Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-06-19
ASTRONOMY CLASS.
APRo6LEM THAT THE STAR sAARPs
 ARE TRYING TO SOLVE.

The Nearest Fixed star-The Distance RIl-
 Hons of Miles-So Far Away It's Loca.
 tion Can He Appreciated Only by Com
 parison With Known Distances.
 An interesting discussion took place recently in Paris at meeting of scien- lists as to the distance of the nearest fixed star, A number of astronomers had been asked to make observations of a certain star, and then to report tl2e result of these observations to the meeting.
 It was discovered that no two caicula- tinns agreed, but the astronomers de parted with feelings of great satisfaction. for in no case was the difference between any two results greater than 20, 900, 900, 900 miles
 There are eight planets moving about the sun, of which the earth is one. and aStronomers have calculated, with very little chance of error, the distance of these bodies from each other and from the sun. The various results can be con veniently recorded in miles
 But when we come to the fixed stars. which arc themselves suns, many of them far larger and brighter and hotter than our own sun, and around every one of which 1t is not improbable that a family of planets is moving, the task of computing distance is far moro difficult. The abyss of space that separates us from our nearest stellar neighbor is so enor nous that the human mind cannot even form the slightest conception of it. Even astronomers. who are suspected by some of possessing minds of moro than human capabilities, confess that this dis tance cannot be adequately represented in terms of miles.
 Nor IS tho ordinary astronomical unit, or distance of the sun from the earth. sufficiently largo to be convenient in ex- pressing the distance of the Stars-that Is, if we attempt to denote the distance of the nearest fixed star by stating that 1t Is ''So many times the distance of the earth from the sun" it is found that this unit is entirely too small to be used with convenience, though it measures 9S,000, ,000 miles.
 Experience has shown that it is moro satisfactory to take as unit the distance that light travels in year, which is
 
 earth from the sun Thus, if we say a particular star is at distance of ten light years we mean that it is so far away that it will talc ten years for its light tO reach us, SuppOSing it tO have just Sprung into existence.
 IL k curious to think that such com rarativcly insignificant creatures as hu- man beings. inhahitinS fifth rate planet, revolving around third ratc sun. should be able to compute with any degree of accuracy the enormous dis tance 0f any one of these stars. The maSnltudcS arc SO great that the Ordi- nary mind can comprehend them onl, when they arc represented by some il- illustrative comparison. This may be done as follows:
 If We select any flat surface. such as level fold. and place on it a globe feet i'll diameter We may consider this the sun. Mercury, which is the nearest planet t1 the sun aS we'll as the smallest of all the planets, will be represented bv n grain uf mustard Seed at a distance of 8 feet, Nenus will he indicated hv a small pt'a at distance of l42 feet from the aforesaid globe. The earth will be slightly larger pca 2l5 feet from tho glutr Mars will hrCume a rather large pinhVad at a distance of 321 feet from the central body Jupiter, the largest of all the planctS-iu fact, larger than all the others put tuSCthcr-will assume the roSpectahlo dimensions of n moler- ate sized orange nearly quarter of mile from the globe. Saturn, the beau tlful rinGcd planet, will be represented by n small orange two-fifthS of a mile from the mNCk sun. Uranus will be a full sized cherry or a small plum three fOUrthS of a mile from the same object. Neptune, the most remote of all the planets, so far as known. will be fairly indicated by good sized plum at dis tanco of li4 miles,
 If, however, we attempt on the same scale to indicate the distance of the near est fixed star. we impose a heavy task on our power of imagination. Fur such a star would hc represented by another globe, about feet ill diameter, at dis tance of 5000 mileS-in other words, at the antipNleS. at the other side of the earth, Nn tho end of a line drawn through the earth center from the globe rellrCSC ntng the sun.
 In lN3S BeSScl SucCtpied ill demon StratinS and measuring the parallax of the star known aS 6l Cygni. and then. by q protractrd series of calculations, ill determining the distance of this star as 60, OO0. GOO, GOO miles This announce- mCnt created great sensation in the scientific world, and the fortunate BeSSel was loaded with congratulations and medals of honor. Then Struvc published the rSultS uf his observations of the Samo star, in which he located it at not less than l0,0 ,000, GOO, 900 miles. Curious ly enough this announcement was re- Ceived a> a confirmation of BeSSel'S dis covery. A matter af 20, ,000. GOO, GOO miles was tritle
 However, one star is known to be nearer than 6l Cvgni This is the star known as Alpha Cantauri. which is sit uated in the left foot of the conStella- tiOn of the Centaur in the southern heav- enS. It is never visible in northern lati- tudcS, and its distance is about S5, ,000,- GOO, GOO miles, This distance is repre- sentcd in terms of light years, as ex- plained above. by S.6-that is to say, if this star should suddenly spring into ex- istence from nothingness We should know nothing about it until nearly fouI years had passed New York World
 His Escort.
 1t seems funny, says the Manayunk