than to Earth, and for that reason are more easily discerned from
this vantage point. Some of the satellites of Jupiter are easily
seen with the naked eye.

Your Earth appears to us about as Jupiter does to you, and with
our observing instruments we are able to see your continent and
oceans when not covered by a cloud canopy.

As to the so-called Inferior planets Venus and Mercury, the
former presents the appearance of a star of the first magnitude,
but being so near the sun it is only visible an hour before or
after sunset, depending upon its position. But Mercury, being so
near the Solar Orb, it is rarely its position is favorable for
observation from our planet, and then only with our more perfect
telescopes.

Our students view the phenomena of eclipses of the sun and our
planet with the greatest interest, just as your astronomers do.

Mars' two moons present what would appear to you a most striking
phenomenon, for one rises in the East and the other in the West,
passing each other at times within view of observers. The most
distant satellite of Mars is known to us as Laster, to which has
been given the name of Deimos by the first observers on your
Earth. Approximately 132 hours elapse between its rising and
setting at any particular point on our planet, as a consequence
of the fact that it revolves in 30 hours 18 minutes at a distance
of 14,600 miles more or less from its primary; and as Mars
rotates in 24 hours 37 minutes from East to West the motion is
almost neutralized by the circulation of this satellite.