Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1879-12-05

As we look upon the sky on calm, clear
night even the least imprcssiblc mind is over
whelmed with the tremendous calm of its
infinite depths. As we watch we see that
the stars are carried on with a leisurely
motion, making their circle in twenty
five thousand years. These move
mcnts, however, are not real
but only apparent, being attributable
10 motions taking place in the earth itself.
But there is wonderful activity i'll the
heavens. If we could hear the sound Of the
stars as they circle on their way We would
find that no earthly noise would equal it.
The loudest noises ever produced by the
whole earth would he exceeded by those of
one square yard of those heavenly bodies.
First as to the sun. The sun is $4,000, 900
miles from the earth and so great that if
the diameter of the world were one inch that
of the sun would he three wards. Its volume
is $50, 600 times that of the earth. Its
surface is II. 200 times that Of tie earth. Its
mass exceeds the earth 1924 900 times. The
suns might depends upon its mass. Were
the earth's mass increased in the same
degree and its size not altered, One-half ounce
of matter would press down upon it with the
weight of four or five tons. As to the light
given out by the sun, it has an extent OF
200, 000, 900 square miles on every part of
which the light is far brighter than any
light on carth-gaslight being only one
one hundred and fiftieth part as bright and
the electric light only one-third. This is the
brightness Of only the average surface.
| There are spots where the light is forty or
fifty times as bright as the most brilliant
electric light As 10 the suns heat in one
second it throws out as much heat as would
be produced by burning II, 700 000, 600 900
tons Of coal
At this point the lights were turned down
and the stercopticon brought into play.
Many of the views we're very beautiful and
all of them full of interest. Photographic
views of the sun were first shown and later
of its protuberances. Some Of these fiery
streams, the lecturer said, shot up to the
height of 40, 900 or 80, 900 miles and in one
case they reached 200, 900 miles There must
have been strong resistance to them from the
natural gravitation Of the sun when they
originally crossed its surface, or they would
have travelled at the rate of 400 or 500 miles
| in every second of time This is especially
| Interesting, because in such 4 case the sun
would not have power to control such vclOc-
| ty ; it would not be able to draw them back.
He has control only over a velocity OF $50
miles a second, and matter which travelled
at a greater rate than that, although he could
!
and eventually, Of course, it would pass INTO
the domain of some other star. We have
reason to believe that many mcteoric mat
tiers that have reached us have either been
| expelled from the sun or other suns that
people space. do not think these filaments
that are expelled are Of hydrogen, but be-
/ lieve il is some liquid or solid or highly COM
/ pressed matter, elected by force of an erup-
/ ton.
The next views were Of the moon and its
! landscapes. The lecturer said Sir William
| Herschel thought an eruption had taken
| place in very bright crater, which shows
bright from the earth shine" when Il part
of the moon is in darkness, but the changes
in it are doubtless causing by falling down
of the face of the edge of il, due 10 the intense
heat, hotter than boiling water, experienced
on the moons surface during a part of the
lunar month, and the cold, more intense
than the Arctic Winter, during the remain
| der. All changes on the face of tho moon
are due to disintegraton from contraction
and expansion, and there is no volcanic ac-
| ton.
Spectrum analysis and its revelations
were dwelt upon at considerable length
Spcctra were thrown upon the screen; and
| the explanatory text consisted of resume
of what the spectroscopc has done in the
study of the stellar system in the hands Of
| Prof Henry Draper Prof. Young of Prince
/ ton College, and other eminent masters of
I physical astronomy. Speaking Of the spec
/ troscopy of the stars, Prof Proctor advertcd
/ to the curious fact that of the double stars
/ the hight of the larger appears to seek the
red end Of the spectrum, and that of the
smaller the violet. The explanation of this
/ he found in the interpnsitiOn Of absorbent
bolies and exhibited the broad absorption
! bands in the star Beta Cygni in proof of
his theory. \ further proof OF this was found
in the broad hydrogen bands of the blazing
star of 1866, which has since gradually sub
sided to its former magnitude, the hydrogen
lines growing fainter and fainter during the
/ whole period in which the star has been fad
ing During its highest luminosity ii pre-
| scented four broad and luminous hydrogen
| lines, which have since darkened until they
are now OFFICIALLY similar to those of stars of
the same magnitude.
Several views of the planet Saturn were
shown. Sir John Ilcrsehrl had con iectured
that this might be favorable to the develop
ment Of orders OF life very different from
those pcupling the terrestrial surface, but
this must De regarded ms mere ingenious
speculation, not rs founded upon any well
considered data. As was disclosed by more
recent observations pi Inc surface oil saturn.
there were ample grounds for believing that
the planet was still in II state of preparation.
The belt Of shadow in its different positions
during the Saiurnian year was equivalent,
the lecturer said, to the eclipse of II broad
zone of the planetary surface for four or five
years al time, and near the poles his own
calculation showed that the duration OF the
shadow was at least siN years.
Thu. Sttrppptir9u then showed "A number Dt
views Of the Milky Way. which the lecturer
explained at length He drew attention Ia
the fact that the Milky Way, which is an ag
gregalion OF relatively small stars forming II
sort of stream, aud extending itself among
the more scattered and larger stars, was
strewn with the same wealth Of stars, not
only of the ninth and tenth magnitudcs
which would not he surprising but of star
OF the nineteenth and twentieth magnitudes
He also pointed out on the maps vast soil
tudes in space in which there CLEANED not !