Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1916-09-21
HOW sun GETS ITS HEAT
RadiOactivity One Theory-Mi-
croscopic Contraction of
Volume Another.
VIII Continually become Hotter instead
of Cooler, Thus Offering Hopeful
Future to UtiIizcrs of Solar
Energy.

In n paper on "The Utilization Of Solar
Energy" i'm the Smithsonian annual re-
port, A. S. Il. Alderman of England, says
that the sun is no longer regarded as
monstrous ball of fire, burning in the man
ner of our CRATE fires, at temperature
of several hundred thousand degrees
Ccntigrade for, great as is its mass, 1t
would he comparatively rapidly consumed
If such combustion were taking place.
The temperature of the surfuce of the
sun has been determined as about 500"
degrees Centigradc. far too high to permit
the formation of most chemical com
pounds without which the production of
heat by combustion is impossible. such
a temperature dcComposes nearly all COM
pounds into their clements and prevents
their reuniting and the consequent produc-
tion of heat.
Mr.. Alderman says that scientists are uy
no means certain how the suns heat Is
produced; one theory being that il is due
to radloactivity; and another that the ems
ergy to keep mp the radiation could he
supplied by relatively microscopic con-
traction Of its volume but this theory is
not complete success as it implies that
the sun is only about 100000 years old,
or less than the age of the earth
As to the structure Of the sun there is
also doubt; but the inner portion may be
spoken of popularity ar the nucleus and
the outer portion as the atmosphere.
When the outer layers Of the atmosphere
get relatively cooler they sink to lower
level. their place being taken nv hotte'
layers thus actuating continual circu-
latons of the suns atmosphere. The an
thor states that the weight of an average
cubic foot of tho sun is only one-fourth ~
that Of an average cubic foot OF the ear ii
The density of the sun being so small it
has been concluded that II can still cor
tnue to contract. getting hotter all the
time instead of cooler as is pocularlv
supposed, making II hopeful future tor
utilizers of solar energy.
| The great glowing surface which the sun
presents to us, even considered rs a fiat
I disk, has the enormous area OF 5S5. .0n
Goa square miles, each square foot of which
emits the tremendous amount of about -
| 500 horsepower, and the radiant energy
received on the surface of the earth at
noon on n clear day is about 300 horse
power per acre. Now the quantity of this
solar heat per unit area whir1 arrives ~
unit time at the outer surface of our at
/ ~ $500 - 800
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