Auroræ : their characters and spectra
Project Gutenberg's Auroræ: Their Characters and Spectra, by J. Rand Capron
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Title: Auroræ: Their Characters and Spectra
Release Date: December 10, 2017 [EBook #56159]
Language: English
Character set encoding: UTF-8
Produced by Chris Curnow and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
London
E. & F. N. Spon, 46 Charing cross
New York
446 Broom Street
1879
Printed by Taylor and Francis
Red Lion Court, Fleet Street
To Prof. Charles Piazzi Smyth, F.R.S.E.,
astronomer royal for Scotland,
one of the earliest spectroscopic observers
of the aurora and zodiacal light,
this volume is respectfully dedicated
by the author.
And now the Northern Lights begin to burn, faintly at first, like sunbeams playing in the waters of the blue sea. Then a soft crimson glow tinges the heavens. There is a blush on the cheek of night. The colours come and go; and change from crimson to gold, from gold to crimson. The snow is stained with rosy light. Twofold from the zenith, east and west, flames a fiery sword; and a broad band passes athwart the heavens, like a summer sunset. Soft purple clouds come sailing over the sky, and through their vapoury folds the winking stars shine white as silver. With such pomp as this is Merry Christmas ushered in, though only a single star heralded the first Christmas.
Longfellow