Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-04-24

with filaments directed toward the bottom,
reminding US of a shower of rain falling
from a heavy cloud.
The eruptive flames are not of long dura-
tion. They shoot up into the celestial
heights with incomprehensible rapidity,
falling back frequently upon themselves
like shower of fireworks, and dropping in
rain of fire on the blazing surface, where
they vanish, spreading out like a rosy
smoke; it is at times as if we saw the flames
of violent confagration driven by the
wind These cloudy protuberances last
for long time, sometimes for several
days and sometimes for weeks. These
formidable explosions are often thrown up-
ward with . velocity the more surprising
in that the surface of the sun, being neither
solid nor liquid, does not offer the resist
ance which would be met by volcanic erup-
tions or by any projections whatsoever on
our planet. This leads us to believe that
the surface of the sun is composed of a gas
extraordinarily condensed, even to liquid
condition, or to the viscous consistency
of pitch. Velocities have been measured in
these eruptions of 800, 600 and 400, 900 yards
per second.
The Intense Heat of the Sun.
But what are all these flames in COMPARE
son with the magnifcence of the solar cor
ona, which constantly envelops the dazzling
orb in an aureola of glory and light, and
which darts its rays to distances exceeding
the entire diameter OF the sun! What raysl
What grandeur! We are only beginning
to-day to possess the elements of the solu-
ton and understanding of this important
problem.
Important it is, indeed, as is everything
which touches upon life. 'The present
order of things" writes Young, Seems to
be limited, in the future as in the past, BY
terminal catastrophies, which are veiled by
clouds which have SO far been impene-
trable." 1t is, above ali, the question of
the solar heat and of the feeding of these
flames which interests the most. 1t is GER
tain that this temperature is so high that no
one of our chemical combinations is possible
there, and that the elements there remain
dissociated. 1t is a fire so hot that it no
longer burns Its most probable thermo-
metrical valuation is 100000. A being who
should come forth from that temperature
and should lie down upon sheet of iron
heated to whiteness, or on stream of fused
metal, would think himself living upon
snow. The rays of the sun concentrated in
the focus of a lens instantly melt platinum,
clay and the diamond; now, the tempera-
ture thus obtained evidently cannot surpass
that of its origin, the effect of the lens being
simply to virtually place the object nearer
the sun, at such a distance that the solar
disk may appear on it equal to the lens itself
seen from its own focus. The most power
full lens which has vet been constructed
thus virtually transposes an object which
is at its focus to within $50, 900 miles, or
loo, 900 leagues of the solar surface.
II the Sun Were the Moon.
We conlude thence with certainty that If
the sun should approach US to distance
equal to that of the moon, the whole earth
would melt like ball of wax and would in
great part become vaporized. 1t is most
happy tor us that the orb of day is so far re-
are transmitted by our nerves with the
imagine child with an arm long enough to
touch the sun and be burned by it, this child
would never feel the burn. To travel from
his hand to his brain the nervous impress
sion would require not less than $50 years.
The child would have become an old man
and died long before the pain could have
travelled from the end of his arm to his
brain.
At constant speed of kilometer TX of
mile) minute, an express train would
take las, 600, 900 of minutes to travel from
here to the sun-or 266 years. period of
seven human generations!
Who could imagine, who could depict the
ardor Of that celestial fire, intense enough
TO bring to the boiling point in an hour,
], ,362, 500, 000, 600 cubic miles of water at
the temperature of ice, rich enough vet to
burn without pause through 10000, 900 of
years! Ii We could approach it without