Off on a Comet - Jules Verne (classic english novels .TXT) 📗

CHAPTER VIII

JUPITER SOMEWHAT CLOSE

 

Except as to the time the comet would take to revolve round the sun,

it must be confessed that all the professor’s calculations had comparatively

little interest for anyone but himself, and he was consequently left

very much to pursue his studies in solitude.

 

The following day was the 1st of August, or, according to Rosette, the 63rd

of April. In the course of this month Gallia would travel 16,500,000 leagues,

attaining at the end a distance of 197,000,000 leagues from the sun.

This would leave 81,000,000 leagues more to be traversed before reaching

the aphelion of the 15th of January, after which it would begin once more

to approach the sun.

 

But meanwhile, a marvelous world, never before so close

within the range of human vision, was revealing itself.

No wonder that Palmyrin Rosette cared so little to quit

his observatory; for throughout those calm, clear Gallian nights,

when the book of the firmament lay open before him, he could

revel in a spectacle which no previous astronomer had ever been

permitted to enjoy.

 

The glorious orb that was becoming so conspicuous an object

was none other than the planet Jupiter, the largest of all

the bodies existing within the influence of solar attraction.

During the seven months that had elapsed since its collision

with the earth, the comet had been continuously approaching

the planet, until the distance between them was scarcely more

than 61,000,000 leagues, and this would go on diminishing until

the 15th of October.

 

Under these circumstances, was it perfectly certain that no

danger could accrue? Was not Gallia, when its pathway

led it into such close proximity to this enormous planet,

running a risk of being attracted within its influence?

Might not that influence be altogether disastrous?

The professor, it is true, in his estimate of the duration

of his comet’s revolution, had represented that he had made

all proper allowances for any perturbations that would be caused

either by Jupiter, by Saturn, or by Mars; but what if there

were any errors in his calculations? what if there should be

any elements of disturbance on which he had not reckoned?

 

Speculations of this kind became more and more frequent,

and Lieutenant Procope pointed out that the danger incurred

might be of a fourfold character: first, that the comet,

being irresistibly attracted, might be drawn on to the very

surface of the planet, and there annihilated; secondly, that as

the result of being brought under that attraction, it might be

transformed into a satellite, or even a sub-satellite, of that

mighty world; thirdly, that it might be diverted into a new orbit,

which would never be coincident with the ecliptic; or, lastly,

its course might be so retarded that it would only reach

the ecliptic too late to permit any junction with the earth.

The occurrence of any one of these contingencies would be fatal

to their hopes of reunion with the globe, from which they had

been so strangely severed.

 

To Rosette, who, without family ties which he had never found leisure

or inclination to contract, had no shadow of desire to return to the earth,

it would be only the first of these probabilities that could give him

any concern. Total annihilation might not accord with his views, but he would

be quite content for Gallia to miss its mark with regard to the earth,

indifferent whether it revolved as a new satellite around Jupiter, or whether

it wended its course through the untraversed regions of the milky way.

The rest of the community, however, by no means sympathized with the

professor’s sentiments, and the following month was a period of considerable

doubt and anxiety.

 

On the 1st of September the distance between Gallia and Jupiter was

precisely the same as the mean distance between the earth and the sun;

on the 16th, the distance was further reduced to 26,000,000 leagues.

The planet began to assume enormous dimensions, and it almost seemed

as if the comet had already been deflected from its elliptical orbit,

and was rushing on in a straight line towards the overwhelming luminary.

 

The more they contemplated the character of this gigantic planet,

the more they became impressed with the likelihood of a serious

perturbation in their own course. The diameter of Jupiter is

85,390 miles, nearly eleven times as great as that of the earth;

his volume is 1,387 times, and his mass 300 times greater;

and although the mean density is only about a quarter of that

of the earth, and only a third of that of water (whence it has

been supposed that the superficies of Jupiter is liquid), yet his

other proportions were large enough to warrant the apprehension

that important disturbances might result from his proximity.

 

“I forget my astronomy, lieutenant,” said Servadac. “Tell me

all you can about this formidable neighbor.”

 

The lieutenant having refreshed his memory by reference to

Flammarion’s Recits de l’Infini, of which he had a Russian translation,

and some other books, proceeded to recapitulate that Jupiter accomplishes

his revolution round the sun in 4,332 days 14 hours and 2 minutes;

that he travels at the rate of 467 miles a minute along an orbit

measuring 2,976 millions of miles; and that his rotation on his axis

occupies only 9 hours and 55 minutes.

 

“His days, then, are shorter than ours?” interrupted the captain.

 

“Considerably,” answered the lieutenant, who went on to

describe how the displacement of a point at the equator

of Jupiter was twenty-seven times as rapid as on the earth,

causing the polar compression to be about 2,378 miles; how the axis,

being nearly perpendicular, caused the days and nights to be

nearly of the same length, and the seasons to be invariable;

and how the amount of light and heat received by the planet

is only a twenty-fifth part of that received by the earth,

the average distance from the sun being 475,693,000 miles.

