An epitome of astronomy, with the new discoveries: including an account of the eidouranion, or transparent orrery / (invented by A. Walker) as lectured upon by his son, W. Walker.

  • Walker, A. (Adam), 1730 or 1731-1821
Date:
1800
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An epitome of astronomy, with the new discoveries: including an account of the eidouranion, or transparent orrery / (invented by A. Walker) as lectured upon by his son, W. Walker. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    miles every hour. From faint spots seen upon her surface, Mr. Shroeter apprehends she re- volves on her axis in 23 hours, 21 minutes; that her surface is irregular like that of the Moon, and some of her mountains four miles high. The atmosphere of Venus has been calculated to be 50 miles high : and the Sun would appear to the inhabitants of this planet twice as large as to us. When Venus is to the west of the Sun, she is a morning star; when to the east of him, an evening star: her orbit or track is included by the Earth’s, and as both move the same way, she appears to be on one side of the Sun longer than the 224| days she is in going round him. The axis of Venus is said by some astronomers to incline 75 degrees to the axis of her orbit: and therefore her sea- . . , >. # * sons vary very fast, the Sun passing over more of her from pole to pole in one day, than over the Earth in a quarter of a year. Hence the heated places of this planet have time to cool: which suggest to our ideas that provision has been made for inhabitants, that they might not suffer by their vicinity to the Sun ; this circum¬ stance also gives her two winters and two sum-