The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1882-09-22

space along which the great comet Of IsSo
must move whenever II returns. just os
wen rs we know the path In which bolt
on The periphery OF mil,-whecI must
travel. although we NAV know notb;no
about the time i'm which the wheel re-,
wolves. The element OF time. ,bcn
l. the unknown quantity. All we have
10 do in investigating the question ~
identity between the present comet and
That OF 1880 is 20 suppose the present comet
10 nave been at IFS pcrihclion at some do,i-
nlle time, and at the same distance from
the sun as was the comet Of 1880 at is ncri.
helion. The next thing 10 do is to 500
where comet travelling i'm the track of tIe
1850 comet would be on successive DAFT
and then see how these calculated nloceS
agree with those found on the same dates
Tor the comet now seen. Wewill for t,r.t
guess suppose that
TIE HYPOTHETICAL COMET
moving on the track OF that of 1850 was ot
lis Nfiheiion at Greenwich midnight on
september 18th. We find that on The morn
ing OF september 10th, n. Rio Janeiro. if
would have been in right ascension nine
hours and ffiy-iiyc minutes, and south de-
clinatiOn thiriy-iiyc minutes. Cruz, saw
the comet at nine hours and fortv-cigbt
minutes and south dcclinaiion two dcgrcos,
place which is within three degrees of
The Hypothetical position. The hypothet-
zeal comet would be at right ascension
eleven hours, nineteen minutes and ten
seconds, and dcclinati0n south six
teen minutes at about 3 y. NJ.
Washington time. 1t was actually
found at that time in eleven hours,
nineteen minutes and thirty seconds
and north Geclination eight minutcs-ihat
l. 10 say, within less than hall Il degree
from the supposed position. At Paris.
noon Of September 18th, the hypothetical
comet should have been about three de-
srceS west from the sun. and that is the
exact distance reported by the Paris OIL
servers in the dispatch published ycstcr-
day. Ihi, accordance is in
THE HIGHEST DEGREE REMARKABLY.
Whcn we consider the rough a,sump-
tions on which il is founded. the l1ldcnc-,
81 The reported observations. and that the
time OF pciihclon passage assumed i only
q first Guc,-, We may easily see that the
comparatively small differences noted may
be completely reconcilcd in the future.
especially when we remember that the
above calculations are made for conyc-
nicnce on the basis Of parabolc motion.
whereas. il this is return Of the 1890
comet, the tract. i, c'liptical. and that to q
greater degree than it was between 1913
and 1880.
Professor Boss, continuing, said: -
have scarcely doubt i'm my own mind
that We are actually witnessing a return 81
the great comets oi 1913 and 1850. be-
licyc that the pcrihelion passage viii be
found e. have occurred some hour, pro
yiou> 10 Greenwich midnight of the l7lh.
and that the orbit viii be found 10 Zoe clip
teal with a period 81 less than three years.
We may. therefore, expect the comet back
AGAIN i'm 1884, II not sooner. ~ each fresh
plunge into the solar atmosphere the
comet. which ut that time j.. moving
with the enormous velocity OF 30 mile,
per second, viii bee impedcd in it, flight.
The result Of this viii be- 10 make the i'll
teryul~ between successive returns con-
tinUUly diminish in lonHh Hotter and
hotter viii become the Hight OF the brilliant
comet under the all-poWcrful Increasing al
traction OF the syn. Al last, and, rs ! be-
iicvc. before the close If the present cen
tUry. the comet on some one OF liz recurring
lpproachc, to the sun viii meet, low down
In the solar atmosphere, an obstruction too
great To be resisted. Ii will then
FAIL HEApLoNG INTO TIE Sun
and vanish from the catalogue Of comets
forever. This catastrophe may occur next
wear. or some years later, but | believe it
must come sooner or later. / am more in
c'iucd 10 believe that the destruction OF
the comet will take place suddenly rather
than bv gradual wasting away. II Is
even possible That the event may occur
without our knowledge. but if We are ioi-
uultrcnourh, some time when the comet j.
omit homeWard Journey TO the sun, we >hali
watch him gradually approaching the great
lupinArv oi day until lost in it, rays, ana
th,n we shall watch in vain Tor us omcr-
u,nco. This may seem 10 bee a bold ptcd'c-
tion. and | may have made some error.
wlo,c existence DO not Row suepcci. II
80. shall be clad to have il pointed oul.
and ~ all event, shall watch fof inc
f,.>l ,ude elements OF the present comet
which arcyct To DE computed, with icf|cn'
interest.
Ii tin, really proves TO be return Of
TIE GOULD COMET or 1850
twill not long remain in view. By the
7f1h OF September it will he aboUi ~ uV-
cree. Wet Of The sun. II Nlilihcn DE ON!
one tenth "a, bright a> ON the i"n' OF oh'!
about hall a, bright D. on the l0ih OF ocH-
tcmlcr. ON October 10th ii, distance nom
fine sun will bee about - dc..r'C,'
wc.t. and IL will be- only one hI'i'tn
par; a. bright a. on The 1914. Ii VIII
ir,h,lV .tili ic seen in large telescopes
ihou.h 10 best advantage IN tqu9toil!i lH,
tldc-. short cps this period "i Ni>l'''l
will proahly bc, Il ought to he long ehoy-n