The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1907-04-27
Mars ana Its Canals,

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Poised high In the mid-heavens, the
planet Mars present to the naked eye
merely steady CLEAN Of reddish light.
Under . powerful telescope, however,
1t reveals conditions which excite imag-
ination and wonder. The latest dis
coveries have ben embodied In book
form by Director Lowell, Of the OBJ
servatory at Flagstaff, Arix., loca-
ton admirably suited to telescope in
vestigation, because the air is dry and
clear and still.
Curiously enough, the American des-
ert, In the heart Of which Flagstaff
observatory is located. is q counter
part Of the physical surface of Mars.
Viewed through the telescope, the plan
ct presents vast area Of reddish
brown Of ochrec-colored surface, with
large patches blue-green in color. There
Is no doubt that the former are des-
erts, for dust storms are at times
plainly discernible. In fact. Mars has
reached that point dn it's evolution
where It stands between the moon, an
arid and desolate body, and the earth,
which Is still we'll watered and fertile.
The blue-green patches are undoubtea-
ly great areas OF vegetation. The most
curious feature Of Mars, however, is
the network Of canals which cross
its surface in all directions. These
canals, first seen by Schiaperelli in
1877, have since been the subject of
much contention and many astronom-
ers have gone SO far as to say that
they exist in the Imagination of the
observers-in other words, that they
are optical illusions. Director Low
ell, however, has demonstrated beyond
. doubt that they really exist, for not
only have their changes been observed
but they have been photographed. They
are remarkable creations, not only be-
cause some of them are 1000 miles
and 5000 miles long, but also because
they are from one to twenty-five
miles wide. The narrower canals APP
pear in the telescope like thinnest
gossamer, and are only visible as
glimpses under the most favorable
conditions The larger ones can oe
studied with more certainty. At the
intersection of the canals are round
spots which are either lakes or cases.
The purpose Of these canals has been
made apparent after years of persis-
tent study. They radiate from the
poles of the planet, where are sit
uated the ice caps which form during
the long winter. The Marian year is
twice as long as ours, and the winter
lasts six months. During this period
the ice and snow gather at the poles.
This CONCEALED vapor covers a large
territory, but is not of great thick
ness, for it melts rapidly, and during
1904 the dee crop at the south pole
entirely disappeared. The inhabitants
of Mars unquestionably carry the wat
er from the poles to the arid regions
for the purpose Of irrigation. There
Is no more doubt of this fact than of
the existence of similar irrigation in
the arid plains of our own West. Oc-
ular demonstration exists in the change
OF color of certain portions of the
planet from dark brown to green
shortly after the ice caps begin to
diminish through the melting process.
Mars Is certainly inhabited. We
know almost everything about it ex-
cept the character of these Inhabitants.
We know that they live on planet
which has a remarkable fiat surface,
the highest elevations being little
more than 1000 feet, where the at
mosphere is very thin and where water
is scarce. There is vegetation on the
planet, as on the earth, and reasoning
from analogy, life must be similar to
ours. Whether in the course of future
years our Information regarding our
neighboring world will become more
definite is question now beyond our
ken. Enough is already known, how
ever, to warrant many accurate state
ments and to stimulate the imagina-
ton to the highest degree.