Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1910-05-17
MEN TRAIN EYES ON COMET
Batteries of Telescopes Will Be
Leveled on Heavenly Visitor.
NO DANGER OF POISONOUS GAS
Consensus of Opinion IL that Deadly
Vnpor VIII Not Touch the Earth
Many Theories Are BE-
ing Aired.

I lhk
| WASHINGTON, May 16-IIalley's comet
will be greeted Wednesday on its closest
approach to the earth by a bristling bat
! terry of telescopes thanked by rapid-fre
/ lenses in the celestial cameras of the ma
val observatory. Elaborate calculations
have been made as to the minute and sec
ond the comet will be at given places in
the heavens where 1t will be observed
and photographed
| Among the scientists there is some diff
! ference of opinion as to the effect the
great star will have upon the earth, but
the differences are minor. Prof. Asaph
| Hall of the naval observatory would not
be surprised If there were showers of
meteorites. He advanced this theory with
the same calmness that he would prophesy
shower of rain. Others-and they appear
i'm the majority-expect no disturbances.
Edwin +. Naulty of New York takes issue
with Prof. Hall and contends that the tail
of the comet is composed neither OF gas
nor of meteorc bodies and that such
shower as Prof. Hall deems possible could
not follow.
"Halley's comet, to all intents and pur-
poses, is celestial searchlight," said Mr..
Naulty today. 1T is nothing more than
sunlight condensed from solar energy and
pressed by the solar system, precisely as
lens focuses, condenses and transmits
light"
No Gas in Tail.
lie asserts that the tail OF Halleys
comet. to all intents and purposes is not
! composed of gas or of minute particles of
matter or of meteoric bodies. The entire
solar system, Mr.. Naulty says, is filled
| with gases in varying states of density.
All these gases, poisonous and non-polson-
Gus, are present in the earth's atmosphere
in dense form.
The changing spectrum of Halley's comet,
according to Mr.. Nauty's theory, is due
to the fact that as the comets great
tail" of light sweeps through various
parts of the solar system it lights up diff
fering layers of gas, conveying the i'm
preston that the tail itself is gaseous.
Mr. Naulty says the spectrum of reflected
light is always present in the tail of the
comet, thus proving that certain parts of 1t
are by sunlight alone made visible.
! THE sweeping of this cometary cone OF
solar force does cause disturbance In the
solar system" said Mr.. Naulty. THE earth
and all the planets are affected that only
come within the actual cone as the earth
| will do by ethereal waves set in motion
! by the comets tail. 1t is the constant at
tempt of the earth's mass and Its atmos-
phere to adjust themselves to this dis
turbance that has caused the prevalent
earth tremors, storms and other pheno-
mena.
Climax This Week.
THE climax will be reached this week.
There will be no collision of the earth and
the comet, nor will the earth be envelopd
in poisonous gus The effect of the pas
sage may be to cause condensation of
atmospheric vapors, that automatically
the earth will be provided with a sort of
shield, which will act like lead screen
used to protect x-ray operators 49,
When tho comet approaches nearest the
earth on May 49, the moon will be full and
the conflict of it's rays will make observa-
tions Of the comet more difficult than
would be the case If there was no OPP
position.
No Cause for Fear.
BOSTON, May 15.-Agreeing that no
harmful effect is to be experienced on
next Wednesday from the passage of the
earth through the tail of Halley's comet,
, New England astronomers appear not to
, concur as to the possibility of a luminous
display similar to northern lights. Prof.
, David Z. Todd of Amherst college thinks
the aurora effect probable. Prof. Robert
, W. Wilson of the Harvard college observa-
tory declared today that there may be a
darkening of the atmosphere, while Prof.
Edward Z. Pickering, head of the Harvard
observatory, said: Il doubt IL there Will
be any of it at ALL" Prof. Wilson said
further that there may be showers of
ignited particles, very small but numerous,
which may affect wireless telegraphy.
There is no cause for alarm or fear.
Cyanogen exists only near the comets head
and the tail is a good vacuum"
Prof Todd declares that there will be
| no more sensation than that caused by the
rays of light from a distant candle on a
persons hand. a proportionate amount of
; cyanogen gas is radated from each, he
says.
astronomers, thinks a luminous display
probable
The increasing brllliancy of the comet as
II approaches the earth was shown today,
! when Harvard astronomers found that the
! body, with the coma or envelope, had
2 reached proportions of nearly a zero mag
' nate, the highest stage of stellar brllllance.
. The rate of increase In bTllliancy is indl-
I Gated by two photometric measurements
taken at the Harvard observatory.
t The first, on May g. showed the nucleus
to be of rs magnate. Another on Friday,
lust a week later, showed the magnitude
} to be AL, an increase in apparent size OF
265 degrees