Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-06-08
LIFE POSSIBILITY
|. ON VENUS IS FOUND
Carnegie Institution Scien-
fists Discover Carbon d.
oxide About Planet.

Discovery of important new evidence
bearing on the possibility of life on
Venus was announced today by the
Carnegie Institution of Washington.
Venus, slightly smaller than the earth
and about 23.OOOOO0 miles nearer the
sun, has been constant enigma to
astronomers. Theoretically conditions
there should be quite similar to those on
earth and the possibility Of life on this
sister planet of late years has been
given much more serious consideration
than that of life on Mars.
Surrounded by Clouds.
The difficulty has been that Venus is
surrounded by a heavy cloud blanket
under which it has been impossible to
penetrate. Thus it was not known
whether Venus had an atmosphere that
would support life, whether 1t has any
actual solid land surface, or whether 1t
rotated like the earth or always pre-
sented one face to the sun. In the
later case one side would be at con-
tinual boiling heat while the other
was close to absolute zero.
The discovery announced today Is
that there is carbon dioXide probably
in large amounts in the atmosphere OF
the planet.
DR.. Walter S. Adams and DR.. Theo-
dore Durham of the staff of the instl-
tution's observatory at Mount Wilson,
in study of the infra-red spectrum OF
Venus with the l0O-inch telescope, have
found three well defined absorption
bands in positions which indicate the
strong probability that they are caused
by carbon dioXide.
Important Discovery.
This discovery, if fully substantiated,
is of marked scientific interest for TWO
reasons: 1t will have been the first
time gas of any kind has been ldentl-
fed in the Spectra of any of our plan
cts; and it indicates that one of the
essentials TO life as we know it on this
earth may exist in the atmosphere OF
Venus.
This most brilliant of all celestial
bodies except the sun and moon re-
seplbics the earth in SO many ways that
it has been called the earths twin sis
ter" 1t Is eight-tenths as massive as
the earth, Is more highly rejecting, is
two-thirds as far from the sun, and has
a gravity pull about four-flfths as pow
erful Inasmuch as its density is about
-tenths that of the earth's, 1t is
believed to have a solid surface.
That Venus has fairly dense atmo-
sphere is certain, for it is plainly visible
when this planet is in a certain position
between the earth and sun. Then 1t
presents an appearance which would be
caused by sunlight Illuminating the
planets atmosphere from behind.
qtmnCnhprP contains
the essentials for life has been battling
mystery, for its constituents have re-
manned an enigma. Now, however.
through use of the spectroscope, that
amazing tool of the astronomer sub
Stantial clue to the nature Of the atno-
sphere of our twin sister" has been OBJ
tanned.
Suffers Absorption.
In practice, light rays from the planet
are gathered up by the telescope and
focused upon the slit in the spectre
scope. whereupon they are broken up
into their spectral groupings. Light
coming from Venus, being reflected sun
light, must have made a double passage
through at least the upper stata of the
planets atmosphere before passing
through the earths atmosphere. Dur
ing passage through these atmospheres
1t suffers absorption by the gaseous ele-
ments and compounds which it en-
counters in its path. The presence of
every gas or compound in the light
path is registered in the spectrum by a
dark line or band which occupies a char
acteristic position. The position of a
line or band in the spectrum identifies
the gas or compound through which the
light passes. This is the thumb print"
so to speak, by which it can be recog-
nized.
Earlier spectroscopic studies of the
light from Venus failed to reveal any
lines and bands which would serve as
a clue to the nature of the constituents
Of the atmosphere through which 1t
passed. When, however, Adams and
Durham availed themselves of the
superior light-gathering power of the
100-inch telescope and also turned to
the infra-red region of the spectrum
in search for the identifying lines and
bands these were found in the position
which carbon dioXide would naturally
occupy.
1t, therefore, appears that even the
atmosphere of Venus bears resemblance
to that of the earth for apparently it
contains at least one of the essentials
to the maintenance of life as we know
it on earth However, whether life in
any form has actually gained foot
hold on this interesting planet remains
a matter of pure speculation.