Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1882-03-07
The Fiery Comet.
now IT May DESTROY MANKIND AND
REvoLuTIoNIzE MANKIND.

having been reduced from l75 years Il
81, was suggested ut the Astronomical
Society In April, 1880, by Mr.. Marth, :
mathematician of great skill, and wei
known for the zeal with which he at
tacks problems relating to the move
ments Of the satellites of Saturn ant
Mars. He says;
"Supposing the comet of lS43 is thu
same as that OF 1868 1t would not be very
wonderful that it should reappear aftel
thirty-seven years, instead of III
years. The velocity Of a body moving
In the solar system depends simply on Its
distance from the sun and OH the period
of revolution. If the velocity is reduc.
ed by resisting medium there will be 4
reduction Of the period, and there Il
nothing whatever unreasonable In the
sUppositiOn that, however weak the cor
ona may be, its resistance would have q
very great effect upon the motion of the
comet which rushes through 1t; so that
should not be at all surprised If 1t should
turn out that this comet of lS43 and that
of 100S, anJ that its revolution has been
30 much affected that possibly 1t may
return In, say II years.
Now, if tiiss theory of the comet of
1880 be the true one, we are somewhat
more nearly interested in the matter
than we were in most theories respect
ing comets. Ii, already, the comet eX-
periences such resistance, In passing
through the corona when Its nearest to
the sun that its period undergoes a
marked diminutiOn, the effect must of
necessity be increased at each return and
after only few, possibly one or two cir
cults, the comet will be absorbed by the
sun. ..
1t will DO remembered that Sir Isaac
Newton recognized the possibility that
It might happen to comet having such
an orbit ms that of the comet Of 1880,
generally known as NewtOn's comet,
and that he had considered the
consequences m igh { be full of
danger to this earth. 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 ms may exist In COM
cts head and nucleus, but from the con-
vertions of the swiftly rushing mass Of
the comet into heat, the thermal equiya-
lent of its mechanical energy.
have for my own part been long of
opinion that tie periodical increase for
such stars as Mira (the wonderful starr
In the Whale, and Eta, OF the ship Argo,
Is due 10 the motion of some large comet,
followed by metcoric train about these
two stars. | have indicated fully In my
"Pleasant Ways In Science" the reasons
which induce me to believe that the
outburst Of the so-callcd "new star" in
the Northern Crown In 1866 Is to be
similar explained. Without saying that
consider there Is absolute danger of n
similar outburst In the case of our own
sun when the comet of 1913 shall be alb
sorbed by him On result which will, In
my opinion, most certainly take place.
! will 20 so far as to express my belief
that II ever the day IL to come when
"thc heavens shall dissolve In fcrvent
heat" the cause of the catastrophe will
be the downfall Of some great comet on
the sun.
| believe the passage even OF the head
of comet over the earth would do lit
tie harm, for the simple reason that the
velocity with which the meteoric masses
forming the head would travel at the
cartll's distance from the sun would be
too small to lead to any very msschiev-
ous result. II the shower of mete0rlc
masses were very dense, the meteors
themselves being Of the larger sort, and
80 able TO break their way through the
carth's atmosphere, the shower might
Kill n few of the eartli's inhabitants, or
even many hundreds. But there would
be no widespread destruction Of llie.
IL would be altogether otherwise, be-
licve, II comet of the larger sort fell
into or were absorbed by the sun. The
danger would lie IN the suns own
weight, not In the comet or Its attendant
train. The bodies forming the dead,
nucleus, and train of the comet would
fall IN immense numbers, with enor-
nous velocity, aud each with mighty
momentum on the suns fiery surfaCe.-
Possibly In my opinion probably their
most destructive work would be accom-
pllshed below that surface, under the
still more stupend0us attractive energy
of that smaller, because moro condensed
orb within which | take 10 be the true
ruling centre of the solar system.
II might be well that the effects thus
produced would be but transient. In a
few weeks, possibly IN few days, or
even hours, the sun, excited for n while
to intousc heat aud splendor, would re-
sumo his usual temperature, his usual
lustrc. Such, indeed, was the nature Of
the change which affected the s0.callcd
"now star" In the Northern Crown.
For day or two Il shone out with sew
eral hundred times itB usual lustrc, and
doubtless II poured forth during those
few DAYS several hundred times It's usual
heat. Then gradually lts fires cooled,
lts lustre diminished, aud after few
weeks had passed II shonc, ms II had
sIione before for hundreds Of years, with
tho lustre of ninth magnitude star on.
". But II Is certain that II there are
planets circling around that remote sun,
and II the ordinary light and hent Of that
orb eu0lced for the requirements Of the
inhabitants OF those 0rbs, the abnOmlnnl
llght and heat during the outbursts In
1866 must have destroyed NIL living crea-
lures from the face Of each ono Of those
worlds.
IL is equally certain that II at any
time great comet, falling directly from
the sun, should by the swift rush Of lis
mctcorlc componcnte, excite the frame
OF the sun to n lustrc far exceeding that
with which he at present shines, the
sudden acsees Of lustre and heat would
prove destructive to every living crca-
iurc, or NJ any rate TO all the higher
forms Of life upon this earth. And
though IN few days tho sun might re-
sumo hls ordinary lustre and no longer
gov with abnormal heat, he would pour
his rays on fanlly Of worlds IN which
not Que Of the higher forms either Of
vegetable or animal life would remain
L.. ...l.tas,a,