The Russian Government ordered three new heliometers (each of 4 in. aperture and 5 ft. focal length) from the Repsolds, and the design for their construction was superintended by Struve, Auwers and Winnecke, the last-named making the necessary experiments at Carlsruhe. Fig. 9 represents the resulting type of instrument which was finally designed and constructed by Repsolds. The brass tube, strengthened at the bearing points by strong truly turned collars, rotates in the cast iron cradle q attached to the declination axis, a is the eye-piece fixed in the optical axis, b the micrometer for reading both scales, c and d are telescopes for reading the position circle p, e the handle for quick motion in position angle, f the slow motion in position angle, g the handle for changing the separation of the segments by acting on the bevel-wheel g′ (fig. 10). h is a milled head connected by a rod with h′ (fig. 10), for the purpose of interposing at pleasure the prism π in the axis of the reading micrometer; this enables the observer to view the graduations on the face of the metallic thermometer ττ (composed of a rod of brass and a rod of zinc), i is a milled head connected with the wheel i′i′ (fig. 10), and affords the means of placing the screen s (fig. 9), counterpoised by w over either half of the object-glass. k clamps the telescope in declination, n clamps it in right ascension, and the handles m and l provide slow motion in declination and right ascension respectively.
| Fig. 10. |
The details of the interior mechanism of the “head” will be almost evident from fig. 10 without description. The screw, turned by the wheels at g′, acts in a toothed arc, whence, as shown in the figure, equal and opposite motion is communicated to the slides by the jointed rods v, v. The slides are kept firmly down to their bearings by the rollers r, r, r, r, attached to axes which are, in the middle, very strong springs. Side-shake is prevented by the screws and pieces k, k, k, k. The scales are at n, n; they are fastened only at the middle, and are kept down by the brass pieces t, t.
A similar heliometer was made by the Repsolds to the order of Lord Lindsay for his Mauritius expedition in 1874. It differed only from the three Russian instruments in having a mounting by the Cookes in which the declination circle reads from the eye-end.[16] This instrument was afterwards most generously lent by Lord Lindsay to Gill for his expedition to Ascension in 1877.[17]
These four Repsold heliometers proved to be excellent instruments, easy and convenient in use, and yielding results of very high accuracy in measuring distances. Their slow motion in position angle, however, was not all that could be desired. When small movements were communicated to the handle e (fig. 9) by the tangent screw f, acting on a small toothed wheel clamped to the rod connected with the driving pinion, there was apt to be a torsion of the rod rather than an immediate action. Thus the slow motion would take place by jerks instead of with the necessary smoothness and certainty. When the heliometer-part of Lord Lindsay’s heliometer was acquired by Gill in 1879, he changed the manner of imparting the motion in question. A square toothed racked wheel was applied to the tube at r (fig. 9). This wheel is acted on by a tangent screw whose bearings are attached to the cradle; the screw is turned by means of a handle supported by bearings attached to the cradle, and coming within convenient reach of the observer’s hand. The tube turns smoothly in the racked wheel, or can be clamped to it at the will of the observer. This alteration and the new equatorial mounting have been admirably made by Grubb; the result is completely successful. The instrument so altered was in use at the Cape Observatory from March 1881 till 1887 in determining the parallax of some of the more interesting southern stars. The instrument then passed, by purchase from Gill, to Lord McLaren, by whom it was presented to the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh.
| Fig. 11. |
| Fig. 12. |
| Fig. 13. |
| Fig. 14. |
Still more recently the Repsolds have completed a new heliometer for Yale College, New Haven, United States. The object-glass is of 6 in. aperture and 98 in. focal length. The mounting, the tube, objective-cell, slides, &c., are all of steel.[18] The instrument is shown in fig. 11. The circles for position angle and declination are read by micrometer-microscopes illuminated by the lamp L; the scales are illuminated by the lamp l. T is part of the tube proper, and turns with the head. The tube V, on the contrary, is attached to the cradle, and merely forms a support for the finder Q, the handles at f and p, and the moving ring P. The latter gives quick motion in position angle; the handles at p clamp and give slow motion in position angle, those at f clamp and give slow motion in right ascension and declination. a is the eye-piece, b the handle for moving the segments, c the micrometer microscope for reading the scales and scale micrometer, d the micrometer readers of the position and declination circles, e the handle for rotating the large wheel E which carries the screens. The hour circle is also read by microscopes, and the instrument can be used in both positions (tube preceding and following) for elimination of the effect of flexure on the position angles. Elkin found that the chief drawbacks to speed and convenience in working this heliometer were: (1) The loss of time involved in entering the corresponding readings of the micrometer pointings on two scales. (2) That an additional motion intermediate between the quick and slow motion in position angle was necessary, because, whilst the slow motion provided by Repsolds was admirably adapted for adjusting the pointings in position angle, it was too slow for causing the images to “cross through” each other in the process of measuring distances. To remedy drawback (1) Repsolds devised the form of printing micrometer which is shown in figs. 12 and 13. This micrometer is provided with two pairs of parallel webs. One fixed pair of webs is attached to the micrometer-box, the other pair is moved by the screw S. The whole micrometer-box is moved by the screw attached to the heads. Accordingly, in reading the scales A and B (attached to the slides which carry the two halves of the object-glass), it is only necessary to turn the screws until the fixed double web is pointed symmetrically on one of the divisions of scale A, then to move the other double web by the screw S until it is symmetrically pointed on the adjoining division of scale B. By turning the quick acting screw P (fig. 13) to the right, the cushion C (which is faced with india-rubber) presses the paper ribbon (shown in fig. 13) against the index-edge and type-wheels, and thus the beautifully cut divisions of the micrometer-head, the numbers marking the 1⁄100 parts of the head, the index and the total number of revolutions are all sharply embossed together upon the paper ribbon. Fig. 14 shows the record of several successive paintings on the same scale as that given by the micrometer. The reverse motion of P automatically moves the paper ribbon forward, ready to receive the next impression. It must be mentioned that the pressure of the cushion C on the type-wheels has no influence whatever upon the micrometer-screw, because the type-wheels are mounted on a hollow cylindrical axis, concentric with the axis of the screw, but entirely disconnected from the screw itself. The only connexion between the type-wheel and the screw-head S is by the pin p (which is screwed into S), the cylindrical end of which acts in a slot cut in the type-wheel. To remedy drawback (2) Repsolds provided for the Yale heliometer an additional handle for motion in position angle, intermediate in velocity between the original quick and slow motions.