156 AXXUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



the mass of the earth, water and air, it is necessarily a nullity every- 

 where, and consequently only an imaginary philosophy. The true ex- 

 planation is, we suggest, the existence of a molecular repulsion, as well 

 as admitted attraction, operating throughout the mass of all solids, 

 liquids, and gases, in then- normal condition, which effectually prevents 

 any considerable condensation from simple incumbent weight, and this 

 molecular repulsion and attraction may be positive and negative 

 electricity. 



RESEARCHES ON THE FIGURE OF THE MOON. 



Some interesting researches have recently been made respecting the 

 figure of the moon, which suggest many interesting speculations. Prof. 

 Hansen, the German astronomer, claims to have proved by investiga- 

 tion, that the hemisphere of our satellite, which alone is visible to us/ 

 is nothing but a mountain-range, raised twenty-nine miles above the 

 average level of the moon's surface ; or, to express the same thing more 

 technically, that the centre of gravity of the moon is not her geometri- 

 cal centre, but twenty-nine miles on the opposite side of her geometrical 

 centre. That is, the more solid part of the moon would be on the i'ar 

 side from the earth, and all that we see of her would be a bulging 

 hemisphere, comparatively much less dense and weighty, projecting 

 twenty-nine miles beyond the surface which the moon ought to shoAV to 

 us if the density were equal throughout; and if the hemisphere on this 

 side, therefore, were uniform in weight and form with the hemisphere 

 on the other side, Prof. Hansen supposes, in fact, and astronomers 

 appear to think that he has proved his case, that the moon turns a sort 

 of tower of crusty, broken, porous, and therefore lighter, substance to 

 the earth ; so that we see only an exaggerated Alpine or Andes region, 

 projecting nearly thirty miles beyond the average level of the lunar 

 suri'ace. If this be true, there are all sorts of provoking consequences. 

 As we never get a glimpse of the other side of the moon, which keeps al- 

 ways facing about just so as to avoid showing us her other hemisphere, 

 we* never get a glimpse at the average level of the lunar surface. 

 Hence, all our conclusions as to the uninhabitability of the moon, de- 

 rived from a knowledge that no clouds and no atmosphere of any ap- 

 preciable degree exist on this side of the moon, are untrustworthy. 

 Twenty-nine miles above the average surface of the earth, the rarity of 

 even our own atmosphere would be 'probably so great as to render it 

 scarcely appreciable at all, even to astronomical instruments, and quite 

 unequal to the support of any of the vegetable or animal life of our 

 earth. Accordingly, conjecture may take full possession of this invisi- 

 ble side of the moon ; and conjecture does, in fact, give it back the 

 atmosphere which had been denied it, the outer margin of which is sup- 

 posed so far to touch the mountain heights of this barren side, as to 

 justify those astronomers who fancy they have seen proof of a very 

 thin atmosphere in the refraction of stars just on the edge of the moon ; 

 and to confirm the assertion of the astronomer Schroter, that he had 

 discovered traces of twilight there, which could, of course, only be dub 

 to an atmosphere of some kind. Thus much may certainly be granted, 

 that if Prof. Hanson is correct, the lunar atmosphere, if it exist at all, 

 would certainly be attracted to the opposite or heavy side, and might 

 well fail to be sensible at an elevation of twenty-nine miles, even though 



