The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1906-08-08
HE LAMBERTYILLE RECORD
BIRTH OF THE MOON
LUNA WAS FLUNG OUT OF THE EARTH
INTO SPACE.

Ureun-Iatcst Ideas of science as TO
Conditions ON Our Satellite.
Millions Of years ago the earth was
not the land bound, sea swept globe
% familiar to rs, but Il liquid mass on
which tloated crust some thirty-five
niles thick. At that period, says the
Strand Magazine, 1t turned on its axis
at constantly increasing speed that
finally shortened the day TO three hours.
When that terrific velocity was OBJ
tanned 900 cubic million miles Of mat
Ter were hurled off by the enormous
centrifugal force, and our moon was
born The cleavug Of SO large Il body
must have left some scar on the earth's
surface. 1t las accordingly been sug-
gcstcd that the great basin now occu-
pied hy the Pacific ocean was once
Hlled by what Is now the moon.
our moon has the distinction of be
ing tine largest Of all planetary sat
elites SO large, indeed, that to the
inhabitants OF Mars 1t must appear
with the earth as Il wonderfully beau
tful twin planet
Because the moon rOtates on lis axis
In exactly the same time that it re
wolves around the earth we are DIES
tined TO see little more than one hemi-
sphere So slow is this rotation that
the lunar day is equal to fifteen of our
days. For half month The moon Is
exposed 10 the fierce heat OF the sun;
Tor half month it spins through space
in the densest gloom.
Smaller in mass than the earth Is,
the moons attraction for bodies must
he correspondingly less A good ter
restrlal athlete could cover about 40
feet on the moon In running broad
jump, aud leaplng over barn would
he a very commonplace feat. A man
in the moon could carry six times as
much and run six times rs fast as lac
could on the earth
Although separated from us by II
distance Tint Mt times reaches 253, 900
miles md Is never less than 80, 900
miles. we know more OF the physical
formation of the single pallld face that
the NEON ever turns toward us than
We know Of certain parts Of Asia and
the heart of Africa. Powerful tele-
scopes have brought our satellite with
in distance of forty miles OF the
earth. Physicists have mathematicaliy
weighed Il and fixed its mass ut one
eighth OF the earth or 5000, oOoO00,-
000 tons
The moon presents aspects without
any terrestrial parallel. Rent by fires
long since dead, Its honeycombed |
crust seems like great globe Of chill
ed Stag Cratcrs are not uncommon on
The earth, but in number, size and |
structure they bear for the most part |
little resemblance to those Of the moon. |
\ lunar crater il not the mouth OF a
volcano having diameter of few
hundred feet, but great circular plain
twenty. fifty. even hundred miles
in diameter, surrounded by precipice
rising 10 height of 5000 or 10000
feet. with ii central hill or two about
half as high.
Water cannot possibly exist as n
liquid. for the temperature Of the
moons surface during the long lunar
night IS probably not far from 400
degrees below the zero mark of II
Fahrenheit thermometer. and the at
mospheric pressure Is SO low that a
gas under pressure would solidify as
1t escaped lee and snow are the
forms, then. which lunar water must
assume
Because of the present paucity of
water the moons atmosphere Is SO cX-
ceodingly rare that startling effects
are produced. Perhaps the most strik-
Ing IS that of the sunrise Dawn and
the soft golden glow that ushers In
terrestrial day there cannot be. The
sun leaps from the horizon II flaming
slcLlc. and the lofticr peaks imme-
diatcly flash into light
There Is no azure sky to relieve the
monotonous effects of lnky black shad-
ows and dazzling white eNpanses. The
sun CLEANS In fierce splendor. with no
clouds to ditluse It's binding Hight.
All day long 1t is accompanied by the
weird zodtacm light that we behold ut
rare intervals
Even in midday the heavens are
pitch black. SO that. despite the sun
llght The stars and planets glenn
with brightness that they never ex-
hihit Ia us even on the clearest of
mooul,ss nights AT SEA. They shine
steadily. too. for Il Is the earth's ut
mospherc That CAUSES them to twinkle
10 our eyes
In the line of sight ii is impossible
To estimate distances for there Is no
such phenomenon rs aerial perspee-
tive. objects are seen only when the
rays Of the sun strike them
Al titnns Thorn ntuN La, ol,sarya1