Abstract
TRIANGULATION OF SIXTEEN STARS IN THE PLEIADES.— In addition to the great interest that has always been attached to this bright group of stars, the Pleiades, as can be gathered from the numerous myths (NATURE, vol. xlix. p. 366) which have been handed down to us, their value to the practical astronomer has been by no means small. In most astronomical measurements, observations have first to be made on stars the positions of which are accurately known, in order to determine the instrumental constants: thus, for instance, the pitch of micrometer screws, ring micrometer constants, &c. The Pleiades, as they consisted of a group of bright stars suitable for such determinations, were constantly used for these purposes, and this necessitated a previous complete knowledge of their positions and motions.
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Our Astronomical Column. Nature 50, 623–624 (1894). https://doi.org/10.1038/050623a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/050623a0