The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1879-10-08
METE0Rs.
An Address by Prof. BENJAMIN Pierce Before
the American Scientific Association. 'gys

IS . 3. 10 g.
Saratoga Correspondence New York Times ~
The Master of Mathematical Science in
Prof. Benjamin Pierce, OF Cam
bridge, spoke rapidly and without notes,
on ''The Meteric Constitution Of the
Siaereal 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
difficulties arise; but the more
we make science infinite rather than finite,
the more we make it we'll worthy 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 aisap
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 few Sec
onds. Yet we know that these have exis-
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 cencantenation of meteors, wheth-
er it takes the form of suns. planets, neb-
ulae, 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. Peirce does not believe in the &C.
cepted theory that a gas must give a
continuous spectrum. He believes that
all stellar light is produced by super
heated gas, the heat being too great for
the possibility that anything but gas can
be present. He referred with favor to the
theory advanced by Mr. Lane, Of WASH
ington, that a gaseous body, giving out
heat, must be every moment growing
hotter. In the case of the sun, fit were
contracted 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 me as
ure of their brilliancy. The elder Strive
brought an objection to this: That the
small stars do not increase in number as
rapidly as they should in 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
supposing that there are any stars more
distant from us than the smallest stars of
the milky way. The concentration in
the plane of the milkyway has been such
that all space outside Of it is compare
lively clear of stars. But the nebula are
most numerous at right-angles, or perpen-
dieular to this plane. They would not
be visible, perhaps, if they were in the
milky-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 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 we'll as the sun itself, were pro-
duced by the collision and adhesion of
meteors. It does not follow that all the
meteors were absorbed; there are prob
ably myr;ads yet outside the solar sys-
tenn. ."|
Sir William Thomson is perhaps mis-
s<sAASAA - SAS S0SAu~oCO VA01 AOAkC UOuACS
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. 1--we suppose that the mass will al
ways remain a gas no absolute cooling of it
will take place even in infinite time. Prof
Pierce agrees that the heat of the sun may
be, and probably is, in part derived fiom
meteors. To give out the whole heat of
the sun, a mass of meteors as large as the
earth, 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 10 years. heat. Prof. Newcomb
has found that none of the observations
Of old eclipses are sufficiently we'll veri.
fed to enable us to ascertain whether the
earth's orbit is shortening. There is no
evidence on the part of astronomy to prove
that the sun is not really increasing in
size by 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