The sun., 1893-02-12

What theorists can do was once more sifnaltv
demonstrated by the discovery OF Neptune
through sheer calculations based on the per-
| turbations Of Uranus 1t 10 now acknowledged
| that these calculations were carried on stimuli
itaneously and independently by Leverrier In
Paris and Adams In Cam bridge. The planet
Neptune was first knowingly seen by Gale Of
Berlin on Sent 23. lS4a
Preeminently with tho name OF Bessel is as
| ISOLATED the calculation OF the distances Of the
stars and the discovery OF stellar planets. 1t
was Bessel who. by means OF the heliometer.
solved the problem OF stellar parailax. and
thus enabled us to determine the distance and
real rate OF travel Of many Of the stars. The
quickest moving stars as yet known are a
double star OF tho sixth magnitude called 81
CyEni. and one OF the seventh mag nitude called
| GroombridGe 1880. The velocity OF the latter
is 200 miles q second. The nearest known
stars are III Cygni and a Centnuri. The dis
tance OF these stars from us is about 400. 900
times tho distance of the sun. Sirius Is more
than n million times further from us than our
sun is and twenty times as big. Many OF the
brightest stars are at more than double this
distance. the distance OF Arcturus is too
great to measure even now. The stars. it is
well known. are suns. most likely surrounded
by planets. Ono planet belonging to Sirius
has been discovered. 1t was predicted by
Besse: its position was calculated by Peters.
and IL was seen by Alvan Clark in 1862. An
other planet predicted by Bessel as belonging
to Procyon has not yet been discerned. al
though its existence is credited.
1t Is impossible for the human mind to fully
grasp the Gaming Of the figures representing
the distance OF the stars. Prof Lodge essays
to help us to comrrehe end them by the following
suggestion: suppose" he says. I'VE could
arrange some sort Of teleErarhc vehicle able
to carry us from New York to Liverpool in the
tenth part OF second-that is. in the time re-
quired to drop two inches-such a vehicle
would carry us to the moon In twelve seconds
and to the eun In an hour and a quarter.
Travelling thus continually. in twenty four
hours we should leave the last member OF tho
solar system behind us and begin our plunge
into tho depths OF space. How long would 1t
be before We encountered another object2
month. would one guessp Twenty years we
should have to journey with that rrodiCious
speed before We should roach the nearest
star. and then another twenty years before
we.should reach another. at such awful dis
tances from one another are the stars scat
tered in space: and were they not brilliantly
self-luminous like our sun. they would be
hopelessly invisible
There are. no doubt multitudes Of stars that
will always be invisible to us. and some that
can now be deserted will not be. visible here
oitohs Vo hdN0 poou tno QulCkebC moving
stars are those known as 81 Cygni aad
GroombridRe 1880. Owing to their relative
quickness Of motion. they have been de-
scribed as flying stars. The actual speed OF
Groombridge 1880 Is about 200 miles second
a speed greater than the whole visible frma-
ment OF 50.OO0.O00 stars can control. Unless,
therefore. the universe Is immensely larger
than ANYTHING We can see with tho most pow-
erful telescopes. or unless there are crowds Of
invisible non-luminous stars mixed up with
the others. immensely multiplying the at
trnctive power OF the orbs visible. the
star known as Groombridge 1880 can
only be q temporary visitor to this franc
pf things 1t is travelling from an in
Unite distance to an infinite distance: 1t Is
passing through our visible universe for the
first and only time: it will never return. Yet
so gigantic Is the extent OF visible space. that
even with its amazing speed OF 200 miles
every second this star will need two or three
million years toget out OF sight OF our present
telescopes. and several thousand years before
1t gets perceptibly fainter than it is now.
VIII.
We would not wholly overlook a chapter in |
which Prof, Lodge considers the nature of |
meteors or so!called shooting staxsl +Wo or |
dinarily see them. aa more streaks OF Light
sometimes they leave a luminous tail behind |
them: occasionally they appear as actual
llreballs. accompanied by explosions: some
times. but very seldom. they are seen to drop.
and may subsequently be dug up as Jumps OF
iron or rock. showing signs OF rough treat /
ment by e1coriation and hent. These last arc
the meteorttes or aerolites Of our museuma
They nre popularly spoken OF as thunderbolts.
though in reality they have nothing to do with
electricity. They appear to be
r rayno,ilnS ,ni rocky or metallic FRAGMENTS which
gnited through, the effect OF Fiction. Far
Sodesp s e 81 these
= the sun and and beg began moving toward
Eradpally. creator and greater Until. by
he time ne i III has aPprHaehed to within the dis
vi sat Of snp mes
second; It will be remembered that the earth
@oging 9n Its own miles
would be terrific: and the Iaintest trace Of at
you'd exert FURIOUS grinding action on the
'tone; stream OF PARTICLES would be torn off:
ilipgs from a flrework. thus forminr for o@tr trail.
md the mass itself would be dlsspated. shat.
to in ~ On
o be moving in the same direction. the stone
would only have a, difrerential velocity Of
g 9 chance for residue Of the nuclcus
y ior thS hom meteor o, to escape entire destrue-
iou. though ". WOulu 20 BcrupeQ, neateu, |
md ,superilcially melted by the friction
4 the ,earth's. atmosphere: nevertheless,
ut q i. that, on striking the earth. it
night bury itself only few feet or yards in |
he soil. SO that it could be dug out The num-
,er Of meteoric stones. however; which thus
Yearly all get ground up and dlss sipated by the
Itmosphere: and fortunate, it is for. .us that
hoy are So. Their bombardment OF the ex-
'osed iace Of tho moon must be something
errible. 1t follows then that every shooting |
tar we see and all the myriads We cannot see
because they occur IN the daytime represent
lie death and burial Of ono Of these dying
tones. 1t has been cnreering On its own ae,
ount through space for untold ages till 1t |
meets planet II cannot. as a rule, strike the
ctual body ofthe planet, for the atmosphere
ion reduces it to dust in nm instant, and this
urface. The quantity Of meteoric material
rhich reaches the earth in the form OF dust
. ust he immensely in excess OF the minute
uantity which arrives in Jumps. 1t is esti- {
natcd hy Prof. Lodge that hundreds OF thou
anls Of tons Of me;eoric dust must be- re-
civrd in every yeaf.
As 10 the structure OF comets. the scientific i
inrd i. not entirely agreed. According TO ]