The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1872-08-30

III SeemeG 10 10 me as though L c0uJd see tn,
surface Of our great source oflight rene,cins
ITSELF" While this was going on Tacchin
noticed Gas had frequently happened be
fore in his experience) that the bright
streaks on the sun which are called facu
le were particularly brilliant close to those
parts of the edge of the disc where the
flames of the chromatosphere were mos,
splendid and characteristic. The granu
lations also, which the astronomer can rec
ogniZe all over the sun when large tele
scope is employed, were unusually distinct
Tacchini concludes (and the inference seems
JUST that there had not been
NUMBER OF LOCAL ERUPTIoNs
of magnesium vapor, but compile expul-
sions. Only we would venture to substitute
for the word expulsion the expression
outflow " or "uprising" since it may
we'll be that these vapors rise by quiet
process resembling evaporation, and not
by any action so violent that it could prop
crly be regarded as expulsive. In what
ever way, however, the glowing vapor OF
magnesium thus streamed into the envelope
of the sun, it would seem that the aspect
of our luminary was modified by the pro-
cess-not indeed in very striking manner,
or our observers in England would have
noticed the change, yet appreciably.
More than one person." says Tacchini,
I" has told me that the light of the sun has
not at present its ordinary aspect; and at
the observatory we have judged that we
might make the same remark. The change
must be attributed to magnesium" 1t is
impossible to consider attentively.
THE REMARKABLE OCCURRENCE
recorded by Tacchini without being struck
by the evidence which it affords of solar
mutability. We know that during thous-
ands of years our sun has poured forth his
light and heat upon the worlds which Cir
Gle around him, and that there has been no
marked intermittence of the supply. We
hear indeed of occasions when the sun has
been darkened for while; and we have
abundant reasons for believing that he has
at times been so spot-covered that there
has been notable diminution of the sup
ply of light and heat for several days to-
gether. Yet we have had no reasons for
anticipating that our sun might per-
manently lose so much of his heat and lus-
tire that the inhabitants of the earth would
suffer. Tacchini's observation reminds us,
however, that processes are at work upon
the sun which admit of being checked or
increased, interrupted altogether or exag-
gerated SO violently, as it were, that the
lchole aspect Of the sun, his condition as
THE FIRE AND LAMP
Of the planetary system, may be seriously eJ-
fected. If we only remember that our sun
is one of the stars, not in any way distin-
guished, unless perhaps by relative insig-
nifcance, from the great bulk of the stars
which illuminate our skies at night or are
revealed by the telescope, we shall learn to
recognize the possibility that he may un-
dergo marked changes. There are stars
which, after shining with apparent steadi-
ness for thousands of years, possibly for
millions Of years before astronomy was
thought of have become suddenly much
reduced in brightness, or after few flick
erings Gas it were) have gone out altogeth-
er. There are Others which have shone
with equal steadiness and have then sud-
denly blazed out for q while with lustre
exceeding hundred-fold that which
they formerly possessed. 1t would be
equally unpleasant for ourselves whether
the sun suddenly lost the best part of his
light and presently went out altogether, or
whether he suddenly grew
FIFTY-FoLD BRIGHTER AND HOTTER
than he now is. Yet in the present posi-
ton of sidereal astronomy, it is quite i'm
possible to assert confidently that one
event or the other might not take place at
any time. Fortunately we may view this
matter Gust as astronomers have learned
to view the prospect of miscbievous COLI
sions with comets) as question of proba-
bilities. Among so many thousands OF
stars there have been so many sudden out
bursts of light and fire, so many sudden
defalcations of splendor. Our sun is one
of those thousands, and so far as we know
takes his chance with the rest. Precisely
then, as we derive confidence from the law
of probabilities, that since so many only
out of SO many millions perish by light
ming or any other specified form of injury
any individual person is unlikely to perisl
in that particular way so we may reason
about our sun-that since only small pro
portion of his fellow suns undergo.
DISASTROUS CHANGES,
he is unlikely to be one of the unfortu
mates. 1t may be that one of these days
when we obtain clearer ideas of the struc
ture of the sidereal universe than we al
present possess, we may obtain more salts
factory reasons for confidence The analy
sis of stars with the spectroscope, the re
Gently proposed processes of star gauging
the application of new methods of deter
mining star motions, these and other re
searches may show what are the condition.
which render a suns tenure of Office pre-
carious. Let it be hoped that when this
has been accomplished, a large majority o
of the conditions in questions will be fount
in the case of our own sun, to be favorable
to the permanence of his position as fire
light and life of the planetary system.