National Republican., 1883-07-17
SPOTS ON THE SUN.
The Two Theories on Which Scientific Men
Account for Them.
They Probably Have No Effect Whatever
ON the Things OF This Earth.

The Foundry church segment of the Chau-
tauqua Literary circle, under direction of Mr..
G. II. Wood, and numbering some twenty-five
ladies and gentlemen, paid a visit TO tho OBJ
servatory last night. The night was singu-
larly beautiful. A nearly full moon swan
with voluptuous grace through pearly,
translucent atmosphere. Only tho brighter
stars were fully visible to the naked eye.
Those in tho southern hemisphere, Antares,
and, to n less extent, Spica, were under tho
influence of the moons rays, but those in the
northern sky blazod IN superb splondor. Par
ticularly noticeable were Arcturus and Alpha
Lyra, while the stars of the Dippcr shone
out in tho cool north with glory ri
valing that of the frosty skies of De-
cenber The moon presented the most
favorable object for observation, the hour Sc
lectcd by the party being too early to notice tho
majority planets and upon the silver counto-
nance of Dian, therefore, did the party cast
most of their interested glances. The beauty of
tho moon, however, could not stand the severe
test of the telescope. The fine silvcry surface
under the magniiiers and rcflectors showed
wrinkles, and seams, and gashcs gigantic
crows feet, impressed by the weight OF a hum
dred thousand years, which no celestial cos
metic could hide from the searching eye of
tho telescope. Yet around that mysterious
sphere hung the beauty of a mystery so grand,
so silcnt, so impressive, that the hidcous
wrinkles of her waterless seas and the un-
slightly warts and corns of her Titanic mount
aims could neither affect nor disturb.
While the Chautauquaneso were engaged in
transmognifying the moon with the telescope,
and analyzing the component stars Of the
binary and quadruplicate nsterismO in Lyra
Bootes, the reporter called on Capt Sampson
to gather some information about sun spots.
That gentleman was found upon the steps of
his dwelling, gazing upon the fantastic ara
besques, which the moonlight was weaving
among the grand old trees. 1t was lovely
scene, q kind of paradise. Into this paradise,
however, as into its first great prototype, the
serpent had entered and left its trail on tho
fairest flowers. The serpent in Capt. Samp-
sons paradise last night was mosquit0es--the
first of the season. 1t is rather difficult to en-
joy the moonlight while busily fighting off
gallinippors.
"Can you tell me anything about sunspots?'
asked tho reporter.
Every little satisfactorily"
"Are there any evidences that they are in
creasng?"
mo; on the contrary they seem to be de-
creasng."
"They have passed their maximum then?'
ut would seem so They were particularly
active last autumn, but then subsidized, until
about two weeks ago 1t seems to be estab-
lished that they occur in cycles of eleven
years duration, and the maximum of their
present cycle has been reached and passed
"What connection is there between atmos-
pheric cyclones and solar tempests?"
None whatever, so far as scientific knowl'
edge is concerned. There is n connection
however, but one not fully analysed, between
sun spots and terrestrial magnetism, as
evinced in auroral displays. There is no
evidence of any connection between earthly
| cyclones and solar disturbances. There Seems
| to be some relation between these sun spots
aud the earth's rainfall, but not, l believe,
fully weighed and valued"
"What is the origin, Captain, of sun spots?'
"That is matter of hypothesis merely
| The two most generally considered are tn,
volcanic and tho cyclonic. The first, popu
larly speaking, accounts for the solar spot
much in the same way that a crater is formed
| in terrene volcano. An eruption of incin
descent gas from the fiery depths beneath tn,
solar surface, through the disrupted photo
spheres, causes n kind of crater opening. TIL,
gas acts In and about the crater, absorbing t,
a certain extent the light-that is to say, pre-
vents the full radiation of the intensel,
cleaning masses below, as cloud above tn,
earth absorbs tho sunshine, and this creates
shadow, so to speak, dark by contrast with thu
ineilable brightness around 1t. The Other
| theory is the cyclOnic, This is the counter.
part, in tho incandescent photosphere of the
sun, of the atmospheric cyclones Of the earth
An indrawing, vorticial character has beel
observed about these solar disturbances
which gives some countenance to theory. TIL,
comparative darkness of the spots is formed
in the same manner as in the volcanic
theory. The latter appeals to mo more
strongly than the cyclonic hypothesis. d,
IL ot indorse either
"You say, then, that the maximum of tn,
sun spots has passed."
"It would seem So"
"And that we need not fear terrestria
cyclones therefor2"
"Connectng terrestrial with solar cyclone
is an inference---a speculation-not accepted
by science, nor oven made plausible enougl
TO be, as yet, gravely considered"
| With this rather comforting assurance tn,
reporter came away.