The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1925-11-17
MARS HAS SEASONS
JUST LIKE OUR EARTH
TENS OF THOUSANDS OF
PHOTOGRAPHS ADD MUCH
DATA OF RED PLANET.

Whenever one mentions the Low
ell observatory he thinks first Of inves-
tigation OF the planet Mars, for this
institution has probably watched the
warriors planet over a longer period
and more carefully than any other in
the world. says a Boston Transcript
dispatch from Flagstaff, Arizona Mars
was closer to the earth last summer
than it has been for many years, and
in the period from the spring OF 1924
to Tu1v OF this year, when the planet
reached a line with the sun and was
lost 10 view hundreds of drawings and
tens of thousands of photographs were
made with the twenty-four inch tele-
scope chiefly by Earl E. Slipher.
These show seasonal changes doubt
less similar to what would be obserV-
ed on the earth itself from like dis
lance; clouds which appeared moved
across the Marian surface and vanish
ed like terrestrial storms and also
those strange dark marking which
have been called canals and over which
so much controversy has waged.
MANY astronomers. some of great
repute, have expressed the opinion that
these are mere optical illusions, and
that those claiming to have seen them
were mistaken. To anyone who has
paid a visit to the Lowell Observatory
such as l. have just completed, and has
had the pleasure OF seeing Mr.. Silph
er's actual Photographic negatives on
which the canals distinctly show, such
IL.
are there, but whether they indicate
the presence of intelligent life is anoth-
er and still undetermined question.
Direct photography and visual as
tronomy are not the only methods used
by the Lowell Observatory last sum
mer, for with the cooperation OF the
bureau OF standards accurate measure
ments were made for the first time
of the amount OF radiation from the
planet. and from this it has been pos
sible to judge accurately its tempera-
ment.
This was done with a very delicate
instrument known as the Coblentz
radiometer. DR.. Coblentz and Dr.
c. O. Lampland, OF the observatory
staff, worked last summer on this
pIODleHl, anu SlIlCt tIl6ll LII l~dlIip-
land has continued the research, apply
ing the radiometer not only to Mars,
but to Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Jupit
er, and Uranus as well.
The instrument is used with the
observatory's rejecting tele 0 pc,
which has a mirrow forty inches in
diameter for gathering the rays from
the planet. They have found that the
Marian temperature is surprisingly
high. being as high as 90 degrees F.
in the summer time.
This is OF particular interest be-
cause so many astronomers have sup
posed that Mars being so far from our
common source OF energy the tempera-
ture would continually be below the
freezing point of water.
However, the earth retains little over
half the radiation received by it, while
Mars retains about IS per cent. The
study OF Mars has now ceased tempo
rarily, but next year 1t will be resum-
ed, when the planet, though not as
close as in 1924, will be higher in the
sky, and in better position for OBJ
servation.
Meanwhile, DIR. Lapland is study
ing the other planets.
Jupiter he finds, gives practically no
radiation that can be detected by the
instrument, while Venus, most supris-
ingly, radiates from both the light and
dark portions With this planet which
now shines brightly in the western sky
just after sunset the problem is com
plicated, because we do not see the
surface 1t is perpetually covered by
clouds, and we not yet know how far
we can penetrate through them.