The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1877-12-27
HOW Our World Looks From Other
Worlds. So

realize how our globe would appear to
one of it's own inhabitants If he could be
transported to one after another of the
heavenly bodies. The journey Of our
imaginary celestial traveller need not ex-
tend to the fixed stars, for from them
the earth is not visible at all. The
nearest fixed star is 226, 400 times more
distant from us than is the sun. Figures
convey no idea Of this vast interval, for
no one can conceive. of d trillion, much.
less Of "a trillions, of miles, A spider
thread ON that star would blot out the
space between sun and earth. Our
luminary would appear as small, brill
liant dot; our earth, even If it were not
lost in the solar efulgence, would be
absolutely and automatically invisible.
And this on the nearest liked star, If we
proceeded further into the star depths,
our sun itself would dwindle smaller
and smaller and disappear long before
the stars were reached which now form
the Limit Of our imperfect observations
If any fixed star is inhabited, the inhab-
itants are not merely Ignorant of our
earth, but OF all ether planets of the
solar system, all might bo swept away
by some vast cataclysm and the rest Of
the universe would be none the wiser.
Restricting ourselves, however, to the
planets of the sum S family, it is probable
that three are more familiar with our
earth's characteristics than we are with
theirs the other three or the people
who 1--we on Them if we make that Ylo-
lent assumption, probably see no
more of us than do the dwellers
on the fixed stars. The excursion we
have suggested therefore being restricted
to the planets, the starting point will be
on Mercury, which moves around the
sun at an average distance OF AZ, 000, 600
miles, it's year being IS days and each
of its seasons three weeks. Since the
earth travels on an exterior orbit to that
of Mercury, just as Mars and Jupiter
move in orbits exterior to our own, the
best epoch for it's observation from Mer-
curry is when that planet, the earth and
the sun are in a right line Then the
earth s side nearest Mercury is illunin-
ated, and our globe appears as a large,
brilliant star moving from west to east
along the zodiac. all
From Venus, the earth presents q far
more splendid appearance. Every 564
days it opportunities most closely to that
planet, and is only 180,000,000 miles
distant Then il appears as large
bluish-white and dazzling star, echpsing
in magnitude every other in the frlna-
ment #S#B
From the moon, the earth seems q
colossal orb Sun and planets all pass
behind it. Tt has phases like the moon
itself; and in beautiful accord with the
needs Of the lunar day equal to fifteen
terrestrial days. the earth is full at mid
night, in quadrature at sunrise, new at
noon, and in qua(Eaturo at sunset. At
full earth, the lunar inhabitant can see
the seas and continents, the poles white
with snow and the cloud banks floating
III the air. A light vapor surrounds the
earth, which, refracting the light Of the
millions Of stars, make it seem as If our
globe we're bathed in a pale halo. Proba
bly, the view of full earth from the moon
when our planet seems fourteen times
as large as the sun is one of the grandest
celestial spectacles that exist in all the
universe.
Continuing our voyage through space,
we next reach Mars, 1853, 600, 900 miles
from the sun. The period when the
earth is best visible to the Martial in
habitant is just opposite to the similar
period in the cases Of Mercury
and Venus. Since the earth re-
wolves around the sun in an orbit within
that Of Mars, it's greatest proximity to
the latter occurs when between Mars
and the sun. But then it turns It's
shaded hemisphere to Mars and is there
fore invisible. 1t is necessary, then, to
find, before and after this position, sitJl-
atoms in which the earth shows to Mars
portion OF its hemisphere illuminated
by the sun. The further it is separated
from Mars. the greater Will be the phase,
but, on the other hand, the smaller will
be the disk There is, however, a mo-
ment Of maximum brilEancy, which oc-
ours near quadratUre. Then the earth
appears to the Martial eye as o bright
star, and through a telescope as q large
crescent. In fact, there is an accurate
reproduction Of the behavior Of Venus
as regards Che earth. AS Venus is our
morning and evening star, SO are we the
morning and evening star to Mars. The
Martial inhabitant sees the earth as q
larger star than Jupiter appears to us,
while the briliancy is such SIS to render
the earth visible in daytime.
To the inhabitants, then, Of Mercury,
Venus, the moon and Mars, the earth
stands chief OF the heavenly bodies. To
those of Jupiter, however, it becomes
suddenly Of almost total insignifcance.
The orbit Of Jupiter is SIC, 000,0 1000 Of
miles from the sun. Hence the earth,
in revolving around the sun, never APP
pears further from it than 10 degrees.
The earth is therefore not visible during
the Jovian night, for there the twilight
continues some time after sunset, and,
when twilight has ended, the earth itself
has set. Moreover, at the only moments
when it might be visible from Jupiter
the earth is in quadrature, and only half
Illuminated, and, besides, it is too small
to be seen by the naked eye. Astrono-
mers on Jupiter could only discover the
existence Of the earth by telescopes,