New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-12-15
THE SOLAR CORONI
From The PHILADELPHIA Press.

from Inc Phlladclphla Press.
The object which will chiefly engage attention duinc
the coming solar eclipse december 22} Will Le M
corona II IS now universally admitted by astronomer,
that this is "A substantial reality and not AZ W. a.
one time thought by many observers a merr efact a.
The glare of the ealths atmosphere but it, nature am,
its relation to the sun have not VET been all anu
determined. one theory of the corona. which ha.
been advocated with a considerable show OF pIamSi
KNOWN 10 De cltlns IN enormous numbers around The
sun, aud which, IL has been Supposed become vi.iII
the sheen of the carths atmosphere much as the din
In dafkrncd room j. made visible BY ray of sli
streaming through It. But there are several rrc,iar
features presented by the corona which thi,
not explain. and II has never obtained a very Vii
assent among astronomers. with different eclipse, the
vary in very marked manner. But among H. co,
slant features "a depicted by observers and a. show
coronal light AT different points around the sum- c1,
the shcaves' or wings of light which often sfIra,,
out 10 distance of many times the suns dian,ot,,
and certain structural details Of singlarlv
lines particularly IN the region Of the suns poee
theory OF bodies Of meteoroids either masset or
IN c0metary orbits around the sun ''S
The spectrOscOIic analysis Of the cOronal IcI,,
placed sill another obstacle In the way of III" nt na
theory a. Least in hi, original form In 1869 Pro
Of each other certain green line In the ,pcct,,, -,
the corona which indicated that at least a nnr W
Of It's light was emitted 10y glowing gaS This Ca,
which IS unknown to terrestrial chemistry has bcen
found al distance Of at leaiI half million nile
lighter even than hydrogen. "''
The specroscOpe cannot tell whether the light wLh
"a IIfre 4
reflected light. The spectrum Of moonlight for
ample Is similar In every RESPECT except in inien.t
10 that OF the direct light Of the Al thi, MIN,
the p0lansc0pe comes INTO use. and the Testimony a,
this instrument, when directed to the c0ron9 ho
served 10 cOmpcate matters not little 4 nor,i
al least. of the cofona Hight appears to be relccti
possibly from solid bOdl@, of the natur, Of mcto,'
but since the pOlaIiZat on j. usually found IN 49,
greatest at a dstaEce from the sun, dmln,bing g.
the nclghbOrh0Od Of The sun. where the spectrum Ina,
the most conspicuous, fair inference has Seem.
be that the In the suns immediate vcint,
Is caused by solid liquid particles OF matter wh
shine by their own Hight.
The remarkable variations In the form Of the Comma
arc now thought tn exhibit close. although fbor,
plained, sympathy with the varying energy ~ o.,
indicated by the periodic Increase and dnInu
ton In the number Of It's spots IL has been Observed
that when spots numerous the corona /, o,,,n
uniformly distributed about the sun. and that ,i,c
sheaves." which then of no great length. arr he
most prominent above the regions Of the spots IN,
eclipse Of 1871 occurred N a time when the NUMB,
OF sun-spOts at a maximum, AMI the corona then
likcned by Professor Jansen T. "A gantlc
daha painted the sky. the dark moon being H.
heart and the pointed sheavcs OF the halo arOnnd to
moon Us petals. Al the eclipse Of 1873. which va.
observed In the United states under circumstances fL
most favorable poss BILE. the corona prescne1 yerv
remarkable divergence from this form. The nearly
unanimous testimony OF those Who saw this erln.,
that the body Of the was quite restricted
In extent, but that In direction east and west along
the ecliptic II expended into two immense wings Of
vanishing light the extent Of which was estimated
variousH by different obSsrvsrs.