Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1889-05-24
SHOOTING STARS.
THE SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION
OF 'METEORIC SHOWERS. +
Some Rare and Historical Colestia,
Phenomcna-Thc Wonderful
Relationship Bctwe m
Comets and Mcteors.


seen during an evening. Flashing out
in various quarters of the heavens, they
are seen to dart across the sky, with
motions more OF less rapid, and with
br,lliancy more OF less marked, some
down toward mother earth, others across
The starry arch, leaving behind them n
phosphorescent glow generally visible
only for moment. Larger meteors
(and the term ut this stage can only be
used in expressing their size by their
| light often leave behind them a ycry
marked glow, much like faint cloud.
and which when the meteor's flight is
thus marked, usually remains suspended
in the sky for some cons .derablc time.
The writer saw such II meteor on the
night of August ., 1888, which left in
/ its path grccnish gov, visible to the
naked eye for fully twenty minutes.
Such occurrences are rare, however, and
few are witnessed in lifetime. In
stances are on record of metcoric showers
visible in broad daylight, and wcll-at.
tested statements have bceu made of
single metcors Of great size seen to fall
IN various parts of the country between
! sunrise and sunset
NIctcoric showers have in numerous
instances been so marvellous that the fall
presented an appearance like that of n
light fall Of illuminated snow. One of
the earliest of recorded phenomena of
this character, and which is well at
tested, was witnessed by humboldt aud
l3onpland early on the morning Of
November II, 1892, during their visit to
the cast coast of Mexico. Another we'll
attosted statement is that of Arago, the
we'll known astronomer, who on the
niuhf IF - -,
that both occurred on the same dav of
the same month, and divided by Il space
Of thirty-four years., witnessed such n
marvellous shower that he estimated dur
ing his observation of three hours 24O.-
COO visible me:eors passed over the
heavens. ~ rough estimate of the num-
Der of mcteors. su ticicn,ly bright to be
seen by the naked eye under favorable
circumstances, and those Invisible, ow-
ing TO the daylight, and which enter the
earih's atmosphere during the
space of twenty-four hours, is
about 1000, 1000. Some wcll.known
scientists. taking into consideration
those which 'woIld be re called ii the eve
possessed the light. grasping power of
our larger telescopes, increase that nun.
Der to about AGO, 600, 600. We often
hear of the falling of "graat balls of
fire, with startling explosions follow
ing. Scientists tell US that these So
called balls of lire are really compact
groups OF small meteors. When such n
group comes within tie attraction of the
earth 1t is drawn rapidly toward her sur
lace. The encounter with the atmos-
phere separates them and at the same
time consumes them, producing no little
agitation OF the air, and thus causing the
sound. This action of separation and
burning would give result in some
cases much like that of rocket explod
ing in the air, with which display all are
familiar.
Instances of mcteoric bodie falling to
earth are comparatively rare. To enable
it to reach the earth the mass of matter
composing meteor must be Of sufficient
bulk to prevent complete dissipation or
consumption during its passage through
the atmos sphere to earth However
showers OF stones are matters of history.
On the tn of April, lS0&, such shower
occurred ut L'Aiglc, in Normandy. The
number of meteoric stones within q space
OF fourteen square miles was over 1000.
This fall was accompanied by "bright
light and loud explosions" The height
at which meteors first appear visible is e
much disputed question. Estimates
made by we'll known observers give re-
suits varying FROM forty to ninety miles;
the average velocity accorded them
being about twenty-six miles per second,
or nearly half "a fast again rs the earth
travels around the sun. Some mcteors
however, have been observed to possess
velocity of over l0l miles per second.
or $500 miles per hour
Perhaps the reader will ask: ''Why
hrc these bodies burned up?" The
answer is this: Suppose two bodies
moving in space with such great We
locity and in independent orbits en-
counter; what will he the result? A
sudden check of their motion converts
that motion into heal. This rule ap.
plies in all cases. In the case of the
earth and the metcors the action is
identical. The mean rate of motion of
the earth in her orbit is about nineteen
miles per second. Moving along at this
rate she encounters n co,i, of meteors
whose motion is further increased bv the
attraction Of the greater body. The
cloud OF metcors encounters resistance in
the earth's atmosphere and the friction
produced converts the motion into heat
so great that the metcoric bodies are
'"Pitly ulsSipateu. vi course, some
heat is generated i'll the earths Amos.
phcrc, rs its share OF the encounter, but
the relative amount of the bulk. or
quantity, is triiing. 1t is stated that
the amount OF heat ordinarily deyelopcd
10y the above described encounter is
enough to vaporize any known sub
stance almost instantly! The fact that
the greater number OF meteors are con
sumed and disappear before they reach
the earth is sufficient evidence that their
mass is small. Such of these metcoric
visitors as have been discovered on the
surface of the earth and after xard an.
allyzed show, in general, only terrestrial
clements.
Distinction is made between "acci-
dental metcors" and 'metcoric showers. -
AS relates to the first named, their visi.
bility is common at all times and might
DC called accidental" because they
usually appear in widely different quar-
tiers OF the sky and possess widely differ
ent paths. "Meteoric showers make
their appearance in certain portions of
the sky.that is they appear to radiate
always from some particular constclla-