Evening star., 1932-11-14
MOON MAY SPOIL
SHOWER OF STARS
I-eonid Meteors Due Tomor-
row, Two Days After Peak
of Lunar BriIIiance.
BY M1LLEM J. LUYTEN.

Assixtaut Professor Of Astronomy, University
Of Minnesota.
apecial Dispatch to The Star.
MINNEAPOLIS, November IA (NA.
N-A1.-Among the four truly great
spectacleS of nature-a total eclipse OF
the sun, beautiful manifestation OF
Northern lights, a great comet with
long tail and a real shower Of shoot
ing stars. this last occupies a peculiar
position. 1t is of exceedingly rare occur
renee, perhaps not more than once or
twice a century-and there Is just
chance 1892 may bring us one OF these.
It is out of the question to predict ac-
curately what is going to happen. One
may hope for a good shower this year,
though not more than hope. That it
will be as good as those in 1899 or 1888
not even the widest optimist would
suggest. On the other hand, it could
hardly be as bad as the failure Of 1899.
One unfortunate circumstance Is that
again, as in 1866, the moon is nearly
full at the time the meteorS are expect
ed this year, full moon having occurred
yesterday and the shower being due to-
morrow. In full moon the shower loses
much Of its brilliance.
Main Shower Tomorrow.
The first emissaries of the main
shower were expected as early as last
Friday, and some stragglers will not
catch up until next Thursday, but ac-
cording to present knowledge the main
shower should appear tomorrow night,
ST at all.
AT any rate, astronomers are planning
an extensive observing campaign, in
hope Of finding out as much as possible
about these mysterious messengers from
the cosmos; how fast they travel, how
high they begin to glow, how soon they
are burned up, If they leave a trail of
smoke behind, and what they are COM
posed Of.
To any one interested in such phe-
ncmena this month affords an oppor-
tunity to see what may possibly be the
sight of a lifetime. The constellation
Leo, from which the Leonid meteors ap-
pear to radiate, does not rise until late
at this season, and probably very few
meteors will be seen before IL pm.
From then on one may expect them to
appear more frequently right up until
dawn, first from the east, later from the
southeast, although the actual tracks
may be seen anywhere In the sky.
In November many more shooting
stars are seen than at other times.
These meteors are usually exceedingly
small fragments Of matter-not more
than a few grains Of iron or stone, per-
haps-that pervade all space.
Solar System Full of Dust"
Just as much as the earth and the
other planets. these bits of matter feel
The pravitational pull Of the sun, and
our solar system is filed with countless
billions Of these particles OF dust, al
pursuing their path around the sun.
EVERY time one of those bits come too
close to the earth, so close that 1t has
to pass through our atmosphere, IL SUD
denly experiences terrific friction. Tnese
meteors fly through space with speeds
of 80 miles per second The meteor
heats up in no time at all, becomes IN
candescent, and goes out In burst OF
glory. It simply burns up, usually In
a matter Of a second or so. According
TO present estimates, some 20,O0O,O0O
meteors strike the earth every day.
Although the vast majority appear
70 fiy baphazardly through space, there
is some method in their madness Every
once In a while we encounter huge
gwarms, composed Of seme trtllions-
or is It uuadrillions, or even more?-ot
individual particles, seemingly belong
ing together, and all cruising around
the sun IN one large "cloud,"
The point from which all the shoot
ing stars appear to ernanate we call the
radiant, and for the November meteors
this radiant lies In the constellation
Leo, the Lion, hence the name Leonids
given to them.
(Copyright, 1882, BY North American News
paper Alliance 1nc.)