The Dickinson press., 1896-10-17
SEEING THE INVISIBLE.
Astronomers Mapping Stars Beyond
the Reach Of the Telescope.

Astronomer Mapping Stars Beyond
h Reach Of the Telescope.
In the Cosmopolitan for September
there is an interesting discussion by
Camille Flammarion Of the New Eye
Of S%cience-the sensitive plate of the
astronomers Photographic apparatus
and of the international undertaking Of
producing by photography a chart of
the whole heavens. The human eye is
an admirable instrument, but its pow
ers are severely limited. 1t sees SLOW
~. 1t requires for vision a compare
lively strong light, and it retains no
record of what it hos e The photo
graphic apparatus of the astronomer,
on the other hand. vastly surpasses
the natural eye in these particulars; it
sees more quickly, has a steadier gaze,
reaches forther and makes an uner.
ring record Of all its visions. 1t re-
quires but the half-thousandth part Of
a second for an observation, and with
in that brief period accurately maps
the whole field in view. Directed to-
ward any point in the sky. it discerns
in the depths of infinite space worlds
tho human eyes has neye seen, and
could never see, .vrn will, the aid os
the best telescope. What the sensitive
plate does not detect, at the first
glance, it beholds after a time. In five
onc-:hyuslr:l:js of d second it photo.
graphs a s's:. Of the first magnitude:
in half a second It includes all smalles
stars to the sixth magnitude; in THY
teen minutes 1t has taken in all stars
to the fou;;cSn.h magnitude. The hu-
a eye is capable Of seeing all up TO
the sixth magnitude, inclusive of 49,
591 stars. whereas, the number tbat
may be Mapped by the exposure of tie
sensitive plate for thirteen minutes Is
over forty millions.
Recently q congress of astronome. IS
met in Paris to arrange for the concert
ed mapping Of the whole heavens,
agreed upon in 1887. Two thousaul
years ago Hipparchus made a Gala
logIe Of 1922 stars. Present cata-
logues contain I've 1,OOO,OO0. But the
effort of the astronomical congress is
to make a Photographic chart which
will contain all the thirty or forty mill
ion stars that can be found with &he
light gathered by a telescope three and
one-lalf yards long having an object
glass about a foot in diameter. The
work has been divided among sixteen
observers situated at different points
of the globe. Each observatory is to
make 1900 plates, and each plate PHO
tographs two degrees square. AS many
as 1907 plates Ire required to cover
the entire heavens, and the celestial
chart they will be used to construct
will represent a sphere having a radius
of over three and a half yards. Some
of the plates are to be exposed to the
heavens for five minutes; others Sor
an hour. The shorter exposure will
give material for a chart to contain
100000 stars.
How many will be revealed by the
longer exposure it is impossible to say
until the 11,027 sections have BEEN
pieced together and the aggregate
made up after careful inspection. 1t
will doubtless contain many whose eX-
istence has hitherto been unsupported.
The long exposure will produce a rsc-
ord of stars, or suns, SO distant frtm
us as to be Of the seventeenth or eight
eenth magnitude-stars whose light ;e-
quires millions of years. to reach Us.
The vast sp%aciousness Of the universe
will be evidenced in the minute dots
that reveal to practiced eyes systems
of worlds not previously known. Large
conclusions as to the structure Of the
physical universe will perhaps be sug-
gested by the great chart when com
pleted. In itself the chart will be a
monument to the patient labors of s,i-
ence and OF the sentiment of fratelai-
ty which enables many different Ia
lions and races to cooperate in its p:o-
/ observation-disclosures Sun.
Valuable Advice.
Look here, Manchester"
"What is it Birmingham"
"You asked my advice about stock
investments tie other day"
II did"