Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-03-21
the mountain would be as we'll lighted
and heated as the base. Yet the same
sun sends its rays alike on both places.
Decrease In Density.

and heated as the base. Yet the sam
| sun sends its rays alike on both places.
Decrease In Density.
/ We know that the atmosphere de
creases in density upward from the sur
/ face Of the earth. At the surface of TIN
earth the mechanical pressure of the al
Is not quite fifteen pounds to the squar
| inch and this pressure decreases in pro
| portional ratio as we go upward. TIL
| barometrical pressure may range from
| - plus to 80 plus at sea level, but 10
| every thousand feet of ascent there is ;
decrease in pressure. This proves tina
| the atoms composing the air. or rathe
that compose the gases of that air. ar
| most closely packed together at the sur
face of the earth and more dfffuselN
| grouped as We go upward. From this /
can readily be seen that the earth leve
layers of air offer by their c.ose struc
ture greater resistance TO the passage
through them of solar energy than the
upper layers.
Invisible solar energy impacting on the
air atoms meets with mechanical resist
ance. The greater that resistance. the
greater the light and heat produced
therefore, light and heat are greatest al
the earth's surface. But this is not all
for the rays of energy from an overhead
sun, after passing through the air. are
reflected back from the earth $ surface
transformed into more light and heat
At noon the rays are reflected upward
parallel to their line of impact 50 theil
light and heat efficiency is doubled. Wnile
in the early morning or late Afternoon
the rays are reflected at a large angle
and their light and heat efficiency Is de-
creased.
Some of my experiments have made me
suspect that the transformation does mol
occur until after the solar rays have
- rtlr md IN "
been reflected back, and in fact this the
DRY has much to commend 1t, both "a
tionaily and experimentally. One may
say tkat this theory can be disproved D,
the apparent effect Of heat on ones hand
held in the sunshine. The part toward
tue sun becomes hot, while that away
from it remains cool. But it remains tC
be wholly proved that it is the impactins
rays and not the reflected and trans
formed rays that cause the heat felt.
Night Greatest of Proofs.
Night is the greatest of all proofs thai
the sun does not flood the system with
light and heat per Sc. If the whole OF
the system were thus flooded there could
be no night. for after the sun had set
that part of the earth turned away from
the sun would still be lighted up by
the sun rays that lighted" up the rest
of the system. / here want to make il
very clear that ] do not assert that the
solar system is not filled with energy. II
is. But that does not mean light and
neat as primaries
Mercury, close to the sun in it's orbit
has been pityingly described as being
broiled alive, as it were, by the flood OF
heat upon it from the great solar fur
mace near it. But If the atmosphere OF
Mercury is less dense than of the earth
1t would not transform SO much of solar
energy into light and heat and SO need
not broil at all; conversely the outer
planets being provided with a dense
atmosphere would transform more energy
into light and heat and so need not
shiver in the 'cosmic cold of outer space.
Further, IL our sun is radiating light and
heat the other suns must be Likewise do
ing so. They do radiate energy. but only
such rays strike our earth are trans
formed.
The results arrived at in 1908 by pure
reason by the author have had striking
practical confirmation by the announce
ment March 20 by Prof. Lowell, from the
Lowell observatory at Flagstaff, Ariz
that spectroscopic observations have
proved that the nebula surrounding the
Pleiades shine by the reflected light OF
neighboring stars. The announcement
continues:
This is regarded as discovery of i'm
portance to the astronomical world. be-
cause of it's direct bearing on the nature
of thousands of other nebulae and on the
evolution of the stellar system. The sup
position has been that the nebulae were
self-lighting; that is, that they were com
posed of fiery substances. The discovery
would indicate that they are cold bodies
When the first announcement of the ''cold
solar energy" theory was made by the au
thor through the columns of The Stal
several years ago, it was radical {
departure from accepted ideas that it me-
with little acceptance. 1t has lately beer
received with more grace, and the an
nouncement of Lowell of mechanical con
firmation will aid in its general reception
1t is curious thing that this article
written in February, should receive sucl
emphatic emphasis in March.
Don't worry because the sun looks
hot, nor believe that it is because il
seems to boil. The same appearance,
would be presented If the gases which
compose it We're in violent state of mo
ton, as they are. Some day it will b.
definitely proved that matter is only
form of energy and that the specific
gravity of matter precisely equals tn,
amount of energy put into it's compo
sition. Finite effort can transform mat
ter into energy. but only infinite knowI
edge can transform energy into matte
on a cosmic scale.