The description and use of the globes and the orrery: To which is prefix'd, by way of introduction, a brief account of the solar systemHarris, Joseph
History
The description and use of the globes and the orrery: To which is prefix'd, by way of introduction, a brief account of the solar system
Harris, Joseph
Astronomical models; Globes
Thus at _London_, when the Sun’s declination North is greater than
20½ degrees, there is no total darkness, but constant twilight, which
happens from the 26th of _May_ to the 18th of _July_, being near two
months. Under the North Pole the twilight ceases, when the Sun’s
declination is greater than 18 degrees South, which is from the 13th
of _November_, ’till the 29th of _January_: So that notwithstanding
the Sun is absent in this part of the world for half a year together,
yet total darkness does not continue above 11 weeks; and besides,
the _Moon_ is above the horizon for a whole fortnight of every month
throughout the year.
PROB. XXV. _The day of the Month be given; to
find those places of the Frigid Zones, where the
Sun begins to shine continually without setting;
and also those places where he begins to be totally
absent._
Bring the Sun’s place to the meridian, and mark the number of degrees
contained betwixt that point and the equator; then count the same
number of degrees from the nearest Pole (_viz._ the North Pole, if the
Sun’s declination is Northerly, otherwise the South Pole) towards the
equator, and note that point upon the meridian; then turn the globe
about, and all the places which pass under the said point, are those
where the Sun begins to shine constantly, without setting on the given
day. If you lay the same distance from the opposite Pole towards the
equator, and turn the globe about, all the places which pass under that
point, will be those where the longest night begins.
_The Latitude of the place being given, to find the
hour of the day when the Sun shines._
_If it be in the summer_, elevate the Pole according to the latitude,
and set the meridian due North and South; then the shadow of the axis
will cut the hour on the Dial plate: For the globe being rectified in
this manner, the hour circle is a true _Equinoctial Dial_; the axis of
the globe being the _Gnomon_. This holds true in _Theory_, but it might
not be very accurate in practice, because of the difficulty in placing
the horizon of the globe truly horizontal, and its meridian due North
and South.
If it be in the winter half year, elevate the South Pole according
to the latitude North, and let the North part of the horizon be in
the South part of the meridian; then the shade of the axis will show
the hour of the day as before: But this cannot be so conveniently
performed, tho’ the reason is the same as in the former case.
_To find the Sun’s altitude, when it shines, by the Globe._
Having set the frame of the globe truly horizontal or level, turn the
North Pole towards the Sun, and move the meridian up or down in the
notches, until the axis casts no shadow; then the arch of the meridian,
contained betwixt the Pole and the horizon, is the Sun’s altitude.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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