Evening Republican, Volume 59, Number 76, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 31 March 1917 — NEW FACTS ABOUT THE SUN [ARTICLE]

NEW FACTS ABOUT THE SUN

Scientific Findings as to Amount of Heat Thrown Off by Mother Earth’s “Big Sister.” As one result of an exhaustive study of solar nidi a tiohs by the director of the Smithsonian astrophysical observatory, it has been found that at the earth’s mean distance the heat of the sun’s rays is sufficient to melt In a year’s time a layer of ice 426 feet in thickness. This, it is announced, indicates that the aggregate heat thrown off by the sum of 12 months amounts to, the same as would be obtained by consuming 400 sextillion tons of hard coal. Incidentally, and" most fortunately, only a small portion of this tremendous volume of heat reaches us, says Popular Mechanics Magazine. all but four ten-billionths of it being lost in upace. Another very interesting and important discovery, which is acclaimed the principal result of the investigations, is that the sun is a variable star. The heat emitted by it, Instead of being constant in intensity, changes from day to day and year to year. It Is believed probable that this has a direct bearing upon the climatic conditions of the earth. In the hope of gaining further enlightenment on this score, a South American expedition is to be undertaken this year fqj the purpose of making additional and more complete observations of solar variation. The work will be undertaken in the most favorable cloudless region.