The Portland daily press., 1895-02-28
DARK SPOTS IN THE SKY.
Attempts of Scientists to Account for Them
Upon Various Theories.

Among the more remarkable appear
| anees in the sky which short-focus pho
toRraphs have revealed, the presence of
dark gaps or vacant places has been
much commented upon and one of our
most eminent scientists has formulated
the theory that the gaps are not real,
| but result from the presence of light alb
sorbing bodies in space which hide from
us the back ground of stars and nebulosi-
ties. Theirs seem as many difficulties in
accepting his view as the corresponding
one of star streams connected by nebu-
| lous bands, says an English journal.
| That opaque bodies exist in the universe
we know, and that such obstruct light is
evident; Eut the theory or suggestion Is
that these exist in large nun bers aud OF
enormous dimensions, especially III the
comparatively small space which sepa-
FL ties the solar system from the fixed
stars. The total bulk of these supposed
dark bodies would be enormous, since
they can scarcely be supposed nearer
than the nearest fixed star, and some
extend over several degrees of the sky.
| One degree at the distance of Alpha
Centauri means 400, 900, 000,0 900 of miles
| at least, while three degrees mean more
than 1000, 600, 900 If we believe then, in
dark bodies extending over even one
degree we believe their extent is about
seventy times the diameter of the orbit
| of Neptune. Ii they extend three degrees,
| they are more than 200 times that orbit
| But many must be several times the dis
| tance of A lpha Centauri, and an average
of these times cannot be considered as
excessive, which results in a length GOO
times that of the earth. No dark body
would visihly obstruct the light of the
stars if less than 1000, 900, 900 miles in
section. We have to decide for or against
the existence, then, Of many hundreds
! of dark masses far exceeding the solar
81 stem in Understanding it, i'll some
instances, thousands, if not millions, OF
tlmes-and all lying between us and the
S, stem of the stars. The visible heavens
become nothing in comparison with the
vast bulk of the total of invisible bodies
for we cannot assume that the whole OF
| the dark bodies of the universe are con-
nected in the solar neigh borbood, but
| must admit them to be proba bly, as mt
| merous everw here in space, and therefore
more numerous, as well as infinitely
| vaSter, than the stars and the nebulae
The total of the number and size re-
| quired to account for the dark gas vis.
BILE upon photographs is beyond compu.
| tation; but as the bulk of single ones
must exceed the contents of a globe the
size of the earth's orbit 100000 times
it must consist of mater millions of times
less dense than anything we know, anG
still be millions of times greater in mass
than the sun. The Shapes of these sup
posed bodies increase the difficulty
That tree-like forms should be spread
over much of the sky would be more as
tcnishing than anything we have yet dis
covered, but the process by w iich they
have reached this shape is more astound
ing STILL They are supposed to be out
rushes or uprushes of Opaque gas into {
resisting medium. But We are not tol6
from what the outrush can take place,
nor is there any evidence of the existence
of a furnace to produce SO much smoke
nor any OF a resisting medium to receive
it, OF force to prove it. OF course wbi lie
the theory is only propounded in general
tiles, it is more difficult to consider il
than if definite details were formulated