The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-09-21
-Dietz on Science
FAME WON IN
MANY BRANCHES
OF ASTRONOMY
Telescope Sometimes Is
Unknown instrument
in Space Study.
nv nANUn NIFTY
BY DAVID DIETZ
serinrs- Howard Science Editor

A correspondent asks VINO IL tie
worlds most famous astronomer? "
and bids me answer soon. But for
two reasons I shall refuse.
One u the purely selfish rea-
son that am fortunate enough to
number some Of the worlds best
known astronomers among my
friends and I shall do nothing to
risk such pleasant friendships. The
other reason IS that do not know
how 10 evaluate different types of
work.
To the Iaynan, the word "astron-
omer" is an all-inclusive word, ike
for example. the words newspaper
man" But one newspaper man may
be an executive. a second reporter.
a third a play critic. each one doing
a type Of work entirely different
from that OF the others. So 1t is
with astronomers.
One astronomer wins fame as
designer Of instruments. A second
is a great observer. spending most
Of his time at the eyepiece Of tele-
scope. A third may never 90 near a
telescope.
Never Sees Telescope
I remember one occasion on which
z famous astronomer told me that it
was more than a year since he had
looked through a telescope. He was
spending all his time studying
photographs of the suns spectrum
with the aid of a measuring miscro-
scope.
Certain astronomers are famous be-
cause of their mathematical genius.
They spend their time analyzing
and interpreting the observations
which other astronomers make.
DR.. George Ellery Hale. honorary
director of the Mt. Wilson observa-
tory. is one Of the great inventive
geniUses Of the world of astronomy
Solar research entered upon new
phase as a result OF the new instru-
ments which he designed.
Hale invented the spectrohelio-
graph. the instrument which made
1t possible to photograph the suns
upper atmosphere and the great So
lar prominences, the great fiery
streamers Of gas which rise from
the suns atmosphere.
Suns Spots Revealed
The instrument also revealed de-
tails of sun spots which had never
been photographed previously.
Hale IS a great observer as we'll
as an instrument designer. Among
his important discoveries is the fact
that sun spots are great Whirlpools
in the surface of the sun which act
as huge magnets. setting up power
ful magnetic fields.
An entirely different type of as
tronOmer is Dr. f. w. Brown of
Yale university. Brown spent forty
years Of his life working on
mathematical problem, the problem
Of writing a series of equations
which would adequately explain all
the irregularities in the moons mo-
tons and make it possible to pre-
dict with accuracy the position of
the moon at future dates.
Authority on CosmOgOny
Browns lunar time table" is one
Of the great classics of this sort of
work.
DR.. Henry Norris Russell of
Princeton is sometimes spoken of
as the dean of American aStrOno-
mers." His chief field Of work has
been the development of theories to
account for the evolution of stars.
The astronomer who is probably
most in the public eye at the pres
ent moment is Sir James Jeans.
Jeans is known to the public as
the author of q number of very
readable books upon astronomy, the
best one of which. to this writer's
way of thinking. being The Uni
verse Around Us" But Sir James
is known TO the world of astronomy
as one of the chief authorities upon