Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1843-03-31


cts Submitted to the law Of the movement from
| West 10 East.
Comets hive, like all the heavens, the diurnaI
movement, which is only the effect of our rotation
| in "a hours they obey the laws of Keper, as do
the celestial bodies of our world but the calcula-
ton does not answer well, as for the planets to
| determine their return, because, by n little arch
| which Inns been observed, we wish to determine
! the entre orbit.
The planets are almost always visible, and by
numerous observations which have been made
VIZ can be directed to collect the elements OF their
| movement.
II is also necessary to have several re.appearan
| ces al the same comet to know with precision its
periodical returns; but we cannot Judge except in
the equality IN the size OF the elements which
have been observed, that one Of these STARS is the
! same the one we have already seen: this COM
| garrison is the only way Of solving the problem.
We snail here show the causes which have pre-
vented until The present time, our predicting the
| return OF The COMETS and knowing their orbits
LIST. These stars only visible IN u small part
| of their course which, being very near the sun. is
I run with prodigous quckuess. But the more the
ellipsis lengthens, and the slower the motion be-
comes, with the solar action, in such manner thai
| when near The upogee, the star would be immova-
BILE, and coud not come back 20 until after thou
| sands oil years.
ID They have not been observed with un-
iii the last 200 years, and many comets must have
escaped observation, Without speaking of these
| four newly discovered atoms, swimming in the
| immense sphere which separates Mars from Jupi-
| ter Uranus whose course takes "a years, and had
| already been observed by four astronomers, was
| howeVet, not recognized as 3 planet uuti 1881 /;
and Mercury, whose revluti0n is 50 days, is SO dill
fcult To perceive without optical assistance. that
Copernicus died with the regret OF necer being u
bic 10 perceive il.
Moreover, as comet can only be on the hori
Eoa OF the Southern regions, if it he on OURS du-
ring the day. we cannot see it, even it 1t ice under
our eyes. That large comet, that the astronom
| did not in July, lSl8 until after it had been
commonly seen, was in all its brancy, even in
I bright day Tight long time before il was discov.
cred That one which appeared GO b. c., accor-
ding to Senecs, ,vus only visible on account of a
| total eclipse Of tie sun, because it was toe near
this ivmuary.
Sd. The appearances which comets present are
very various, Leceuse they depend spoa The place
which the earth occupies when they appesr, a body
which pures ia an orbit of 20 millions Of leagues
Thus comet, which has been very large, may be
very small On its return, or even not be visible al
all; although il may exist under our eyes, its tail
may have disappeared. Many circumstances as
sst these changing aspects! The Comet Of 1911
was hardly visible in April and May; il was then
plunged Into the light of the sun, and did not mp
pear until the end Of August, On the other side Of
the perihellon but what difference Ia spIendor
and how much mere lniiunt aad astonishing wa;
the spectacle II now ONofeu WHO WOuIu nave re
cognized it as the same star2 One cannot, there
FORE rely upon the equality of The elemputs OF the
orbit TO lie certain that Two Appearances are rela
tive TO the return OF the same comet. But it IN,
attraction OF Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus change The
elements, how are TO recognize the star
4th The creates, cause of the error is the oh
servation.
The little comets are only the vaprous points
the large ones form a various and badly Terminated
cloud. The comet OF 1923 was visible during 81!
months; three astronomers nave calculated its or
biz, and their results did not agree. Who VA
right? The comets Of l762, 1863, l743 l759
1866 offer similar remarks What are the mean
OF predicting their returns with such defective
elements?
One should not be surprised it, out of 1870 com
cts whose course has been calculated, there arr
but three Of whose predicted return cue can b.
sure
The first is that which bears the name of HALEY
This astronomer saw 1t in 1882: he remark I'd tina
is the eleuiens OF It's Orbit were nearly The same n
g those of the comets which were seen IN 1881 AN
lie 1907 he concluded that it made lis revolution Il
IT about &c years. shorter period than that OF IRA
d nus. II had appeared III 1905, and seemed lou
IT times urger than Venus aud threw out about
n fourth OF the light OF the moon. History has toll
2, nothing Of lis return, until 456, when II passe
IS the earth: It's tail occupied about 6O' OF tn
Ia sky aud had The torn OF 3 sword. THIS appear
a unce, which took place al The time OF The lnyasIo
ID OF general terror, particularly when they saw IN
lie come; approach the moon when it was in lis iul
e. al thu same moment the moon was ecpsed. Ha
IN ley predicted its return in l757 but it was not pei
ceived Clairau showed, in 1758 that il must hay
of been retarded 6lS days on account Of the ac,io
Of of Jupiter and saturn; in fact i; did not pass III
r. perihelon until near the 18th Of March, l759.-
IN That comet, which was regarded with so niue
horror in 1856, excited at this time a lively inter
s esl. The long tail which it dragged after it hu
80 formerly spread terror throughout Europe. Alarm
ut ed by the rapid success of The Turks who came
at destroy the Greek empire, the Pope CaxO oide
IL eG prayer on this subject, by which The com
OF and the Turks were exercised in those times
of ignorance they were far from thinking that The oil
rs y means 10 know nature, was to examine it by o
ir- servaton and calculation. Believing that PIN
OF nolnens happen and succeed each other with re-
ularty, yet without apparent order, they mat
,ly them depend on final or accidental causes al
gh when they offered any thing extraordinary al
a seemingly contrary to The natural law, they we
ed regarded as so many signs Of celestial anger. b
NJ, these imaginary cnuses have been successfully
he fu,sd by our superior knowledge, and have entir
u ly disappeared before the sane philosopher, wi
III only sees in them ignorance when we know Il
ise true causes.
This come, reappeared in 1885. nj. Arago e
he nmined the conlrOverted question TO know if col
d. els cvaporate IN spnce, and II they lose, little
The little, their dimensions and their biiancy
tie showed that at least for lialey's comet, this OPP
~. ION was not well founded, and that this body r
ca tanned all the brancy which had been perceiv
in it before. This learned man reported The sing
ely lar aspects which no perceived in il. In the crr
ess lar nebulosity named bsamu, seen sect
cry whose sides were directed towards the centre, a
ry- whose light very much surpassed that Of all /
led rest OF the nebulosny; the next morning this 81
- tor had Disappeared 50 us to lei us another @
rye posile, having 9O' opening; then the first sec
to was seen 10 have resppeared, but less lutnino
rec Very soon afterwards there were three seco
IRA At Inst Armic saw, at Florence, six luminous ra
eeI very fiery. These singular appearances are CO
ven pielelY nexpcnbe. As for the rest, our learn
on, ncademlsl has concluded from his experime
age thu the igft OF comets u.s. a, least IN grer part,
the reflection of that OF the sun.
r il The two other comets whose returns they KIN
how 10 prehict zen ppegreI in u shOri lime, bee al