The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-03-08
THE HEAVENS AND THE STARS.
uU4T RECENT INTERROGATION
mas SHOWN ABOUT THEM.

wears to Reach Tnem-1uc sATs
Are Numbered by Hundreds Of NIL.
,,ops-BilIiens OF Other suns Than
Ours-some Unfounded speculatssns.
Until the time OF the elder Herschel OBJ
carving Astronomers were chiefly concerned
with the structure and arrangement Of the
solar system. The larger question Of stellar
arrangement was usually approached from
the side Of pure speculation. Herschels
nroblem was, in his own weighty words. ito
and out the construction Of the heavens. by
xhch he meant the structure OF the sidereal
system or systems that make up the visible
universe,
There are three fundamental questions
70 be asked and answered. which lead to q
multitude Of minor and subsidiary re-
searches, each one Of difficulty and delioacy.
First.-We may inquire as to the extent OF
the universe Of stars. Are the stars num-
berless? Are the stars that we see but .
small part OF an infinite oongeries, most Of
which are destined TO remain forever un-
known to us on account OF the imperfect
mower Of our telesoopesf In other words
are stars faint because they are very dis
tant, or are they faint because they really
lack intrinsic brilhancyf Are brilliant and
small stars mingled together at the ZANE
distance from us, or are the more brilliant
the nearer. the fainter the further Oh? Do
we see the stars that lie at the very borders
Of the unversef
second-What In the arrangement Of the
Stars in space? The visible nisht-sky shows
anexpanse dotted with points Of light. across
which stretches the luminous band of the
Milky Way-the Galaxy-which We know
10 be made up Of scores Of millions Of the
fainter stars. Does the Galaxy form 6
stellar systsmi Ia our own Sun member
OF this systemt Or is the universe made
M Of di.crete and a. 1t were independent
groupings?
Third-what 10 to he the duration Of the
stellar universe In time IL II fitted to
endure forever or does II implicitly contain
the formula OF its own dissolution3 VIII II,
in the course Of ages. necessarily be trans
formed to be something quite unlike its
present eelf!
II Ia only within few years that ques-
tons such as these could be put with any
hope OF definite replies. and even now the
answers TO them are Of very different de-
grses Of authority. But important steps
have been made. In the hrst place, the
construction Of great and ever greater tale
scopes has shown that In certain we'll
sSudied regions. like that about the nebula
81 Orion, for example. the increase in the
Number Of stars shown by an increase In
tdlescopic power Is by no means proper
" oral to the power employed. This indi-
q ktes that the number Of stars IL finite. not
<hhnite. II. again. tho stars were infinite
ii number the whole background Of the
Ravens should be illuminated. unless indeed
ght Is absorbed and lost In long journey
through space. Measures now in hand will
bon throw much light on the latter point;
but at the present time il seems that light
not extinsuished in space. and a. con-
beQuence, that our universe OF stars 10
hnite, not infinite; that the stars are not
ountless.
How are the stars. a. we sss them. dis
rbuted In the sky? A study Of all avail
kbls data has nd Prof. Seeliger of Munich
~ conclusion that IL certai&, Tho Milky
Fay u no merely local phenomenon. he
pncludes, hat n closely connected with
Y p constitution Of our entire stellar system.
at system Is. speaking generally, one
q md system, not a collection OF mutually
ID dependent swarms. Another flnda-
|ntal datum referring to stellar clusters 10
q tied by Prof. Newcomb OF Washington,
a follows:
The aeGlomeration OF the brighter stars into
q lsten-like those of the Pleades. Prasepe and
tyrton-does not extend 70 the fainter stars The
yr.shter siam clustered In these eAacs and We
hoe them projected upon background studded
with fainter stars scattered according 70 q very
dlnercnt Law OF Authorization. This rule Is true
Tor clusters is Genersl Il does not apply 70 ths
clusters OF the GALAXY.
4 study Of all the elusters-those included
in the Milky Way as well as those exterior
TO it-has led Newcomb to . conclusion
which Ia supported by the researches OF
others upon the same question. namely:
II we should remove from the sky all the
local aggregations Of stars and also the en-
tire collection which make up the cloud
forms OF the Milky Way. We should have
left q scattered collection. constantly in
oressins In density toward the Gaiactio
bsl.
Take q celestial globe and mark upon II
the course Of the GALAXY: call this great
circle the Galactic Equator; find the north
and south Gslactic poles; draw ANAL circles
about these poles circles Of equal Galsctic
latitude. IL 10 announced that the stars
along thess parallels VI latitude inorease In
humber according 10 their proximity To
the Milky Way itsef The stars In general
form system-one system, whose obvious
Characteristic has just been formulated
The universe N IN Organism.
Within couple u decades the parsllaIss
ola considerable number Of starr have bsen
measured. and tbs distances Of thsss s,Ars
fron our Sun have thus become known.
Let We imagine the Sun 10 occupy The csn-
trs ii . ssriss of oonosntrc spheres. The
shasils.i spAsrs has, lst ne say, . radius
sDOD tunes ~ great a. the radius VI ths
iAr'h's orbi, . radius no ,op tinsss ~ 90, :
oD Inil.s Gall this radius. for oonvenisnas,
The ssoond spisse ils~ eu,~ssis ~ ths
Ar sud hs suyfsas 10 h mikes tsycad thsi
Of tho fret the sursos VI ,hs THIRD sphsss
10 X mil.s i-yond that ~ the .soond. snd
o. 81 AO~, n !. fsa ,hsi within tbs
DE, rpi.nI.. sho.~ rsdius n n, GO sisf ssisis
sa'' and sso.la u.s .ua u Ne osIiIs, With
~ 10 -'o,i'd sI'issIs ,isss. 10 o,s star tAipiss
l"iissni sId 49, n,oIs, ~ fss - 10 khosa
slilin il' tLifd sp,is.ss ti.sfs $50 foss SIAN
'hmn tl.s hftL. ti.sp 40 tssniS -sisia
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