The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1882-10-13
IS THE EARTH IN PERIL!
Views of Eminent Scientists Regarding the
Comet.

Views of Eminent Scientists Regarding the
Comet.
Washington dispatch says that Prof.
Skinner, of the Naval Observatory, was in
telviewed in relation to the opinion of Prof
Proctor and other eminent European scien-
lists, that the present comet is that of 1S43
and 1880, and it will again return in 1883 and
fall into the sun, causing terrible disaster to
the earth He said that, while Mr. Proc
tor had reputation among astronom-
eIs for making rash announcements,
there was no use i'll ridiculing
his idea The comet now visible, he
said, was certainly very remarkable one,
and in some of it's features was an extraor-
binary phenomenon AS to the possibility
of meeting between the comet and the
sun, at some time in the near future, he
said, such an event was by no means i'm
probable. He did not think it would be safe
at this time to hazard a definite opinion on
Prof Proctor's prophecy: "The comet will
be visible for month yet, and we hope"
he said, ito be able, with the aid of tele-
scope, to follow it month and
half We have not made sufficient
number'U observations yet, nor has it been
visible long enough, to determine it's subse-
quent course We don't know as yet nor
will we be able for some time to find out
whether the track of the comet be that of
parabola or an elliptic If it be the latter,
there is some reason to expect serious con-
sequences The great comet now visible
travels i'll a path practically coif1cident with
the comets Of 1S43 and 1880 Hubbard found
the period Of revolution of the comet of 1843
to be over 800 years The period of revolu-
tion of the comet of 1880 was over thirty
years. The period of the great comet
now visible is not yet calculated
with certainty, owing to the limited
time of observation. These three comets at
the time of the nearest approach to the sun
must traverse the solar atmosphere, thus
experiencing o great degree of resistance
The facts, as far as known, are that these
comets are observed to travel in the same
path. Ii they are the same comet, that
comets path must have been violently
changed by some outside force. If they are
not the same comet then the hypothesis of
Prof. Stafford that they are pieces Of the 1S43
comet may be held as probable
Prof. Skinner concluded by saying
that it was idle to make any
positive predictions of the future movements
of this comet until it has been observed
through a longer arc. He said that even if
Prof Proctors prediction should be borne
out it wouldn't necessarily follow that the
dest ru ton of the earth would result 1t
was all owing to what the comet might be
made Of He did not believe it to be 80 very
ponderable an affair, and in the face of its
coming in contact witt the sun the sun may
be able to take care of it without any diff
Guilty.
Prof. Pickering, of Harvard University,
was interviewed by a reporter and said:
You may say that the scientists of Cam
bridge Observatory hold no such views
They have no fears of the earth s destruc-
ton through any such q collision between
the sun and the comet
Prof. Chandler, of Harvard, has computed
that the cOmet of 1889 will not return until
after period of thirty or forty years, nor
do the Cambridge professors believe that
the present comet will return in 1884
Prof Frlsbie, of the Washington observa
tory, says the comets nucleus is constantly
changing in color, size and shape, and that
great internal disturbances are taking place.
He estimates the length of the tail at 80, 0G0,-
600 miles
TIE New York Sun says: 1.-THE nucleus of
the great comet has broken into three parts
The combined length of the three frag-
ments, which are al ranged in row. is esti-
mated at about 25,0G0 miles, while their
width is only 3000 miles. No change in the
appearance of the comet is perceptible to
the naked eye. The nucleus of the comet of
1881 also broke in two. In both cases the
breaking up occurred after the comet had
passed. UHe pOl0U OF nGdreSU approach TO the
sun. The same is true of Biela's comet,
which in 1916 not only split up but devel-
oped into two separate comets, each pos
sessed of head aad tail of its own This
seems to indicate that comet encounters
some disintegrating force in making its per-
lhellon passage, and recalls the state
ment of the late Prof Pierce, based
upon a long mathematical investigation,
that the tenacty of the nucleus of comet
approaching as close to the sun as the comet
of 1913 did not equal that of steel, else it
would be torn to pieces. The present comet
went about as close to the sun as the one in
1919, and, according to appearances, was I'M
able to bear the strain.
ut is now a recognized fact that some
meteors, at least, and particularly certain
ones which appear in periodic showers, are
the fragments of comets. Ii the great COM
ct which is now exciting SO much interest
and attracting all eyes to the morning sky
should crulnbie into pieces it is not beyond
the range of possibility that some of our de-
scendants may have in Their cabinets black,
fire-incrusted fragments of this celestial
body which is making such a glorious spec
tacle in the sky for us