The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1910-05-04
HALLEYS RED RACER
TURNS INTO LAST LAP
Dusky Milky Way Celestial vagabond With Streaming
Tail Rushes Toward Defense less Earth While Whole HUI
man Family Stands in Awe and Expectancy.

He located It. with the aid of the alert
eye of the camera, which surpassea
the human. on Septebber II, 1905,
when 1t was speck in the consteliA-
ton known as the Twins.
Hailey's is periodic comet, unlike
most bodies of Its kind. It wtngs
around the sun at fairly regular In
tervals. and Is to-day a recognized
part OF the solar system.
In 1885 1t made its last appear
ance. On April 30. 1910, 1t swang
around the sun and In now dashing
towards this globe. Astronomers have
almost accurately plotted tta COMMA.
but just how much it will swerve
from a straight line remains to be
seen.
May Hit Earth.
The impact of a comet with the
earth, thing by no means impoaaI-7
BILE. would reduce this planet to IT.
original chaos. 1t was believed by
HALEY that at some remote period tbs
earth was struck obliquely by comet.
SO that the axis OF rotation was chang
ed and thus attributed the rigor OF the
climate OF North America Since then
this view has been completely upset
by Lord Kelvin and Sir George Dar-
win.
Subject Of Thrilling Stories.
Jules Verne and HI. G. Wells have
made collision of the earth with =
comet subjects of thrilling stories. A.
tronomers are still fascinated by the
possibility of such a contact.
1t has been figured out by men OF
i letters that the possibility OF COLI
sion is likely to occur once in 1S.000.~s
he00 years.
Last year Professor William II.
Pickering, of Harvard University. e.
timated that the core of one comet In
II 100000 will hit the earth sQuareiy.
Little Substance In Tail.
Though the tail of a comet may b
one million miles in length, the
amount OF substance in 1t Is safd 70
be nil. The haze on the horiz.sn n
pared with the tail OF comet.
Actually the tall consists of hydro
gen and carbon and forms a gas which
resembles the blue flame Of q gAa
stove.
The atmosphere surrounding the
earth is composed OF certain quan-s
tity OF hydrogen. and Ii is to this that
airships owe their buoyancy, ana
aside from being extremely light thin
| gas is characterized by high tnnnrn~
inability A study OF the diffusion ok
gases shows that part OF this hydro.
gen In the air is mixed with otha1s
gases and that II probably fioau IT.
tfE upper dAF---1dK AuUNG LIE KS8k<0 ~
mankind.
Would Fire the World.
A comet may thus be designated ~
great torch, which may be brought
dangerously near this upper layer az
infiammable gas. Should 1t be touch
ed by the cometary flame the earth
would be enyeioped in FIRE. The It
mosphere would become a roaring
furnace the oceans would boil away,
cities and forests would be reduced ~
ashes and in a twinkling all human
life would be snuffed out before mani
kind realized that the world wA1
afire. Following : this burning *
hydrogen in oxygen mighty delueo
would engult this planet, leaving the
earth charred mass to float forever
In eternity.
Scientific research has shown that
the tail Of Halley's comet contAtn1
cyanogen gas, which would prove In
simultaneously fatal II taken into tho
human system. 1t Is far-fetched ~
believe that any Richmcnders will AbA
sorb a lung-full OF the tail OF thu
comet.