Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1891-09-02
A STRANGE REQUEST.


any means Of communicating with I'M
other world, planet or star. The planet
liars was suggested in tho will IS the
most convenient heavenly body on
which to make tho experiment.
This proposition may seem ridic-
uloa*. but it is not any moro so than the
idea of James Lick, the founder of the
Lick observatory" said man well
vcrscd il starry lore.
Tho Lick bcqucSt to build tho great
telescope wa3 intended to establish the
fact whether not the moon l. inhabited.
Now let rs consider the difficulties in
the way of this project. The distance
of the earth from the moon may be
stated in round numbers as $4,000
miles. 1t is - fact recognized il mill
tary science that q man can be fairly
distinguished by the eye 1T = miles dis
lance. In making calculations rcrard-
ing vision it is the general rule to csti-
mate that to be seen 4 mile away an OBJ
jcct rauGt be half yard wide. The
best telescope has 4 nagnifyiug power
OF 1000 diamctcrG. Half the distance
to the moon Is 10000 miles. Divide
this by 1000, the magnifying power of
the glass, and you get sixty yards rs tho
minimum size Of an object IN the moon
dlsccrniblc by the aid Of the telescope
from the earth. So an object must be
$50 feet wide or thick to be moro than
an apprcciablc dot. 1 have lacda the
most liberal allowances il this coInpu-
tation. The atmospheric conditions
mrGt be perfect and 1000 is IN unusual
~ high power to be used by working
astronomer. -
IF an object must be $50 feet thick
to be 5cca from the earth Oh the moon
it would be best to make it 900 feet. re
give tho Inhabitants of tho rnooa an
idea that there arc Intelligent bcinrson
earth 1T would be necessary to place,
say, three objects in view of the moons
people, let them remain for til-.c ar
ranged attic angles Of IL triangle. Then
they might be changed SO as to be in y
straight line. The man in the moon SEQ
ing these phenomena might conclude
that there were Intelligent beings on
earth Gal arrange for some correspond
ing signal to the inhabitants of earth.
But while this seems possible it shows
how prcpoGtcrouG would bcthc attempt
to determine with the most powerful
telescope now in use whether the moon
is inhabited.
Now. rs to the proposed comiauni-
cation with NIIrI. At the tim, vhan
Mars and tho cart.l arc nearest to each
othcr-arc in p2I'ihclion- the distance
II in round numbers -. O10. 00J of miles.
Take half this distance and Won have
H,50o,OJJ as tho number of wards, that
represents the size Of nn object in Mars
that could " SCH that distance WITH
the naked eye. Divide this by 1000, the
power Of the bigFcst telescope, and you
have $40 rs the sic Of the smallest OBJ
ject plainly. disccrnihlc at such q dis
taucc with the telescope. This Is equal
To about five miles.
San object III tho planet Mars could
bc perceived as a little larger than u
dot with the aid Of the largest rcfrac-
Tor and under tho most favorable, il
fAct absolutely perfect, atmospheric
and other conditions if it was five miles
in diameter. This is when the planet is
nearest to US. On the other hand, at
that time nothing on the earth could be
diSacrncd from Mars, because the earth
would DC in straight line be. wccn the
two and III the blaze of the suns light
An inhcbitant of that planet would
have to wait until the earth was il
some other part of Its orbit, and tho
distance between the earth and Mars
would then be many times as great rs
III pcrihclion. So it would DC necessary
TO construct an object. to be disccrniblo
ON tho earth from Mars, say twenty
miles in diameter. 1t might be circu-
bur i'll form. Other structures not in
3crior in size would have to be erected
ut distances of not less than twenty
Miles from each other. Then after these
had remained for II tim, their relative
positions might be changed. These
bodies. moreover, to be clearly dis.
singuishcd frora the surface of Mars
must be intensely luminous. a solid
ball of electric Eight twenty miles in
diameter would suffice.
''Considcring the size Of the structure