Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-06-30

Are There TWO Comef6q-An Inter-
eseing Description

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: The subject Of the comets continues to be
the Absorbing topic OF conversation and
bids fair to eclipse IN interest the tstalk
about the westher::sa This interest is in
creased bF the .anpounoepaent Of the dis
covery of another comet. One has been seen
at O'Clock, which disappeared shortly
after 10, and the other at 8 O'Clock in the
morning. The tail Of one was towards the
zenith, and the other towards the horizon.
These changes Of position, however, may be
attributed 70 the movement Of the earth,
and it mzFtherefore be assumed that the
comets seem at different times are one and
the same
"Iu fact" says Prof. Draper, ." all that
we care about this comet is to make per-
feet photograph Of it, and to make good
observations of its spectrum, and thus dis
cover, IL it is possible, of what elementary
bodies 1t is composed. The prevailing idea
among scientists at present is that the main
constituent Of comet is carbon, associated
perhaps with hydrogen, so as to form body
analogous to some of the hydrocarbons
which we find on this earth, like naphtha,
or perhaps coal gas. But no really large
comet has heretofore appeared since the
perfection 10 enable US to determine this
point WELL First, we want to get a good
photograph Of this comet, and then we want
to secure It's spectrum.
t'Its motion to the north will carry It fur
Their above the horizon every day, until it
gets so far away from us that it will disap-
appear, and OF course 1t will become less
brilliant day by day. 1t would be rash In
me to attempt to predict how long it will
stay with US. That is q question for the
mathematical astronomers to determine.
The comet is travelling at very good rate
Of speed, but / think 1t will be some time
before It will escape us entirely. The tail
points from the sun. 1t is q very strange
phenomenon, this of body driving away
from the sun at tremendous velocity, and
its tail preceding instead of following IL, but
the observers of comets. 1t is one of the
mysteries Of the comet which has never
been explained. The tail of this comet Is
curved somewhat, too, instead of being
straight. This Is another popularity which
| characteriZes most comets. It was this
sword shape OF the tail which used to create
such CONSERVATION among the ignorant upon
| the appearance of comets. The people took
| it to be sign that they were to be cut
down and destroyed. 1t Is considered
probable by physicists that the fail is COM
posed Of the same material as the nucleus
| and coma, only In the latter the material is
more condensed, in the nucleus possibly
assuming liquid form.
''An interesting feature of the study of
/ the composition of comets,n continued
| Prof. Draper, "is the fact that II, as we be-
lieve, from our present information, comets
contain the elementary substance carbon,
they indicate q possibility for organic life
/ to exist elsewhere than on this little earth
/ of our own. Carbon Is an essential ingre.
dent In all organized structures, plants as
/ well as animals, and although the tempera-
ture of a comet is too high to admit of the
| existence of any living thing, the fact re-
| possess this essential ingredient of organic
/ life. have no doubt myself that spectre
scopic observations will confirm the theory
| of the presence of carbon in the compost
| ton of comets. 1t is an established fact
that carbon has been found In meteorites,
and there is now but little doubt in the
| minds Of scientific men that q close relation
exists between meteorites and comets. The
Italian astronomer, Schisparelli, has re-
Gently shown very conclusively that streams
| Of meteors seemed In certain cases to have
| an orbit identical with those of comets that
have disappeared. IL this be true, 1t fol-
| lows almost certainly that meteorites are the
relics of departed comets, and carbon being
| found in them would indicate with tolerable
this subject e s1ch new one, comparative
ly, that it is very difficult to arrive at any
| definite conclusion. If / can get a good
| spectrum from the comet now with us will
be able to secure some definite results. The
| spectra, such as they were, of the comets
observed in the past were the same as the
| spectrum of an electric spark taken in Ole
| FAINT gas, q compound Of carbon and HYDRO
gen."
A dispatch from Albany, N. Y, dated the
9th, says: "From the Dudley Observatory
at half-past one o'clock this morning the
sight presented by the comet is So Ii to have
been one never be forgotten. The comet
stretched out across the heavens nearly
forty degrees and the tail spread out into
| two well defined branches, enveloping the
North Star in food of milky light. The
eastward branch ran up, passing about two
and half degrees east of the North Star
| and shooting up towards the zenith
This stretch was followed for fully forty de-
| grees. Then the other branch shot up in
the west for at least thirty-ive degrees, be-
ing about five degrees astronomically south
west OF the Polar Star. As seen through the
| thirteeu-inch refractor the general appear
ance was that of broad fan of ostrich
plumes, the handle being directed away
from the sun. This handle is represented by
the nucleus, which is seven seconds in
diameter. Ii we suppose the distance of the
comet from the earth to be d., 900 900 miles,
| which is presumably near the truth, the
diameter Of the nucleus would be 500
mlles-in other words, three quarters the
size Of that of the moon. The coma, or
bright envelope which surrounds the nu-
| cleus in q semi-circular form, Is eighty
seconds in diameter. This is hat part OF the
head OF the comet which when seen by the
naked eye gives the appearance OF the heaG.
The nucleus proper appears distinctly visi-
bic In the refractor, but cannot be seen at
all by the naked eye. The diameter Of the
nucleus is decreasing In rather an unex-
| pected fashion, and this morning there Is
less detail to be seen In the coma than was
observed here on Saturday morning.
"ln respect to the important question OF
identity Professor Boss states positively
that this comet Is the same as that seen
from South America on June l by DIR.
Gould, who was, by the way, the first di.
rector of the Dudley Observatory. This
| statement is based up careful consideration
the comet has been vizible in the north
ern hemisphere, as 1t is now conceded that
| this cannot be a return appearance of the
comet of 1872 DIR. Boss is satisfied that
it is not the comet Of 1907; first, because
the computations of Bessel assign to that
comet period Of 1,700 years, and Bessel
was the greatest practical astronomer of the
8
computations as have been made here the
path Of this comet is found to be decidedly
different from that which the comet of 1907
would take il it could be seen. Gould IN
doubtedly saw this comet for the first time,
and before the phenomenon disappears it
will afford exceedingly valuable scientific
| information.n
A Washington dispatch of the 9th gives
the following: "To-n night. after one of the
most severe rain, hail and wind storms
which has visited Washington since the 4th
of July, 1874 at which time the Coggia
comet was in full blaze, the nameless wan
derer shone In all its glory, the nucleus
| showing the rounded end, which, as Pro-
fessor Hall says, indicates that it is melting
| very fast, and may be making its last ap-
| poets are that it will be visible for several
weeks, and when the altitude is sufficient
| the great Equatorial telescope will Re used.
| Then, for the first time In the history
| of astronomy, will a comet be subjected
/ to close scientific observation. When the
/ Donati comet was on its grand rounds in
| 1858 there was not telescope of more than
/ ten inches In diameter In the world. Now
| the great Equatorial instrument, with its
| twenty-inch lens, awaits a favorable posi-
| ton to enable the astronomers to study its
| movements as no other comet has ever been
watched. 1t will be remembered that 1t Yves
with this instrument that Professor Asaph
/ Hall first discovered the moons of Mars; so
that, with the use of the Naval Observatory
| instrument, the Photographic and spectre
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