The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1882-10-13
Is THE EARTH in PERIL!
Views Of Eminent Scientists Regarding the
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Views Of Eminent Scientists Regarding the
Comet.
A Washington dispatch says that Prof
Skinner of the Naval Observatory, was in
terviewed In relation to the opinion OF Prof.
Proctor and other eminent European scien-
tlste, that the present comet Is that Of 1913
and 1880, and 1t will again return in 1888 and
fall into the sun, causing terrible disaster to
the earth He said that, while Mr.. Proc
tor had a reputation among astrenom-
ers for making rash announcements,
there was no use In rdiculing
his idea The comet now visible, he
said, was certainly q very remarkable one,
and In some of it's features was an extraor-
binary phenomenon. As TO the possibility
of a 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 ii would be safe
at this time TO hazard definite opinion on
Prof Proctor's prophecy: The comet Will
be visible for a monty yet, and we hope"
he said, ito be able, with the aid OF tele-
scope, to follow it month and a
half We have not made sufficient
number Of observations yet, nor has 1t 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,
a
parabola an elliptic. II it be the latter,
there is some reason to expect serious con-
sequences. The great comet now visible
travels in path practically coincident with
the comets of lS43 and 1880 Hubbard found
the period of revolution OF the comet of lS43
TO be over 800 years. The period OF revolu-
ton 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
~...eg nj
the time of the nearest approach TO the sun
must traverse the solar atmosphere, thus
experiencing a great degree of resistance
The facts, as far rs known, are that these
comets are observed to travel in the same
path III they are the same comet, that
comets path must have been violently
changed by some outside force III they are
not the same comet, then the hypothesis OF
Prof Stafford that they are pieces of the S43
comet may be held AZ 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 longer arc. He said that even II
Prof Proctor's prediction should be borne
out it wouldn't necessarily follow that the
de tru ton of the earth would result. IL
was all owing TO what the comet might be
made OF. He dii not believe 1t 20 be very
pOndarablo IN ar ar, and IN the face OF it's
coming in contact wit the sun he sun NAV
DE HDie 10 take care Oh i WlUuOuG any (liIIl-
Guilty.
irof Pckering. OF Harvard University.
was interviewed by a reporter nd said:
You NAV say that the scientists or q m
ridge Observatory hold no such views.
They have no fears OF the ear n S destruc-
tion through any such a collision between
the sun and the comes
Prot Chandler o. Harvard, has computed
that the comes OF 1877 will not return until
nfter Il per:vd OF thirty or forty years, nor
do the Cambridge p otc 'SOr' believe that
the pre- ent comet NJ, re.u'nin iNSi
Prof Frisbie, 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 leugth OF the tail at 30, Co.,
600 miles.
TIE New York SIN saws: THE nucleus of
the great comet has broken into hree parts
The combined length of the three frag-
ments, which are arranged in q row. is esti-
mated at about 25,0s0 miles. while their
width il only 3 600 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 10th cases the
breaking up occurred after the comet had
passed the point or nearest approach to the
sun. The came is true of Biela's comet,
which in lS46 not only split up, but devel-
Oped into two separate comets, each pos
sessed of head and tail of its own This
-
some disintegraiing force in making its per-
ihelion passage, and recalls the state
ment of the late Prof. Pierce, based
upon n long mathematical investigation,
that the tenacity of the nucleus of n comet
approaching ~ 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 Us close TO the sun as the one in
1913, and according TO appearances, was un-
able to bear the strain.
IL IL fhnt
meteors, at least, and particularly certain
ones which appear in periodic showers, are
the fragments Of comets Ii the great com
ct which IL now exciting so much interest
and attracting all eyes Co the morning sky
should crumble 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