GLORY OF THE STARS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22332, 1 February 1936, Page 10

GLORY OF THE STARS

HEAVENS IN FEBRUAKY OCCURRENCE OF NOVAE POSITIONS OF PLANETS * BY obuj: adstralis Like many other astronomical terms the word nova, denoting a new star in the y where none had previously been seen, is a misnomer. One of the earliest of famous astronomers, Tvcho Bra he, in 1572 saw a bright star rivalling the planet Venus and he believed that it was actually a new object in tfye heavens. Modern research has revealed that these novae are really very faint stars far beyond the limit of naked-eye visibility which suddenly and for some unknown reason blaze out with many hundreds of times their former brilliance. After a short period of prominence in the sky thoy begin to flicker and fade and eventually in the course oi: a yuar or two return to about their former insignificance. The occurrence oir a really brilliant nova is a very rare phenomenon, less than a dozen prominent novae having occurred in historic times. The discovery of a bright star in Hercules in December, 1934, was, therefore, a matter of great interest to the astronomical fraternity and naturally the star was widely observed. The violem; flare-up which made Nova Herculis a naked eye object caused an increase of 400,000 times in the star's brightness. Where a long exposure photograph with a large telescope was formerly needed to record the star, it became prominently visible to the naked eye, with a candie-power some 40,000 times tha.t of the Sun. Mysterious Outbursts Although the cause of the great increase in brightness remains a mystery, it is not improbable that every star experiences such an outburst at some stage in its history., and some astronomers believe tha.t our own Sun shows signs of a similar outburst. We are, thereiore, confronted with the fate, many millions of years distant, of a rapid and fiery iiniish to the Earth and its inhabitants. If we escape the sudden solar conflagration there is the equally uninviting prospect of a slow death to all life through the gradual cooling of the Su:a, whose energy is being expanded at so vast and prodigal a rate. It is interesting to record that the vast conflagration of Nova Herculis took place 1200 years ago, at the time when the Venerable Bede lay dying, near the dawn of English history. & gieat is the distance of the nova from us, however, than the light waves emitted at the time of the nova's oatburst havn taken all these years to reach us with their message, although travelling at the almost incredible speed of 186,000 miles in a second. The astronomer's researches carry him backward in time as well as out into the depths of space. Phenomena lor Month Thu Sun will be in the constellation Capricornus unnil February 16, when it will enter Aquarius. Its noon altitude at- Auckland will decrease during the month from 70 degrees to 61 degrees. The increased solar activity has been denoted in recent months by many large and long-enduring sunspot groups. Ths Moon in the course of its monthly circuit of the zodiac will be m conjunction with the various nakedeye planets as follows:—Jupiter, 18th, ii a.m.; Venus, 20th, 10 p.m.; Mercury, 21st, 10 a.m.; Mars, 25th; Mercury, which was in conjunction with the Sun yesterday, now becomes a morning stai, moving steadily out from the Sun until it attains its greatest elongation on February 96, about which time it should be visible just # before sunrise in the eastern morning sky. Its brighter companion Venus also lies in the same part of the sky, slowly drawing in toward the Sun. Mjiirs has lost all interest to astronomers on account of its great distance from the Earth, but it will remain visible in the evening sky for some time yet. The giant Jupiter is now becoming visible in the morning sky after passing behind the Sun. It is not yet favourably placed for observation. The remaining naked-eye planet, Saturn, now lies tooclose to the Sun in the evening sky to be favourably observed. It will be in conjunction with our luminarv earlv next month.