Omaha daily bee., 1915-04-26

flashes with diamond radiance in our
winter heavens But II IL only the de-
ceptive effect OF relative nearness that
gives Sirius its apparent superiority over
Campus.
Sirius IL about nine light-years dis
tant "a light-year being the distance
that light. travelling 1860 miles per sec
ond. would 10 In twelve months) and
II we were as near to IL as we are 10
the sun 1t would give rs thirty or forty
times more light and heat than the sun
does; In other words, II IL a sun thirty
or forty times greater than ours
Campus Is az least 500 ight-years
distant, and II he were as near TO Il
a. TO the sun II would pour upon us prob
ably 1900 times az niue hight and heat
a. we now get from the sun
This means OF course. that the earth
could not exist at all In such proximity
to Campus. II would simply be puffed
away in whiff Of buring bases. At a
distance Of n little more than 800 900
miles from the sun the earth finds n
temperature and an illumination which
are both quite agreeable as tested by our
senses. That distance would have TO he
increased to about forteen thousand mill
lion miles from Campus in order that
similarly temperate conditions should
prevail for us under the dominion OF
that tremendous sun,
IL IL not simply because OF the enorm
Gus calculated magnitude OF Canopus
that II has recently been selected as the
probable center OF the whole universe
hut more particularly because the OBJ
served motions OF the stars seem 10 in
dictate that they circulate about that
point which Is occupied by Canopua
Even our far-distant and insiEnifioant
sun appears 70 acknowledge by n slight
inclination OF its path through space the
dominance OF the great master sun.
But II Campus really is the center
of the sidereal universe IL does not gov
err Il with the absolute power that the
sun exercises over its planets. II owes
It's pre-eminence rather 10 its position
than TO its energy. The universal system
Of the stars IL. IN a sense, federative
and self-governing. That system has a
center. because OF the mutual attractions
Of the millions Of bodies composing Il.
All are masters and all servants. in their
degree. They are like the revolving
electrons in an atom. IL is the universally
law OF oTbital revolution. affecting them
all. which keeps them In motion about a
common center. and not simply an over
mastering force emanating from that
center.
Yet. Campus must make its power felt
upon the stars circulating around II, how
ever deliberate their movements. and
however great their distances from the
center. II we suppose that the briliiance
OF Campus. area for area. Is the save
as the suns. then its diameter must be
about i60 times that OF the sun, it's sur
face 25.OoO times. and It's mass, which
measures its attractive power. 100000
finest
But this assumes that its mean density
Is the same as the suns. In fact. there IL
reason to believe that the density IL far
less than that OF the sun, stir. n we
should arbitrarily diminish II 1000 times
the attractive force OF Campus would
remain 1900 times greater than the SUMS
Campus IL not the first star that has
been chosen as the probable or calculated
center OF the universe. In the middle OF
the nineteenth century a similar honor
was paid TO the star Alcyone. the bright
est member OF the Pieiades group. be
cause the motions OF the stars in varI-
Gus parts Of the sky. as far as they had
been studied at that time. seemed 20 In
dicate common center In the midst OF
the pleiades. But Il was long ago dis
covered that the observations on which
the primary had been assigned TO Aleyons
we're erroneous and It IL quite possible
that the present choice Of Campus will
prove 10 have been equally illusory.