The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1883-05-27


cumnavigator, who was to start last week on
his Greenland exploring expedition. proposes.
among other things. to collect all the facts he
can get concerning the fall Of what is known
as cOsmo or metcOric dust On the tops
OF high mountains and Oh the snow fields
Of the polar regions travellers have
found fine particles Of solid matter closely
resembling In its composition the meteoric
stones which occasionally fall upon the
earth. Tho conclusion is very natural that
this dust is n product OF the combustion OF
small meteors which are consumed by
the intense heat excited by their swift
rush through tho air before they can
strike the earth. and which, when
seen in the night time, are called
falling stars. Of course the fall OF such dust
Is not confined to mountain tops and the
neighborhood OF the poles, but for obvious
reasons II can only be readily recognized
when 1t falls upon permanent. or nearly per-
manent, snow fields at q distance from
uncovered ground and other sources
OF ordinary dust BRECKENRIDGE, how
ever, averred that no had been able to
pick out the grains OF meteorlc dust
from samples OF earth taken from elevated
plains and desert places, and from the
submits OF some OF the low German noun
tains which are not covered with snow.
EoRDENsKJOLD, who collected some Of this
dust from the Arctic snow fields during his
famous voyage In the Vega, says that the
discoveries made In that expedition show
that there is greater variation in the fall
OF cosmic dust than Is generally assumed.
and that, therefore, fresh researches upon the
subject are needed.
People are so accustomed to looking upon
the earth as practically the only material
body in the universe, and upon the sky as
the realm OF unsubstantial phenomena, that
it must seem to many startling thought
that our globe Is not only literally pclted
with mcteoric stones, but that as it advances
with the sun in his long voyage through
space 1t becomes covered, like any other
traveller, with the dust OF the journey, drift
ing in upon II from outer and apparently
| empty space.
Tho number OF mctcors which enter tho
earth's atmosphere is astonishing. On al
most any clear night several may be seen In
an hour, and occasionally large and bril-
liant fire ball darts across the sky, lighting
up the landscape, leaving glowing wake
and sometimes burstings into shower OF
colOred sparks like rocket. Within the
last six months an unusual number Of
these large fire balls have been seen.
When ono OF them strikes tho earth
1t is a sharp reminder OF tho fact that tho
space around us Is not so empty as 1t seems.
or course the portion Of the earth's atmos-
phere within view from any particular point
on its surface is comparatively small, and it
has been estimated by careful observers that,
counting those which fall by day and those
which are too small to be seen without
telescope, no less than four hun
dred million meteors enter tho atmos-
pherc every twenty-four hours But there
Is no evidence that the smallest metcors
which the telescope can reveal are the small
est there are. According to ALEXANDER
HERscHEL, even the ordinary shooting star
visible to the naked eye weighs only few
grains. Why, then, may not millions of mil
lions OF particles OF mere moteoric dust en-
ter the atmosphere every day unseen, and
find their way to the surface OF the globe2
III the solar system were standing still in
space and II all the meteors belonging TO 1t
were part OF its original substance, hurled
forth, perhaps, from the sun, or from tho
planets In the early stages OF their history,
such phenomena would DO sufficiently inter-
esting But tho solar system is not stand-
Ing still; the sun is daily carrying the
planets along with him into now regions
of space, and there Is reason to suppose that
meteoric bodies which have been shot from
distant stars sometimes fall within the suns
attraction, enter the solar system, and per-
haps pass close enough to the earth to be
drawn to its surface Baron NoRDENsKJ0LD,
| fr,, 10 n
OF Greenland metcoric dust which once
formed part OF the substance Of star in
some inconceivably remote region OF tho
| universe.
| Every advance in our knowledge OF the
heavens makes moro clear. the fact that
space is populous not only with light-giving
and DEMONSTRATING suns and worlds, but with
suns that have burnt out dead worlds, wan
dering comets, swarms of meteoric bodies,
enormous gaseous nebulD, and what else we
know not.
What part meteors and meteoric dust may
play In the economy of the solar system we
cannot yet tell. They can add no apprecia-
bic percentage to the bulk OF the earth oven
during the lapse OF ages, and 1t Is not proba-
bio that, as some have supposed, they con-
stitute tho principal fuel upon which tho
suns fires are maintained. But in entering
our atmosphere they become exceedingly in
tercsting on account Of tho effects they may
possibly produce. A few persons have been
Killed by falling meteors, but the dan
ger from this source is very slight in
deed. But can they affect lifo in any
other way? Sir WILLIAM THOMPSON did
not hesitate to suggest that the germs of life
might have been implanted on the earth by
meteoric bodies which had once formed part
OF other lifc-bearing worlds. After great
meteoric showers fine dust has sometimes
been found covering the ground. II we
could suppose that tho earth Is sometimes
carried into region rich In meteorlc
dust or other similar matter which Is at
tracted Into the atmosphere In consid-
cradle quantities, an explanation might
thus DO given OF some very singular phc-
nomena that have been witnessed in the past.
One OF the most remarkable OF these Is the
great Dry Fog OF 1888. 1t ovcrspread most
Of Europe and North America, Northern
| Africa and a larpe DOrtlon NJ ASia ron obi,o