Saturday visitor. (Newark, Del.) 1876-1876, 1876-02-12
The Distance ora star from the Earth.

For many ages this question puzzled
astronomers: How far off are the stars
1t was known that their distance was
great, very great. 1t was known that
they were immeasurably farther of
than the sun, the moon, or any of the
planets; but it is only in the present
century that the question has been even
partially answered. of
OF the countless thousands of stars
which stud the universe, the distance
of perhaps about twenty has been de-
termined. Others which have been
tried have defied the powers of the most
skillful astronomers. It is impossible to
explain here the manner in which it is
conducted; we must endeavor, rather,
to realize the result which has rewarded
these successful labors- There Is a
beautiful star in the southern heni-
sphere, the brightest in the constella-
tion Centaur, one of the most brilliant
stars In the heavens. This was dill
gently observed by the skillful astrOno-
mer who managed the observatory at
the Cape of Good Hope in the years 1882
and 1883. He found, as the result OF
his labors, that the distance of this star
Alpha Centauri, as it is called-is
twenty billions of miles. ~
1t requires little consideration to
estimate what the words twenty billions
of miles really mean. A billion contains
one million millions, and we shall en-
deavor to convey an idea of this amount
by few simple illustrations. Suppos-
ing that our great forefather, Adam,
had commenced to count as quickly as
he could, and that when his life was
ended, his son commenced to count,
taking up from the number at which
Adam left off, and spent his whole life
day and night, counting as fast as he
could, and supposing that at his death
he enjoined on his heirs an eternity of
counting, and that they had continued
doing so up to the present moment,
their united efforts would not yet have
reached the amount of quarter of a
billion; and yet the distance of the star
is twenty billions OF, miles.
Another illustration may be given to
convey an idea of this vast distance. If
we were to take sum equal to five
times our national debt, and were to
expend this in postage stamps, we should
get one billion of them; and If we were
to draw line around London, including
every house in the suburbs, and then
take an area equal I'm size to this, cleared
and arranged for the purpose; if we
then commenced to stick them side by
side over the entire area of London, we
should not be able to get them all in.
After we had covered every inch of
surface completely, there would, be
countless thousands still remaining.
Such, then, is the distance of the
nearest fixed star. We cannot grasp it
in our imagination, nor are we more
successful if we try to make a map.
Suppose we proceed by first laying
down. the sun, and then placing the
earth one inch distant, from it. If we
inquire Aat what distance the nearest
star should be placed using1 the SANG
scale} we md 1t TO 6e eleven miles!
Such map is, therefore, simply an
impossibility. as
Knowing, however, the distance of
the nearest star, what can we say of the
distance of the farthest of those that are
yisibles Here precise knowledge fails.
We can, indeed, grope after the truth,
and make guesses of greater or less
probability. We believe that it is, at
all events, some hundreds of times as
great as the astounding magnitude of
which we have endeavored to convey an
impression; but the human mind be-
comes bewildered in attempting to
realize the immensity.