Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-11-23
A NIGHT WITH SATURN.
The Planet Not Much More Than
758.000,GO0 Niles From the Earth-Is
LIZ Enhabited-What EferscheI Saw
and what We Can Now See.
From the New York Sun.

From the New York Sun.
Saturn is so far away in the shadow deems
of space that the sun, which to us presents
disk as big as the moon, blazing with unbear-
able splendor and extinguishing every ether
light, appears from Saturn only as the chief of
the stars. Saturn receives from the sun only
about one hundredth part of the light and heat
that the earth receives From his distant orbit,
the earth, Venus. Mars, and even Jupiter, must
seem happy family, basking together in the
light and warmth of the sun. Then what an
impression of solitude and repose comes from
the slowness of his orbita motion. While the
nearer planets are speeding like racers around
the sun, Saturn remains year after year in the
same constellation. and nearly a whole genera
ton passes while he is making single circuit"
81 have heard that Saturn is now closer to the
earth than he has been before in nearly thirty
years" the reporter said.
THAT is true" the astronomer replied. ITO
night the two planets are not much more than
15OO0O,G0O miles apart. The motion ofthe earth
in its orbit will rapidly increase its distance for
six months, and then they will approach again
and be still nearer next fall, and nearer yet In
1884. After that Saturn will swing further
away from the sun and the earth. and astrono-
mers will have to wait another generation
before they can have as favorable views of
Saturn as are now presented to US. The rings
are now opened out so widely that mere spy-
glass will reveal them. The fact is that any
amateur who has modern four or fiye-inch
telescope made by one of our best makers
can now obtain finer views of the won
derful hinged planet than Sir William Hersche
ever had with his gigantic telescopes. When
Herschel in 1872 went with one of his tele-
scopes to King Georges house to show him the
wonders ofthe heavens. he Offset the disappoint-
ment OF cloudy night by cutting model
OF Saturn in pastebOard, fastening it at the bot
tom of the garden wall. and having it illumin-
ated with lamps Herschel says of this device
that the effect was very fine, and so natural
that it might have deceived the best astrono-
mers. Nobody who has ever seen Saturn with
a modern telescope could be deceived by any
device OF that kind.
'Now look at Saturn through the telescope"
the astronomer added. land | VIII point out to
you some of the things for the study of which
astronomers all over the world will seize this
favorable opportunity"
The reporter looked. and saw in the field of
the telescope golden ball surrounded by two
broad concentric rings. inclined to the line of
sight so that their general outline was long
oval. There were delicately shaded zones on
the ball, the color around the pole which was
not hidden by the rings being faint blue.
while the equatorial zone was light yellow The
rings, too, bore delicate markings, the division
between them appearing as a heavy black line.
Clrcllng outside the rings were several of the
planets moons.
THE RINGS OF SATURN.
Look sharply along the inner edge Of the
inner bright ring" said the astronomer land
you will see another ring which is one of the
most mysterious objects in all the heavens. It
is not bright, like the others, but dark. resem-
bling strip of gauze stretched against the sky;
and yet, that gauZe-like ring is 5000 or 5000
miles broad, and more than 100, 600 miles in di-
ameter. There is no record Of its ever having
been seen earlier than the year 1888. although
Saturn had been studied with some of the best
telescopes in the world for half century before
that"
The reporter saw the mysterious ring. and
was surprised to perceive that it was partially
transparent. The astronomer explained that
this had been accounted for on the suppOsitiOn
that the rings are composed of a multitude of
little satellites revolving in about the same
plane and that in the gauZe ring these satellites
are comparatively so few in number that the
ring appears transparent. But" he added
the fact Is, We don't know what those rings
are. and if anybody is able during the present
favorable opposition of the planet to throw any
light on the question all astronomers will unite
in thanking him. But there is one strange and
startling thing about those rings which pos
seSSes especial interest. Some thirty wears ago
the astronomer Strive collected data which
seem to show that the rings are rapidly ap-
preaching the planet, and will touch it or fall i'm
upon it about the year 2l50. If such catas-
trophe should occur, some of our great-great-
may live long enough to
witness it.
is SATURN INHABITED?
'Do you suppose Saturn has any Inhabitants"
the reporter asked.
We'll, that's question that has been good
deal debated, was the reply. 1.-The possibility
OF such magnificent planet being inhabited is
something that has had a powerful charm for
the human Imagination ever since the inven-
ton OF the telescope. Swedenb0rg said Saturn
was inhabited by an upright and modest race,
and his description of how they lived, taking
little care for food or rament but subslstin1
upon the natural productions OF their planet,
and behOlding those wonderful rings as a
strange Wilderness in the sky. is very curious
reading. Tie facts Of physical astronomy as at
present understood, seem to indicate that the
Inhabitants of the solar system are collected
upon the inner and smaller planets. of
which the earth is the chief and that the outer
and larger planets like jupiter and Saturn have
not yet reached an inhabitable condition Some
of the reasons, however. which lead Us to
think that Saturn is not an inhabitable world do
net apply to his eight moons. If they have in
habltants. celestial scene unmatched so far as
We know in the whole universe is opened TO
their view This is particularly true of the
satellite which is furthest from the planet for
its orbit Is 50 inclined to the plane of Saturns
equator that the inhabitants if there are any.
behold the great globe of the planet and the
magnificent rings suspended in space before
their eyes and covering large portion of the
armament.
The truth iswe are not very likely to find
out whether Saturn supports any inhabitants
or not AT best we can only ascertain whether
the planet Is in a condition which would make
1t lnhabitaoie according to our ideas But. in
habited or not, Saturn must possess great
interest for US. Distant as it is it belongs to
the same family of worlds with our earth.
The sun is carrying these worlds along with II
in Its flight through space. and, In a large
sense, they all have the same DESTINY. When
We attempt to reach out into the universe with
our telescopes We find 1t is so tnconceiyably i'm
mense that even the most distant members of
the solar system seem like near neishbors-
companions In our journey through space. II
the earth Is ever to be destroyed | believe its
ruin will only be a small part Of grand catas-
trophe which will involve the whole system OF
which the sun is the center; and so we cannot
entirely separate ourselves from these other
worlds We are not merely denizens of A
world, but OF q system Of worlds all obeyino
the gravitating power Of one sun. Like sailors
on ship at sea, who gladly welcome the SIGHT
OF other ships pursuing the same course, though
they can communicate with them only by sig-
nails, we can derive sense of companionship
amid the yastness of the untyersa from, az