Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-10-06
Is the Comet an Old Visitor 2

Astronomy is usually reckOned an ex-
ceedingly exact science, and in most of
its methods and the great mass of its as
certained facts it is exact, yet, as the con-
flicting theories and calculations about
the great comet now visible show, some
departments of the science are subject to
astonishing uncertainty. The opposing
views of the astronomers as to the orbit
of the present comet and the question of
its identity with the great comets of 1880
and 1S43, are likely to lead some persons
to look upon the whole subject with in
credulity. The trouble, however, is not
that the astronomers are no better than so
many weather prophets dealing in guess
work and humbuggery, but that in a
case like this it is exceedingly difficult to
obtain trustworthy data to serve as a basis
for the application of mathematical for
mul3. What the astronomers are able
to do when there is the least solid ground
to base their calculations upon is shown
by the surprising success of their predic
tiOns of the successive returns of Halley's
comet, which has period of some sew
enty-fiv years, and is subject to perturb-
ing forces which it requires an amazing
process of calculation to disentangle. In
the present case, the question of interest
is whether this comet has ever been seen
in the neighborhood of the sun before.
The computations made at Washington
have been regarded as going far toward
identifying it with the comets of 1880
and 1913, which, in turn, have been sup
posed to be the same as the comet of
1868. If these great comets are all one
and the same, and if the dates mentioned
comprise every visit that this comet
has paid to the sun since it was first
seen, then. manifestly, its period is
growing shorter at a marvellous rate,
and we may expect it to end its career
by falling into the sun very shortly. The
possible effects of the fall of a comet
upon the sun have been frequently dis
cussed of late, though the idea that such
an accident might prove disastrous to
the earth is not new one, having been
entertained by Newton two hundred
years ago. Some months ago, when
there was good deal of talk about Mr..
Proctor's suggestion of what the
''menacing comet" of 1880, as he styled
it, might do, Professor Young expressed
the hope that if it did fall into the sun
he might live to see it. That is proba-
bly, the feeling of most astronomers.
The downfall of a comet into the fiery
furnace of the sun might furnish fine
spectacle, but would not be likely to
hurt the earth.
There is reason to think, however, that
if the orbit of the present come proves
to be identical with that pursued by the
comets of 1880 and 1S43, it is not the
same body. If it Is the same body, then
hou e1,o ind hoc
been invisible at most of its visits, or its
period has been reduced in the surprising
way before mentioned. The improba
bility of such q reduction is so great that
even those WHO think it is the same
comet prefer to believe that its period
has always been short, and that it has
only occasionally been seen when visiting
the sun. But in view of the observed or
bits of the comets of 1913 and 1880, this
is very improbable The comet of 1913
was seen for more than six weeks after
its perihelion passage. and that OF 1880
was visible for several weeks. 1t is not
likely that comet of such brllliancy
could often swing around the sun, blaz-
ing with the splendOr resulting from its
extraordinarily close approach to the
great luminary, without being detected.
Upon the whole, then, it is more likely
that this comet is body following the
of me path as thatpursued by the comets
as 1643 and 1880, and the fact that its
perlhelion passage seems to have been
made at distance certainly not less and
probably greater than theirs is another
argument against the supposition that it
is the same comet, whirling about the
sun IN rapidly narrowing orbit prepare
tory to its fall.