Smyrna times., 1906-05-02
STUPENDOUS EXTENT Of
THE STARRY SYSTEM
1T is so VAST THAT ITS LIMITS ARE
BEYOND COMPUTATION.

Considering Some Stupendous Dis
tances by n Scale Greatly Reduced.
a Comparison With Our Relatively
Small Solar System.
1t is worth while making an effort to
picture to ourselves the vast extent of
the starry system in which we reside.
Having gained some faint notion of
the extent of the lesser solar system,
which occupies a small corner of the
stellar system, we must work outward
from that beginning. Let us take for
our unit of measurement the space
which separates the earth from the
sun, and let the 100000 miles of this
distance be represented in our minds |
by a single inch. In proportion the sun |
itself must be pictured by a tiny ball |
less than one hundredth part of an |
inch in diameter, while our earth must |
be a mere speck, less than one ten |
thousandth of an inch in diameter. |
And this little sun and this minute
earth must be just an inch asunder.
Following out the same idea, Mer
curry and Venus, being closer to the
sun than we are, have to be less than
an inch away from him, while Jupiter
will be five inches off, Saturn will be
ten inches off, Uranus will be over
nineteen inches off, Neptune will be
almost thirty inches off. Then the So
lar system as whole, leaving only out
of the question certain comets which
travel farther will be inclOsed in Cir
Gle less than two yards in diameter.
The question arises next, What will
be the prOportiOnate size of the stellar
system on this Same scale of measure
ment? If the solar system is to be
comprised with a hoop not two yards
across, how wide a space should we
, allow to the surrounding system Of
stars, ''our universe?' How near will
be the nearest of outlying stars? And
the answer is sufficiently startling. If
the sun is reckoned to be one inch
away from our earth, if Neptune is
reckoned to be less than three feet
away from the sun, then, ON the same
scale, the star which lies closest of all
outer stars in the whole universe to us,
Alpha Centauri by name, must be
reckoned as lying at a distance of
about three and half miles. And be-
tween the two-nOthing; at least moth
ing in the shape of a star. An occa-
sional comet may lag slo7Ay along in
the darkness, finding its way from one
sun system to another, and dark bod
les, cooled suns, may possibly float here
or there unseen by us, but of stars,
radiant with heat and light, none is
found in that wide area.
Astronomical writers sometimes talk
fet stars lin the vicinity of the sun.
y. d this is what is meant by "vicini-
n the. :. Think Of the distances implied.
Our whole solar system is first brought
down into a small circle, two yards
across-every inch in those yards stand
ing for more than 9O,OO0,000 miles-and
then on every side and above and be-
low is an encOmpassing void of three
and a half miles, every inch of those
miles again representing more than
90,000000 miles. And then we come
upon one cleaning star Only one
quite so near. Another star in the
suns vicinity known as 81 Cygni,
would lie at a distance of seven miles.
and the brilliant Sirius would be over
10 miles off. Others must be placed
at distances of 20 miles. 30 miles, 100
miles 1t is easy to start with list of
these figures. 1t is not easy to say
where one should stop. That the star
ry system has limits we do not doubt
but to define those limits is not posi-
BILE. On such a scale as is given above
those limits certainly would not liz
within a distance of 100 miles nor OF
1000 miles.
1t is believed that some dim stars
barely to be detected. may be 10,0O(
times as far away as our suns neares
neighbOr. Alpha Centauri, and this a
once gives. even on our much reduced
scale, a line from the center of 35.OO(
miles. Suppose that the limits of tht
stellar system lay somewhere abou
there. Thirty five thousand miles eacl
/ way from the center would mean a di
ameter for the whole of 10000 miles
Imagine a starry system 10000 mile
across from side to side, each inch il
those miles representing 100000 o
real miles. and somewhere in the mids
of it our small solar system, just tw
yards across, separated from all othe
stars by wide blank of three or fOu
miles.
That would be stupendous enough
But we have no reason whatever fo
supposing that the limits of our un
verse do lie there. The true boundarie
of the stellar system may be twice a
far, four times as far, ten times as fa
We do not even know with certaint
that our solar system is placed an!
where near its center, though tn
seems rather likely. Far off as IL
boundary reaches in one direction,
may reach much farther In another d
rection.-Chambers Journal.
Letter to Sheriff Baker,