, 1886-04-15
a CHAPTER ON MsTEoRITes.
The Products of Expulsions from suns.
from Giant PIAnsts. ETC.

from ol8nt AAuuNA 9tC-
Meteorites. meteor streams and comets,
according to a new but apparently well
reasoned theory, are to be accounted
products of expulsion from suns, from
giant planets and from orbs like our
earth when in the sunlight state" 1t has
been found from animation Of meteor
ito that nave fallen upon the earth that
they are practically identical with
volcanic products. Mr.. Ball, astronomer
royal for Ireland, admitting the volcanic
character of ~meteorites, argues that most
Of them were elected originally from
volcanoes of this very earth on which we
live. Every mass, he shows, great or
small, elected from tho earth by volcanic
action with a velocity exceeding seven
miles per second, would pass beyond the
earth's control and enter upon a path
thenceforth carrying it around the sun,
but crossing the earth's rack at or near
the point where the election took place.
But for perturbations due to the attrac-
ton of various heavenly bodies, the
crossing place would always be at that
very point. Every meteoric mass elected
Is therefore exposed to the risk OF re-
capture by the parent earth.
Nothing in the present action of our
volcanoes would suggest an eruptive
power capable of ejecting matter with a
velocity of seven miles per second.
There is a abundant evidence, however,
that the earth was once in a state re-
sembling closely the present condition OF
the sun, and what the earth did in its
sun-like youth mus be inferred from the
present behavior of the center OF the
solar system. The sun, being 1877, 900
times as massive as the earth attracts
bodies on its surface with vastly greater
force, and would therefore need to give
to a meteor to be hurled beyond its CON-
troll n velocity of 3S2 miles per second.
Yet, us the suns strength Of election is,
like its attractive force, proportioned to
its mass, it can hardly be pronounced
impossible for that body to hurl meteoric
matter into space with a velocity OF 3S2
miles per second.
In fact, on turning the telescope to the
sun, we find him performing prodigics
even greater. he has been again and
again observed in the act OF ejecting
bodies from his interior with such
velocities that not even his mighty at
t~ractive power can bring them back
again.
In one such outburst velocities Of 400
miles per second at his visible surface
were indicated, which would leave a
margin OF si1ty-eight miles per second
more than is required to take elected
matter beyond his control. If the sun
1oes this now, other heavenly bodies, and
the earth itself, when in the sun-like
state, must also have done likewise.
giving origin thus to innumerable
families of comets, meteor streams and
isolated meteors.
Confirmatory Of this view is the fact
that certain comets and meteor systems
are associated with certain planets. The
meteors of November IA, for example,
follow in the track Of Temples comet,
which passes very near the orbit of
Uranus, and the meteors OF November 81
follow the track OF Bieia's comet, which
passes very near tho orbit of Jupiter.
Long before the Significance Of the phe-
nomena was noticed Mr.. Proctor wrote
of the comet families OF the giant plan
cts ns a topic for investigation. These
comet families travel around the sun as
their ruling center, but in paths passing
near, severally, to the track Of Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus OF Neptune. The re-
semblance between the popularity and
the intersection OF tho earth's meteor
streams with the earth's orbit is too strik-
ing to be insisted Baltimore Sun.