The story of the universe. Volume 1 (of 4) : $b The starry skies
History
The story of the universe. Volume 1 (of 4) : $b The starry skies
Astronomy; Earth (Planet); Natural history
Many of the stars are variable in their light, and several hundred of
these curious and interesting objects are now known to astronomers.
In a few of these the light changes may be followed with the naked
eye. It is an interesting question whether any of the lucid stars
have disappeared or changed in brightness since the early ages of
astronomical observations. Al-Sûfi failed to find seven of Ptolemy’s
stars, and Ulug Bekh, comparing his observations with the catalogues
of Ptolemy and Al-Sûfi, announced twelve cases of supposed
disappearance. Some of these may, however, be due to errors of
observation. Montanari, writing in 1672, mentions two stars as having
disappeared, namely β and γ of the constellation Argo, but these
stars are now visible in the positions originally assigned to them.
In a careful examination of Al-Sûfi’s description of the stars
written in the Tenth Century, and a comparison with modern estimates
and measures, I have found several very interesting cases of apparent
change in the brightness of the lucid stars. Al-Sûfi was an excellent
and careful observer, and as a rule his estimates agree well with
modern observations. We can therefore place considerable reliance on
his estimates of star magnitudes. _The Story of Theta Eridani_ has
been well told by Dr. Anderson, and there seems to be no doubt that
this southern star, which is now only of the third magnitude, was a
bright star of the first magnitude in Al-Sûfi’s time! The following
are other interesting cases of apparent change which I have met with
in my examination of Al-Sûfi’s work. The Pole Star was rated third
magnitude by both Ptolemy and Al-Sûfi, but it is now of the second
magnitude, or a little less. The star γ Geminorum was rated third
magnitude by Ptolemy and Al-Sûfi, or equal to δ Geminorum, but γ is
now of the second magnitude, and its great superiority in brightness
over δ is noticeable at a glance. Another interesting case is that
of ζ and ο Persei, two stars which lie near each other, about seven
degrees north of the Pleiades. Al-Sûfi distinctly describes these
stars as _both_ of the 3—4 magnitude; but Argelander, Heis, and the
photometric measures at Harvard agree in making ζ about one magnitude
brighter than ο. The stars being close are easily compared, and their
present great difference in brightness is very noticeable. This
is one of the most remarkable cases I have met with in Al-Sûfi’s
work, and strongly suggests variation in ο, as ζ is still about the
same brightness as Al-Sûfi made it. The identity of the stars is
beyond all doubt, as Al-Sûfi describes their positions very clearly,
and says there is no star between them and the Pleiades, a remark
which is quite correct for the naked eye. The remarkable decrease
in brightness of β Leonis (Denebola) since Al-Sûfi’s time has been
considered in my paper on _Some Suspected Variable Stars_. That it
was a bright star of the first magnitude is fully proved by the
observations of Al-Sûfi and Tycho Brahe.
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