HALLEY'S COMET.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LVII, 24 May 1910, Page 8

HALLEY'S COMET.

(To the Editor.) Sir,— May I have a little space in your corresponding column to discuss Halley's comet. I notice in" your issue of the 19th inst. the Rev. Dr Kennedy gives information to the effect that we vere to be for twelve hours enveloped in the tail of the comet, and that the transit of the nucleus occupied one hour. I hope the rev. gentleman will not take it amiss if I analyse the theory of the twelve hours in my own fashion. We are taught to believe that the tail of the comet always travels in the direction of a right angle to the sun during the comet's passage round that orb; we wi 31 take that as a fact and use it as a foundation to work from. Although the width of the comet's tail increases according to the distance from the nucleus (the greater the distance so in proportion the width), w,e must remember that the speed also increases — that is, if the tail is to remain at right "angles to the sun. Now, if the comet showed up against the sun for oiie hour, or to our view travelled a distance equal to the diameter of the sun I cannot understand how the tail could reach the earth before the comet appeared on tho edge of the sun, or why the tail should not have left the enrth the instant that the comet finished itjs journey across the sun. I base this supposition on the theory (or fact) of the tail always being at right angles to the sun, as in this case the point of the tail coming into contact with the oartn would be travelling at a much greater velocity than the nucleus. If the nucleus took one hour in transit acros* the sun, I contend (until convinced otherwise) that the earth was enveloped in the comet's tail for the period of one "hour. I trust someone will take the trouble to make public the demonstration of the earth being twelve hours in the tail of Halley's comet

)ust one more little argument. Many are giving statements on the composition of the comet's tail ; they must perforce rely on 90 per cent guesswork, and as such I lay mine open to criticism Say a comet is a body endowed with an extremely luminous glow. Science tells us to class light a.s minute particles of matter Now, supposing the sun's particles to be far stronger and travelling at a greater velocity tha,i those which make up the comet's tni l ' don't you think that the rays of the sun would overcome the resistance of the comet' si glow and sweep it out in +he direction which they wero tra veiling? Said direction is always at right angles to the sun. The shadow thrown by the nucleus (supposing it to be a body) would protect the drawnout glow until a point was reached at w'hi h the glow's particles would be dispensed into space. As for the tail of the comet containing anything in the manner of heat, I cannot see how it is possible, as it is travelling through a vacuum of the most intense cold, as is proved by a falling meteor, which, although rendered to a white heat on its surface by friction, when it enters our atmosphere has been found covered witr frost shortly after ts arrival to the earth. The inside of the meteor has been that intensely cold that it has overcome the heat caused by the friction thereby demonstrating that the place it came from must have registered an unknwon quality of cold. — I am, etc . 'COMET."

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