Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-10-16

waterspouts would scarcely appear ex-
cept as simple points; but terrestrial CIV
clones, the diameter of which is some
| times hundreds of miles, would have the
effect OF circular cloudy spots in the form
OF tunnels, variously lit by the sun and
/ rowing slowly over the earth. Evidently
| the special rotation observed in the sun
would produce similar phenomena, givinr
rise to the appearance of pores and spots
| An analogy is traced between solar and
earthly storms, the latter of which are
not formed in the polar or temperate
regions, but in the torrid zone. The only
Inference lies in the fact that the solar
cyclones remain in the regions where
| they are generated, between parallels 4Oo
north and south, and have hardly any
movement of translation but those of cur
rents parallel to the equator. Under the
action OF these storms, NJ Fave adds,
there is circulation of the exterior
| hydrogen which penetrates into the SUPER
hclal red layers to return Immediately to
the surface
Father Secchi states that, in the interior
OF the spots, peculiar spectrum is met
| with, disturbing the harmony of ordinary
| intensities and presenting enlarged and
dilating lines in the position of those of
the metals sodium, iron, magnesium and
calcium. In brief, he considers that the
| spots produced by eruptions abound in
metallic substances, and especially in
those just mentioned The dark masses
| may accumulate at the orifice of the erup-
| t1on and there unite in a single mass, con
| densed under the influences of currents
from various neighboring oritices. The
size, the duration, and the intensity of the
spots depend on the quantity of eruptive
| matter; and an agglOmerated mass NAV
continue long time after termination of
the eruption, being fed by a slow sue
| cesslve eruption Of the same substances.
| The mass sinks by gravity into the pho
| tosphere, cutting off a portion of the light
| OF the sun, and appears black, althou oh,
according to Zollner, the dark umbra
| emits four thousand times as much light
| as that derived from an equal area of the
| moon. Both Faye and Secchi agree in the
view that the sun is mainly gaseous, as it
is only by such a hypothesis that the
smallness OF its density can be explained.
Professor Young, since the opening of
the present session Of the American Asso-
| citation at Portland, has presented some
new suggestions on this subject, in which
he considers that the phenomena of erup
ton indicate the existence of crust
which restraints the gases and through
which they break their way This
crust may consist of a more or
less continuous sheet Of rain, form
ed of the materials shown, by the
spectroscOpe, to exist in the solar atmos-
phere. As this tremendous rain descends,
the velocity OF the falling drops is retard-
ed by the resistance Of the denser gases
underneath; and these drops coalesce un-
til continuous sheet is formed; the sheets
uniting form a sort of bottomlcss ocean
resting upon the compressed vapors be-
meath and pierced by innumerable ascend
ing jets and bubbles In other words, the
sun, according to this view, is a gigantic
bubble, the walls Of which are constantly
thickening, while its diameter is decreas
ing at a rate determined by its loss OF
heat. Unlike other bubbles, however, its
skin is continually penetrated by blasts
from within.
We may add that the eruptive theory is
that now generally accepted by the ior-
lty OF eminent astronomers. AS Professor
Young says, however, I'VE do not know
what sun spots are: we do know what
they are mott so that, as is the case with
all theoretical speculation, even this wide
ly-recelved view may be sooner or later
abandoned, when, in the progress of
science, other revelations are made-.Sci-
6ntifc 4nlerican.