The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1874-07-17
COMETARY.
A Little Popular Science About Coggis's
and Other Comets.


putation till very recently. For some
weeks in June it was approaching the
earth in so direct line that the caIcu-
lations were very difficult. The Berlin
ephemeris of its position, brilliancy and
future pathway, so freely published
last month, because SO confidently trus-
ted In this country, proved to be decid-
edly fallacious in some points. In the
last few days the meteor has altered its
course and is now more easily studied;
but very precise predictions are as yet
premature. It now appears that its
greatest brilliancy will occur from July
81 to the Sd of August, and the degree
of luminosity will be between that of
Jupiter and that of Venus. The nu-
cleus will be then seen to the best adj
vantage about twilight, the comet being
so near the SIN that it will not be OBJ
served two or three hours after the lat
ter sinks behind the western horizon.
The brightness of the meteor stream
will then be three times as great as it is
now.
On Tuesday, the 9th of June, from
micrometrical comparisons with star
in the Bonn catalogues, the distin-
guishad astronomer, J. r. Hind, of Mr..
Bishops observatory, Twickenham, Eng
land, found that Coggia's comet was
then rather brighter than Argelander's
stars of the sixth magnitude, and the
tail was trRceable about two degrees
from the nucleus, which still presented
a very stellar appearance. Mr.. Hind
also determined that its perihelion pas
sage would take place on the Sth of
July, when it's distance from the sun
would be sixty-seven minutes OF the
earth's mean distance. g., about six
ty-one million miles. This seems to be
very near the central orb of fire but
there are instances of much nearer APP
proach, as in the comet of 1860, which
swept within six hundred thousand
miles of the sun. It did not, however,
merge into the sun, as comets havenever
been known to do, contrary to a vague
theory that has been largely enter
tanned, as if the nebulous matter was
fuel for its mighty furnaces. So far
from this rash venturer upon the suns
domains effecting a lodgment on his in
candescent and tumultuous surface, it
was subjected to an enormous repulsion,
and from the point of perihelion was
shot out into space with an inconcGiva-
bic force, far greater than that with
which the solar heat acted upon and
controlled the head of the comet itself.
The amount of this force may be faint
~ indicated when we reflect that the
coInetary matter was then glowing with
heat twenty-five thousand six hun
dred times as intense as that which
RACES at MONDAY on our equator-a
heat in which any terrestrial substance
known to US would instantly be CONVEX.
ted into vapor.
The condition of comet, after it has
passed the perihelion, must be very diff,
| ferent from what it was before but
| that difference is yet to be ascertained,
| except in the mere fact that from disun.
| ion by action of heat the meteor has
undergone great attenuation and analy.
sis. The comet of 1880, to which we
have alluded, and that of 1S4S, after
their immersion in the suns rays emerg
| ed from them in augmented splendol
and with vastly enlarged tails, as i
| they had caught up new supplies Of
light and fire from the great Iuminary
| It would not be, therefore, a great sur
| prise of Csggia's comet should do the
| same, though instances are recorded il
which immersion in the solar rays has
| stripped the flying meteor of much Of
! its glory. The idea has been expressed
that the present comet will intersect the
| earth's orbit and come in collision with
US. The opinion prevailed with Sil
John HeTschel and others that if evel
| the earth swallowed up comet it would
! be on the Both of November, wher
| Biela's comet approached very near
! But there is great doubt whether, IL
the event of actual collision, any harm
would ensue or even any one be cogni
zant of it. The comet is a material
| substance, since it has been proved that
it shines by reflected light; but Its
Ftenuousness is almost inconceivable
The cometic particles form a cosmical
fog or vapor so light that, through Do
MATHS comet, where the tail was ninety
| thousand miles thick, the stars clearly
| shone. Arcturus was in no degree
! collapsed, as it beamed directly through
this enormous band of mist. We may
| therefore, safely dismiss the long stand
! ing superstition Of
| A painless comet and curse
The menance of the universe.
Various theories have been offered az
/ to the purpose for which comets were
created and sent flying about through
! illimitable space. BY some it is thought
| they may be the scavengeTs of the uni
verse, sweeping up the impurities that
accumulate from the countless worlds
of an infinite creation. They have beer
regularly appearing in our solar system
| as long as astronomy can recollect, and
m8yhap if they did not put in an APP.
| pearanee at intervals some dreadful ex.
! plosion of electricity might occur that
might blow orr globe to pieces. Those
of a religious turn will have it that they
come to remind man of his contempt
BILE helplessneEs, of the little account
! he could possibly be in the struggle
with the tail of a comet, and to drive
the ruinous and sinful passions of pride.
avarice and ambition from his heart.
Again, there are those who believe that
comets NAV act as a balance wheel in
the vast machinery of the universe. No
serious thought can be given the notion
that comets are Tebels who have de-
clined to submit TO established authori-
ty and broken loose from their allegi-
ance. Nor will it do to contend that
they are sent around the universe TO
inspect the condition of the regular old
stagers, such IS We happen to have in
our solar system. Certain it is, they
are the mystery of the skies, and when
We think we know most we know per
haps least about them.
Sir Isaac Newton gave some attention
to the subject, and the conclusion he
reached was that the course Of a comet
was as regular as the conrse OF our own
planet. He contended that the orbit of
the comet was an eclipse. but since his
day the idea appears to be taking pos
session of the minds of astronomers
that the comet describes an eccentric
parabola so int icate as to battle caIcu-
lation. Many comets have come and
since, though, according to astronomi-