By
this time the diameter of the Earth was not larger in appearance than
about 19', less than two-thirds that of the Sun; and she consequently
appeared as a black disc covering somewhat more than one-third of his
entire surface, but by no means concentrical. The halo had of course
completely disappeared; but with the vernier it was possible to
discern a narrow band or line of hazy grey around the black limb of
the planet. She was moving, as seen from the Astronaut, very slightly
to the north, and more decidedly, though very slowly, to the eastward;
the one motion due to my deliberately chosen direction in space, the
other to the fact that as my orbit enlarged I was falling, though as
yet slowly, behind her. The sun now shone through, the various
windows, and, reflected from the walls, maintained a continuous
daylight within the Astronaut, as well diffused as by the atmosphere
of Earth, strangely contrasting the star-spangled darkness outside.
At the beginning as at the end of my voyage, I steered a distinct
course, governed by considerations quite different from those which
controlled the main direction of my voyage.
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