THE OPPOSITION OF MARS. JULY 1907.

Otago Witness, Issue 2784, 24 July 1907, Page 13

THE OPPOSITION OF MARS. JULY 1907.

By Electron.

At the beginning of July Mars was nearer to the Earth than at anytime since 1905, or than he will be again until 1909. He was 180 degrees from, the Sun, and in the same position as the- Moon is when full. On July 30 Mars attains his greatest •southern declination, which then will be 28deg 53min 53sec,, so that he will pass the meridian at Dunedih only 17deg 7mia 1 from the zenith. To understand the mechanism of Mars, we find the Earth takes one year to go round her orbit and Mara about double the time. - The dial of a clock gives a very good idea of the everlasting raceside of the figures and the Earth's orbit to be shown by a circle touching the outside of the figures and the Earth's orbit ; by a circle touching the inner end of the figures. - • i Lot us say, July 1. the Earth and Mars were at 12 and the Sun warn at the centre of the dial. All three were in line order ; from centre — Sun, Earth, Mars. Away they go. In six months the-' Earth gets to 6 and' Mars to 3, and Mars 'sees the Earth at greatest elongation because we have a right-angled triangle, the Sun being the apex of the right angle. The Earth appears as a half-moon to Mats, and we begin to run back to the Sun, changing to a crescent as our Moon does in the mornings^ In July, 1908. the Earth is back to 12, and. Mars is behind the Sun, and is at his greatest distance from us. When the Earth has completed the second year Mars is overtaken at 12 A look at the almanac shows that, the Earth approaches Mars and recedes at great speed, the semi-diameter of Mars' 1 being: — March 5, 1907. 3.6 sec; April 5, 1907, 4.Bsec; May 5, 1907,~6.65ee; June 5, 1907, 9.2 sec; July5, 1907, 11.4 sec. Most people Mars is looking .out } for signals, < and ■ 'the only possibility*^ of ; being understood would be to make similar canals tp those which we see on Mars. But in truth we are a crescent to Mars, like a moon a couple of days old. Our largest volcanoes possibly might be seen if a big eruption were going on, op by cutting lines in an enormous forest, or making a ruge bush fire, but it might be accidental. The cause of the red tinge on Mars may be yellow clay exposed to heat. A brickkiln will do it with us. Some think it is red vegetation, such as red poppies, instead of grass. The Earth can never pa6s the meridian of Mars 12 hours before or after the Sun. Mercury and Venus cannot pass our ' meridian more than -a few hours before J or after the Sun. Such is the relation of ■ these -planets. I There was a French lady left all her mono* when dying to anyone who would ; establish communication with Mars, and j I savtf it in print that the wireless tele- ■ graph station at Valentia (South of Ireland) received some mysterious signal at 11.30 o'clock every night, possibly from Mars. Why at night? Such a message travels «fc the same speed as light, and light would only take some 10 minutes to bridge the distance over. We may yet have the latest from Mars in our daily paper*. Electricity has us prepared for almost anything.