Kansas City daily journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1892-1897, 1896-11-12
A METEORIC SHOWER.
Continued From First Page.

is not impossible, but it is unlikely. The
largest shooting stars do not seem to ex-
ceed a few grams in weight.
Although this cloud of cosmic dust is in
visible. we can calculate its position on its
orbit for given epoch; We can. for eX-
ample, tell where it is at the present mo-
ment. A comet describes the same orbit,
although rather less rapidly. 1t is the
comet which passed perihelion on January
IL. 1866. the period of which is about thirty
three years and sixty-seven days (S3.1S), and
which should return on March II, 1899, un-
less there should be perturbation caused
by planets. This comet is associated with
the shooting stars of November IA in an
intimate relationship, like the comet Of
1852 with the shooting stars of August 10.
and like Biela's comet with those OF No
vember q.
This is one of the splendid discoveries of
NJ. Schiaparelli, the learned director of the
Milan observatory.
We can, 1 say, calculate the position of
the cloud of which we are telling the his
tory and even point it out on its orbit.
That is what We have done. The central
part of the cloud is represented on the
figure at the spot where it will be on No
vember II. 1899, and on the same date in
1898, 1897 and 1896.
1t will be seen that it is at present very
far from the earth's orbit. But, as we
said. the cloud is so extensive that We
might already meet its advance guard, and
perhaps several clouds exist.
We have said that the meteors do not
form a compact mass, but are spread over
a considerable portion of their orbit. This
is the consequence of their individual
speed. Those who travel fastest are in
front, those whose revolution is more slow
are hehid, and each return to the earth
disturbS them and disseminateS them, and
the same is the case with regard to the
more distant action of Jupiter, Uranus and
Saturn
From century to century the current
spreads itself along the orbit and becomes
longer. There was a time when they FORM
ed compact swarm, and that time is not
very far distant, for otherwise the swarm
would be spread out into a continuous ring,
and would no longer exist as swarm.
The work Of dislocation cannot have be-
gun very long ago.
The swarm, which Is new to the planetary
system, could only have been introduced
and thrown into its orbit by the action of
Il disturbing and energetic cause, as hap
pened in the case of the periodic comets.
In analyzing this orbit Leverrier found
that the swarm had come very near Uran-
us during the first days of March in the
year 126 of our era.
1t had come out of space and had prob
ably a spheric shape, like comets which do
not pass in the immediate vicinity of a
y, a
action of Uranus must have given this
swarm the elliptical orbit in which it moves
and changed uneaually the absolute veloc-
ity of the corpuscles, and this action sur
passing the attraction of their total mass,
the swarm must have become dissolved by
stretching itself out along the periphery Of
the orbit, which was subsequently further
developed by perturbations due to the ac-
tion of the earth.
The extent of the dissemination increases
from period to period and one day the ring
will become complete. Then the falling
stars of November II will make their ap-
pearance every year in small and visibly
equal displays.
If Uranus had not stood in the path of
the swarm the latter would have continued
it's course. rounded the sun and started
again into space. But Uranus incorporated
it into our system, and this same action is
slowly displacing the orbit into conformity
with the movement of the planets.
At every appearance the earth defects a
considerable number, and without doubt
there exists ring composed OF numerous
independent bodies. the aphelion being in
the neighborhood of the earth.
There are also. in addition to the princi-
pal swarm, several separate condensations,