Mr Proctor on the COMET.

Manawatu Standard, Volume 3, Issue 33, 4 January 1883, Page 2

Mr Proctor on the COMET.

The Illustrated London News of the 21st October gives an interesting paper by Mr R. A. Proctor on the comet, with diagram- illustrating its orbit, which closely approximates to that ot the comet of 1843. Fromobserotions made at Vienna, he concludes that the comet is retreating on a path which it will circuit m less than a year, whether it be the one of 1696, 1843, and 1880 come back or not. But his opinion of its final destination is accompanied by a declaration that its absorption by --ibe^ sun will not do us any harm. He says : — " It seems certain then (if we can depend on the Vienna observation "of the 24th), knowing as ive certainly do, that the comet was at its nearest to the' sun on 14th September, that before many months are over we shall see it back again, to return m ever^narrowine circuits, and ever- shortening periods,!*" until fiaally it will circle round the run m a few hours, to be constantly; retarded by fractional resistance, but accelerated m greater degree by resulting intush towards the sun, until finally each por* tiou of its substance reaches the son's surlace with a velocity of about. 260 miles per second. That surface •is itself moving m almost exactly contrary direction', with a velocity of a little more than a mile per second. There will then, m all probability, be considerable disturbance, but, although the idea is now utterly exploded that oomets are I films of vapour, the total maas of the oomet thus destroyed is, I conceive, too small tor any such increase of heat to be produced as will seriously trouble the inhabitants of the earth.