The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1883-12-22
A GREAT ACHIEVEMENT.
yhotoyraphlng the Hammers of the
Sun and Its Corona.
New York SUM-

Last summer DR. .lggins, the. distin.
sGe,ned spectl5asc1to biss.:dd str England, made
the surprising announcement that by
means Of an arrangement for isolating
certain portions of the solar spectrum, he
had succeeded in obtaining photographs
Of the suns corona. The possibility OF
such feat was doubted, but when DIR.
Huggns's photographs came to be critic
ally examined, scientific men were forced
to admit that they bore a striking resem-
blance to the coronal circle and streamers
seen around the sun during an eclipse.
Since then DR. Huggins has pursued his
experiments with continued success, and
he now reports that he has obtained re-
suits confirming his first announcement.
II he really has succeeded in obtaining
photographs of the corona, he has made
the most important improvement since he
succeeded in making the so-callcd promi-
nences, or red hydrogen flames, of the
sun visible, in full sunshine, by means of
the spectroscope.
The corona presents one of the most
difficult problems in modern astronomy.
Heretofore the wide silvery circle, and
the long, beautiful streamers and broad
bands OF light extending out to great
distances on every side of the sunlike
silken banners, have been visible only
during total eclipses, when the over
powering light OF the great luminary is
concealed by the opaque body of the
moon, and the eye is thus permitted to
see the comparatively faint but astonish-
ingly extensive surroundings of the sun.
But DR.. Higgins, unless he is mistaken,
has been able to photograph these banners
of the sun even when they are concealed
from the eye by the glare of daylight.
1t can readily be perceived that this
will give great impetus to the study Of
the solar surroundings. While the red
flames of the sun could be seen only
during total eclipses, astronomers
were greatly puzzled by them, and it wa.
even doubted whether they really were
phenomena belonging to the sun. But
after way wss contrived of making then
visible when there was no eclipse, theil
nature was quickly understood, and thel
followed the astonishing series of discov
cries which have made known to us tn,
gigantic fire geysers Of the sun, which
sometimes spout flaming gases to heigh
of 100000 or 300, 900 miles. 1t shoult
be remarked, by the way, that thes
solar eruptions are not like geysers ii
having fixed location, or in bursting
out at regular intervals at certain spots
They burst out wherever it happens, al
though there are certain regions on tn
sun where they are frequent, and a
eruption probably never occurs twice i
the same place.
Our knowledge of the coronal append
ages of the sun is now in somewhat tn
same state as was our knowledge of tn
hydrogen eruptions before the discoverie
just described, and DR.. Huggins's recen
experiments promise to do the same thin
for the corona that previous experimen,
have accomplished for the other class {
phenomena. If they advance success
fully, some very interesting and possibl
startling discoveries respecting the sun
outer surroundings may be expected
Men are only just beginning to lear
what wonderful thing the sun is, an
how very small proportion of its ph,
nomena is known to those who merel
look upon it as the god of day, in whoi
absense the world is plunged in gloom,