Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1881-06-28

Inc comet IS now growing slowly fainter.
on the I'D inst, or on Thursday last il was
nearly nve times as bright as when first dis.
covered. The tail lies directly away from
the sun, and is thus greatly foreshortened.
and must really be several times larger tn an
it appears
Inc comet is now moving away from the
earth (these are the conclusions current at
the Cambridge observatory at the rate of
100000 miles day. 1t will probably be
visible for several months, and will without
oouot De conspicuous during the time to the
naked eye. 1t reached its maximum bright
ness on Thursday night last Its nucleus is
probably 1000 miles in diameter, and the ic-
ner head at the envelope IL, 900, while the
coma Is vastly more than that The tail is
at least 100000 miles in length.
special observations that are to be made
at the Cambridge observatory, which, SO far
as Is known, will not be made elsewhere, are
as to the brightness of different parts of the
tai OF the comet. The light of comets is
similar in composition to burning carbon
This light can only be determined bv the
use OF the spectroscope; but the clouds have
so far precluded the use of the latter at
Cambridge since the present comet appeared
Prof. Ormund Stone of the Cincinnati OBJ
servatory has made two observations of the
comet, but was not able to make the third
Saturday night. Three observations will
enable astronomers to determine the elements
OF its orbit and decide whether it is the planet
OF 1907. Prof. Stone still believes il the
comet of 1907, and the same one was seen by
DIR. Gould in South America, while some
other astronomers incline to the belief that
the comet is the much expected one of 1872
Observations at Harvard College, observ-
atory. Saturday night, with the spectroscope,
establish the fact that the spectrum or the
nucleus of the comet is continuous.
There are now nearly a dozen claimants
for the Warner 5000 prize, offered for the
discovery of the first new comet within a
specified time.
The advent of the comet has stirredup con-
siderable interest on the subject of comets in
general, and memory naturally reverts to
some of the more notable luminary displays
of the past. The number of comets may be
reckoned as legion. Kepler's opinion was
that the celestial spaces were as
full of comets as the sea of fish,
only small proportion of them coming with
in the range of the telescope. Those which
can ever be seen will be but a small fraction
of the number which exist, because comet
can seldom be seen unless its perihelion is
either inside the orbit of the earth, or but a
little outside of it. The most notable ex-
ception to this rule was the comet of 1929,
which, at perihelion, was more than four
times the earths distance from the sun. The
number of comets visible to the naked eye
since the Christian era is, in round numbers,
about j00-an average of one every four
wears. From 1901, up to the present time,
the number is IL. while between 1901 and
1900 the number was SO. Year by year, as
the science of astronomy is more and more
developed, new telescope comets are dis
covered. and. if diligent search is kept up,
as many comets are sometimes found with
the telescope in a single year as would be
seen in lifetime by the unaided eye.