Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-07-25

A Delaware astronomer has Just made
an extraordinary discovery on the moons
surface, which is likely to create a sensa.
sation in the scientific world, and, so to
speak, destroy few well-set theories in
regard to that terra IncOqnitd. On the
18th of last May the gentleman in ques-
ton, Mr.. ]. g. jackson, of Hockessin,
Del, who has for years been a close OBJ
server of celestial phenomena, found in
looking at the new moon that a white
mist was floating over portion of what
ls known as the mare eJ5siun1, a group of
volcanic formations well known to as
tronomers. To the practiced eye such a
discovery could not fail to be exceed
lngly interesting, in fact little less than
startling. For an hour Mr.. Jackson kept
his telescope upon the spot, marking
out clearly large cloud of vapor arising
several hundred feet above the pr0na0nt0-
ritnl agaTum which is at the base of the
mare cTtS5una. Owing to the fact that
the terminator had moved over beyond
the mare crisi1tna, Mr.. Jackson was I'm.
able to witness the phenomenon on the
following night He said nothing at the
time, fearing that he might have made a
mistake; but he waited patiently for the
next new moon, which occurred on June
II. At this trial he was baffled on &C
| count of the cloudiness of the weather.
On last Sunday, however, all of the con-
ditiOns were favorable, and he watched
eagerly to test the correctness of his
original observation. Sure enough, the
| feathery mist was there again, on the
westerly edge of the mare criSiun against
the pr0mO1lt0riunl Ggdrun as he had
seen it on May 10. He watched it
again until the moon had gone down
in the West, and was fully confirmed
of the extent and importance of the
| phenomenon as affecting existing thee
ries regarding the physical condition of
| the moon and her atmosphere. His
notion is that this cloud forms by vol
canic action during the lunar night of
every month, and can only be seen for
one particular evening, at about forty
eight hours after conjunction new
NOON, just as the rays of the morning
sun, in rising over the mountains of the
Dr0Da07ltOTIuna GgGruna, become sufficient
TO illuminate the mist, but not yet in
tense enough to dispel or evaporate it.
The fact that the moon is then but
slender crescent, generally low in the
| haze of our horizon, seem but an hour
or so before setting, Mr.. Jackson thinks
must be the only reason why it has not
been Oftener witnessed.
The importance of the discovery con-
| sists in that it establishes fair premise
for believing that the theory that the
moon is a dead world is incorrect, and
would appear to show, what has for
pehrs been denied by nearly all astrOno-
mers, that the moon has an atmosphere.
On Thursday.night last Mr.. jackson
claims that he made another discovery
in connection with this wonderful cloud.
He distinctly saw at the apex of the pro-
D1O1tO7Tltn1 GgGTun9, above which the
cloud has been seen, three volcanic era
tiers, which have never before been dis
covered by astronomers, and he thinks
that the clOud is produced by the burst
ing of volcanic fires, which opened these
new craters, thus further tending to es
tablish the theory of physical life on the
moon. Mr.. Jackson says that when the
great telescopes of the world are directed
toward investigating this startling phe-
nOmenon he has no doubt that dis
cOveries of incalculable importance will
be made, which may revolutionize some
of our present theories as TO the physical
condition of the earth's satellite. Mr..
Jackson is most careful and painstaking
scholar, and has been an astronomer for
nearly half century. Thirty years ago
he calculated exactly the transit of
Venus which occurred in 1874, and has
been a close student of celestial phe-
nOmena ever since. He was four
years ago nominated for Congress, and
ran against Colonel Martin, the present
member from Delaware.