Osage Valley banner. (Tuscumbia, Miller County, Mo.) 1879-1881, 1879-11-20
Yur HoVTHBra xrfEoRs.

Although tho earth is almost constantly
moSlag Through meteorio systems, 40 thA.
sbooting stars, As they are Aptly called. may
bs seen any clear dark night, ye, the l2th
OF August and 18th OF November mark the
times when the most brilliant nighis Of
meteors are watched for. Astronomers tall
Ne that the earth encounters more than
one hundred meteor systems wear, 30 that
few are nearly alWAys visihie when she
nights are favorable; but Il Is the November
straam that furnishes these impreaslYe oeles-
tial spectAcles OF mLii!tndihoug noiseieSs
movements In which oil the stars 10 the
heavens appear 10 start from their ancient
places and tall towards the earth. The moss
brilliant and fall Of meteor OF which We
have ANY record Was that witnessed EoYem-
bar, 1883; and " the fall which come predict
for tonight Shall be ~ ell omparable 10
that, u will be worth seeing, even al tie
loss OF the after midnight slnmber.
Neteors are now generally admitted 90 be
solid bodies which reyolvs In orbits Of TIM
mensc extent. There ls no scarcity OF them.
every twenty.iour hours four hundred mill
lions Of them fall TO tho earth, aud q still
greater number fall TO tho sun. They vary IN.
siEs from pea TO large mSss, and 10 deH-
sity from mere cas- 10 th0 heavy substance
called metooric iron or stone. The grepter
NlulpNF NJ AlHin hFt never tNtns ~ Is etlls
mated that the earth is constantly growing
la bulk and weight At ihe rate OF 90 600 tons
= year from the meieoric Increment. Very
few melenrs mach the solid earth In thei.
original form. They ara hrst seen at
heichth OF seventy miles above the eafth and
vAuith 81 point twenty mites above. Il
takes hut m instant for them 10 traverse this
tiliy miles throagh our atmosphere, but In
that biief moment they are completely trAns.
TIM fYtafsnr tN.s es.L.
sage the atmosphere develops All inienNs heat,
which converts the solid @Folte into flaming
vapor. and the consumed body ruaches the
ground In tho shape OF impeTecptib'a dust.
IL Is only the uuconsumed fragments thai
now and ihtn come 10 the KiouDd In form OF
the metsorie stones that are somellmss,touad.
The stones when Snal}Zed, are found TO
include an unusually large quantity oi hpdro-
gen, SO that they tCtuAliy bring 10 ns poT-
tions OF the Elaa substance OF which the
flxed stars are eomposed' In the theory
that when me oprs ~ plode and are eomsum.
OF In the air they descendto tbs eruand IN
the form OF inyslble showers OF dust, iI
hGs been found thal dust carefully @lleeted
on the top OF nnfn qacnlod high mountains,
wbea anal, zed, reveals the same elements
Stckst, cobalt, iron and nh0sphora, a,--thAt
oumpose e,e0rio iron. Tao one hundred
and ninety-two small bodies called asteroids
which reyolvV, Ia M orbit between Mare and
Jupiter are examples OF meIeota Of oxtrhor-
iibsry aye, aud IL Il belieyed that the comets
are sill more DISTINGUISHED members Of the
same celestial family. tflhe oomhdslion OF
singla large meteor, Ike that which pAssed
over ihe states Of kapsas, Missouri Illinois,
Indiana ard nsrt u Ohio on the evening OF
December ~, 1876, and WAS teen by 90 many
persons the anme bout--if the burning Of
ono such meteor Is attended by 80 Intense a
heat "a 10 leave the nhcoDspmed remnent,
after it reaches the eartb, lssing hot, IL wall
be suggested thai the consumption of the
tour hundred millions per day which the
eatthA AtmAsphefs encounters must develop
an kmouet of heat that would peFoepsibly
siIeet the temperature Of our planet. Prof.
PiArco hss directed his investigations 70 this
point, and tho result ia The announcement
,hat ''iha heat which the earth receives iron
the sun by radiation, aud that tho sun re-
eeivos aye.sixths q. It's heat from the mettors
that tall upon il.i---St. Louis Republiean,