Micrographia: Some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies Made by Magnifying Glasses with Observations and Inquiries ThereuponHooke, Robert
History
Micrographia: Some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies Made by Magnifying Glasses with Observations and Inquiries Thereupon
Hooke, Robert
Magnifying glasses -- Early works to 1800; Microscopy -- Early works to 1800; Natural history -- Pre-Linnean works
_Jupiter_, before it be out of the day, or twilight, I alwayes leave the
Object-glass as clear without any _aperture_ as I can, and have thereby
been able to discover the _Satellites_ a long while before; I was able to
discern them, when the smaller _apertures_ were put on; and at other times,
to see multitudes of other smaller Stars, which a smaller _aperture_ makes
to disappear.
In that notable _Asterism_ also of the Sword of _Orion_, where the
ingenious Monsieur _Hugens van Zulichem_ has discovered only three little
Stars in a cluster, I have with a thirty six foot Glass, without any
_aperture_ (the breadth of the Glass being about some three inches and a
half) discover’d five, and the twinkling of divers others up and down in
divers parts of that small milky Cloud.
So that ’tis not unlikely, but that the meliorating of _Telescopes_ will
afford as great a variety of new Discoveries in the Heavens, as better
_Microscopes_ would among small terrestrial Bodies, and both would give us
infinite cause, more and more to admire the omnipotence of the Creator.
* * * * *
Observ. LX. _Of the _Moon_._
Having a pretty large corner of the Plate for the seven Starrs, void, for
the filling it up, I have added one small _Specimen_ of the appearance of
the parts of the Moon, by describing a small spot of it, which, though
taken notice of, both by the Excellent _Hevelius_, and called _Mons
Olympus_ (though I think somewhat improperly, being rather a vale) and
represented by the Figure X. of the 38. _Scheme_, and also by the Learn’d
_Ricciolus_, who calls it _Hipparchus_, and describes it by the Figure Y,
yet how far short both of them come of the truth, may be somewhat perceiv’d
by the draught, which I have here added of it, in the Figure Z, (which I
drew by a thirty foot Glass, in _October_ 1664. just before the Moon was
half inlightned) but much better by the Reader’s diligently observing it
himself, at a convenient time, with a Glass of that length, and much better
yet with one of threescore foot long, for through these it appears a very
spacious Vale, incompassed with a ridge of Hills, not very high in
comparison of many other in the Moon, nor yet very steep. The Vale it self
ABCD, is much of the figure of a Pear, and from several appearances of it,
seems to be some very fruitful place, that is, to have its surface all
covered over with some kinds of vegetable substances; for in all positions
of the light on it, it seems to give a much fainter reflection then the
more barren tops of the incompassing Hills, and those a much fainter then
divers other cragged, chalky, or rocky Mountains of the Moon. So that I am
not unapt to think, that the Vale may have Vegetables _analogus_ to our
Grass, Shrubs, and Trees; and most of these incompassing Hills may be
covered with so thin a vegetable Coat, as we may observe the Hills with us
to be, such as the short Sheep pasture which covers the Hills of
_Salisbury_ Plains.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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