El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-04-30
SOUTH

(The right ascenSions and declina-
tions Of the comet on the above dates
may be found in the April sky map
To Cross SUN May is.
As has been pointed out repeatedly.
the comet is to transit the face of the
SUE during the night of May Is The
exact time that this will take place is a
little uncertain, but the latest calcula-
tions seem TO show that the comet viii
be four or five minutes north of the
center of the suns disk about 1920
p m eastern standard time The comet
will encroach on the western limit of
the sun half an hour earlier. and the
total time of transit will be almost an
hour According to these figures the
sun will have set not only in the east
ern part Of the United States. but ON
thu Pacific slope as well. One would
need TO go TO the islands of the Pacific
TO observe the phenomenon And what
would we see if there? The he'd of
the comet according to measures of
Prof. Barnard is over 100000 miles in
width.
Very Close.
This, only 100000 miles awav pro
jected on the sun six times farther off
would be sufficient to cover up the
whole SUM- But the head of the comet
as a whole is so rare that it would
probably obstruct so little light, that it
will be impossible to detect any change
in the suns appearance. Still the comet
has a nucleus. and ii is thought that
if there are any solid or semisolid por
tions of this as large as 10 miles in
diameter, they should show as minute
black dots against the sun. And so.
though the layman may notice nothing
unusual about the sun, the professional
astronomer may. Already certain news
papers have published articles regard
ing the calamity that would visit the
earth If the comet should bump into US
Such happening is absolutely impos-
sible. for the calculations do not admit
of such gross blunders. Fourteen mid
lion miles from danger is rather wide
margin
Tail to Hit Us.
What will happen when we pass
through the tail, as we will do on the
night of the 18th? Due TO the -curva-
Vure of the tail the earth will not pass
exactly through the center of it. but
We will sweep through the cometary
material at the rate of 40 miles per sec
ond. The tail is formed of particles
so small in size and with such large
spaces between them that there will prob
ably be little of an unusual nature to
behold. If the particles are charged
with electricity they may cause a dis
play of northern lights-a phenomenon
which usually requires a fine night, and
an absence from the lights of a city.
Unfortunately for the appearance of
the comet itself in the evening sky the
moon is fun on May %. The moon will
be five days from the full when we
pass through the tail and will be above
the horizon.
No Harm.
As regards the poisonous gas cyano-
gen which the spectroscope informs us
Is IN the comets tail. of that we need
have no fear whatever, and we may
spend all our interest in enjoying the
comet without dread The bOmbardment
Of cometary material viii be directed
towards Japan, China and India These
eastern nations will be encased in
bullet proof atmosphere. thousands of
times denser than the impinging par
ticles, and no harm will come to them
or to US
Though the comet may De fine NOV
ing object. it viii be better seen in the