Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1953-02-23
Star Systems CoIIiding
Far Beyond Milky Way
The Great Crash Is Likely
To Continue for Many Years
By Thomas R. Henry

s"S 0uS0N St0Su
To Continue for Many Years
By Thomas R. Henry
The collision of galactic systems
each one as big as the entire billion
billion star Milky Way galaxy which in
cludes all the visible heavens-discovery
OF which was announced by Mt. Palo-
mar astronomers few months ago,
constitutes a radio wave emitter with
power of about 100000, 600, 900 ,000,-
000, 900, 900 900 .000, 000, 900 kilowat It's.
This is several trillion quadrillion times
more power than all the radio stations
on earth put together.
These calculations of DIR. Walter
Baade of the Mt. Palomar staff have
just been announced by the California
Institute of Technology which operates
the observatory jointly with the Car
negie Institution of Washington.
The great crash of star systems still
is in progress and probably will con-
tinue for many years. 1t constitutes
by far the most stupendous event ever
observed by man, although many such
smash-ups may have taken place before
present means of observation were
available.
Far Beyond Milky Way.
1t is taking place about 600 million,
million, million miles away. It is To-
Gated in the constellation of CygnuS, the
Swan, a northern constellation in the
Milky Way notable feature of which
is the group of stars known as the
Northern Cross. The crash itself, how
ever. is far beyond the utmost bound
aries of the Milky Way system. The
nearest neighbor galaxy is about a mil
lion light years away and is considered
part of local family of gigantic star
systems. The two involved in the pres
ent smash are at least 100 times further
away.
The Mt. Palomar astronomers have
measured the ''red shift" of the light
coming from the crash. The spectrum
of light is shifted slightly towards the
red If the luminous object is moving
away from the observer. The observa-
tons indicate that the two objects are
moving away from the Milky Way sys-
tenn towards the frontiers of space at
a speed Of about 10000 miles a second.
The spectrum is that which would
characterize colliding gases. Presumably
the galaxies are filed with stars, but it is
quite possible that they may pass COM
pletely through each other without any
actual collision OF stellar bodies. Even
in the Milky Way galaxy the stars are
so lar apart that it requires light NOV
ing at about 10000 miles second to
reach the solar system from the star
nearest the sun.
Significant IN the spectrum are lines
traceable to neon S, form of neon
from whose atom four outer electrons
have been stripped. This extreme Joni
cation can take place only when the
atoms are moving at speeds greater
than $40 miles a second.
Human Hair Like Rope.
Human hair is like ropes or cables.
This is the conclusion of Drs. Linus
Pauling and Robert B. Corey of the
California Institute of Technology.
Molecules in hair, fingernails and
some muscles, they have found, consist
OF series OF atoms of carbon, hydro
gen, oxygen and nitrogen which are
coiled into spirals. Seven of these coiled
molecules, they have found, can be
twisted into cable. Six of them are
wound around central molecule to
form the strand cables.
The coiling, they have found, is like
that OF rope in which the individual
strands are coiled in one direction and
then the strands themselves are coiled
around one another in the opposite di-
rectlon. This prevents the rope from
unraveling when it is stretched, or
when a piece is cut from it.
The c. I. T. scientists say they find
that hair and similar proteins con-
tain three different kinds of MOLE
cules, keratin A, B, and C.. The first
is the coiled molecule forming the
center of the cable. The second consti-
tutes the six coiled molecules twisted
about this central one. The third is
constituted of two additional mole
cules filling in spaces between the
cables.
They believe it should be possible to
separate these three kinds in the lab.
oratory.
Two Proteins in Muscle.
Muscle contains two principal pro-
TENS, myosin and acth. DR.. Pauling
and DR.. Corey believe that the mole
culeS OF myoSin are seven strand cables
and the molecules of actin are coils
fDllng up the spaces between the cables.
The most complex protein structure
OF the group, they found, is that of the
keratin which makes up the feathers
Of birds.
The work, carried out under auspices
OF the Office of Naval Research and the
Public Health Service, is considered of
fundamental Importance in determine
ing the structure of proteins, which are
the building blocks of the animal body.
The methods developed, it Is believed.
soon may become a powerful tool in
fundamental medical research, espe.
cially in the field of muscle disorders.