The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-09-24
/ IS STELLAR TR|PLETS
North Star Is Like Sun, Earth
and Moon.
SPECTROSCOPE REVEALSIT
Strange Things About Null
Triple Stars in General.
SPECTROSCOPE REVEALSI7

New York, Sept. 23-The Journal says:
One of the most interesting discoveries
in astronomy is that the North Star is
not one star. but three This star, which
is 2500O0,O00 miles away from the EARTH
has been one of the most familiar objects
in the armament since the beginning of
creation, and yet it's true nature was not
even suspected until the other day. The
North Star is one of the most brilliantly
beautiful in color and is the star which
children are first taught to distinguish. 1t
points constantly to the North Pole of the
earth and has been of more aid to navi-
gators and travellers in unknown regions
than any other celestial body which IL
Illuminate the night
1t was by means of the spectroscope at
tached to the great thirty-six inch re-
fraoting telescope at the Lick Observa-
tory tia. the eXistanee of two compan-
ions of the North Star was discovered
the other day. Only one star is visible
to the eye, even with the greatest of
telescopes, but the spectroscope reveals
the existance of two others with mathe-
NAUTICAL accuracy.
The spectroscope is an instrument
which separates light into its component
colors. When the light from the North
Star was examined in the spectroscope at
tached to the Lick telescope the other
day changes in the lines of color were OBJ
served which could only be accounted for
by the fact that there were other bodies
present. From this point it was only a
matter of mathematics to calculate their
number, position and movements.
The North Star, which is called by as
tronomers Polaris, is real yla great sun
1t is accompanied by two invisible stars
just discovered by the spectroscope. One
of these revolves about the iother and
two revolve about Polaris, just as the
earth and moon do around the sun. It is
calculated that it requires four years for
the two invisible bodies to revoIve
around Poiaris. Thus a year there is
four times longer than ours. The bright
Polaris revolves on its own axis once in
four days
Polaris is approaching the solar system
at a varying rate which has reached as
high as sixteen miles a second. The var
iation is due TO the attraction of the two
bodies upon the third. This was another
fact which proved TO the astronomers the
right nature Of the star
Professor W. w Campbell. OF the Lick
observatory, thus explained the discovery
that the North Star had two companions:
The observations of Polaris were made
with the Mills spectroscope attached to
the thirty-six-inch telescope. From the
known principles IF the shifting OF the
line in the spectrum OF a star we can de-
termine whether the star is approaching
or receding from the observer ard how
rapidly. For most stars the velocity IS
constant. For some stars the velocity IS
variable due 10 the attractions OF COM
9anion stars.
The recent observations OF Polaris at
Lick Observatory show that its velocity
Is variable. 1t is approaching the solar
system now with a velocity Of eight ki!o-
metres Per second This will increase in
Two days TO fourteen kilometres. and in
the next two days will decrease again 10
eight kilometres. This cycle Of change . !
repeated every four days. The bright Pc
iaris, therefore, reyoives about the centre !
OF gravity OF itself and is invisible com
f'----@'-+S r-t-e III ADAE Gays. / he 0-1it g 4
nearly circular and iz comparable in size
with the moons orbit around the earth.
This centre Of gravity. and therefore /
the binary system IL approaching the So I
lar system az present with velocity Y
eleven and a half kii0metsrs per second j
A few measures % the velocity OF PoIzrfs 4
made here IL ises gave It's approach a;
the rate y twenty kilometres per second 4
Part Of this change since isas could Be
due % change in position Of the arhs
q the binary system but noss q L must
have been produced By The attraction of
third body on the TWO BODIES con5rIs- (
ing the four-dax system Beth c5mpan- 4
ions az Polaris are Invisible. but fhel- 4
presence i proved ~ disturbances which 4
their attractions produce la the motion 4
% the bright Polsrss."
II Is interesting 70 point out that not /