Arizona republican., 1910-01-01
IN THE SKIES.
Our Coming Adventure With . Comet

Halley's comet looks more formid- able at it rushes nearer. It is bright ening more rapidly than was expected, and. there is a good chance that it will be plainly visible to the naked eye in February. and that when it gets within 14, ,OOO, 900 or 15.O00.O00 miles of the earth next spring it will show us a spectacle that will be talked of for generations to come.
 Then perhaps. it will exhibit that fiery head. like a burning coal" and that mighty train. like the steam of fire that issues from a cannon's mouth." which Professor Struve. the Russian astronomer. so dramatically described when the wonderful wan derer of space was last here. in 1885.
 But we shall have an experience with this comet incomparably more exciting than anything that has pre- ceded in it's history unless our calcu- lators of orbits are much more serious ly out in their reckoning than they are likely to be.
 It will reach its perihelion, or near est approach to the sun, about April 19 After that it will pay its respects to Venus and then to the earth. and about May IS it will probably fling it's tail across our globe. for on that date it will be passing exactly between the sun and the earth. and its tail is surely long enough to extend much farther than the 14.000.000 miles which will then separate us from it's glowing head.
 The eiliptical orbit of the comet Is in clirted to that of the earth. The comet comes in on one side of the plane or the earth's orbit and goes out on the other side. and on May IS the crossing of the plane will occur.
 But it so happens that the earth will arrive. just at that critical time. at a point in it's orbit precisely in line with the comet and the sun. Consequently. the comets tail. always directed away from the sun. will sweep the earth.
 Just what sort of an experience it will be nobody can tell in advance. but it may be said that astronomers. in stead of being alarmed, are delighted that this celestial accident Is going to happen, so it Is pretty safe to as- sume that nobody will be hurt. In fact. the comet is likely to get much the worst of it.
 This is decidedly hard-headed proposition, this little. on-ballasted planet of ours. and has a terrific pull when it gets its gravitation at work. and there is every chance that the comet will retire from the encounter with a permanent twist in its orbit. if not in it's tail.
 A comets tail Is mostly made of hy- drogen and carbonic gases. like acety- lene. and it will be interesting to see if it can introduce enough of those substances into the atmosphere to be in any way noticeable.
 As to it's poisoning the air, nobody whose opinion counts in such things has the slightest fear. If we see little strange light in the sky while the tail is whsking over us. or catch sight Of a few meteors. that is the most We can expect in the W. 7 of q spectacle
 But both before and after the pas sage the comet should be wonderful sight. first before sunrise and then after sunset. And then, without re- gard to consequences, what thing 1t will be to remember-that we have been through comets tail.-Garrett P. Serviss in Los Angeles Examinet.