The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1875-08-03
Gae 9aliIllg Argnis9t,,
Fovls PLANETS III staHr.
Jnpiter, Mars. Saturn, and Venus to be
HHoaa. Seen all at Once,

Inpiter, Mars. Saturn, and Venus to be
HHoas. Seen all at Once,
z Not often do the starry heavens show US
four strongly shining, bright planets in one
night, but this has been for some time past
the position of Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, and
Venus. First comes into view that giant
planet-that vast orb, whose diameter is
eleven times and his volume about 300 |
times that Of our globe-Jupiter, the pla-
net Of the mighty cloud envelopes, whose
continued overshadowiDg of the planet
himself has led astronomers to doubt if
telescope vision has ever yet really pene-
| trated those enormous layers of vapor to
the surface Of the planet itself, Jupiter
| is seen soon after dark almost directly in
the zenith, his position at 8 O'Clock being
a little west and south of it: and his slow
land majestic sweep around the sun, which
requires twelve of our years, scarcely bet
ter COMFORTS with his vast dimensions than
fdOes his apparent Journey every night
Through the skies of earth. He sets not
far from midnight. Proctor believes Jupi-
ter to be still mass of seething internal
volcanic fire, giving but heat like sun.
and having but very slight crust cooled
as yet, and that subject to continual fiery
loutbursts and overhows; while the vast
icloud belts, thousand miles deep, are
either partly of volcanic origin or are dis
tcharging UPON the planet itself such foods
of sulphur-charged rain as we cannot i'm
agipe. Mars next comes in sight. He
rises red away in the southern part of the
eastern horizon soon after dusk, and by
-. IL =. q 0hiaab mall
lin the southern heavens, and easily distin-
time to scan Mars through a good tele-
scope, for it will be two years before be is
again in so favorable position as he has
been in for the last month. and will be Tor
little time longer. That bright star of
the raddy hue that comes up almost in the
southeast soon after dark, is the neighbor
world which, of all the planetary system,
has presented the most interesting field for
Z astronomical study, and best rewarded
such studies. 1t is pretty definitely de-
cided that this ruddy Lue is due to some
quality or characteristic of his soil,
5 Mars, smaller planet than Earth, rep
resents q number of features that seem to
warrant the conclusion that his more gen
eral laws and features are something akin
to those of our own world. He has an at
mosphere; he has his season OF winter
and summer-the region of snow and ict
around the southern pole annually and Wis
= IDLY decreasing in what may be summer
] and winter. There are on that distant
world oceans and continents; this much
least is certain. Not such oceans as tn
y Atlmtic and Pacific, but strange, bottled
e shaped seas, of no great extent compared
J with earth's greatest. Whether they ar
lever frozen or not, nobody on earth We
knows, but it is Mr.. Proetor's belief tina
(. Mars. an older planet than ours, has gon
: far past his period of greatest life, and
Il fast approaching, if he be not already er
tering, the cold and lifeless condition {
l such bodies as our moon, whose interns
4 heat is exhausted. Later, rising wan an
j far, pale but luminous ghost of plane
IN in the eastern sky, comes up great Satur
ad the ringed world. This, on some al
fl counts. is the most interesting study of a
e Ss the planets; chiefly because of the mobi
ny lity aud uncertainty of its occasionally shift
ng ing shape, and because of its giant illum
Or mated rings and its eight attendant moon
Of Its enormous distance also invests it wit
. ne a certain interest which would be wantir
at in a nearer object. 1t is ascertained ths
nth its density does not exceed that of wate
'ea and the probabilities seem to favor Il
conclusion that Saturn is still a globe
molten matter-a world of liquid fire. /
lei aspect seen on clear night through
good glass, as the great lemon color'
planet, girdled with its vast elliptic ring
. goes sailing silently across the field
vision, is beautiful and interesting beyoI
that of any other. Much later-in ia
sEs in the early dawn of the coming morni
: Venus comes resplendently into vie
- Most brilliant of all the planets to US,
vs. cause she is nearer to US and to the 81
$ Of this remarkable sister world, nearest a
. apparently most like our own world.
SO. never more brilliant, never more beautif
than when, as the morning star, she she
sses the lustre Of her golden (but borrowe
- beams upon the earth in the stiffness
:. the clear morning Venus will probal
u always be difficult object Of study,
tM cause of her proximity to the sun. but
is found that there are reasons for bell
ZSy ing some of her mountains to be equal
~ height to the highest of our own world.
l@mnn.............u..