Telegram-herald., 1890-02-26
on METEORIC SHOWERS
rsgs VISITS OF FREQUENT PtRS
oo.cAL OCCURRENCE
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In answer 20 several quesrsous regard
ing the frsqaency Of meteoxse showers
Professor Very said:
There are certain epochs IN Che year
when particular meteorio showers are
due. Assiduous observation has given
list of nearly 100 such showers In the
course OF a year. each OF which may DC
expected on acertain date from certain
part Of the heavens.
Particular showers have charscteris-
tie features; that IL some meteors are
very swift; others rather slow. Some
vanish and leave no trace, while others
are accompanied by tails and leave
streaks after the nucleus has dlsap-
peared. Few OF these showers last more
than one or two days, though there are
some instances where il is suspected that
successive msteors belonging 10 the same
group appear during several weeks Ger
tain dates have been noticed 10 be more
especially fireban epochs. That Is, the
rare event of an exceptionally large and
10 occur on certain dates
Jan. 25 is the date of the meteoric
| shower characterized by the swiftness of
It's components, which are usually at
tended by streaks. The radiant point Of
this shower is in the constellation called
| Bernice's Hair, star cluster-one of the
morning consultations. AS this meteor
is claimed TO have been seen IN the even
ing il is more likely 10 have been one of
the unclasSified sporadic meteors. lnfor-
nation as 10 the position of motion, ap-
parent brilliancy, color. time of appear
ance and length of time during which
the appearance lasted is likely TO be valu
able in the recovery of the principal
characteristics of an event which is neces-
sarily seen but by few"
"How do you account for these mete-
oric showers coming at regular periods?'
was asked.
"All that we can say is that the celes-
tial spaces are thinly populated in every
/ direction with these scattered fragments,
| which are veritable miniature planets
| travelling in different orbits around the
sun in many instances, and serving as
messengers from one star to another in
| others.
"The number of them is simply count
less. They make up in number what
| they lack in size, so that if we could
gather together all the minute members
that so to make up a group it might
make body of very respectable size, al
though the individual oomponents are so
small that they seldom escape complete
disintsgration and dissolution in their
passage through the atmosphere"
"What produces the great light which
always follows the passage of meteor?'
| "The light which is seen while the pas
sage of meteor through the air lasts
may be due partly 70 the combustion of
the materials of the air of life, but it is
mainly an incandescence of the condens-
| ed atmosphere which accumulates in ad
vance of an object which is moving many
times the rapidity of a cannon ball
often, / may say, with many hundred
times the rapidity of cannon ball. I'm
der these conditions even the seemingly
flimsy resistance of the air becomes as
great as that of a solid body, producing
intense heat, and in the case of large
meteoric stone frequently resulting in
| the fracture and demolition of the object.
| "Colored meteors are sometimes seen
with peculiar tint of the flame, being
| due TO the burning of some special ingre-
| dient of the meteor. We have yellow,
| green and occasionally red meteors, but
the majority are white like the majority
| of the stars. 1t cannot be said that any
| one part of the earth can be more affect
ed by these visitapts than another. There
is, however, a diurnal periodicity, the
larger numbers being seen in the carly
morning hours when that portion of the
heavens comes in view toward which the
the orbital motion of the earth is carry.
| ing us. We then see not merely the COM
| paratively few meteors whose speed is
sufficient to enable them to overtake the
earth, but that larger number composed
of all those which are gathered up in the
track of the advancing earth, whether
moving with against or athwart its
| course"
1.-The appearance of the collected re-
suits of the observation Of the total eclipse
Of Jan. /. 1899. shows that this event has
added many interesting facts TO the pre-
| vious knowledge Of such occurrences
A large and very perfect photograph of
the corona was obtained by Professor
William II. Pickering, of Cambridge,
Mass, and one of a smaller size BY Pro-
fessor Barnard, of the Lick observatory
These show the sheaves Of curling
fragments about the suns poles in great
detail, indicating the composite nature
of many of the individual filaments, and
confirming the photographs taken at the
| previous sun spot minimum Of 1878,
| thus rendering it almost certain that the
corona at this period assumes synmet-
rical form with regularly disposed fla
ments curving away on either side OF the
suns axis and broad equatorial wings Of
| less Disseminated structure.
"All this is very different from what
/ il seen during an eclipse when the ac-
/ tivity of the sun is in its height At such
| times the corona has r1ldely Qusdrila-
teral outline. with four wings projecting
from regions approximately 40 degs.
north and south Of the equator. and the
whole is made up Of curved branching
and interlacing streaners extending TO a
( much greater distance from the BODY Of
! the sun. and with the equatorial sheaves
less symmetrlcsl!y disposed. In regard
to the extent Of the corona, il IL difficult
7 TO compare successive eclipses observed
/ from different parts Of the earth with
/ very varying atmospheric condition. a
I small amount of haze viii blot out much
| II the fainter detail. The presence OF