Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1900-11-22
THE PLANET VENUS,
Fresh Contributions to Our knowledge
of That Celestial BODY.

A new volume of the Annals of Har-
ward Observatory contains some yalu-
able contributions to existing knowl-
edge of the planet Venus. These con-
trlbutlons are from the Harvard OBJ
servers at Arequipa, Peru. headed nv
Professor w. H. Pickering. In the
clear atmosphere as Arequipa, high
mountain station. the best opportunity
is given for the study of the brilliant
planet now radiant in the western sky
at evening
On Saturday morning he made some
suggestions concerning the probable
condition of the planet from personal
observation. The conclusion then
stated was that Venus is enveloped in
dense covering of cloud Indicating a
great amount of water on the planet.
1t was reasoned that only cloud or
water surface would reflect so much
light as Venus reflects AS observa-
ton reveals no surface markings of
consequence it was to be assumed that
the real surface is not visible and that
the cloud covering alone is seen. The
observations in Peru tend to confirm
this view, but they go much farther.
The Literary Digest of last week
contained summary of the Peru OBJ
serations with comment by Garret P.
Serviss. Professor Pickering noted
the great retroactive power of the
planets atmosphere above the cloud
layer and concluded that the atmos-
phere must be dense. According to
his calculation the atmosphere of
Venus must be several times more
dense than that of the earth at sea
level. This atmosphere density would
favor the suspension of water and
other vapor above the planet. a con-
| dition that probably obtains. Pro-
fessor Pickering likens the condition
of Venus in her dense cloud covering
and heavy atmosphere to that of the
vapor-wrapped earth millions of years
ago. In other words, Venus is broiling
and laying down her coal measures, or
| may be still in her Silurian age. wait
ing for the animals and plants of the
| carboniferous era. If the nebular
| hypothesis is fairly correct, Venus is
one of the latest children of the sun
! nebula, and. as a consequence of late
ness, is not so far developed as the
earth.
The observations at Arequipa do not
sustain the theory but recently adj
vanced that the axis of the planets
rotation is horizontal to the plane of
the orbit. The Harvard observers find
that the axis of rotation is perpendicu-
lar to the plane of the orbit. 1t the
axis is perpendicular there are no
changes of seasons on the planet.
The great density of the planets
atmosphere and the heavy covering of
cloud are certainly excellent indica-
lions of an earlier stage of growth
| than that of the earth But the
presence of a vast amount of water on
a body near the sun might explain the
| phenomenon of dense clouds and
possibly that of a deep, heavy atmos-
phere. Until these Peruvian observa-
tions were made little had been learn
| ed about Venus than was known to
| the early astronomers who looked at
| the planet with their cumbrOus instru-
| ments sixty felt long These instru-
ments, of small aperture and long
focus, were the best that could be de-
vised for overcoming the difficulties
caused by the planets intense bright
ness.-Rochester Democrat and Chron-
| icle.