Muscatine journal. [volume] (Bloomington, Iowa) 1849-185?, 1853-09-23
VOL. VINO. II.
Comets.

\ Comets.
| Comets used to be looked upon as The
certain precursor of war, pestilence, fam
inc, or some other dire calamity, but in
these latter days he world has learned to
look upon them with awe and admiration.
and not with fear.
Comets are vast masses OF pure ethe-
real matter. SO light and filmy that noth-
ing on this earth can be compared with
them. 1t has been calculated that if q
comet were condensed into the thick
ness Of the earth's atmosphere it would
not occupy more than from one 10 three
cubic inches. This apparent nucleus or
body is altogether filmy; for through the
very hea RI Of comes Of considera BILE
| brightness stars of the sixteenth magni.
tude have been deserted.
The leading aspects Of comets are
known as causing supers;itious dread.
since the days Of Newton. of wars pes.
tilence, and famine, threatening the earth
with annihilation BY fire and flood. Thus
these harmless wanderers have been
viewed by mankind, originating in the
description Of the comet Of 1880. as
cribing to Sir Isaac Newton. stating the
heart of the comet to be two thousand
times hotter than red hot iron. and that
its period was 575 years. and would
probab bly, in the year 2255 strike tho
earth and destroy it with fire. 1t is said
that the tails OF the comets are hollow,
as il they consisted Of PARTICLES driven
away from their nucleus By the resistance
of an ether. or substance through which
comets move. But, as the tail is always
opposite to the position OF the sun. it
may be inferred that the so called tails
are the refraction Of the suns rays
through the hollow of the comet. which
extended over fifty millions Of miles
from the comet which passed the earth
in March, 1843.
The language of science has taken
much Of the superstition, as we'll as the
romance, out Of the comets, yet what
they are, and what are their uses. has
always been a puzzler to philosophers.
They cannot even agree as to how their
tails are formed. Tycho Brahe supposed
them to be the light of the sun transmit.
ted through the nucleus Of the comet.
" hich he believed to be transparent like
lens The great Kepler thought tina:
The impulslon of the solar rays drove
away the denser parts OF The comets
atmosphere, and thus formed tail. Sir
Isaac Newton supposed it to be thin
vapor, raised By the heat Of the sun
from the comet. DR.. Hamilton thought
it q stream Of electric matter.
1. was Dr.. HALEY who first proved
that many Of the appearances OF comets
where but the periodical return OF the
same bodies. "tlalley's comet per.
forms its revolution in about seventy
six years. 1t appeared in 1853. and
came TO lis petroleum on the 18th OF
March. Its las, appearance was made
in 1895.
That which is known as Encke's comet
was first discovered by M. Pons. Nov.
Goth. 1918, but it was justly named by
astronomers after Prof. EncKe, from his
success in detrcting its orbit. motions,
and purturbations. 1t is one Of the
three comets which have appeared &C.
cording to prediction, and its revolutions
are made in three years and fifteen weeks.
Biela's comet, (called after its discov-
erer, M. Biela, an Austrian officer was
discovered February 28th, 1896. 1t is
also one OF the three comets whose re-
appearance was predicted; its revolution
being performed in six years and :hirty-
eight weeks. It's second appearance was
in 1882, when the time of It's perhelium
passage was Nov. 27. It's third appear
ance was in 1889.
The ancients were frequently visited
by these erratic bodies. Justin tells us
of the simultaneous appearance of ftoo.
| which were seen for seventys,wo days
together, and whose splsndor eclipsed
that OIL the mid day sun, and occupied
torty-ive degrees. or the fourth part OF
the heavens. This was one hundred
and thirty-fve years B. c.
| These phenomena were first rat ionly
explained oy Tycho Brahe, about the
wear 1877. The orbits of comets were
proved to be eclipses by Newton in l704.