Show I i Ii Great Inventions and Discoveries By THOMAS BRAGG Copyright 1023 IN N. Y Evening World Press Pre Pub Co TlE rilE VELOCITY OF OP LIGHT The discovery of ot the velocity of ot light was made during the year 1676 1616 by Romer Romey By Dy certain calculations based on the observation of ot th the eclipses of ot Jupiter's sat satellites Romer ascertained ascertaIned ascer ascer- tamed that it took light sixteen minutes and five seconds to cross ross the earths earth's orbit In other words he fixed fied the ve velocity ye- ye of ot light at about miles per second and estimate which has haa been confirmed by all al subsequent calculations and which was fairly demonstrated by Michelson Ichelson of the United States navy In 1879 1875 The This consequences of Homers Homer's discovery discovery dis dis- dis covery were far The speed of light being known it became became became be be- came possible to determine the distances dis dis- distances dis- dis of ot the heavenly bodies and so to get some sort of ot idea of the tho vastness of the physical universe Knowing the speed with which wih light ight travels and knowing that It takes eight minutes and fourteen seconds for light to reach the earth from the sun we have the fact that the big luminary is distant from our early home homo about two ninety two millions mil mil- lions lons of ot miles miles miles-a mies-a mies a distance that would milons mi- mi take a train of ot cars speeding at the rate of thirty miles at thrA h. h l I an Af hour I 3 0 u co cover But rt when light has reached our earth It I has Just started on its Is Journey journey Jour jour- ney and when we stop ston to think that it requires three and a half years for light to reach Alpha our nearest neighbor amon among the Suns of Space we know knoW that the tho star Is I separated from us by a void that thatIs is twenty-one twenty billions of miles mUes wj wide wide-a ja a distance two hundred thousand thousand thou thou- sand times greater than that which separates us from the sun The ro discovery of ot the v velocity of light enabled us to l learn arn that II I is distance from us sixty billions bil bU- bil- bil 1 lions of ot miles seventy five billions eighty fur seventY ur billions and one hun hundred red and rif- rif ft- ft ty four billions and so on Those These very interesting if It somewhat somewhat some some- what staggering facts would never have havo been known to us but for Romer's discovery of t the e velocity of I light I It was by the help of or Romer's i great discovery that astronomers I were able to compass the hitherto impossible Gulf Gul of ot Space and measure measure meas meas- ure the distances of ot the stars and planets thus enabling us to read In a a new light the words of the Psalmist When When I consider the Heavens the work of thy hands and the moon and stars which thou hast ordained what is man that thou art mindful of him I The greatness of Creation and the littleness Creaton of Man And yet et we have the words of ot Blaise Pascal to cheer us up up- up up Man Ian is but a reed the tho ture but weakest in nature nature na na- na- na ut he is a thinking Is not reed It I necessary that the entire v verse universe uni uni- arm itself to annihilate him A breath of ot air all a drop of oC suffices to kill water universe to ki crush him But were the him man would be nobler than that which him for he knows that while the universe knows he dies of ot the nothing advantage It has over him him |