The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1912-11-23
FEAT or rSs SUN,
Effects OF Its Rays urSn loSN ans
Marble Structures


Not many people have any ides - O.
he enormous amount ~ hoat that "a,
an sends On into spaoe Tac cart'
cts onl, very Smali portion At IT,
he head ~ pin placed twenty tce;
way uN-m sn clc dry ushts ge,S ,r
proportion to the heht ,n tbe ssr-
'ounding walls %, room about Whs'
he earth s~,s ,g ,hg Ssu'S ljshr and
Ieat radist,j anu, Space Yet Una,
'orti"u the earth dces g,t is great
nouSE ;p ,aCsr sr,at sUvtWr.S to
| move
In fact all stone or metal buildings
are constantly changing this positions
Inder the hot RAYS of thc sun The
.reat dome of no capitol building az
Washington j. the lsrStst surf.r.v ~
east iron IN The world AMI the ct ect Of
he cunupU,uS heat II hot summer
lay can best be .roreciaied says Har-
leI's NerhN when IL is known that
his mammoth mass REALLY sway h2rl,
.a'N ANt W. NAt'NA AA4f SUI -AlAAlrr IaN : UI-
90 the top feather in the cap of the
statue OF Freedom describes an eclipse.
The diameter q: Viii q on hot "a,
varies from four % eight inches
The giant plinth base OF the uome.
resting on the roof of the old sandstone
raildirs. measures l36 feet OF a side.
fhe greatest diameter OF tn, round
dome * - fe,r. while the who'll, iron
structure Is Is feet high from the I'D
dpitoiS roCt 10 the base Of Freedom
ON the apvN The cast iron ,uverinr
this suridc, is made IN thin sheets
oferins good conductor tor the heat.
which s"ells even the bolts aud beams
Ot the inside before the sun has mad"
its circuit.
The southern side Of the dome suf
fers most flpm the heat. being exposed
longer L" tho sun. whi-h passes sodtE
Of the zenith while on it, jouraey irom
the east 10 the west II the metal
"a ere exposed u a constant heating the
result al the continuation Of such
expansion as that received on very hot
DAYS might prove disastrous. tut As il
Is little II any, permanent injury l.,
done since the iron returns regularly
la its normal position IS the cool nigh;
zones on.
But what seems more remarkable is
he fact that marble is also changed i'm
'olume so per-cptibly by the sunlight
hat the manmcth shaft Of the Wash
pg;oU monument sways back and
"rth IN the sun on a hot day. rke
utter surface being of hard marble the
-Xpansion j. much greater than It
would be- had granite instead of mar
be been used. on a hot sumner day
he sharp aluminium apex that crowns
he obelisk points To a position a least |
oar inches North OF normal. but al-
yaNs returns 10 Its proper position in |
he cool Of the night
From the extreme top OF the monu-
nent inside a long pipe line runs per
'enGicularly TO the bottom. leading to |
small closet behind the elevator. This |
ontains long pendulum whose bob |
larss in q vessel of mercury. which !
'revents its oscillation. Two stationary |
rauSits with highly magnIfyiGg lenses |
re focused directly upon the sus-
ended wire aud through these each !
uiver OF the monument is detected.
'eiuS magniiied on d fine scale grad
atcd To thousandths Of an inch.
Every morning at 10 o'clock a state
lent IF tins plummet line is token and |
eported 10 the war department. and II |
vas 10y this means that the effect |
hich tho suns RAYS have Oh the huge
bite shaft was dicovcred. This plumb
Ob, of course, was placed IN the |
1onumeAt for the purpose Of directing
ny settling it might undergo. ard al.
hough the great weight of it's mass
rs pressed the ground for many de-
AIDES il has settled only a slight trac-
ion of an inch in one corner
This seems eXtTaordinary when IA l. |
called that its weight Of SLIGO tons
ests on q foundation only 1851. feet
IuIre and thirty~eisht feet deep from
height almost fifteen times that Of
he depth. The whole rests on the
andy bank of the Potomac river. with
he enormous pressure uf five tons 10
he square foot Not only does the
un's heat sway the big obelisk but at
ines, Wien a sti1 winter gale was
lowing II has been reported as much
: two inches out Of plumb.