New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-08-02
THE SATELLITES OF MARS.
OBSERVATIONS AT LICK OBSERVATORY.
THE TINY MOONS OF THE PLANET EASILY DIS
CERNED BY THE AsTRoNoMERS-A DIS
APPOINTMENT FOR THEORISTS.


rr,u IN 20 last evening the sky was entirely over
cast of the observatory but the observations OF 'he
planet Mars were resumed as soon as IL ciedr'u up
During the moments OF cloudy weather rrVi"'
Campbell. Schaberle and Barnard iurnlsheu lhe i''
rortno additional particulars regarding the pending
onposltiOn: At 10 O'Clock the evening OF Weohes
dav August 3. Mars will be In opposition With the
w hi distance from the earth will approximatc
n 900 600 miles and will be then nearer than at any
timo since 1877 when Hall discovered the two
satellites and closer to us than IL VIII ne asai"
until 1909. During the last MONTH Mount han'il'o"
astronomers have been observing MARS ourihs t"o
hours Of each night, when the planet Is on the
o,d,or and tbev will continue these observations
aor Of least one month more. The highest magnify
In, nower that II is practicable to employ Is 100
dIameters equivalent to the distance OF the plahe'
being so 900 miles. The planet at DeSt Is very ~" "
the sky and with low altitude The plane, un
steadincss is due TO the atmosphere causins M
markings at times TO disappear. Inc t"o sa'en'.'
~ Mars the two smallest objects known 10 the "hoe
~ ,h ,,oscore They are conspicuous
objects in the :j6-nch telescope and nave Deen See
nv all visitors to Lick Observatory. Inc eclipse Vi
the inner satellite in the planets shaoo" - a,.'
observable since the outer salelhte ooes HUI 'u".
an eclipse Mt the present time IL 10 h''0'",
obtain the positions OF that satellite py icro"e'
rn,osrreman,s which are made regularly, In order
n
can Of Mars was unusually bright and large niohV"
AGO hut if IS rapidly diminishing in size and bright
moss This variability of the pohr caps ii'u leo
astronomers to believe that they are composer
-, s,ow and Ice Tho south polar cop
dminshes accordingly as summer In that heIh'ePne0
comes on and increases with the advent OF winter AZ
tha nresent time there are numerous dark markings
within the polar cap II there were large areas from
which snow had disappeared. These markings had no'
tafo nt observatory.
tho sour face known as the Lucius solace Is now seen
neorly as It appeared through the thrtysxlhch 'eie
scope during the opposition of $780, ana very ai'A'.
from It's appearance as shown IN the urawi"e' VI
schIanorclu. The Fons Auvend fountain OF youth
the large dark region heretofore seen SINGLE ho"
appcars double through the large reiractor'
Hut the most remarkable OF all the oDseFVen p'c
,on.n, orc three or more prominent bright prolec-
tion on the southwest limb OF Mars. visible Tor SOW
e,d night, for a short time each evening aoouC uiVc
weeks ago. They will probably be NSiole Oh t'le
,u,bca.t limb in about two three weeks. when II
Is hoped to determine more fully their character Ap
nar.utlv these projections arise from very bright
regions in the planet Whether they are hSh nEnil-
tainS or are due TO oollo otNoI N'i0 ~
impossible to say.
I'm 10 the present time Schaparellis "canals' nave
not been seen double. Drawings OF the pane aie
made on each clear evening. Ihese oa"ih7S "'.
0nallv be- converted into single map at the close oi
the summer observations. Last night the South po'"f
o, ucas very complex and numerous dark markings
,ire vSslhIe The unique spectacle Of markngs In
the snow caps has been noiel not ohy ~lth 1o 20
telescope by schaberle ana GSpoG pd e oS aim lime ago
thai on one night dark streak would appear aciSs
the polar cap and that %eIf n large PORTION Of the
poar pno SiPcaveres iu,t made al Modnt Hamilton are
n,ere,ting and scientifically valuable Tley are, IN
bief a contradiction Of the supposed coNnns ni %,
denion 81 n Of the extraordinary satellites
moons Of body, which TO all other telescopes ae
mere dots Ot light
in Wars vhatcver they may be, are broad strips and
NOT narrow lines just they were seen through the
Lick tclescOpc two years ago. This VIII be Ditt'r
to many visionary theorists VINO nave
f,und in the existence Of these canals ara par
tcnlarv I'm the announcement that all were seen u
lc danlcd most ind> >puable evidence that Mars was
inhabited by human beings.
rto most startling Of all Mount Hamilton observa-
tions ore those made on the two tiny moons Of the
planet which were first discovered by Asaph Han IN
Washington during the opposition of 1871 ana "m'h
ay6 since been seen brief intervals and only In the
cry largest telescopes Not only have these lt'e at
iond,ntS ,by long odds the fintcst planetary
I.dlc, b be sccn anywhere In the siyl been
in main view for the best part Of the month. but
of late astronomers have regularly observed their
rcIr-cs in the shadow Of Mars The news OF thS
work AT the Lick Observatory Will be received with
,re,te, a,.onlshment at all those observaor"s which
posses, telescopes Large and powerful enough to show
The usn, for at most ~ them II has only been pos
pc io gllmp.e the tlay bodies by the most persistent
fcrt. and astronomers loath to believe that the
lick telescope enables these minute pccks Of light 10
be steadily followed right mp 10 the limb OF the planet
The director Of the observatory states that the
satellites are seen to disappear In the eclipse upon
reaching the line Of the shadow with almost the same
Instantaneous effect which l. when the dark limb
Of the moon passes over a bright star IN the Sky
Within Il space Of only two t"nths Of second the
whole body Of the ur1on IS seen to be immersed In
,hadow east out into space by the globe OF Mars
II f, almost impossible 10 convey a proper idea Of
The insignificant ,zo Of these little satellites or the
extraordinarily small scale upon which their orbits
arc drawn. The inner ,1tct. IS pobably about
eight miles In diameter. and the outer Cne about
twenty. TIE first is less than 1000 miles from the
surface OF the planet and the other about three times
tnat distance They rcyo.yc 80 rapidly abolt the
planet that the inner one appears to move through
the sky from west to east. a"d consequently rises in
the west. It completes one revolution In less than
eight hours that II seems 10 be new" three times
= day. In ono evening this little attendant passes
through all four "QuartcrS of The moon" The light
which they give the planet at night must be very In
lgnIlcant As seen through the giant ref,acor they
a ppear 10 bc mere points of light with sensible
disc 1t has only been possible heretofore to estimate
the size OF these bode' by comparing the amOint OF
light reflected by them with that reflected from the
panct Mar, itself. which size Is known. but now by
means ~ these "ecllp'e" observations. astronomers
Lave a direct mcaure Of their size since II + found
hat each Of the satellites moves lis diameter in
abOut twO-tenths of q second and astronomers can
easily tell from knowledge Of their orbits Just what
pace In miles each OF them moves through in that
time.
II i quite certain that the Lick Observatory studies
OF the planet Mars during the opposition OF 1S92 will
pass into history.
Rochester Aug. 1.-IrCfesSOr d. p. Todd. director Of
the Amherst College Observatory who Il guest Of
Trof4 s)r swift at the Warner Observatory and Pro
fessor Swift last night observed both the little satel
lite, Of Mars with the 16-inch telescope OF that OBJ
~crvatOry They are visible OnlY during few weeks
In fifteen years They were discovered and last
In 1877. This S the first time thev have ever been
By any telescope in the State of New-York.