The Monmouth inquirer., 1923-10-04
TRIP TO MOON
BY ATOM FORCE
Mars and Venus Might Also Be
Visited through Discharge
of Radio Activity.

COuCSlNdDtb mSduo
by which the moon, as well as Mars
and Venues, might be visited, is through
the discharge on a large scale Of
radio-activity, and through the solu'
ton Of the problem of the disintegra,
ton Of matter into helium or hydro
gen atoms. This Is the belief of DIR.
Herbert Chatlsy.
May Be Life on the Moon.
In a lecture before the Quest so
ciety here, recently, Doctor Chatey
said that the presence of life on the
moon would be a matter of surprising
Importance, but as yet there Is no
very good evidence in its favor, and 1t
seems almost inconceivable. There
can be little or no water there, since
no clouds are visible. There is also
little or no air. Add to these facts
the conditions that the days are q
times as long as ours and that the tenn
perature at lunar midday is greater
than that Of boiling water and at
lunar midnight lower thar that of the
terrestrial poles and it will be under
stood that the circumstances are by
no means propitious for life as we
know it, he explains.
Can there then be life in some other
form7 Chemists are inclined to think
that the very complex combinations
which form the basis Of Dur substance
are unique, so that while 1t Is con-
eeivable that latent life may exist in
q frozen state. active life Is only pos
sible between the freezing and boiling
points Of water.
Having discussed the question
whether the moon was nee part Of
the earth, as well as the influence
Of the moon upon the earth, Doctor
Chatley continued:
jules Verne Had idea.
Speculative persons, mostly ro-
mancers, have invented various meth
eds by which they conceive the moon
might ba reached. Balloons or air
planes are out of the question since
the earth's atmosphere thins out to
practically nothing about 100 miles up
Without that there is nothing to s1p-
port them.
Jules Verne imagined an enormous
gun, with a shell as the lunar express
(return passage not guaranteed). BY
the use of a very long gun and a
charge more than % times as heavy
as the shell, the necessary velocity
(neariy ten miles per second might
perhaps be attained, but the acceler-
alton would have the unfortunate eff
feet Of s%quashing the passengers TO
pulp just after they started which
might impair their enjoyment Of the
trip
Wells Pictured Lunar Car.
M. G. Wells imagined a material
called "~eavorite" which was impervt
GUS to grav1tation so that If II were
placed under anything 1t would fly
off under the influence of the attract
ing bodies on the upper side. His
lunar a was a spherical box which
had removable windows Of cavorite
so that attraction In any desired direc-
ton could be used.
Unfortunately this idea, quite apart
from the unfortunate fact that no
such substance is known, is mechani-
calIy irrec0ncilable with a mechanical
principle which may be popularity
termed the impossibility OF perpetual
motion II cavorite shutters were
opened and shut at intervals Of time
the car would go up and down per-
petually without any work being done.
Incidentally this indicates a very re
markable fact, that gravitation is In
~extricably associated with q continu-
Gus ~outpouring of energy.
Goddard Would Use Rocket.
"G. w. Grtfith's provided his honey
mooners In space with an anti-gravt-
rational force. This has actually been
hypothecated by some physicists, but
there is no evidence of its existence.
"An American named Goddard has
devised a large rocket which he
thought would do the trick, but cal
culation shows that the most ener-
getic explosives will not suffice to
carry the rocket very far, unless the
charge enormously exceeds the weight
of the vehicle, and in any case the
kick back velocity Of the explosive
gases is too small.
'The only conceivable means is by
the discharge Of radio-activity on a
large scale and the solution Of the
problem Of the d~isintegration Of mat
ter into helium or hydrogen atoms,
which would actually provide a means
Of visiting not only the moon but also
Mars and Venus.
'rhis question is bound up with
that Of the origin of the moon and
there are various hypothesis. The
meteoritic theory regards them as the
relics Of a terrific bombardment. 9th
ers again hold that these enormous
rings are due to the bursting Of
prodigious gas bubbles, while a mi
nority hold to the old idea of volcanic
action"
Deer Killed by a Train.