THE COMET.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3523, 23 October 1882, Page 2

THE COMET.

[To the Editor of the Daiiy Tekegijapii.] Sir,—ln reply to Mr Dennan's query permit me to say that lam not aware whether any spectroscopic observations have been made on tbe comet which is now visible. From the year 1864 to June last some twenty of these celestial bodies had been examined, with the general result that tbe coma and tails furnished discontinuous spectra with lines indicating the presence of carbon and hydrogen, the deduction from which is that these bodies consist of hydrocarbon compounds in a state of vapour, something probably not very different from olifiant or ordinary coal gas. Last June Dr. Huggins examined a comet (Wells) and found a continuous spectrum in the nucleus, with sodium and cyanogen limes, from which it would appear that in this comet the nucleus contains solid matter, and that its constitution is different from those previously examined. At the time of Dr. Huggins' examination the comet was about 40,000,000 miles from the sun (rather less than half the earth's distance from the luminary), and it is quite probable that had it approached mucb nearer its nucleus would have become vaporised by the sun's heat, in which case it also would have exhibited a discontinuous spectrum.—l am, &c, W. I. SrBSCEK. W Napier, 22nd October, 18«2. "