Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1890-11-22
MARS As AN ABODE.
THE PLANET HAS An ATMOSPHERE,
AND MAY BE INHABITED.


York Herald Of August, 1885. Hav-
ing bad the distinguished honor to
flint make known to the astronomical
world the important discovery that
Mars was not Q burned out or dead
planet, Professor Hall naturally
takes great interest In all matters
pertaining to Mars revealed through
the observations Of other astronomers
in different pats OF the world.
Professor Hall said today he had
read the interview published In the
Paris edition Of the Herald with the
celebrated French astronomer, Cam
Tile FlAmmarion. / asked him what
he thought Of Flammarion's views.
He replied:
II concur heartily In his views
and think they are very sensible.
Professor Flsmmarion reasons from
analogy, and that Is the only way
we can reason upon the subject. We
zee white spots upon the surface Of
Mars near the pole. These spots In
crease in the winter time aud de-
crease In the summer. Naturally
we infer that they represent masses
Of snow. The planet Mars has much
the same climatic Influences rs our
earth, with probably corresponding
seasons; therefore II Is reasonable to
suppose that snow can fall there.
"Other conditions Of analogy with
our earth from which we may de-
duce reasons for supposing Man in
habited are that the planet appar-
emily has an atmosphere; there is
water upon its surface. and the axis
Of the planet inrlines 10 the plane of
the elliptic like that Of the earth, and
therefore the planet would probably
have our seasons.
PLANTATION coRBoBoRATED.
81 observed Mars in the early
part Of last June ut the Naval OBJ
se.vatory with our 26-inch eqsatori-
al telescope. That was the most
favorable opportunity for otservs-
ton during the year, being the
period when Mars was opposite the
sun and nearest the earth. / saw
at that time the marks and spots re-
ferred to by Fiammarion, but did
not see them double, as the Italian |
Schiaperelli, at Milan,
observed several years ago. He has
made an elaborate drawing Of them,
and from their narrow and regular
forms they have been called canals
Of water probably from one to two
hundred miles In width, stretching
across the equator Of Mars. These
groups Of canals were found all
along the equator. AS I witnessed
the phenomenon the two edges Of
the canals observed by Schiaperelli
seemed merged into one. At this
last opposition Of the planet 1t was
far south and, therefore, rather un-
favorable for Northern observers.
the two satellites, ormoons,
ami found them very near the pre-
dicted positions.
SIN 1877 got out the elements Of
their orbits and times Of their rota-
lions around their planet. The OBJ
Of last June showed these
lines Of revolution predicted then to
be nearly correct. |
THE NoONs.
"The moons Of Mons are very
mall bodies Of matter, probably ten
niles in diameter, the planet itself
icing 500 mills In diameter. One
4 the moons Is within three thous-
md miles Of the surface Of the pla.
yet and the other Is fifteen THOUSAND
niles away from Man. think the
inner moon is q little brighter. The
heory Il that these two satellites
rere thrown of from the planet, and
ne, like our own moon, devoid Of At
nosphere. |,
s.If there are Inhabitants upon
fars they witness the peculiar ,
ight Of enc moon rising In the east
nd another in the west, the other
ising In the west and setting In the !
asst, both shining at the eame time I
nd crossing each other's path In I
The day Of Man ID
wenty-four hours and thirty-seven {
In length. The inner moon Z
oes around Mars In seven hours I
nd thirty-nine minutes, while IL I
Ike the outer moon thirty h0un I
nd eighteen minutes to describe I
9 circuit. The phenomenon Of the /
70 moons meeting 10 caused by the &
lore rapid flight Of the inner moon. {
"ro sum up. then, the elements '
analogy between the earth and .
lie planet Man for the purpose Of /
rawing . theory by anology - TO d
Ne Inhabitants Of Man, we have &
le following points Of supposed c
milarity In the general physical Y
,nditions Of the two planets: At q
Iosphere. wafer, corresponding sea- c
M, sunlight moon, about the same Q
myth Of day and presumably Fain O
I'd snow. Y
'sOnce In fifteen yean Mar comes X
~ near the eaxth-that is, within 3
irty million miles, which h near "
hen it y remelnbered that when
oct distant from M Nam b two
lndred and forty million miles
ray. This occaaion will arrive In
80, when no doubt some very in
resting phenomenon will be OBJ Il
we'd" q
low THE DlscovERy Was MADE. :,
what were the incidents SUI. y
anding ysur discovery Of the =
,ons Of Mani" I asked. Is