The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1882-11-18
SATURN'S RINGS.

asmuch as this planet offers to astron-
omers the most important ofphenomena
relating to cosmogonic science, few
words regarding it's history and Pc
ealiarity will perhaps interest such Of
our readers rs have not made astron-
omy n special study. Let 1t be renem-
bered that Saturn's peculiarfties aided
l.aplace not a little In the discovery of
the origin of worlds and the birth of
moons that, while all planets In our
system now attended by satellites were
also probably once surrounded by rings
like those of that splendid world,
Saturn alone has been able to retain
his belt in the mighty wrestling of
planets and centres. And it is interest
ing to reflect that the orbit of our own
moon may once have been occupied by
luminous belt, alternately irrstiiating
or shadowing the earth whose heaven
is spanned, sometimes like n glNnt
roadway of white light, sometimes
like II bridge of dark ness. |H
Although Saturn is 3lS, 100000 OF
leagues away from us, his vast size
renders him a faciic object OF study
even through n small telescope, for hc
Is 615 times larger than our own planet,
and one of his eight moons is very
nearly AS large. Our earth might be
rolled along tho Hat surface OF his
as our own,-lite n bail along a bowl
ing alley. These rings are the marvcls
of the solar system; the breadth Of
their plane surfaces has been estimated
at 35, 400 miles, while their thickness
is hardly more than forty. Consequent
ly when the edges of the rings arc
turned toward us, they become invisi-
bic, OR apparent only as n fine thread
through the most powerful glasses. AS
they are turned toward us more aud
more during another period of Snturn's
revolution, the spectacle is imposing,
the rings seem to "open''. There is
II periodicity in this visibility and in
visibility, twice i'll every Is years the
wonderful circles appear and disappear;
their last minimum was in 1876 and
since then they have been turning their
surfaces more and more toward us.
But their grand maximum will not be
until 1855, after which they will again
disappear. The "opening and closing,"
tho maXinuln and minimum of Sa-
turns rings, thus constitutes in fact
regular waxing and waning period.
1t was in 1862 that the shadow cast
by tho rings was discovered, and AT
that time it was believed there was but
one ring. iiookc discovered that the
ring was brighter than the planet in
1868, and that tho exterior half was
DINNER than tho interior ;--Cassini in
1878 said the difference in ltistre was
| like that of dead silver and of silver
| highly polished. At. the end of the
last century Iferschet discovered that
| the ring was double; and tho astrOn-
omer5 Encke and Nico subsequently
found there were two on terror and three
interior rings. Since then tho dis
covcrics of Lusseii, Dawes and Bond
more than doubled the number -
there arc at least etcrcW rings. Tho
interior and the darkest, is transpnrcnt;
for the body OF the planet can be seen
through 1t, as through cloudy water.
What arc the rings made of: 1t tx
certain that they arc not solid surfaces
tho peculiar and unparalleled tiattcn-
ing of the planet at it's poles confirms
the idea that the rings were thrown OFT
at IL period comparatively recent in the
astronomical history of our solar sys-
TEN. 1t is equally certain that they
are not wholly gaseous. Some regard
them as Il multitude of tiny spheres
moving in ono plane, separated into
bands according to comparativ We density
But it is probable that before we
shall have discovered precisely how
this multiple ring is composed, II 'rW
haze cedsrL 10 Gria.
Why: Because since the discovery
OF Saturn the most astounding changes
have been taking place in his girdic OF
rings they have been broadening in
wardly, approaching the planets sur
face at the rate Of one aStr. second, ,,
every century. In 1865 the distance
between the ring and tho planet was
estimated Mt sec. in 1896 it had de-
creased to sec. Sc; in 1851 to 3 sec. CT.
II is certain that should they approach
the planet at this rate the final crash
must come in the year $3.50!
1t will be something to look forward
to in the scientific future. The present
condition of the body of Saturn renders
it difficult to believe in the existence OF
intelligent life upon his surface; but
his eight moons are probably inhabited,
as our own moon was doubtless when
the earth was still a mass of heat. Tho
crash of Saturn's rings could affect i'll
r animate matter only, so far as we
know; and We might well hope that
remote cataclysm would occur in our
own day, as it could hardly fall to clu-
cidate more than one strange problem
in the history OF our solar system.
Twenty-Five years ago one could