The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1869-12-02
Discoveries In the Sun.
From the n. Y. Evening Post.


Astronomers are busy in all parts of the
world studying the nature of the Suns
surface and atmosphere, the wonderful
discoveries Of the spectroscope having
given q new impulse to this branch of
inquiry Mr.. Janssen'ss method of, study
ing the cred pFetuberaa shiehg were
formerly supposed capable Of being seen
only in time Of an eclipse, is now prac-
tised daily in many observatories.
By this meathod Mr. Lockyer, an En-.
glish spectroscopist, has discovered that
the solar protuberances are local accumu-
lations of a gaseous envelope, which com
pletely surround the sum-. He finds this
to be marvelously regular in its contour,
and to have q thickness of about five
thousand miles To this envelop be has
given the name efthe suns clsrossOsp1ere
It lies Immediately contiguous to the
bright surface of the sun It consists
chiefly of hydrogen ; while the protuber-
ances that break up the continuity of its
outline are vast masses of incandescent
hydrogen and other vapors elected from
tine to time from the luminous mass of
the sun into the ohromosphere. d5
The beautiful halo, called the corona,
seen to encircle the sun in total eclipses
was also. observed by spectroscopists du-
ring, the last two eclipses. In the eclipse
of last year, when the spectroscope was
on the corona, only a faint continuous
spectrum was observed, without bright or
dark lines. But during the late eclipse
some of the American observers noticed
one or more bright lines.nb Professor
Young, of Dartmouth College, speaks OF
three as being visible in his spectroseope;
and, what is worthy of}special notice, one
Of these lines correspondent precisely
in position with bright line that had
previously been found to belong to the
light of the aurora: borealis. oaas
In connection with this imports dis
coverys another, = madeo1q by gnAngstrem,
should be mentioned 1t isa bright band
which he had several times observed in
the spectrum from the light of aauroral1
arches was also to be detected in that
from the zodiacal light, the substance oil
which is known to peryade the entire
space between the sun and the earth We
are thus led to infer that the substancesi is
present in the immediate vicinity of the
sun, where the radiations of the corona
are seen, throughout the fields of space
that lie between the sun and the earth,
and in the upper regions of the earth s.
atmosphere where the auroral fires are
kindled ss &c ogfsisisilaba giIa1
These discoveries lend a powerful sup
port to the theory advocated by Profess
sor Norton, Of Yale College, in his trea-7
tise on astronomy, that the corona is a.
solar phenomenon analC gous to terrestrial
auroras;. thatits seeming radiations are at
the same time lines of electric discharge,a
and streams of luminous matter flowing off
into space that the same material ema-
nations are seen IN trdnsltg in the zodi 4
acal light, and furnish the matter of ter
restral auroras. It is maintained by the
author of this theory that it furnish IAN
adequate explanation of the disturbing
action of the sun upon the magnetic
needle, which, though 100000 miles
distant from the sun, trembles and sways
to and fro in sympathy with those in
tense activities which are in operation on
the suns surface and originate dark and
bright spots on his disc; also, of the cor
resoondence observed to subsist between
the RODS of ;.uroras,as we'll as of the
disturbances of the magnetic needle and
those of the solar spots.
1t is now pretty generally Cadmitted
that the corona is not the proper atmos-
pheIe of the sun, that this does not in
fact extend more than as few thousand
miles from the. SUMS bright =. surface,
while the corona streams. forth into
space, in some directions to the distance
of a million miles, The theory that the
corona isSessetiallya solar aurora, appears
to find more favor with the observers of
the late eclipse, than any other which has
been advanced sProfessof Norton, in the
report of the observations of his party,
adyocacates ltsand .ad auces-Sstrong argu-
ments drawn rom5he results of the OBJ
servations in its support u