New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-01-03
CELESTIAL MEASUREMENTS.
A LECTURE BY PROFESSOR G. A. YOUNG.
THE FIRST OF A COURSE on ASTRONOMICAL SUB
JRCTS.


Professor Charles A. Young, of Princeton College,
began last night course of six lectures on astron-
omy in the Church of the Strangers, IN Mercerst''
near Clinton place. under the auspices OF the Lecture
Committee of the church. The disoourses
of the series will be delivered on
successive Tuesday evenings the last
one occurring on February 6. The subject OF last
nights lecture was Celestial Measurements" The
subjects vet to be treated are "The Sum-" The
Moon and Eclipses" 1.-The Planetary System"
Meteors and Comets" and The Fixed Stars and
Nebule." Professor Young purposes to treat these
themes in popular style as possible giving some
account of the various methods USED by astrono-
mers in conducting their observations and inVesti-
cations. He appeared on the platform last evening
at FIVE minutes after o'clock, accompanied by
the Rev. Dr. Charles +. Deems pastor of the church
In introducing the Lecturer DIR. Deems said
This church believes that science is help 10 religion
as regop 20 science we . worTs dnpjns the
week This of lectures lie the begnnngo or series
and next winter we trust to be able furnish another
course that ought 10 be well attended thank the
present course, and ask that they will continue their
generosity shall not say WORD abop. Iae W o,
should be that we mean to have mon VINO
can teach us what we ought to know have yee nohoF
Princeton College
Professor Young at once began his lecture speak
ing in q conversational tone, with considerable
rapidity aud without notes. He described the diff
culties of obtaining accurate results In the meas
uremens of long distances, and also how difficult IL
is for the human mind to comprehend the vast num-
bers of miles be taken into account In astrono-
mical distances He gave accounts of the methods
of obtaining base lines and angles the system of
measurements by triangulation. of the manners OF
obtaining celestial distances by means of observa-
tons on the velocity Of light and by observations
on transits He was listened to with close attention
by large audience. and warmly applauded at the
close of his lecture full report of the discourse is
appended.
THE LECTURE.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN: | always feel
little embarrassment In bringing such subject as that
am TO bring before you tonight TO the at
tendance OF popular audience. because /
know that it ia not amusing one. very good
friend of mne who has delivered lecture upon astron
omical subjects Of neighboring cities wrote
DAY two ago. hearing that was to lecture on
the Transit OF Venus" asking "How can you make
right Tangled triangle amusngf think the subject
hat to bring before You is an interesting one
know OF nothing In the whole range OF science
that more thoroughly illustrates the power and
reach of the human mind than thls-tbe reaching
out into innity astronomical science has done. and
measuring the dimensions and distances OF the heavenly
bodies 1t satisfies the appetite for knowing,
and that Just much part OF us as the appetite for
eating and more noble part. The better part OF US
grows by learning Just the material part OF us does
by taking food The eye does hunger in while TO
look up and try to get hold Of the methods and prin-
ciples by OF which astronomers and others have
come TO knowledge that they possess Of the worlds
about us.
OF course I need not tell any OF you that you
live on little ball OF water and rock. which
ia not hung in space. as the biographies tell
us-no more hung than the ball that has been
struck By the bat Of balplayer-bnt rushing
through space with velocity moro than fty times as
great as any ball. The bali on which we live 10 moving
around the sun, and moving the same way rs the
earth we find eight larger planets four of which are
conspicuous. Now, we have been able TO make out
pretty certainly size aud dimensions OF
That is not very difficult We have reached out fur
tncr and arc able TO tell with considerable ac
curacy very nearly how far and how large the sun
is We are trying reach for the stars We cannot
tell exactly far they may be. but we know that our
nearest mel ghbors at most tremendous distance
beyond the reach OF human conception The earth Is
about g. 900 mikes IN diameter. III you could mako a
straight railroad around the equator 10 would take
inst about twentysix days TO make tho circuit
of IT, at forty miles hour. without
any change OF stations No practical means OF con
yeyance will take you around 1t In less than three
months Then the moon, our next neighbor, Is about
thirty times far away the earth's dametcr-about
24o 600 miles. That Ia not very ncOncoyabe. Then,
four hundred times great that Of the moon-about
95, 900 900 o. miles
Those figures nothing until you take an illustra
tIon Take railroad from the earth to the sum- with a
train running forty miles an hour without stops,
and IL would take about 2G5 wears aud
little ever 10 make the journey. So that, II the
first settlers OF this country. at the time they started
from the mother country had started from the by
this railroad they would BIO Just about reaching this
country now very few OF them could have Afforded
it, for even at cent mile the fare would have been
100000 You seei There are very few people, even
I'm New York that that could afford 10 go 10 the at
that rate of cheap fare But when we como to consider
the whose distance s two hundred thousand
tunes as great do nothing With It, even In our
Imagination II we should count the money that 1t would
take for railroad journey to it, even at cent milo
it would come hundred thousand millions OF dol
iars-a hundred times the amount OF the National debt
NJ the United States do not suppose there ia money
enough In the world to the fare of person The
credit OF this illustration. however Is due TO an English
gentleman
HOW TIE FACTS ARE AsCERTAISED.
Now how do we get these facts For they are facts.
iust az certainly 1t is many miles from here to
Boston The first thing is TO consider the size and
di,nensionsl OF our own earth. That Is not
very difficult. and can be got at with very
reasonable degree Of accuracy. The earth is
"a round as O smooth ball. as the globes
Won In the stores in proportion 10 Its Size Look at
one OF the twevench globes and the letters printed on
the globe fairly the continental elevations
rivera valleys. oceans etc. Now, how do we lind that
a. s abonI 5000 miles IN diameter Simply by meas
urng pieces OF IT, 10 reduce things 10 simple form, let
ns take two stations the earhs surface, situated on
the north aud south line suppose We go merely from
Mobile 10 Washington. OF course You Know
mat le is the distance no"th
and south of and also the heigh o. tho pole
The pole s.ar goes around IN little circle, ana me
middle of Il ia the pole. and there Is particular DIM
entity in telling Just how big1 up the pole il above the
horIzou That can b. measured very accurately. We
viii do that ar Washington and do IL at Mobile We find
mat the Latitude OF Washington is 50 much aud t1at AT
Mobe so much. Now how many miles s II between
them9 That mu be measured with extreme accuracy.
Thaf ia done by method that viii explain more FUZZY
in a few moments. TriangulatOn was the method EN-
poyed in great continental surYey5-the geOdetc
survey, the ordnance survey OF England, IN France
and elsewhere. We determine the distance between sta