HALLEY'S COMET.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 379, 3 May 1910, Page 3

HALLEY'S COMET.

JI-.-caij yikws. Hallcy's comet was visible in New Plymouth yesterday morning between 3 and 5.15 o'clock. A good view oi the phenomenon was also obtained on clear mornings during the week. It appears that we are to have some more solar visitors shortly, as in addition to Bailey's two other comets are due to cross the path of the earth this year. The first is known as Tempers second ' periodical comet, discovered on July 3, 1873, at Milan. Its period is about five and a-quarter years, and it was re-ob-served in 1878, 1894, 1899 and 1904, making its perihelion passage, on the last occasion, in November; it should, therefore, return this coming English spring. D'Arrest's comet, discovered in ISSI, is tile second object, and is due to return during the English summer of this year. Its period is about six and n-hal*f years, and it was re-observed at its return in 1557, IS7O, 1877, 1890, and 1897, but it escaped observation, being unfavorably placed, in 1903. Both of these, however, are telescopic comets, which are not visible to the naked eye. A TABLE FOR REFERENCE. On May 20 the comet will be at its nearest position to the earth, and it will then be only fourteen million miles distant. Its transit across the sun's disc on May 1!) will occur between 1.50 and 2.50 p.m., and after that date it will appear in the western sky after sunset and will be visible for an increasing length of time as, it commences its return journey into the distant celestial regions, to return again after the lapse of sixty-eight years. The following table shows the times at which the cenict and the sun rise each morning up to May- 19, and the times of setting of the two bodies from that ctate \>o tne end of the month:

SOME INTERESTING PARTICULARS. A SCIENTIST'S VIEWS. London, March 11. Sir Robert Ball, lecturing on Halley's comet, said its orbit was 7,000,Out),000 miles and elliptical. The sun stood in .relation to it not where a church ought to be — in the centre of the parish —but at the other end—a noint which mathematicians called the focus. Halley's comet takes seventy-five or sev-enty-six years to traverse its orbit, j;'o- - very slowly at the start —slowly, that is, for a comet, but really a little faster than a bolt fired from a Dreadnought, namely, six-tenths of a-mile a second. Finally, it goes fifty times as fast. The sun having been at all the trouble to draw the comet down to >t, might be expected to endeavor to keep it. "Nothing of the kind," said Sir Robert. "When we coast down a hill on a bicycle we expect to run up the next, and that is exactly what Halley's comet does. Having reached the sun, it turns on its orbit and goes Iback again." Sir Robert described comets' tails as spectres in the sky, because surrounding objects can be seen through them. "A comet's tail, 3 ' he said, "is made wp of extremely small particles flying away from the sun like smoke from a chimney. Halley's comet at .present has no tail such, as we might expect it would have; however, about May 18 we shall he going 'through it, but there is nothing to be anxious about. Those alive in 1861 spent two hours in the tail, and the only injury I can make out that followed was that a preacher had to light :a couple of candles to read liis sermon because of the mistiness of the atmosphere. Halley's comet, which is getting nearer and nearer to us, contravenes all the traffic regulations of the solar jsvstcm, for while the planets are going one way, the comet is travelling the other, but there is as much likelihood of its collision with other heavenly bodies as of the Empire Express from New York to Chicago running down the night mail from London to Edinburgh. At present it is getting behind the sun, so we do not see it. It is very much like surrounding stari, and one might imagine that comets, like leaf insects, adopt mimicry to .protect them from inquisitive astronomers." Sir Robert referred to the historic associations of the comet, and recalled the fact that it appeared at the critical moment of the Battle of Hastings. He said that but for its appearance and the disheartening effect it had upon the English troops, the Norman conquest niicht never have been achieved.

Distance of Comet from the Earth. C'omet Sun Millions Date rises rises. of miles. May 3 .. 3.38 6.38 70 May 4 .. 3.37 6.39 62 May 5 .. 3.30 0.40 59 May 6 .. 3.34 6.41 . 50 , Mav 7 .. 3.35 6.42 52 Mav 8 .. 3.30 6.43 4S Mav 9 .. 3.37 6.44 45 Mav 10 .. 3.40 G.45 '41 Mav 11 .. 3.44 6.46 37 May 12 .. 3.4S 6.47' 34 May 13 .. 3.57 6.48 30 May 14 .. 4.9 6.49 27 May 15 .. 4:28 6.50 24 May 16 .. 4.48 6.51 21 Mav 17 .. 5.17 6.52 .18 May 18 .. 5.58 0.53 16 May 19 .. 6.49 6.54 15 Sun Comet sets sets ■p.m. p.m. May 20 .. ,4.39 5.48 14 May 21 .. 4.38 (it.32 15 May 22 .. 4.37 7.33 16 May 23 .. 4.36 7.55 18 Mav 24 .. 4.36 • flj.2721 Mav 25 .. 4.35 10.0 24 May 20 .. 4.35 10.19 27 May 27 .. 4.33 10.22 30 May 28 .. 4.33 10.33 34 May 29 4.32 10.38 37 May 30 .. 4.32 10.44 41