Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1881-02-11
The cometA
WHICH SOME BELIEVE WILL BURN THE
RARTH.
TProf Il A. prlctorl

The menacing comet is the one recently
visible, in 1880, in the Australian heavens,
and which is one of the most interesting
comets ever seen by man. Views respect
ing it, not by fanciful theoriZers, but by
mathematicians of eminence by no means
prone to adopt wild and startling ideas,
suggest the possibility, nay, even some
degree of probability that this comet
may bring danger to the solar system.
Like the comet of 1913, it passed within
about one hundred and ninety thousand
miles from the solar surface, and on
path very similar to that pursued by the
comet of 1913 while in the neighborhood
of the sun. The comet of 1850, Is IN
fact. identical with that of 1913, but its
period is diminishing rapidly, so that at
an early date it may fall into the sun,
with this alarming immediate result-that
all the higher forms of life, at least, will
at least be destroyed ell the surface OF
the earth.
The idea that the comet of 1850 may
be identical, not only with that OF 1913,
but with that Of 16GS, the period having
been reduced from 10 wears to 81. was
1
last April by Mr. Marth, mathematician
of great skill, and well known for the
zeal with which he attacks problems re-
lating to the movements Of the satellites
of Saturn and Mars. He says, ''Suppos-
ing the comet of 1913 is the same as that
of 1868, it would not be very wonderful
that it should reappear after 81 years in
stead of 175 years. The velocity of a
body moving in the solar system depends
simply upon its distance from the sun
and on the period of revolution. If the
velocity is reduced by a resisting medium,
! there will be reduction of the period,
and there is nothing whatever unreason-
able in the supposition that however weak
the corona may be, its resistance would
have very great effect upon the motion
of n comet which rushes through II SO
that | should not be at all surprised if it
should turn out that this comet of 1850 is
the same as the comet OF 1913 and that of
l66S, and that its revolution has been SO
much affected that possibly it may return
i'll, say Il years.
Now if this theory of Mr. Marth re-
garding the comet Of the present year be
the true one, we are somewhat more near
ly interested i'll the matter than we are i'll
most theories respecting comets. Ii al
ready the comet experiences such resist
ances in passing through the corona
when at its nearest to the sun that its
period undergoes n marked diminution,
the effect must of necessity be increased
at each return, and after only few-pos:
sibly one or two-circuits, the comet will
be absorbed by the SUM-
1t will be remembered that Sir Isaac
Newton recognized the possibility that
this might happen to comet having such
an orbit as that of the comet of 1850
generally known as Newton's comet),
and that he considered the consequences
might be full of danger to this Garth.
Yet he only dwelt on the danger arising,
as he judged, from the addition of SO
much fuel to the solar fires. We know
now that the real danger lies not from
the absorption of so much matter as may
exist in q comets head and nucleus. but
from the conversion of the momentum of
the swiftly rushing mass of the comet |
into heat, the thermal equivalent of its !
mechanical energy. Now, at present, as
suming the period of the comet to be
thirty seven years, the velocity Of the
nucleus when nearest to the sun must
exceed 300 miles per second. As to the
mass of the comets head We can form no
opinion. But we know that the relative
ly insignificant comet of 1866 called
Temples, which required n telescope to
make it visible, is followed by millions of
millions Of meteoric masses, and that
when our earth passes through this sys-
| TEN of meteors, though they enter her
atmosphere with a velocity of only abont !
80 miles per second, they are converted |
into glowing vapor in their passage
| through it.
If We consider how far more denscly
aggregated the meteoric masses must be
which form the nucleus, head and train
mot tall, of the comet of 1913, how
much larger the individual meteors, and
that the velocity at the time of their final
absorption could not be less than ten
times that with which the November me-
teors enter the earth's atmosphere it will
be evident that the danger of which Sir
Isaac Newton spoke so impressively in
his celebrated letter is by no means alto
gether fanciful / have, for my own part,
been long of opinion that the periodical
increase of such stars as Mira the Won
derful STAR, in the Whale, and Eta of the
ship Argo, is due to the motion of some
large comet, followed by a meteoric train
about these two stars.
/ have indicated fully, III my pleasant
Ways in Science, the reasons which in
duced me to believe that the outburst OF
the so-called new star" In the Northern
Crown in 1866 is TO be similarly eX-
planned. Without saving that | consider
there is absolute danger of n similar out
burst Ill the case of our own sun, when
the comet of 1913 shall be absorbed by
him IA result which will, in my opinion,
most certainly take place., | will go SO far
as to express my belief that if ever the
day is to come when the heavens shall
dissolve with fervent heat, the cause of
the catastrophe will be the downfall of
some great comet OIL the sun.
| believe the passage even of the head
Of a comet over the earth would do com
paratively little harm, for if the shower
of meteoric masses were very dense. the
meteors themselves being of the larger
sort, and SO able to break their way
through the earth's atmosphere, the
shower might kill Il few of the earth 4 in
habitants or even many hundreds. But
there would 10 no widespread destruction
of life. But it would be altogether other
wise, | believe, if comet Of the larger
sort fell into or were absorbed by the
SUM-
The danger would lie in the suns own
might, not in the comet or its attendant
train The bodies forming the head
, nucleus and train of the comet would fall
in immense numbers with enormous velo-
city, and each with mighty momentum
on the SIMS fiery surface. Possibly, and
in my opinion. probably, their most de-
, structive work would be accomplished
below that surface, under the still more
stupendous attractive energy OF that
smaller because more condensed orb
within, which take to be the ruling
centre of the solar system. 1t might well
be that the effects thus produced would
he but transient. In few weeks, posi-
bly, III few days or even hours. the sun,
excited for while to intense heat and
splendor, would resume his usual temper
: ature, his usual lustre.
, Such, indeed, WIS the nature of the
change which affected the so-called "new
star" in the Northern. Crown. For II day
or two it shone out with several hundred
( times its usual lustre and doubtless 1t
: poured forth during those few days seve-
7 raj hundred times its usual heat. Then
{ gradually its fires cooled. its lustre Iii
| minished, and, after II few weeks had
3 passed, IT shonc ns it had shone before
0 for hundreds Of years, with the lustre Of
e a ninth magnitude star only
4 But 1t is certain that, If there are plan
3 cts circling around that remote sun, and
3 if the ordinary light and heat of that orb
8 sufficed for the requirements of tho in
r habitants of those orbs, the abnormal
t light and heat during the outburst IN
t 1866 must have destroyed all living crea-
t lures from the face OF each one Of
e those worlds 1t is equally certain that
: if at any time great comet, falling dI-
rectly upon the sun, should by the swift
3, rush of its metcorlc components, excite
= the flame of the sun to II lustre far cX-
& ceeding that with which he at present
e shines tho sudden access OF lustre and OF
/ heat ,would prove destructive to every
d living creature, or at any rate TO all the
"A higher forms of life upon this earth. And