Cooke Telescope Tales - the disorderly apprentice

On Thursday November 3^rd 1859 J Chadwick esq apprentice summoned Mr Cooke, optician and mathematical instrument maker to the magistrates at the Guildhall in York for refusing to teach him his grade. 

Mr Cooke said that J Chadwick had grossly misbehaved and had absented himself on one or two occasions. Under these circumstances Mr Cooke refused to receive the lad into his service. 

The magistrate ordered the lad’s indentures to be dismissed. J Chadwick has since joined the Cape Mounted Rifles in South Africa.

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Cooke Telescope Tales - Early photographs taken with Cooke telescopes

 Some of the early astronomical photographs were taken in England by astronomers using Thomas Cooke & Sons telescopes. 

In 1853 John Phillips in the Museum Gardens in York using a 6.25 inch telescope photographed the Moon, and in 1857 Mr Fry using Mr Howell’s 6.5 inch telescope in Brighton were amongst the first astrophotographers. 

At this period of time telescopes were designed for visual use and all the gentlemen astronomers had the problem using refractors of the difference between the actinic and visual foci. Reflecting telescopes did not suffer from such problems.

 The negatives obtained by both Phillips and Fry were about 1 inch in diameter.

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A little ramble through 19th century astronomy - Aurora seen in India in 1872

There was a massive aurora display on February 4^th 1872 seen all cross Europe, North Africa the Middle East, India and the Far East. It is seen as far south as the equator. The aurora storm was probably more powerful than the Carrington event of September 1^st, 1859

It was reported by astronomers on Britain including C Piazzi Smyth in Edinburgh, G M Seabrooke in Rugby, J Rand Capron and T Rand Capron in Guildford, S J Perry at Stonehurst Observatory and T W Webb at Hardwicke Vicarage.

 

Nature April 4^th 1872

Indian papers give the following additional accounts of the aurora of Feb 4^th: - Such a phenomenon has not been observed in the Punjab, or perhaps on India within living memory of man, and in consequence the remarks made by the natives and others born I the country were rather curious.

A curious circumstance took place at Raikote. About 100 Kooka families turned out in the most excited state and commenced those wild demonstrations from which the name Kooka is derived the men tore off their turbans, unloosed their hair, and began dancing and waving their arms about, and shouting that this was a token the Ram Singh had returned to his home. They were much mistaken to learn that they were mistaken.

At Sealkote many thought that the red in the sky was the reflection of the blaze of some hill forest on fire, and one individual at Jhelum suggested that it must be caused be some volcanic eruption in the Himalayas.

In another place a commissariat officer was thrown into an agony of terror, thinking it was his haystacks on fire.

A correspondent, writing from Madhopore, says: - “On the night of the 4^th February between 11 and 12 o’clock, there appeared in the sky a clear bright light, like fire which lasted about 14 minutes. It was so bright that we were able to see even the minutest objects; owing to its red colour the river appeared as though it were blood. The atmosphere for days has never been clear of clouds, and it seems as if a storm were portending. The lightning injured some natives on the 5^th February

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Cooke Telescope Tales - small Cooke telescope to Macclesfield in 1864

 Thomas Davenport of Macclesfield purchased from Thomas Cooke in 1864 a small telescope. It had a lens of 2.5 inches and came with a terrestrial eyepiece and leather sling case. I assume this was not for astronomical work. 

Davenport later in 1868 purchased from Thomas Cooke a brass pillar and claw table stand and two astronomical eyepieces. I don’t know if this was to mount the telescope he purchased in 1864 or if it was for another instrument.

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A little ramble through Crater the Cup

 The second of the small spring constellations adjoining Hydra the other being Corvus. Crater although very faint it is still one of the original 48 groups even though it contains no stars brighter than magnitude 3.5.

Crater represents the cup or goblet of Apollo and is associated with the neighbouring constellation of Corvus. The Romans and the Indians also knew it as a cup. Today it is often associated with the story of Corvus the Crow.

Early Arabic astronomers knew it as Al Ma’laf or the Stall, however later Arabic astronomers such as Al Batiyah, Badiye and Al Batinah knew it as an earthen vessel for storing wine.

In China some of the stars in Hydra together with the stars in crater were known as Yh, Yih or Yen this was the Wings or Flanks. While the whole of the constellation may have been known to the Chines as The Heavenly Dog which was shot at by Chang from the constellation of Leo.

There is something of a mystery with the named stars of Crater.

Alpha Crater is the only star to be named in the constellation, the Arab astronomers referred to it as Alhes which means the Cup. The strange thing is that alpha is not the brightest star in the constellation. Its magnitude is 4.1 and is 141 light years away. The star is a K class giant meaning that it is cooler than the Sun.

The brightest star in Crater is delta with a magnitude of 3.6 another K class giant star and is 163 light years away.

Could this be a situation whereby alpha has faded in brightness or delta has brightened since Bayer allocated the Greek letters in 1603.

The star which today is classified as beta which is a magnitude 4.5 and is an A class star is 296 light years away was regarded by the Arab astronomer Al Tizini as part of the Hydra with the name of Al Sharaasif or the Ribs of the Hydra.

There are no messier objects or bright deep sky objects to be seen in Crater.

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A little ramble through 19th century astronomy - report from the Belgium Academy on Jupiter and Mars in 1871-73

 Bulletin de I Académie Royale des Sciences, des Lettres, et des Beaux Arts de Belgique, 1873, No. 11.

Among the papers in this report of the work of the Belgian Academy, is one by M. Terby, giving the results of observations on Mars and Jupiter in 1871 and 1872-3. It is illustrated by fourteen figures of Jupiter and twelve of Mars. The Jupiter drawings exhibit some remarkable changes in the two polar “ calottes ” or dark parts.

 In 1872, the north polar region was usually darker than the southern, while in 1873 the contrary was often the case, though the southern one was always of smaller dimension. The drawings also exhibit curious variations in the shape of the belts, as seen at successive dates when the rotation of the planet caused it to present the same portion of its surface to the observer. The Mars sketches may be advantageously compared with Browning's stereographs, and with drawings he published in the Intellectual Observer, vol. xii. ; but M. Terby’s telescope, only 9 centimétres of useful aperture,” or little more than 3.5 inches, could only give a distinct view of the more delicate markings in exceptionally fine weather.

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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.