The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-05-07
SIGHTS ON THE MOON.
What an Astronomer Would See If He
We're to Pay 1t q Visit.

From the Circle.
If an astronomer were offered trip to
the moon and asked where he would
choose to land first it is probable that he
would reply: "In Plato, If you please.
Now Plato is a huge circular mountain
ringed valley, which can be seen from the
earth with a good opera glass, lying in
luna north latitude so degrees, and it ex-
cites the astronomer curiosity because
of what he has dimly seen going on with
in 1t.
Let us, then, approach Plato as If drop
ping down upon the moon with ballon.
AS we draw near we find that the time
of our arrival is that of luna sunrise In
the longitude of Plato. But the rising of
the sun on the moon is a very slow pro-
cess. 1t takes the solar orb seven days
to pass upward from the horizon to the
noon line. The consequence is that, hang
ing over Plato in our aerial conveyance,
we find the whole of the great valley I'M
der us, about sixty miles broad and
mile deep, buried In the blacklist night
But the peaks on its western border are
already cleaning in the sunlight and
those mountains is all Illuminated with
the morning beams The luna Alps are
ablaze with light, while the shadows fill
ing their mighty gulches and chasms are
as black as jet. Far off, along the south
western horizon. we see the towering
giants of the luna Caucasus and the luna
Apennnes, a serrated ridge of flaming
pinnacles set against black sky. The
sharpness of the division between day
and night is amazing. 1t arises from the
virtual absence of air. There is no
twilight hand between.
Presently a brilliant point flashes out
toward the east. 1t looks like a fire sud
denly lighted in the midst of the ocean
of night still covering most of the moon 3
eastern hemisphere 1t is a conspicuous
peak on the eastern side of Plato's noun
tain ring, which has just been reached by
the rays of the rising sun The magnifi-
cence of the spectacle now gradually I'M
folded beneath us Is beyond description.
AS the line of sunlight slowly creeps
down the precipices on the eastern border
of the valley we begin to perceive the
broad, fat floor emerging into visibility.
It's central part has been dimly visible
for some time. Slowly the darkness in
the valley retires westward as the sun
rises higher, and the great plain at length
lies fully displayed in the morning light.
And now strange things occur. Won
derful changes of color take place in the
valley. These become more pronounced
as the slope of the sunbeams falling into
the valley grows sleeper. The entire floor
is checkered in curious way with spots
and areas of varying tint. BY the middle
of the long luna forenoon the whole val
ley has lost It's original neutral tone
and has become dull, spotty brown,
with suggestions of yellow. Prepared by
analogy, we are not much surprised
when, descending to the floor of Plato,
we find ourselves standing in the midst
of a rolling prairie, covered with fan
tastic plants, slender, crowded, shaped
more capriciously than a mass of or
chids, and with flowers of a strange,
unearthlike beauty, already openeng
where the sunbeams have rested longest.
There is no wind not the slightest
breeze, no motion except the stir of the
opening leaves and petals 1t is like the
magic awakening of the petrlfied city
of the Oriental legend,
"A touch, a kiss, the charniis snapt!"