The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1886-09-08


Tho sun, the centre of the solar system,
is of vastly greater importance to the people
of the earth than are all the other heavenly
bodies, including the moon, taken together.
Without the suns light the earth would be
in almost perpetual darkness, exceptas light
could be obtained artifcially from Gil, ga,,
electricity, etc. The light which the moon
and planets give is all reflected from the
SUM- Perhaps in some small degree Jupiter,
Saturn, and one or two others of the larger
planets shine with Indifferent light. If the
sun should be suddenly darkened, however
even lordly Jupiter would sink to the posi-
ton of fourth or fifth magnitude star il
the amount of light which it would give the
earth. Without the suns heat the earth
would become vast ice field, and all or,
ganic life would be swept away. The earth
would present scene of desolation more
appalling than that which the TELESCOPES
discloses to our view on the surface of the
moon.
The sun is about ninety-two million, two
hundred and sixty thousand miles from III,
earth in mean distance. In some portion
of the earth's orbit the earth is nearer than
this to the sun, in other portions it is fur
Their off. This inequality in distance is
caused by the fact that the earth, like the
other planets, travels around the sun in ~
elliptical PATH with the sun in one focus
The suns distance has been measured IL
various ways-by transits of Venus, veloeit,
of light, etc., and the margin of error in tLt
computations cannot be greater than 100.-
600 miles at the furthest. The human mind
can have no adequate conception of this
distance By counting two every second,
md continuing this twelve hours a day, the
count would reach only 81 ,536 900 in
whole year by working Sundays and holi.
days. II would take almost three years,
therefore, to count one for every mile in
distance between the sun and the earth. A
fast express train travels about 500 miles
day. If a train started at that speed ON the
day when Columbus first caught sight OF
land belonging to the American continent,
and continued at that rate of speed until to-
day, it would not have traversed four-fifths
Of the distance between the earth and the
sun.
The SUMS diameter is about 1856, 00t
miles. This is nearly 100 times as great NJ
the diameter of the earth. A railway train
travelling at the rate of mile a minute
would have to run five years without stop
ping to traverse distance equal to the suns
circumference. II is about 900, 600 times
larger in volume than the earth and about
800 900 times as heavy. Therefore the
materials of which the earth is composed
are about three times rs heavy, in proper
ton to size as those oil which the sun is
formed. The forcs of gravity at the suns
surface is about twenty-seven times as great
as ON the earth. A man who weighs 150
pounds ON earth would weigh more than
two tons if placed on the sun.
The sun revolyes on its axis once every
,wehty-six days or thereabouts The exact
period is not known. The only guides as
TO the time are the sun spots Observations
made ON spots on different portions of the
suns surface furnish different results Spots
at the SUMS equator showed period of
about twenty-five and one-third days and
other spots twenty or thirty degrees remov-
ed from that portion of the sun indicated q
period about day longer than this. This
would make the suns period of rotation
o little shorter than that of the moon.
The shining surface CT the sun is called
the philosophers. Viewed through glass
his philosophers is seen to be dotted with
one or more groups of dark, irregular shap-
ed spots or holes, varying as to size and
number. Some spots measured over one
hundred thousand miles in diameter. Into
an opening like this this 144 bodies like the
earth could be thrown at one time, all en-
tering at the same instant without one i'm.
pinging ON the other or ON the edge of the
opening. The dark central portion of the
spot is called the umbra, and the border, o,
shaded portion, the penumbra.
The sun spot groups vary greatly in num-
Der. Sometimes as many as $50 are seen in
year and other times rs few as twenty
-four. The years of maximum number since
1927 have been 1928, 1887, 1848, 1860,
1871 and 1882. The years of minimum
number have been 1888, 1884, 1885, 1867
and 1878. Very few spot groups are likely
to appear in 1882
Physicists have discovered, or believe
they have discovered, a connection between
sun spots and magnetic storms tornadoes,
etc. They declare that the meteorological
disturbances on the earth are greatest dur
ing the years when these spots are most
numerous From the latter part of 1882 up
to the latter part of 1883, on this theory
The storms should have been more numer
ous and destructive than during the years
say, of 1880 and 1881 and 1885 and 1856
Whether this has been the case or not VIZ
do not know TO a certainty. The number
of severe electrical storms in the past four
or five years, however, it ia safe to state,
were greater than in the same length of
time beginning about eight years ago, as
those who have carefully read the newspa-
pers will believe.
About thirty years ago Stanley Jevons,
the English political economist, thought he
could trace connection between sun spots
and prices of grain and famines in India.
Other eminent persons have accepted this
theory, and at the present time has many
adherents. Frederick Chambers, an Eng
iibhhuh tSnldihS Al Aleiit, III hh utticto III
London scientific journal, made an elabor
ate comparison between spot variations anc
changes it wheat prices in India, which led
him to declare that direct relation has
been established between the two occur
rences. There is a fall in price, he states,
once every eleven years, corresponding to
the variation in the number of sun spots.
The lowest prices he found occur in all the
districts in India about three years aftei
The years in which the number ofspots have
been greatest, and the highest prices about
one year befor the year in which the num-
Der of spots have been fewest. or course,
if these deductions are confirmed by fur
Their observations of spots and prices, law
can be formulated by which, within certain
limits, the prices of wheat, corn, oats, ETC.,
IAN be foretold for considerable length of
lime in the future, not for India alone, but
for the whole world This theory may ex-