Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1893-09-29
RAYS OF The SUN
Scientists Say They VIII Some
Day Die Out
SOME INTERESTING FACTS
A Learned opisloa u That ia Time
the solar iAxhs and Heat VIII
ysnlsh Inss Darkness.

50 far - orr present knowledge goes
IL wonld seem that the brightness 81
any sanllke BODY i - be attributed
solely "a the transformation in sssne
fashion Of mechanical power into heat
To take our own sun ns an cram pie.
Il Is now an assured doctrine that The
heat 20 necessary for eur welfare =
sustained by the gradual contraction
Of the solar volume. The energy
In this process seems sufficient "a sup
ply the radiation OF the sun. not only
for ages such a. those we reekon In
the human period. bat even through
cat a lapee of time 90 vast a. that
which geology demands for the forma-
ton If the earth's crust. writes SIR
Robert Ball In the Fortnightiy Re-
view. Bat Il Is certain that the guam
tity Of possible light and the heat 10
be dispensed by the sun Is limited in
amount The.sun cannot shine on for
ever. A time must assuredly como
when the orb. az present 40 brilliant
viii have no Eiore potency for the ra-
diation Of light than Is at present pos
sessed by the earth or the moon. In
like manner II can DC shown that the
materials constituting the sun have
not always been luminous We cam
not, indeed. say with certainty by what
influence their brightness Wa origi-
nally kindied- It-probahiy arose from
a collision or an approach 10 COLI
sion. between two dark masses which
happened TO come 20 an encounter with
enormous vegocities in their progress
through space. IL Is. however plain
that the ares during which the sun has
been brilliant form only an incident.
that quantity of matter of which the
solar system Is constituted
Notwithstanding the millions %
thousands OF millions of years which
that matter has existed. il has. per-
haps. only once become so heated. ow-
ing 20 the circumstances which we
may describe as accidental or casual,
as TO have acquired the ample light
dispensing power of the sun. II Is.
however, possible, that such periods Of
light-radiating capacity should have
occurred more than once; they may
possibly have occurred several times
throughout the ages of time past Nor
Is 1t likely that the last phenomena of
this kind have yet arrived. The sun,
after the lapse OF uncounted years.
will lose all its heat. and pass into n
black. dark mass In that form II may
endure for an epoch so protracted that
the spell during which IL has acted rs
the luminary Of our system will appear
bat q moment in comparison with the
dark ages which succeeded the solar
splendor. But we can conceive that
the darkness. which Is the doom of our
system. need not necessarily be eter-
nal SO far "a IT'S materials are con-
cerncd; 10 may be that again in the
course of its wanderingsthro space
the tide of chance may at length bring
the dark and tremendous globe SO near
some other orb that another collision
shoald take place with appalling We
hemence. The solid materials shall
again become transformed into stu-
pendous glowing nebula, and then. In
the course Of the tedious contraction
OF this ncbula, another protraetcd pc
riod Of brilliance will diversity the ca.
reer Of the great body, and may las,
long enough for the evolution of plan.
cts and of whole races of highly or.
ganized creatures. The essential point
of our present consideration must not
be misunderstood. A little reflection
will show that any periods Of bril-
lance must be regarded as exceptional
periods in the history of each body.