The Elbert County tribune., 1900-01-04
THE HEAT OF THE sun
QUESTION AS TO WHAT BE-
COMES OF 1T.
After II Ha. Done n. Service TO x.sur.
Car Energy rsesms Completely
Observation-Disclosures That 1t rA.ss For
ever

according to the ordinary view the
sun Is constantly radiating heat m all
directions and. think. IL is generally
supposed that only a small portion OF
tnis heat encounters material bodies
az any distance, however great. says
knowledge, II so. the question arises:
Mhat becomes OF the residneg Phys
icai research leads US TO believe that
heat cannot be destroyed. but only
transformed; yet many persons seem
70 think that this heat vanishes like
ghost without transformation and
Without Producing any eject This
may be so. but 1t is SO much opposed
TO physical anal0gies that We should be
siow TO accept II unless on the basis of
dchnite observations which. l thiak. Il
VIII be admitted, are not at present
iorthcoming. Nor can we confine the
question to the sun. The loss OF rn-
diant heat must (on the theory which
i am now considering) extend to all
the stars A larger portion OF the
neat OF some OF them is no doubt In
tercepted by other bodies. but some OF
II must escnpe-vanish. The whole
universe is losing heat; or. at least II
Is losing motion, for the supply OF heat
may be temporarily kept up by the
conversion OF motion into heat (as. for
example. by n bombardment OF me-
teorites). But that good part OF the
radiant heat vanlahes. thus iessening
the total amount OF force--of heat and
It's equivalents-in the universe. seems
10 be common opinion. This theory.
however tfor. OF course. anything on
the subject is theory. will strike many
OF your readers as unsatisfactory for
physical. not metaphysical or theolog-
ical. reasons But II this heat be not
lost, what becomes Of it, IL the SUNS
rays and those OF the stars always met
with some material body. however
great Its distance might be. the prob
lem would be solved; there would be
no loss OF heat TO the universe. Tho
sun may az present be radiatlng more
than II receives. and. consequently,
cooling; but in travelling through
space IL may roach other regions in
which these conditions will be re-
versed. But II seems plain that II this
DO the case, the greater part OF the
bodies which encounter the solar heat
are dark bodies. or else that there is
an absorption Of light in passing
through the ether. Such an absorption
OF light and heat by the ether--as
maintained. believe, by the grent OBJ
server Struve-would equally solve the
problem for the light and heat thus
absorbed could not be lost, and would
probably be given bnck by the ether
to material bodies in some manner not
yet traced. Otherwise II would change
tho properties OF the ether. A third
possible alternative is that radiation,
like grayitation. only acts between ma
terial bodies. and that. though, like
grayitation, II acts on a material body
in any direction and follows II in all
Its movements. there is no expenditure
OF force in the directions in which no
material body is encountered. On this
theory also there would be no loss OF
heat. There would only be an inter
change of the same kind as II every
heat ray ultimately encountered ma
terial body.