The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-01-06 00:00:00

THE GREAT COMET.

The Daily Telegraph of Tuesday gave an extremely
interesting account of the Comet which was recently
seen in England and other countries. We make the
following extract from the article
The comet which was first seen in England by Mr.
Common on Sept. 10, 1882, has proved one of the most
interesting in the records of cometary astronomy, both
from a popular and scientific point of view. For some
considerable time doubt existed as to-when and where
it was first discovered; it may now be considered
settled that it was first seen at Auckland on Sept. 3
that is three days earlier than by Dr. Gould, at Cor-
doba, and five and eight days earlier than Mr. Finlay
at the Cape and M. Cruls at Rio Janeiro respectively,
It was seen almost simultaneously by several per.
sons in Europe on Sept. 17. The grandeur of
its appearance, and its visibility in full daylight,
attracted popular interest; but the similarity of its
elements to those of the great comets of 1668, 1843,
and 1880, the observation of disappearance at the
edge of the sun, and other circumstances, endowed it
with extraordinary interest to the followers of Urania.
As soon as sufficient observations had been secured,
the elements of its orbit were calculated. These ele-
ments sufficiently resembled those of the comet of 1668
to warrant Professor Weiss in considering the two
bodies identical, while some of the beat authorities in
this branch of astronomy considered that the great comet
of 1880 was a return of that of 1843, and the present
one another return. In the latter case the diminution
of the period from thirty-seven to two years was con-
sidered due to perturbations in passing near the
sun; following up this hypothesis the period was
gradually to diminish and the wanderer to become,
at no distant date, absorbed in the sun. Subsequent
observations have proved that this comet is not the
same as those above mentioned, and from the elements
calculated from these observations the interval required
to traverse its path in space is over 4,000 years, so that
those who were expecting its destruction will be denied
the opportunity of witnessing a phenomenon which
would be so interesting to scientists. The observation
at the Cape, which has been referred to above, is thus
described by Dr. Gill: "On Sunday, Sept. 17, the
comet was followed by two observers with separate
instruments, right up to the sun's limb, where it
suddenly disappeared." These words record an
observation unique in astronomical history, for though
comets have been seen near the sun, on approaching
close to it they were obscured by the effulgent lustre
of the centre of our system. As the comet approached
the sun the tail gradually faded away, leaving only a
round spot about 4 seconds in diameter, which ap-
peared brighter than the surface of the sun. This spot
disappeared suddenly at the edge of the sun, and the
observer using the more powerful telescope only saw it
5 seconds later than the other, neither being able to
discern it on the solar disc. It is a source of regret
that the Cape Observatory is not provided with a
spectroscope, as with one the comet might possibly
have been followed across the sun's disc. This ob.
servation has proved the theory that these bodies are
not substantial; for. if the comet were solid and bright,
it would have been visible for sometime after entering
on the sun, whereas, if s .lid and dark, it would have
appeared as a dark spot, as do Mercury and Venus
when in transit. When first seen the nucleus was round,
but subsequently it becaire elongated, and several ob-
servers saw two or more distinct nuclei separated by dark
streaks; a luminous streak encircled the nucleus on the
side nearest the sun, and, extending towards the back
of the nucleus, formed the beeinning of the tail, which
has been estimated at over 70,000,000 miles. The tail
was curved towards the horizon, the southern or convex
edge being much brighter than the concave. The end
appeared somewhat like the tail of a fish, the upper
portion being curved from the horizon. The
curvature of the tail of a comet was noticed as early
as the year 479, and the " fish-tailed " appearance
was remarked in the great comet discovered
by Messier at Paris on Aug. 8, 1769. The head of the
present comet was about 535,000 miles broad on Sept.
18, and the nucleus about 6,700 miles in diameter.
Surrounding the head a faint, luminous haze was
seen, and some observers noted a second tail directed
towards the sun. Others saw short horns protruding
from the head on the side towards the sun. On
Oct. 8 Professor Schmidt discovered a small,
cometary body a little to the south-west of the great
comet, and from the resemblance of its elements
to those of the great comet it is probable that some
ccnnection exists between the two bodies; a similar
phenomenon was remarked in the short period comet
of Biela at its appearance in 1845-6, in which case each
body was attended by a tail, and the distance between
them when first seen separate was only about 20,000
miles, but in two months it increased to 150,000, and
on the return of the comet in 1852 it had reached
1,250,000 miles. A similar body was seen near the
bright comet of June, 1881, when near the sun. .
Very fine photographs of the comet have been taken,
notably at the Cape, in which stars, visible only with
telescopic aid, are distinctly seen. This may lead to
the application of photography to the formation of
charts of the heavens.
During the past month clouds and the small dis-
tance of the comet from the horizon have hidden it
from most English observers, but it has now passed
its greatest southern declination, and may, in coming
northwards, again become visible, but only as a third
or fourth magnitude star.