Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-11-20
How Far Away Are the Starsf

From Iouths Companion.
OF the hundred million or more stars
which are visible with astronomical instru-
ments, the distances from the earth of only
q very few have been measured with even
an approximation to accuracy. Most of the
stars appear to be so far away that the
change in their apparent place caused by
viewing them from opposite sides OF the
earth's orbit-and that orbit is about one
hundred and eighty-six million miles across
is so slight that IL escapes certain detec-
ton. Only about fifty stars have thus far
yielded definite results in the attempt to
measure their distances. and even those re-
suits are too often exceedingly conflicting
and uncertain. The nearest star thus far
discovered is one Of the first magnitude
not visible from the United States or Europe
1t is the star called Alpha in the constelIa-
ton OF the Centaur in the southern hemi-
sphere of the heavens.
The distance of this star appears to be
something like twenty trillions of miles, or
about two hundred and fifteen thousand
times as great as the distance of the sun
from the earth. The next nearest star, as
far as known. is a little sixth-magnitude
twinkler, barely visible to the naked eye.
IN the constellation of Cygnus, popularity
called the Northern Cross The distance of
this star, which is known to astronomers
as VI Cygni, is variously estimated at from
forty TO sixty trillion miles. or two or three
W.
The brightness of the stars. as We see them
is, then, no measure OF their comparative
distance. very bright star may be much
more distant than a very faint one the
difference being due to the greater magni-
tude OF The more distant star. Sirius. or the
dog-star, for instance, which scintillates so
splendidly in the winter sky. is more distant
than the little star 81 Cygni the latter
being in fact very much smaller sun
than ours while Sirius is a far larger one
1t thus appears that while the efforts to
measure the distances of the stars have not
been very successful, yet they have result
ed in giving us a wonderful insight into the
arrangement of the universe of suns I'm the
midst OF which We dwell They have prov
ed that large stars and small stars are
scattered through space at various distances
from one another and from us; that the
dimensions of the blazing bodies which we
call stars or suns, vary TO an enormous ex-
tent; and that our own sun great, glorious
and overpowering as il seems to US, really
belongs to quite inferior rank
But it is possible that before many years
our knowledge of the distances of the stars
may be greatly extended. Spectroscopic in
vestigation in the case of binary stars as
those are called which circle in pairs around
their common center of gravity is begin
ming TO help US a little in this direction
Recently, for instance, Mr.. @. w. Coles ir
has calculated. from the results of such m
vestigation, the mean distance of ninety
five stars situated in the northern heni-
sphere of the heavens, and he finds IL eoual
TO the distance which light would travel IN
about one hundred and fifty years That
distance is not less than eight hundred and
seventy trillion miles, or more than FORTY
three times as great as the distance of the
nearest known star, Alpha Centauri Yet
enormous as such a distance is il is nearly
certain that the average distance of all the
stars composing the visible universe is still
greater. And here and there the starry
heavens, even in their richest regions. pre-
sent black and apparently empty spaces
through which We seem 70 look out from,
the bounds OF the visible universe into
fathomless depths beyond But is there
any thoughtful mind which can avoid ask
ing itself the question. What lies beyond?
When We come 10 the outermost star of the