The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-03-02
AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS.

by sensational astronomical revelations, tht
general drift of which is to cast doubts OF
the safety and permanence of our planet
The occurrence of that secular phenomenon
the transit of Venus, was too good an oppor
tunity to be lost by the sensation mongers
and we accordingly find that predictions
based on the supposed results Of the recent
scientific observations of the transit are
cropping out all over the country.
The wiseacres who periodically astonish
unsophisticated minds on such reconcile sub.
jects, have lately announced that it has
already been ascertained by the men of sci
ence engaged upon the subject that it is now
definitely ascertaiHed by the recent observa-
tons of the transit, and the calculations based
thereupon, show that our planets distance
from the San is steadily decreasing, and that,
as a necessary consequence, the Earth will at
some future day-not yet officially designated,
| however-tall into that warm, central orb. Let
US look little more closely into the subject
were it only to show to the unscentifc how
utterly baseless are all such psuedo astronom-
ical Vaccinations.
Transit observations are of importance as
means of accurately calculating the distance
| of the Earth from the Sun. The observation
1874, was made with imperfect instruments,
nor were the methods for avoiding errors in
calculation sufficiently developed to secure
| anything like mathematical accuracy and GER
tainty. The best proof Of this manifest mad
equacy is to be found in the fact that the est
mates Of the Suns distance, based upon the
observations, varied from 10000, 900 to no.
900, 600 miles.
Fifty years later the celebrated astronomer
Encke undertook to revise these calculations,
and the result of his labors was series of es-
Inmates of the Suns paralar (or apparent po-
sition when viewed from two different points
of the Earth orbit varying from S. 15seconds
to- .25 the average being s. IS. Now the first
number represents a distance of little over
100, 900, 900 miles, the second one of $780,
600 miles, and the third, or average estimate,
corresponds to a distance of %, 300, 900 miles.
which last result was adopted as the most
probable estimate, and SO figures in all the as
Economical textbooks
Some years ago, however observations on
the planet Mars, and other results obtained
through improved methods of measuring the
velocity Of light, led many scientific men to
the conclusion that the Suns distance had |
been ver-estimated and that more accurate |
observations would probably show it to be |
within 81, 000,00 miles. The passage of |
Venus over the Suns disc in December last |
offered the opportunity to make the required |
observations with all the improved instru-
nIents and appliances Of modern science, but
the reports of the various commissions will |
have to be compared and laborious calcula-
conclusion can be reached
In the meanwhile, however, people who are
not familiar with the subject may as well be
told that the planets move in obedience to
definite and well ascertained mathematical
laws one of which, called Keplers third rule,
s that "the squares Of the times of the revo-
ution of the planets around the Sun are pro
ooltioned to the cubes of the mean distances"
whence follows the obvious consequence that.
the time of that revolution remains I'M
hanged, then the distance must also remain
he same.
Had the Earth been moving toward the |
Jun, as the pseudo scientific seers would have !
s to believe, the years would have gradually :
ecreased in corresponding ratio. No per- l
eptlble difference in the period of our globes |
nnual revolution around the Sun having
cen shown to exist within historical times, 6
necessarily follows that its pretended APP a
to that luminary is egregiously 6
lse, and that the statement is a tigment !,
orthy Of the astronomical Phil Sheridan q
no is responsible for the foolish invention. a
The PicayDoe of Monday morning repre- j.
nts Marshal Packard as an enemy to Louisi-
ia, an unscrupulous politician and bad q,
an generally: But it follows by no neces- o