Since Professor Proctor wrote the paper entitled "Mars, the Planet of
War," published in this number, there has been made, in relation to
its subject, a discovery that the scientists say will rank among the
most brilliant achievements of astronomy.
A great difference once thought to exist between Mars and the other
planets was that he had no moons; but during the night of the 16th of
August, Professor Hall, of the U.S. Naval Observatory at Washington,
D.C., actually saw through his telescope that Mars has a moon. On the
18th of August another was seen, smaller than the first and nearer to
the planet. The larger satellite is believed to be not more than ten
miles in diameter: it is less than 12,000 miles distant from its
primary, and its period of revolution about it is 30 hours 14 minutes.
The distance of the smaller moon is 3,300 miles, and its period 7
hours 38 minutes. There is no doubt that these newly found celestial
bodies are the smallest known.
From measurements made by Professor Hall, it is found, with a near
approach to certainty, that the mass of Mars is equal to 1-3,090,000th
part of the mass of the sun. This result was arrived at after only ten
minutes of calculation, and is believed to be more nearly accurate
than that obtained by M. Le Verrier, the great French astronomer, from
observations continued through a century and after several years
of laborious calculation by a corps of computers. This wonderful
difference in the expenditure of time and labor is due to the
vigilance of Professor Hall and to the admirable qualities of his
instrument, the great twenty-six inch refracting telescope made by
Alvan Clark & Sons.
* * * * *
Oakland, Cal.
DEAR ST. NICHOLAS: I do not wish to make you any trouble, but I
would like it very much if you could find room in some number
to give a good explanation of the great war in Europe. I can't
understand it in the newspaper, but I am pretty sure you can make
it plain and simple enough for all of your young readers.--Yours
truly,