The Washington herald., 1921-12-11
ASTRONOMERS
PLAN TESTS OF
EINSTEIN THEORY
Will Observe September,
1922, Solar Eclipse
In Pacific.
SUNDAY. DECEMBER II. 1871.
SOLAR ECLIPSE EXPEDITIONS
TO TEST RELATIVELY THEORY

=
the Indian Ocean and in the uni,-&
habited deserts OF Northwestern
Australia they plan TO observe IN.
, positions OF stars during the total
eclipse OF September 20. 1892.
The coming eclipse IL OF more than
usual interest. both TO scientists and
the world at large. Observation, A.
the last solar eclipse raised EinsteIn',
principle Of relatively from a doubt
full speculation TO an accepted theory
I The world is eager TO know whether
the repetition next year Of the photo-
/ graphic test made by the British
astronomers in 1918 will give the
same positive results In support o,
the Einstein hypothesis
Mex: years eclipse OF the sun will
/ be visible as a partial obscuraiion
over the greater part Of the Indian
Ocean. Southern Asia. Malaysia. and
Australia But the astronomers are
. interested only in the narrow path
OF totality. about fifteen miles wide
which stretches across the Indian,
Ocean and Australia from the eastern
edGe OF Africa.
There are four possible point, o.
observation OF the total eclipse: The
Maldive Islands. Christmas Island
and points near the coast Il North
western and Southeastern AustraIi.
The Maldive Islands. THOUSAND
miles south OF Bombay. have not beon
oh nv gFw
ton point because heavy winds NAV
be expected. and because Of the lack
Of transportation facilities 10 the
islands
British astronomers plan 10 send
an expedition TO Christmas Island.
which lies about $50 miles south %
the western end OF Java Tn.
. chances for a clear sky I'm that
locality are good arc0r4irC L.
J available METEOROLOGICAL rerurts.
! Northwestern Australia f. tho place
Z chosen for the American expedition
from the Lick Observatory. Noun
Hamilton. California. The Amer
lean astronomers plan 10 60 TO
place on the desolste Australian coast
called Ninety Milo Beach. near the
telegraph station Wollal. This $ on
the edge OF the great sandy desert.
but Professor W. W. Campbell. d.
rector of the Lick Observatory. re-
ports a government well IN the
vicinity with an abundance of good
water, and claims that weather con-
ditions At this point WIFI be better
than at any other accessible station
along the path OF the total eclipse.
Southeastern Australia - much
more easily reached than any OF IN
other possible sites for observing ia
tons. but weather conditions are not
likely 70 be so favorable. Rainfall
cold weather. and dust storms are
frequent there IN September. and a.
vet no expedition 70 that region has
been announced.
During the time that the sun IS
totally oclipsed the stars IN tn
neighborhood OF the sun can b.
photoEra phed. The photographs are
later compared with others OF the
same region Of the sky made al a
time when the sun Is not present.
that Is. q few months earlier o.
later. II on the two sets 81 photo
graphs Zone with the sun on the
picture and one withou) the stars
occupy the same positions relative to
each other. IL indicates an absence
OF proof OF the theory OF RELATIVELY
The Photographic plates taken BY
the British expedition at the eclipse
OF 1919. however. showed that tn
stars very close 10 the suns image
were slightly displaced away from
the sun. and the amount OF the dis.
placement agreed nearly exactly with
that predicted by Einstein This re-
marksble result was accepted by tn
scientific world as in itself almost
sufficient proof Of Einstein's theorf
Of relatively. Nevertheless. scientists
consider il desirable 10 have the re-
suit confirmed by another ohseFla-
ton OF the same kind.
The displacement Of the sta
images on photographs made duri~ 4
the solar eclipse is attributed by Oh
Einstein theory 10 the attraction OK
erted by the suns mass on the ravs
OF light passing n. A star who's
light. before reaching the earth. d0es
not pass close 70 the sun. Is not a.
fected. One whose light PASSES vcr,
close 10 tho sun has its RAYS heri
by Eravitationsl attraction. much ss
comets orbit is swung shout IN"
sun. only In less degree Tho offer'
OF bending is TO make the stars posi-
tion. when projected onto the sur
face Of the sky. secn farther from
the sun than it really Is: and the
amount Of the predicted displacement
should be easily measurable by exact
astronomical methods
The British expedition 20 Chr St
mas Island will establish ifs station
- -
; as TO obtain nighttime pictures Of the
portion OF the sky later 10 he &C
cupied by the sun during the ECLIPSE
Their object Is 70 have photographs
made at the same place. with the
same Instruments. and under sim lar
conditions. with which later 20 com
pare the eclipse photographs.
Up 10 the present time only the
two Astronomical expeditions men,
toned above have been announced
No doubt others will be planned du~-
; ing the coming year. But il Is pos
sible that many will wait FOR re
total eclipse in Septemhe-. 1928. which
can be conveniently Observer IN the
extreme southwestern cornc- 81 the
United States. The central line rhan
, runs through the city % san D1'EH.
and crosses some OF the erS silly &C
Cessible islands of the Southern
: California coast
Two-yea later a total cclins" will
. occur in New England. but the com
: putations OF its precise path hsv'
not yet been made public by The
! government astronomers who are in
vestigating these matters.
!. Sugar and alcohol can he Oh
] tsined from the juice OF the aGsNe