Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1869-12-22
stSOLAR NONDERS.n .
The Marvels of the Sum-The ZoellneT
PfctuTes-The sum sfEIames''-SOlar

/ Astronomers have been revealing so many
wonders in the vast globe which rules the
planetary scheme, that we cannotyet hope
to see the startling results OF ftbeirreseareh-
es eo-ordinated into consistent whole
On every hand new marveis are beng
| brought to light. At one time MIR. Lock
yer surprises us by exhibiting the amazing
yelocities with which the solar storms rags
across the blazing surface OF our lumlnary.
At another the energetic astronomer who
presides over the Roman observatory tells
Us of water within the fierce tumult Of the
solar spots. The Kew observers track the
strange influences of the planets on the
solar atmosphere, watching not only the
great tide Of spots whioh sweeps in the
ten-year period over the solar storm-zones,
and then leaves our sun-clear from speek
or stain, but also the ripples of spot forma-
ton which come in shorter periods, and
seem inextricably blended to ordinary OBJ
servers with the great periodic disturb
ances. Lastly, bockyer, Huggins, GsAaner,
and Secchi describe the magic changes of
form which pass over tongues of fame, pro-
jecting thousands of miles from the solar
surface We have before US as we write a
series of eolored prominence pictures ta-
ken by DIR. Zollner, the eminent photome-
trician. 1t is impossible to contemplate
these strange figures without sense ofthe
magnifcenee of the problem which the sun
presents to astronomers. Here are vast en-
titles flames, if we will, but flames unlike
all those with which We are familiar. And
these vast tongues of fire assume forms
which speak to us at once of the action of
forces of the utmost violence and ndintensty.
The very aspect of these objects at once
teaches this, but it is the RAPID changes of
place and of figure to which the spots are
subjected tnat are most significant on this
point. Here is vast cone-snaped fame,
with q mushroom-shape head otenormous
proportions, the whole object standing 49,
900 or II, 600 miles from the suns surface
In the cone figure we see the Uprush of late
~ imprisoned gases III the outspreading
head the sudden dimiBution OF pressure as
these gases reach the rarer upper atmos-
phere. But turn from this object to q series
of six pictures placed besidei it, add we see
the solar forces in action. First, there is q
vast fame, some Is, 600 miles high, bowed
towards the right, as though some fierce
wind were blowing upon it. It extends in
this direction some tour or five thousand
miles The next picture represents the
same object ten minutes later. The figure
Of the prominence has wholly changed. It
is now gobe-shaped mass, standing on
narrow stalk of light above a row of fame
hillocks. It is bowed towards the left, so
that III those short minutes the whole mass
OF the names has swept thousands Of miles
away from its former position. Only two
minutes later, and again q complete change
of appearance. The stalk and dfame-hiIlocks
have vanished, and the globe-shaped mass
has become elongated. Three minutes Ia
ter, the shape Of the prominence has alter
ed so completely that one can hardly re-
cognize it for the same. The stalk is again
visible but the upper mass is bowed down
on the right SO that the whole figure re-
sembies d gigantic A, without the cross.
bar, and with the down-stroke abnornally
thick. This great A is some 20, 600 miles
IN height, and the whole mass Of our earth
might be bowled between its legs without
touching theml -Four minutes pass and
again the figure has chanoed. The fame
hillocks reappear, the down-stroke of the
A begins to raise itself from the suns sur
face. Lastly, after yet another interval of
four minutes, the figure of the prominence
has lost all resemblance to an A, and may
now be likened TO camels head looking
towards the right. The whole series OF
changes has occupied but % minutes vet
the flame exceeded our earth il volume ten
fold at the least But Mr.. Lockyer has
recorded an instance Of o yet mofe-marvel-
Ions nature. A vast prominence extending
70, 600 or 80 0O6 miles from the suns sur
face vanished altogether In ten minutes
The very way in which Zollner's drawings
were taken savOrs Of the marvellous. We
have spoken of them as colored. They are
ruby-red. and SO the prominence appeared
to the astronomer. The real light of The
prominences is not ruby red, however, but
rose -colored, with faint indications of pink,
or even blush tints, The fact is, that by
the new method of observation the image
of 8 prominence is formed by only Ger
tain part of its light. We may say that
out of the several colored images Of the
same prominence the astronomer selects
one only for examination. The explana-
ton of this is worth consideration, SO it
involves the essence of the method by
which the prOminences are seen st all
WheH We analyze light with a simple prism
as Newton did, we get instead of q round
spot of whitehall is, mixed light-a row
of overlapping spots OF different color. 1t
was only when, instead of @ round spot,
fine line of white light was analyzed, that
one could detect the absence OF images of
this line along certain parts of the rainbow
colored streak-in other words, it was thus
could be seen. And it was to see these
lines more clearly that the slit of the spec
troscope was made so marrow and the rain
bow-spectrum made so long by spectros-
copists But the observers of the promin-
ences go back to the old method. If they
used a narrow slit, a narrow strip of the
prominence would alone form its spectrum,
which would consist of 8 few bright lines.
But by having a wide slit the whole promi-
nence form its spectrum, which consists of
few bright pictures of the prominences
There is a green picture corresponding to
the bright spectral line called T, red pic
ture corresponding to the bright spectral
line called G, and SO on, If the whole set
of pictures were formed at once we could
see none of them, for there would be side
by side with them the blazing solar spec
trum which would obiiterate them altogeth-
or, just as in ordinary telescope observa-
tion the bright sunlight blots out the
prominences from the view But if the
observer uses such battery of prisms that
the solar spectrum would be very long in
deed, and if he admits to view only that
part of the spectrum opposite which one OF
tie prOminence-imaQe exists, he can then
see that image quite distinctly, for the
neighboring part of the solar spectrum is
SO GS0uc|u III Sp1SnlOf Judb IL no longer
obliterates the prOminencR-fgure. In this
way, then, the observer selects one or 9TH
er OF the pictures of a prominence, either
the red or the green picture, to examine.
And strangely enough, it is by no means
certain that the two pictures ere alike
Rather it is highly probable that they are
different, though we have not space here
either to indicate reasons for believing this,
or to explain the significance of the cir
cumstance should it eventually be estab-
lished
1t seems to us that when we consider the
real dimensions OF the solar globe, we ap-
preciate more fully the wonderful nature OF
those processes of action indicated by re-
cent researches, than when we regard these
without direct reference to the sun s mag
nitude. How many of US really appreciate
the enormous volume of the sun? We
read certain figures in books ofastronomy,
but do we grasp their full significance
There is, however, simple way of viewing
| the matter which at once opens our eyes
to the vastness of the solar globe.