Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1910-07-06
top Fammalons
oeraph.
The g. $40 Mons ouenssets photograph
Lower pctuephotogaph the taken at MarsetIes


Lower picture-photograph of the
Observatory of Juvisy, June ga
certain number of ignorant persons,
disappointed in their expectation and
their illusions, accuse the jastrono-
mers of having fooled them and go
so far as to doubt the existence of
Halley's comet, though it is following
punctually the path marked out by
calculations; and the observers, in a
perpetual struggle with the incIem-
ency of our atmosphere, are doing
wonders to obtain exact records, the
minute analysis of which will allow
us later to draw conclusions
AS l have said many times, this
wauderer of the heavens cannot be
counted among the big comets, whose
appearance strikes the entire world
with establishment, and it is only ex-
ceptionally, in 1866 and 1856, that 1t
appeared with magnificent brilflance.
1t is especially interesting, owing to
the sun, which causes it to come
back at intervals varying from sew
enty-four to seventy-nine years within
sight of our earth at least for the
last twenty-five centuries, and par
ticularly to the role it has played in
cometary astronomy Besides, it
seems to be diminishing in brilliance.
Comets are subject to the universal
law of being-birth, old age, death
Finally, if this one did not offer the
grand spectacle that the public looked
for it should be remembered that the
weather lends itself with difficulty to
observations.
In spite of these disastrous meteor
illogical conditions we have done the
impossible at my observatory of Jul
yisy to observe the comet, to draw
it and to photograph it.
May %, at forty minutes past eight
O'Clock in the evening, the light OF
day being still as strong as that OF
the full moon, | was able to examine
the heavenly cometary wanderer with
the equatorial. Only its nucleus
could be seen, its brilliance being
about equal to chat of star of the
second magnitude. Neither at that
hour nor later was any trace OF a
tail perceptible, and, to my great sur
prise, the only train visible was di-
rected toward the sun. / made the
above drawing Cleft top fgure). 1t
was luminous aigrette measuring
from two to three minutes in length.
The nucleus may nave had a diameter
of ten seconds. This is only an es-
innate, no micrometric measure be-
ing possible on account of the cloudy
condition of the sky, which necess1-
tated quick action. This observation
appears TO me to be in absolute con-
tradiction to the optical theory or
comets tails being similar to rays
from lighthouses The cometary mat
ter goes first toward the sun and is
then repealed.
An hour later Mons. Quenisset
made the next drawing fright top),
which shows the nebulosity of the
head, made visible by the approach
of night l have indicated on my
drawing of the aigrette its outline in
little dots Two photographs we're
taken later. But clouds and the full
moon formed a continual obstacle.
On the other hand letter from Eng
land tells us that photograph, also
obtained on the evening of May %
at the laboratory of solar physics OF
Fosterdawn Fort (Caterham), Slows
the comet under the appearance of
very brilliant little nucleus encircled
by a luminous nebulosity, but the
tail does not appear, entirely yelled
as it was by the moonlight.
Astronomers are almost in agree
ment to admit that on the dates of
May % and "a the comet was de-
prived of appendage, so that the be
lief is possible that it really did dis
appear and for that reason we did
not traverse the cometary atmo-
sphere. For my part have con-
cluded from my observations that the
tenuity of the tail is such that the
light of the full moon was SUN cient
to blot it out from all eyes.
It's visibility also depends on the