Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-12-17
Progress Of Astronomy In 1910 =
By Alfred Rordame.

GUS, is heraidcd IN the daily press with
other items OF news. The Journals in
this way help to disseminate the
knowledge that something unusual is
going on, outside of our little earth
~ affairs
Seven comets have been visible this
year. OF these, two We're discovered In
1909, viz: Daniels and Halley's. Comets
are designated by letters i'll the oruer
in winch they were discovered, as well
as by the name OF the person making
the discovery. Hailey's was the fourth
comet discovered in 1909 (Sept. ~. by
photography and would thus be desig-
mated Comet u, 1909. Daniels comet,
T., 1908 was never very bright, and WAS
only observed by astronomers. the last
recorded observation being made by
Rambands at Algiers on March 8. 1910.
Comet a 1910 was first seen by work.
men at the railroad station Kopjcs,
Orange Free State. South Africa. Jan.
II. at 4:45 am, rising before the sun.
After jan II, 1t set after the sun and
for n few evenings around Jan. 81 it
rivalcd Venus In brightness and like
that star could be seen IN broad day
light. Its brightness was due to its
proximity to the sun. it's perihclion be-
ing much closer to that luminary than
Halley's. and its tail, about 20 degrees
in length, ut first straight, developed Il
curve towards the south This comet
had II parabolic orbit. and will never
return to the gaze of mankind. on
Aug. s. Il nebulous object. very faint.
was picked up by j. II. Metcalf OF
Taunton, Mass, which proved to be q
telescope comet. This also moves In
n parabolic orbit and is designated
comet b 1910 1t was nearest to us on
July ! and we may be able to observe
It again next spring. though fainter
than now. not visible to the naked
eye. D'Arrest's comet was observed by
NJ. r. Gonmlssiat. director of the AL
giers observatory, Aug. &c. This Is n
periodic comet accomplishing its revo-
luton around the sun in six and one
half years and has been seen many
times, only visible in LARGE telescopes.
Profs. Wilson and Aitken at the
Lick observatory on Sept. IS. picked up
Brooks periodic comet of 1889 with the
ninth return to tho vicinity of the
earth. The comet is exceedingly faint
and quite small 50 that 1t may not be
detected with moderate size Telescopes
News reaches us that Cerulli has OBJ
served the return of Faye's comet. an
other member of the Jupiter family or
comets.
,HALLEY's COMET.
j ne return I'll Utility y COlltt anu tiiS
anticipated passage OF the earth
through it's tail on May IS. was the
one astronomical event which captured
the popular imagination. Exaggerated
views of its magnitude filled the public
mind, and the fact that it failed to
leave any marks of its passage on our
Planet. was held in n measure to tho
dlscredit of astronomers. The real
length of the tail of Halley's comet
was never realized by the layman on
account of it's forcshortening; on April
q it subtended an angle of degrees
with a real length of 100000 miles
which on May had increased to IS
degrees, representing n length of 27,00O,-
600 miles; on May II on the other hand.
il subtended an agile of l05 degrees.
while its real length was only lS,g00000
miles. On that morning the writer had
the best view OF the comet. the tail
extending nearly half way across the
heavens. On July ] the comet again
subtended an angle of only degrees:
but stlll having a tail 'lS,000,00O miles
long. The reason the earth did not
pass through the tall of the comet
may we'll be that the earth. being n
comparatively warm body. rcpels tho
minute particles Of the comets tail.