The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-04-14
NOVA FAST DISAPPEARING
The Latest Discovered Star Pass
ing Beyond Human Vision.

Naval Observatory Astronomers En-
pect tn Lose sight of IL soon
stellar Attractions which Have
Appeared During the Century.
The new star Nova. which was first Oh
served in the heavens on February q lass.
Is disappearing rapidly from view. and
will. say the astronomers at the Naval
Observatory, be beyond the range of their
I-inch telescope In few days. Nova IL
in the constellation Perseus. and was.
when first seen. and for some nights
thereafter, the most striking object of its
class which has been observed for three
centuries. Notwithstanding its position is
near that Of the intensely brilliant vari-
able star Persei (AlgoD. When first dis
covered by Prof. Anderson. OF Edinburgh.
Nova was OF about the third magnitude.
BY the following night IL had risen TO the
first magnitude. and was one of the
brightest stars in the evening sky. Such
an object in an especially well-observed
section of the heavens could not easily es-
cape notice, and It was independently dis
covered by probably a dozen observers in
different countries. At the observatory OF
Harvard a careful record is kept of the
sky from week to week BY means OF pho
tographs, which are taken at frequent IN
tervals. Some OF these photographs are
made with lenses of such short focal
length and wide field that the whole sky
would be covered by about fifty plates.
Harvard received the announcement Of
Nova on February o. the latest photo
graphs of the region of Perseus having
been made on the night of February 10.
One Of these plates showed stars as faint
as the eleventh magnitude. but the Nova
did not appear upon it. The inference is
clear, therefore, that on February 10 it
was fainter than the eleventh magnitude.
On February q it's magnitude was. in as
Economical expression. 81, but by Febru-
AIRY % IL had fallen to IL. At present it is
indistinguishable with the naked eye, and
has been for several weeks.
THE astronomical world Is today so
well fitted for research in the line Of
spectrum analysis observed a prominent
scientific authority. and the present OBJ
ject is so suitable for such investigation
that we may expect a more satisfactory
study OF this new star than has ever be
fore been obtained of any similar object
There will doubtless be abundant mate
rails for learning the smallest changes
during a portion of the life history of this
star; but, for the period of the increase
of light. from the instant it became Wis
II
servations may prove 10 be few. On this
account it is fortunate that photographs
of the spectrum were obtained on Febru-
airy % and February q. On these dates
the spectrum was not the typical one
which We have learned to expect in such
cases, but instead was of the Orion type.
consisting of a strong, continuous spec
trum crossed by dark lines. Between
February % and February "A. however. a
wonderful transformation took place
Since the latter date the spectrum has
consisted in large part of the bright and
dark bands which are characteristic of
the spectra of Novae.
The first new star, so far as can be as
certained, appeared 154 B. c. During the
?. 600 years which have elapsed only nine
teen more such appearances have been re-
corded, making about one for each CEN
fury. However, this can by no means
represent the true number OF Such stars
which have appeared during that time.
as doubtless only few of the brightest
have been seen. OF the twenty on record
thirteen belong to the century just ended,
and six to the last decade thereof, I'VE be-
ing found by means of the Photographic
apparatus at Harvard Observatory. OF
all the stars visible through the largest
telescopes. not more than one in 1000
can be seen by the naked eye Thirteen
of the Novae were bright enough to be
seen by the unaided vision. At the same
rate for the fainter stars. assuming that
the number of Novae corresponds in some
degree to the whole number of stars for
the different magnitudes several thou
sand new stars must have escaped obSer-
walton during each century.
No entirely satisfactory explanation has
yet been given Of these remarkable OBJ
ject. From dark, or at least from eX-
tremely faint. bodies, they suddenly blaze
up and then slowly fade away Any the
DRY which purpOrts to explain the phe-
nomeaOn must account for certain facts
which are, practically. sui generis- The
Increase Of light. for instance. IS very
sudden and very great. The decrease IL
slower and sometimes irregular. but no
can have occurred such as
would change a solid body into gaseous,
otherwise ages. not weeks, would be re-
quired for the cooling. The spectrum Is
composite. composed OF bright
and dark lines or bands. The bright bands
are displaced toward the red. the dark
bands toward the violet. II this separa-
ion is due TO the relative motions of two
gaseous masses, the YelocitieS concerned
appear to exceed those found elsewhere In
he universe The Nova sometimes re-
mains as a permanent telescope object
With the spectrum of a planetary nebula.
rhe problem might be somewhat simpIi-
led If the broadening of the lines could be
shown to be due to the Zeeman effect
from the presence OF a strong magnetic
ieldl. IL appears probable that the phe-
lOmena are produced either by some out
burst in the body itself which has here
ofore wandered darkling in the eternal
space, else the collisions of solid
lark world passing through dense mass
If meteors.
1t is earnestly hoped by the astronomers
II the Naval Observatory. and presum-
lbly elsewhere. that the result OF the col
ated materials gathered from the obser-
-ation of the latest Nova. may enable
hem to formulate a theory of these new
stars which viii call forth the general
-pproval of the scientific world.