THE END OF THE WORLD

Evening Star, Issue 12870, 20 July 1906, Page 8

THE END OF THE WORLD

HOW IT MIGHT COME. On February 23, 1901, astronomers saw in the constellation of the Bear a.n enormous conflagration. A star of the first magnitude had just burst into brightness quite suddenly, for photographs taken a few days before showed absolutely nothing of it. It was estimated that this star must have been 5,000 times brighter and hotter than the sun. This dazzling splendor was not of long duration. The new star became invisible to the naked eye about July 10. What had happened? Note that the event observed in February, 1901, did not really happen at that date. The distance of the catastrophe in the Bear was such that the light could not reach us in less than 300 years. The conflagration which was seen and photographed in 1901 took place, in reality, in Elizabeth's reign. Those heavenly conflagrations are brought about in many ways. Let us consider, for example, our own planet. We are floating about in space at a respectable speed—some 60,000 miles an hour. A meeting with another heavenly body is not impossible, and according to observations of the star of the Bear i't was by a meeting, by a violent collision, that tho catastrophe observed came about. —lf Planets Met.— If two planets mch as our own, devoid of any save reflected light, were to collide 3-t the huge speed a/bove stated, tine shock would be so great as to create a flaming sun of such a. temperature that it would continue for many millions of years in tho state of sun or burning nebirla. A direct collision of this kind, -without being impossible, is improbable, but indirect meetings are verv possible in the immense astral army. The consequences of the meeting of our earth with a comet are hard to determine, but they would be tragic and disastrous. The speed ot a comet through space is equal to that of our planet multiplied by the squairo foot of two, which will be found to be about 84,000 miles an hour. If the star met us squarely the collision would take place at a speed of 144,000 miles an hour. The velocity of other meetings would depend on the angle. If the body of the comet contains solid masses, we can imagine the bombardiment. The crust of our earth would probablv be staved m. —Struck by a Comet.— Nowadays the almost ceaseless observation of comets, their frequent photographing, and .the examination of their seem to indicate that even in their bodies they do not possess masses considerable enough to give rise to such fears. However, there are comets and comets, and if m general they are feeble and of no great density, some havo appeared formidable nreh as those of 1811, 1845, 1858, 1861 Buppoamg that a comet of equal size as that of 1811 met us in our journey round the sun, out atmosphere would take fixe oke a bowl of punch. The oxygen of the ur would feed the flames, and the hydrogen would be rapidly released from the oceans Our planet, enwrapped in the cometary mass and revolving in this incandescent gas, the sea beginning to boil and filling the atmosphere with new vapors, a warm mn falling from celestial cataracts,- waves of fire fighting against waves of water, the rumblings of thunder drowning tho howlwgs of the tempest—such would be the universal end of mankind by fire, and the burning of our planet would be a splendid sight for astronomers of Mars or of Venus. —Poison the Air.— Should the earth not be shattered bv shock with a comet, a cometary blending of carbon dioxide without atmosphere would rapidly bring about the cessation of respiration through blood-poisoning. A cometarv atmosphere bringing a quantitv, even rela" tively email, of carbon diorid'e would absorb our oxygen, arrest the transformation of venous blood into arterial, blood, and suppress in a few hours human' respiration. That would be death from suffocation. The chemical constitution of comets is far from having been completely determined. Characteristic signs of hydrogen and of carbon have been more than once detected. But it is possible that these comets are not all similar. It is easy to imagine a comet which in its meeting, instead of absorbing the oxygen of our atmosphere, would absorb the nitrogen, and thus gradually increase the pulmonary, cardiac, and cerebral ictmtv of &H the earth's inhabitants. At first this would prove a most delightful sensation. Everybody would be perfectly happy, and appreciate better than ever the "joy of living." This universal contentnent would soon give place to a boisterous jaiety, and all human beings -wnvld become pent speakers and singers. Then a certain pulsation in the veins would convoke vountr men and women to an irresistible dance* and soon this joy would give place to de'irurm, until the human race would begin to dance a wild dance, and end in oonsumin.2 up all their organic tissue. The most probable end of the world will be by the absorption of the water throngh the suppression of water vaipor in the atmosphere and through the cold. Such an end is certain if the earth does not die by accident before attaining this old age, and is all the more inevitable because not only water vapor but other demraits of the air, oxygen and nitrogen, are likewise decreasing. The earth will then be no more than a dismal cemetery rolling silentlv round a ruddy star.—CamilLe Flammarion.