ts, and, although not
as interesting an object to view as the more brilliant planets, Venus
and Jupiter, it claims our attention chiefly because of the surmises
respecting its habitability.

Mars appears to the naked eye as a bright red star, and when at a
favorable opposition to the earth (which occurs only once in every
fifteen years) it rivals Jupiter in splendor.

The planet may be mistaken for the first magnitude stars, Antares in
Scorpius, and Aldebaran in Taurus, near which it frequently passes.

The fixed stars, however, twinkle, while Mars glows steadily. If there
is any doubt in the student's mind as to the identity of the planet, a
few nights of observation, noting the changes in the planet's
position, will decide the point. It takes Mars about fifty-seven days
to pass through one constellation in the Zodiac.

JUPITER.

Jupiter is the largest of all the planets in the solar system, and it
is easily distinguished from the fixed stars because of its brilliancy
and splendor, exceeding in brightness all the planets excepting Venus,
and casting a perceptible shadow.

It moves slowly and majestically across the sky, advancing through the
Zodiac at the rate of one constellation yearly. It is therefore a
simple matter to forecast its position, for, in whatever constellation
it is seen to-day, one year hence it will be seen equally advanced in
the next constellation.

Although Jupiter appears to move slowly, it really travels at the
incomprehensible rate of five hundred miles a minute.

The most interesting feature about Jupiter for the amateur astronomer
consists in observing four of its moons, which are visible with a
small telescope. They appear like mere dots of light, and their
transit of or occultation with the planet (that is, their
disappearance before or behind its disk) can be watched, and is a
never failing source of pleasure. A large telescope alone reveals
Jupiter's four other moons.

SATURN.

Saturn is farther removed from the earth than any of the planets in
the solar system, visible to the naked eye. It is distinguished from
the fixed stars by the steadiness of its light, which is dull and of a
yellow hue, though to some it appears to be of a greenish tinge. It
seems barely to move, so slow is its motion among the stars, for it
takes two and one half years to pass through a single constellation of
the Zodiac.

Saturn has eight moons. Titan, its largest one, can be seen with a 3"
gla