The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1910-07-26
SHOOTING STARS
ARE DUE aug. 10
ASTRONOMERS INTERESTED IN
SPECTACLE WHICH MAY BE
EXPECTED DURING THE
COMING MONTH.

Astronomers and laymen are taxi
a. deem interest In the approaching
August display of shooting stars
which will probably be most remark
able ON the nights of August . ana IT,
when small particles of matter, trav-
o,,ng at a tremendous rate through |
space i'm the train Of comet VIII meet
tho earth's atmosphere, become ighlteu
~. friction and be seen in the heavens
as fiery points streaking the, skies AT
frequent intervals, says The Detro'r
News.
The earth Is said to be now In close
proximity TO one of the most lhpor-
tant swarms of those apparently IN
sienificant bodies which course In I'M
knovn millions around the sun, and
the beautiful periodical display OIL
shooting stars which usually takes
Mace on the night of st. Lawrence DAY
Aug. 100 is again about to occur
The time usually assigned for the an
nuaI August display is from the 9th
Ia the 18th. On almost any clear night
between the second and twentieth or
August multitudes of shooting stars
NAV be seen by the patient observer
though of late years more have been
seen on the evening of the ninth ana
tenth than at any other time.
The August Meteors
The August meteors are tbelieved TO
originate from large cluster or zone
of meteoric bodies, which revolVes
around the sun in an ellipticai orbit
extending far beyond the orbit or inc
remote planet Neptune, and through
which the earth plunges annually. the
earth is about 10 days In passihl
through the entire cluster, which, IRON
orr velocity OF space, indicates ina
the thickness of the cluster is apou
16 OOO. 600 miles. AS the annual Aug
ust display usually lasts about 81
ho,irs and the earth travels at the rat
of $4,000 miles per hour. or Is mile
a second, it follows that the breadu
Of the meteor stream, at the plac
where the earth crosses 1t, dens
enough TO produce a fmeteoric show
er."sis DYER 4,oOoO00 miles on Aus
10 each year the earth encounters tn
ellipticai orbit OF this meteoric clus
ter.
Small Celestial Bodies.
shooting stars are the smallest &C
lestial bodies known to astronomer
the majority OF them being no iarg'
than M pebble, or grain Of coarse san
No line of demarkation can be draw
between the smallest shooting ST
and a brilliant meteor that leaves
luminous train behind. In fact an
teor'' Is simply large shooting star
They differ In size, color, directio
train and velocity, but in astronomi'
character they are precisely alike no
moving in long orbits like comets, a
like comets at all angles to the eartl
orbit. Automatically speaking, a II
teor Is a small comet, not having, no
ever the comets 'tail.''p From obs
vations made on the same meteors
different stations. quite distal
apart. Il has been found that IN
bodies. when first visible. are about
miles above the earth, and disappear
a height OF about 30 miles, their aV
age velocity being 20 miles a Sec
md the length of their visible pa
AZ miles.
More Numerous in August
During the August display, the nj
Der of meteors seen Is about hve u
the average of the year (from 80 u
per hour, and those who have
served the heavens for few We
past have noticed the gradual incr'
IN the number of shooting stars Ibr
enough TO be seen by the naked
Meteors and shooting stars should
looked for on the evenings OF Au
and 10 in the vicinity of the const'
ton Penseus, which, about Ill o'ci
may be seen toward the northeas
The number of shooting stars
will be seen i'm the coming dfs
may possibly be less than in $
former years, but an unusually
liant display may occur this year
Aug. and 10. The moon, not !
ing reached her first quarter, VII
visible I'm the early part OF the e.
ing, and her light may be sufiicien
blot out many of the small shoe
stars that produce the shower,
after the moon sets these minute
jects will be visible to the naked
so that the exhibition may then be