 

“And how about these satellites? Sometimes, I suppose, Jupiter has

the benefit of four moons all shining at once?” asked Servadac.

 

Of the satellites, Lieutenant Procope went on to say that one

is rather smaller than our own moon; that another moves round

its primary at an interval about equal to the moon’s distance

from ourselves; but that they all revolve in considerably less time:

the first takes only l day 18 hours 27 minutes; the second takes

3 days 13 hours 14 minutes; the third, 7 days 3 hours 42 minutes;

whilst the largest of all takes but 16 days 16 hours 32 minutes.

The most remote revolves round the planet at a distance

of 1,192,820 miles.

 

“They have been enlisted into the service of science,”

said Procope. “It is by their movements that the velocity

of light has been calculated; and they have been made available

for the determination of terrestrial longitudes.”

 

“It must be a wonderful sight,” said the captain.

 

“Yes,” answered Procope. “I often think Jupiter is like a prodigious

clock with four hands.”

 

“I only hope that we are not destined to make a fifth hand,”

answered Servadac.

 

Such was the style of the conversation that was day by day reiterated

during the whole month of suspense. Whatever topic might be started,

it seemed soon to settle down upon the huge orb that was looming upon

them with such threatening aspect.

 

“The more remote that these planets are from the sun,” said Procope,

“the more venerable and advanced in formation are they found to be.

Neptune, situated 2,746,271,000 miles from the sun, issued from

the solar nebulosity, thousands of millions of centuries back.

Uranus, revolving 1,753,851,000 miles from the center of the

planetary system, is of an age amounting to many hundred millions

of centuries. Jupiter, the colossal planet, gravitating at a distance

of 475,693,000 miles, may be reckoned as 70,000,000 centuries old.

Mars has existed for 1,000,000,000 years at a distance of 139,212,000 miles.

The earth, 91,430,000 miles from the sun, quitted his burning

bosom 100,000,000 years ago. Venus, revolving now 66,131,000

miles away, may be assigned the age of 50,000,000 years at least;

and Mercury, nearest of all, and youngest of all, has been revolving

at a distance of 35,393,000 miles for the space of 10,000,000 years—

the same time as the moon has been evolved from the earth.”

 

Servadac listened attentively. He was at a loss what to say;

and the only reply he made to the recital of this novel theory was

to the effect that, if it were true, he would prefer being captured

by Mercury than by Jupiter, for Mercury, being so much the younger,

would probably prove the less imperative and self-willed master.

 

It was on the 1st of September that the comet had crossed

the orbit of Jupiter, and on the 1st of October the two

bodies were calculated to be at their minimum separation.

No direct shock, however, could be apprehended; the demonstration

was sufficiently complete that the orbit of Gallia did not

coincide with that of the planet, the orbit of Jupiter being

inclined at an angle of 1 degrees 19 mins to the orbit of the earth,

with which that of Gallia was, no doubt, coincident.

 

As the month of September verged towards its close, Jupiter began

to wear an aspect that must have excited the admiration

of the most ignorant or the most indifferent observer.

Its salient points were illumined with novel and radiant tints,

and the solar rays, reflected from its disc, glowed with a

mingled softness and intensity upon Gallia, so that Nerina

had to pale her beauty.

 

Who could wonder that Rosette, enthusiast as he was, should be

irremovable from his observatory? Who could expect otherwise than that,

with the prospect before him of viewing the giant among planets,

ten times nearer than any mortal eye had ever done, he should have

begrudged every moment that distracted his attention?

 

Meanwhile, as Jupiter grew large, the sun grew small.

 

From its increased remoteness the diameter of the sun’s disc was diminished

to 5 degrees 46 mins.

 

And what an increased interest began to be associated

with the satellites! They were visible to the naked eye!

Was it not a new record in the annals of science?

 

Although it is acknowledged that they are not ordinarily visible on

earth without the aid of a somewhat powerful telescope, it has been

asserted that a favored few, endued with extraordinary powers of vision,

have been able to identify them with an unassisted eye; but here,

at least, in Nina’s Hive were many rivals, for everyone could so far

distinguish them one from the other as to describe them by their colors.

The first was of a dull white shade; the second was blue; the third was

white and brilliant; the fourth was orange, at times approaching to a red.

It was further observed that Jupiter itself was almost void of scintillation.

 

Rosette, in his absorbing interest for the glowing glories of the planet,

seemed to be beguiled into comparative forgetfulness of the charms

of his comet; but no astronomical enthusiasm of the professor could

quite allay the general apprehension that some serious collision

might be impending.

 

Time passed on. There was nothing to justify apprehension.

The question was continually being asked, “What does

the professor really think?”

 

“Our friend the professor,” said Servadac, “is not likely to tell us

very much; but we may feel pretty certain of one thing: he