The Indianapolis journal., 1903-08-02
VEGETATION ON THE MOON
DISCOVERIES SAID TO HAVE BEEN
MADE BY A NEW TELESCOPE.
Green Tiuge on Mooa's Surface Said
TO be yisibie-May RevoIutiOHize
Astronomy.
Washington Star.

Washington Star.
An enormous increase in telescope power
by a simple and inexpensive expedient
which promises to revoiutionze astronom-
Aical observation and which has already dis
closed the presence of atmosphere, vege-
tation and. inferentially, animal life on
the earth's great satellite. is claimed by
Mr.. Louis Gathmann, the weIl-knoWn
scientist Of this city
This optical device, which he has been
developing the past. ten years, Is given to
science gratuitously, and it is possible that
observatores may come into possession of
telescopes constituted upon the new prin-
ciple. which viii far excel in power any
instrument hitherto proposed for lunar,
| planetary and stellar research. Mr.. Gath
mann, in talking TO a Star reporter. said:
when, on the night of August Il. 1894,
the first appearance of a green tinse on
a portion of the moons surface was dis
covered by myself and a party of friends
the astronomical world was incredulous.
! This appearance of a green spot indicated
that Luna was dead planet and that no
and the astronomers had long ago decided
| that Luna was a dead planet. that no
animal plant life could possibly exist
| there The observation was made at my
| residence in Chicago, and the peculiar ap-
pearance of the locality in the northwest
| portion of the moon, IL appears to the
observer through the telescope, was first
| seen by myself. At the time half dozen
others were present, and, without telling
them what l had seen, they each in turn,
| were asked TO look through the telescope
and describe what they saw.
Each one of them saw the same spot,
| and it concluded that all of were
not color blind and that the greenish color
was really there. The gentlemen who were
| with me the evening of the discovery were
| j. Altman Austin. j. p. Miller. Alex CLAM,
| c. c. Stringer. Louis ID. CLAM, of Chicago,
| and c.. w. Blazer, of klOwa, Col. The
discovery OF a green spot on the moon
gave rise to considerable discussion
| through the press, and it was generally
| looked upon by astronomers with increduli-
| ty. These scientific gentlemen were not
ready 10 admit that their preconceived no
| tions about the absence of all animal and
vegetable life on the moon were wrong.
1T was at first the opinion of the scien-
tific world that 1 and my friends had made
| in the lens of my telescope had led to
the appearance of the green spots Profes-
| sor Pickering, of Harvard University, at
/ that time did not admit that the theory
| of the moon being dead planet was wrong.
To admit that there was an atmosphere
surrounding the moon that there was
| an evaporation of condensation of water
| found there would lead to the possibility
| of there being both vegetable and animal
| life. None of these things were thought
| to be present, and none of them could be
present while the accepted theory of the
| scientific world was maintained as correct.
! 1t was one of the evidences of the progress
| OF modern science that since that time
| Professor Pickering has also observed
| clouds in the vicinity of the crest of the
| crater of Tycho and also around the crater
| of Plato.
THE place where the discovery of the
greenish color on the surface of the moon
was first made is I'm the region known as
Sinus Roris This green covered spot is
of comparatively small size alongside of the
immense stretches of yegetation-covered
areas which were afterward located in
Mare Nectaris and Mare TrSnquillitatis.
| Some idea of the extent of the green fields
| of the moon may be had by taking the
| latter as a measure and bearing in mind
that 1t is of about the area of the State
of Texas.
THE MOONS ATMOSPHERE.
"The question has been asked why other
localities Of the moons surface do not
show the presence of vegetation. There
are low-lying valleys. surrounded by high
mountains, and the reason that there has
not been a similar condition noted ON these
is probably because the view is obscured
by the n1ists or clouds which hang over
them during the period when vegetation is
hourishing
"There are many manifestations of the
presence of an atmosphere surrounding the
moon and of the presence of vaporized
water clouds i'm that atmosphere One
| which will be easily noticed without the aid
of a telescope is the decreasing brilliance
Of the moons light from the first quarter
to the full moon.
This is in direct antagonism with the
laws of light if the theory that the moon
Is dead or has no life il is held correct.
III the bare rocks are burned-out relics of
| in the light of the sun, then when the SUM-
light strikes them obiquely, in the period
from the new moon to full, they would not
show as brightly as when the suns rays
are reflected directly, at the time of the
full moon Instead of showing brighter at
| full moon the contrary Is true, and the
/, light is clearer and brighter at the time
shortly after the new moon.
III the moon was dead world, with no
atmosphere, no water. warmth or humidity,
which productive of vegetable life,
no clouds to float in her summer skies nor
mists TO hang over her valleys and around
her towering mountain tops, whence comes
| this observation of the lunar landscape at
| the very time il would be supposed to be
| the most plainly seen? AS long as the old
theory of the moon being dead world is
| held there Is no satisfactory explanation,
| but when once the few facts which mod
ern observations have established are ac-
| cepted the seeming mystery is explained.
II have many time observed that after
| the full moon, when the moon is growing
| less In apparent size for time. the spots
on the moon grow darker. This is also true
/ OF the spots where my observations have
| located the growing vegetation. This dark
ening of the spots is no doubt owing to the