Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1891-05-29
FACTS ABOUT The MOON.
Professor Young Skaters Some Popular
Superstitions Regarding 1t.
Uau,. V't,,.ns

Professor c. A. Young gave an interest
in q lecture on the moon III the astrOnOml-
cal course which is being conducted I'M
der the auspices of the University Exten-
siol ut Cooper Union. The audience was
attentive throughout the Professors rapid
summary of the peculiarities of our satel-
lite and looked with interest on the views
of the moons surface, produced from
raised maps photographed and used as
stereopticon slides.
The moon, in the first place, has nothing
whatever to do, the lecturer. said with the
changes in our weather. He had known
some farmers in the West who would never
plant root crop" except on the wane OF
the moon. while n growing-up crop, ike
wheat or other grain. he would always in
sist on planting when the moon was wax
ing These notions, as well as those held
by some sea-captains. that the wind would
blow for a week from the quarter IN which
the change of the moon took place, were, he
declared, without the slightest foundation.
The moon was an insignificant body IN
herself. 1t was her proximity to the eartn
that gave her astronomical importance. At
the same time her position was unique
among satellites. She was by far the
largest in proportion to her planet OF
twenty or more satellites IN the solar sys-
TEN, being one eightleth the weight OF the
earth while no other satellite exceeded
one thousandth Of the weight of its planet.
PECULIAR MOTIONS.
In the peculiar motions taken by the
moon there were certain elements which,
the Professor said, the law of gravltatlon
might not full account for. Astronomy
would one dav reach the limit OF accurate
provision, and would reach the field where
such elements of uncertainty would creep
i'm rs the effect of the human will. Speak
inc with exactltude, tor instance, man
could not build tall building on the sur
face of the earth without lengthenlng the
dav by the change in the position OF matter
involved. Such changes as this when ac-
cumulated through long periods must pro-
duce effects that would make the astro-
nomical problem a very difficult one-ln
fact, an incompatible one-some day.
The heat that the moon sends had been
measured. he said, and found TO be
1-1GO 900 of that sent by the sun, while the
light was LEGO. 900 of the sunlight. The
"earth shine" if we could observe it from
the surface of the moon, was fourteen
times as brilliant as that we now saw from
the moon, and from surface that was
about four times as large as the full moon
exposed TO us. This brilliant light was re-
tiected back from the moon to US slightly,
rendering Just visible that part OF the
moon in the shadow at the time OF the new
moon.
The moon, said the Professor, had no at
mosphere to speak of. It's surface as
shown by the slides was mass of circular
volcanic craters Of peculiar formation, but
rent by mysterious assures, which started
from the crater of Tycho IN all directions
like the streaks on the skin of an apple.
These assures were about half a mile in
width, and extended into the body OF the
moon nobody knows how far. They cut
through craters and mountain chains in
straight lines. and their explanation was
not yet. Some had attributed them to the
congelation of the central mass, like water
frozen in glass globe. Bits OF the noun
tam scenery of the moon were thrown on
the curtain, and seemed very unattractive,
though evidently grand in their very ugli-