The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1899-03-23
METE0RS, METEORITES AND SHOOT
ING STARS.
Only Few Live to Reach the Earth.

Prof, John Daniel, of Vanderbilt
University, is much interested in the
meteor which passed over Nashville
the other night, and in recent inter
view with Banner reporter he talked
entertainingly upon these wanderers in
space. Prof. Daniels views on the
subject will be of interest, especially
in view of the fact that the recent bril-
liant meteor over Tennessee is fresh in
the minds of the people. Prof Daniel
said:
"This purticular meteor is of double
interest, because, this year, about the
18th of November and about the 27th
Of November, will probably witness a
repetition of two of the most import
ant meteoric showers known in history,
for on November 13 the path of the
earth, in her orbit, crosses that of the
trail that gave the great shower of '33,
and as the period of this trail is about
thirty-three years, having met them
then, and again in 1866, we should see
something of them again in 1899. AS
the period is not exactly thirty-three
years, we may or may not fall in with
as thick nest of them this time as we
did in 1888. The fall of 1865 was seen
in Europe. On November 81 we should
cross the orbit Of the trail that gave
the shower of 1886, and which has a
period of thirteen years. This shower
is celebrated from the fact that during
the display Of meteors near. Mazapli,
in Mexico, fine meteorite was seen to
fall and was secured. Now, this Ma
zapli meteorite is either one of this
shower, larger than the rest, or else it
is right remarkable coincidence that,
while only two or three meteorites fall
on the earth in year, this one, as an
independent body, should have hap
pened along at the same time and place
as the shower of meteors. But this
shower of November 27 has been iden-
tilted with Biela's comet and hence if
this Mazapli stone is proper part of
the shower of 1885, we have in our pos
session piece of Biela's comet.
"While most of us have not taken
the time to inquire into the precise dis
tinction between the various terms in
use, we nevertheless frequently hear
and read the words meteors, shooting
stars, aerolites, meteorites and mete-
oric stones. These terms are not all
synonymous. Properly, the term
shooting star is limited to those faint,
noiseless flashes which are to be seen
any dark, clear night, but which occur
in great numbers at certain times, as
the shower of 1888, etc. The term me-
teor includes these, as well as those
brighter and nearer flashes, accompa-
MED by roaring sound or explosions
and if, perchance, one of these meteors
is large and solid enough to Withstand
the wear and tear of its reckless flight
through the earths atmosphere, and SC
reach the earth before it is all vital
lied, this solid which falls is a me
teorite, an aerolite or meteoric stone
While the total number of meteors tha
strike the earth's atmosphere each day
| is estimated to run up into the mill
ions, the number of those large enougl
to come so near to the earth's surfact
as to be heard is very small, and fewe
, still survive to reach the surface, an av
erage of two or teree a year. Abou
$50 meteoric stones have fallen ant
been collected into cabinets since 1900
About dozen of these were iron mete
orites, seen to fall, and found at th
time.