (1998) and look at the star marked 32 Cam at position RA 12h 49 min 13.7 sec and Dec +83 degrees 24 mins 46 secs you will be in for an interesting adventure. Why? Well although labelled 32 Cam it is in fact the star Struve 1694. Before you suggest that it is another name for 32 Cam you are wrong. The star Struve 1694 was originally part of the constellation of Camelopardalis the Giraffe under the designation 32H.It was the 32^nd star in Camelopardalis which was labelled by the Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius in his catalogue. It’s not 32 Cam.

If you check Norton’s star atlas you will see that this star is correctly labelled Struve 1694.

So what’s going on?

If you want to find out where 32 Cam can be found you will need to look at Xi Auriga, RA 05 h 54 m 50s + 55 deg 42 min 25 sec because this star was once part of Flamsteed’s constellation of Camelopardalis as 32Cam.

I don’t know where Sky atlas 2000 got there information from, but I have checked an old Norton’s Star Charts which was published in 1938 and the 2000 version which shows the star as Struve 1694,. Other star atlases have different ideas, the Cambridge Star Atlas (1996) by Wil Tirion shows it just as a double star but with no designation. The Atlas of the Night Sky by Storm Dunlop (2005) shows it as 32, while the stars by Dorling Kindersley (2016) show it as Struve 1694. I am sure there are other star charts available!

I don’t know at what point the star changed its designation, but I might guess that it was in 1930 when the International Astronomical Union defined the constellation boundaries and designations we use today.

As an aside around about the year 800CE Struve 1694 was the closest star to the north pole.

This is the only trouble when I undertake searches for high latitude novae and I find other things that make me change direction!!

Sun observed from Leeds with a Cooke

 

In October 1930 Mr Tetley of Headingley, Leeds used his 4 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope to observe the Sun. He took some photographs of the great sun spot group of October that year. In particular on October 10^th the photographs very clearly showed the changes which took place in the groups which crossed the central meridian.