Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1870-02-11

bread h that thess Law scattered over ,,s
'un generally in every direction, aero,,
each other, apd the black spots were sim.
| ply the intetstices 10 between the thes,
Willow ltsf hlaments. This announcement
lmuli ted at once To very minute srru inv
ui the face Of the sun, aud t. an active co, a.
! iroversy among the observers. All agreed
,nat the luminous surface was composed oil
bright particles, but Nesmyth's Dissertation
received but little confirmation. Ons oh.
server proposed ths term rlcegrains, as bet.
ter representing the form Of the oLirct. in
| question, aud another compared then "a
gravel on the beach, and the third prefer.
red the word grauuatiOns. The facts es.
tablished are very clearly set forth BIZ MI
higgins of London. The granulss are OF
various siHs, but may on the average be
taken as about !" 10 length aud l. Ia
breadth, corresponding to about 675 by $50
miles. Some are nearly round, others oval.
aud others still without symmetry Of out.
line. The coarser nothing of the solsr
disc arises chiefly from the alienation OF
Ines or groups Of closely aggregated gran.
ules and OF regions In WHICH they are less
abundant. The points ars the in'erstices
between them, M they sppear through a
telescope Of insufficient power. Mr.. Hug
gins suns up most admirably by saying =
=" The phenomenon would he we'll repres.p
ted II we m GIT suppose that the gIanulss
| are recently CONDENSED descent clio 1 d..
mat they slo Wy sink, merge into each 9TH
err, become less ard less luminous. and
gradually dissipa'e into comparatively non
luminous gas. The dark portions wonld
then he represented by the portions where
complete vapori2 ,tion had taken place -
THUS It seems established that the lum nous
surface OF the sun Is entirely composed Of
these glowing PARTICLES or grauules, almost
as small ss We can see, notwithsta nding
they can scarcely be less than 700 niles In
length, d ating In a sea Of 4 ,rker, though
| luminous fluid matter. The brighter and
| the darker mottlIDgs of the ordinary sur
face, the brilliant glow Of the fscu'e, and
the dim ued lustre Of the penumbrA, must
alike be referred to the intrinsic splendor Of
individual Rrabp'es, distributed 10 various
ways, arranged more or less cumpactIy and
At different degrees Of submergence in the
hnid medium which supports them. Lock
yer, young English as rJnomer. who has
done much to advance our kno Wedge of
the sue, says he has seen the gran ules in
the penumbra change their axial directions
and others, visible agsi st the nucleus ss
background, gradual to melt awsy. Cha
comac says, moreover, that the granules or
or! stalls as he calls them, may bs seen dis.
n
jet OF steam, becoming spotted ov,r With
dark points before they finally disappear.
DININuTIoS OF THE suA's FORCE.
Tne great fact, to which have more
than once alluded, that the sun is practical
y oar my source Of earthly power ami
ehergy, gives peculiar iuIer, ST to the
question whether hts brillitncy or thermal
energy are undergoing any Ierceptihie
'iinIuution. That they arr dimiLishli q se
must assume On general principles, inas-
mncb as ~e know to what all Iucoucsivablo
extent lie IL radiatirg 10. CO in tho various
t''rms OF heat, light, aud chemical power,
aud rec once quilted flom a source Of
such superior energy Is not returned to 1t
agais. While urS creation of force by
nat ursl agencies is just as impossible Us a
new creation of matter. But whvlher any
dluihption Of radiant energy In conse-
qnence OF the enormous expenditure il
perceptible by our means of inv, stigstiun
Is m"st natural and important question,
aud 10 this IL must be answered That no
appre' able decrease has been detected. Few
observations available Tor the purp, 10 have
been b, 1eathed u,ty the as rvnOiners Of
former Jays; but from some careful Uhser-
vatIOns made in 1901 hy The dIstirgu,s ed
astronomer, O,bers, upon the bgiiiancy Of
Mars, when depends, OF course upon re-
II 'cted solar light, Prof. S-idel OF Municn
was able 10 prove In 1907 that tue sUl-r
ghi hod no. Unfinished III the interval to
any meas urabie extent. IL has been well
Sd q, That ID some OF the Oai Il eOk meta
phl clahs ohco dipped Thermometer In
tue n ssuS, ina retO'ded tho date aud tenn
p-ra'ure, IL w'uii have added thousand
IOld more To our kno"ledge than all their
speculAtlons did. We can forgive them for
This Uullr NJ for no tther raasnn thai
nat they h@d no thermometers To dip; but
IA" wv! ever Iee"Iueu Tue average uS'e OF
m. Ali, to ibs,k n ,.m t,r NJ ,..as, so,ns
m,,,ui,Is whence ~, cnuId d,dnc. VA ma.
M. geological aud .yen cosmoloyical knowl-
.dl
In is43 after Schwabe had cnrri, A IN
nj. s,,,,, hs., ys,tnns far III v.a,s NJ. A.
cnv,.r,d Inn, m, ir II, M ucv "a. n,.,,odio
aud he ,stin,.t.d m, length of The ,,.r,od
a. .b,nt I,,n y.a,s
la 1852 ui1, wears sffer Schwnb.,, dis.
cnv,.r, p'nf Wuit of B.rue. vs. lad hv
car.fIl study of th. observation, IA. conn, =
,inn ,v,th ancient r.curds Ia "A Md. n ..ti,n
| IN th,, l.nVth of lb, n.riod. which 4. un,.
dx.d Al about II l 0 wears. II. alo Snr.
c,-,.J.d In n, oving MI hi. na,i,,d .r.r
al,n IA M. vari.,,,ns In 4, rr.striaI o,,,,,,.t
lam halter m an ,h',t of lOtI ear. nrsy1"n'.
ly Iound nv L ,mont 10 Muu,on. Tim. n h,-
came evident that the interval At "a hicb m.
| rh.nom,na ner,odicallv reneat thcm.slvss
rs th, hame Tor sol Ar ,po,s and Tor ynria
lion. in nh. dir, otion al mn, n,.gna,ic n,a
Ma ar AT I.s,t ,b.t any d n rei,c,, m the
| Length of n /. p.riod. ia TOO su,,II 10 ia d.
,scSsJ ard h is bnt pntnr.l that q, rs
NAH ,ple a ooincidruc. sbuuld Suggest an
49,, ~ go, wi, ,h..r mi. 4. Ts.tI, -,
-. ~, ,l,.,r ..,,d..,',.. -,
ed.
'AS gus L''"''
| addition to the uiy OF the quaint y
aud iptesiy # lg' !, Two modes Of inSest-
eating i's guHliiy are kho@n To us. Ono 's
Wy un0o'oi'us III ""s' P'sN's t"o luminous
rn,,ino ,h,, ,,r,,I,,',n,'.n ,,f rsv. sa,s d.gr..
| ~ - S,ra,ii,iiy wLi,h 4, c,,,. .ins Ry,h'.