New Britain herald., 1924-08-22
Scientists Figuring At- mospheric Conditions Rather Than Specu- lating Upon Life in
 Planet.

San Francisco, Aug. .:.-rhat an
 eisnt sidersal swashhnekler. Mars
 now believed by some celestial obs
 servers to be declining into a mere
 astral roue. today took the lead over
 radio. meonshine, baseball and poli-
 ties as topic of conversation among
 iaymen on the Pacific coast.
 This was due to the assertions Of
 sstronmers that our nearest planet
 ary nsighbor had arrived at a point
 nearer 10 the earth than he has been
 for more than 100 years. or a mere
 si.000,000 miles away. This is IT,
 100000 miles nearer than hls usual distance.
 While the man in the street was fpeculating on the possibility of this brother speck in the cosmos being in- hahited and astrologers were comput- Ing the effect of its proximity on the dispositions and fortunes of men, trained observers on Mount Hamilton, near San Jose. and at Mount Wilson, near Los Angeles. had tteir telescopes, cameras, mirrors ap1 spectroscopes trained on the passrby 10 record any idiosyncrasy he 'lay display Else where the radjJ with its greedy an- tennae. Is gr,ping in the ether for anything ardible the sphere by some chance Uight cast off.
 Whil, the more crcdulous and TO- mantle are hopeful of some sign that may serve to link the earth a little closer to the solar brotherhood, the skeptical scientists in the mountain | observatories said the most they hop | ed for was little knowledge with | respect 10 the atmosphere and cima- tic conditions on Mars.
 Months To Examine Photos
 The astronomers expect 1t will take months to complete examinations of plates and observations made. some- thing. however, has already been gain ed, for Professor R. l. Trumpler of the Lick Observatory on Mount Ham, ilton, said today study of photogra- phjc plates verified that Mars had its seasons and it's thermal belts. Just now. he ventured to guess, they are having cold spell on the planet. for apparently a V-shaped projection of ice extends from what corresponds to our Arctic circle to the Martian equa tor and a snowstorm seemed probable aloag the projection. ,
 At Mount Wilson, where they have ; the largest telescope in the world, a mirror lcl.s 100 inches in diameter , ard other highly modern facilities for :; spyin~ on gadabouts in the milky way, nc results of recent tests have been For the benefit of the lay . men who may desire to see fo. them = selves whether Mars Is inhabited, the < Mount Wilson astronomers are lend ing gratis the use of their telescopes to all who care to climb the mountain 2 :, 1000 feet to the summit for a look. u
 What May Be Seen
 Those who accept the offer are ex- $ pected to see little more than small I red disc somewhat wrinkled with age | and geological misbehavior. There | nay be visible faint outlines of moun- ain ranges and oceans; but nobody Il will be seen walking unless the hy e oothetical inhabitants exceed in sta c ure our Paul Bnnyans and Gargan- n uas. Larg, cities. should they exist would not even be visible, say the avants. r; After a few brief hours the planet n will diminish in size and brightness fl nd. ficking a loose beam at us in to arewell, will tear on its way to an- M ther corner of the universe to return 0 our corner somewhere around o24 A. D.