River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-10-09
METEORS.
An Address by Prof BENJAMIN Pierce Before
the American Scientific Association.

An Address by Prof. Benjamin Pierce Before
the American Scientific Association.
Saratoga Correspondence New York Times.
The Master of Mathematical Science in
America, Prof. Benjamin Pierce, of Cam
bridge, spoke rapidly and without notes,
on 1.-THE Meteric Constitution of the
Sidereal Universe, and the Cooling of
the SUM-" The subject is closely con-
nected with the nebular hypothesis. But
it is best, Prof Pierce thinks, first to see
what is the present state of things before
we go back to the beginning. Let us see
what Is going on now. A paper on the
physical constitution of the sun by Sir
William Thompson was referred to by
Prof. Pierce with high approval. The
further any mathematical investigation is
made in this class of researches, the more
frequently difficulties arise; but the more
we make science infinite rather than finite,
the more we make it well wWthy to be
studied by an infinite being. In fine
clear evening we see the stars, and,
therefore, we believe IN them. But when
1t is clouded you yet believe in them as
much as before. Similarly, to the geo
meter, the planets which at times disap
pear, but yet can be predicted to return
are known to be in their appointed pla-
ces There are heavenly bodies-mete-
ors--which we seldom see three minutes
at time, and usually for only a few sec
onds. Yet we know that these have exits
tence elsewhere before we see them. If
these invisible meteOrs were distracted
from the universe the fires OF the sun and
stars would ultimately go out, and every
thing be left in darkness. All matter is
but the concantenation of meteors, wheth-
er it takes the form of suns, planets, neb-
ulR comets, or meteor streams. Small
meteoric bodies are naturally cold, ana
hence invisible, this is probably the nat
ural condition of matter, or at all events
of meteors. The ingredients of meteors
may be of the most various kinds; the
carbon contained in those which reach
the earth may be burned out.
Prof PIERCE does not believe in the ac-
copied theory that gas must give a
continuous spectrum. He believes that
all stellar light is produced by super
heated gas, the heat being too great for
lIiC DOoSIDIALS lhdt dh tlllAlS, OuO dS Sehh
be present He referred with favor to the
theory advanced by Mr.. Lane, Of Wash
ington, that gaseous body, giving out
heat, must be every moment growing
hotter. In the case of the sun, if it were
contract ted to half its size, the pressure
would be sixteen times on each cubic
foot. and hence the sun would be apt to
grow hotter by comparison as it grows
older 1t is likely to become hotter than
colder but probably there will not be
much change. Astronomers have adopt
ed the brightness of the stars as a me as
ure of their brillancy. The elder Strive
brought an objection to this: That the
small stars do not increase in number as
rapidly as they should i'll proportion to
| the large ones. Perhaps the presence of
dark meteors in celestial space cuts off
| the light of very distant stars. We must
believe that clusters like those of Hercules
consist of stars that are comparatively
near each other. We have no reason for
supposlng that there are any stars more
distant from us than the smallest stars of
the milky way. The concentration in
the plane of the milky-way has been such
| that all space outside of it is compare
lively clear of stars. But the nebule are
most numerous at right-angles, or perpen-
dicular to this plane. They would not
| be visible, perhaps, if they were in the
milkv-way because so distant, as COM
pared with other regions OF the sky.
To the ordinary form of the nebular
hypothesis Prof. Pierce strongly objects,
but he does not wholly oppose it, his
views now differing from those he ex-
pressed several years ago The ordinary
theory is that a series of rings preceded
the formation of the planets, and that
these rings broke to pieces and then re-
united He showed that planets formed
from such rings would have retrograde
motion, instead of the forward motion
they actually have. He believes that the
forward motion is proof that the plan
cts, as well as the sun itself, were pro-
duced by the collision and adhesion of
meteors. 1t does not follow that all the
meteors were absorbed; there are prob
| ably myriads yet outside the solar sys-
| tenn.
! Sir William Thomson is perhaps mis-
taken in the estimate that large bodies
cool at the same rate as small ones. The
phenomena in the case Of liquids and
gases arc different from those OF solid bod
les. five suppose that the mass will al
ways remain gas no absolute cooling of ii
/ will take place even in infinite time. Prof
Pierce agrees that the heat of the sun may
be, and probably is, in part derived ON
meteors. To give out tie whole heat OF
the sun, mass of meteors as large as the
learth, if possessing planetary velocity,
would have to fall into the sun 100 times
a year. But if the mass had comets
velocity, the impact of such mass would
serve for o years heat. Prof. Newcomb
has found that none of the observations
of old eclipses are sufficiently well veri-
fed to enable US to ascertain whether the
earths orbit is shortening. There Is no
evidence On the part of astronomy 10 prove
that the sun IS not really increasing in
i size oy the addition Of meteors from out
side the earth's orbit This element
an increasing sun has not yet been cal
culated.
Prof. Pierce says we do have pelting
, of the earth with meteors, such as we
|. should have If they feed the sun. The
comets, that must enter the solar system
to serve this purpose, should be uniform
In numbers in a series of equal zones OF
space around the sun. This proves to be
II the case when mathematical investiga-
ton is made on the point The figures
, of proof were given on the blackboard
Prot. Pierce finds that the pelting OF
meteors, which Jupiter would get on
account of its great size and attraction,
would be four times as great as the heat
that planet can get from the sun, and
/ sufficient almost TO make ii sun; almost
huf not quite. Hence. Jupiter Is proba-