September 18,1985 — 2 Despite What Our Compet tors : “Are Trying to Tell Our Customers We’re your Gulf Dealers and Agents/ Resellers, and quite frankly, we’re more than a little mystified at the antics of our competitors. It seems from their recent advertisements that they believe that good service has something to do with colour; that once the familiar Gulf blue and orange changes, the quality of the service that you ’ve always received will also change. Before our competitors help themselves to our business, let’s set the record straight. -- ~~ "~~~ We’re independent Canadian Businessmen who have made our reputations by giving you the best products and service possible, That will never change, no matter what the colour of our stations. “Gulf Means More” is not just another advertising slogan to us. fa September 18, 1985 SECTION Ask us! KOOTENAY SAVINGS CREDIT UNION RHOSP High yield. g Conversion options. D> Where You Belong By. ae CALDERBANK \taff Writer in 1456 Halley's fos terrified the world so much ~ the Pope offered prayers for protection from it. In 1910 it was predicted the earth would pass shrews the a of the comet, which d But they needn't Have , worried, res Selkirk College instructor Don Jones, for the density of the gas was so slight that the earth could have passed right through the middle of the comet and it still wouldn't have been wiped out. Jones says that occasionally new comets do spring. up, but no short-period ones — at least not very often. Halley's comet is a prominent comet because it is one of the brighter ones and also because of its historical significance. Edmund Halley, the astronomer after whom the comet is named, was an interesting person himself, says Jones. f Halley became interested in astronomy as a child. Jones says he was “very bright, he came from a rich family and as a result was able to persue this_study,” a J hy courses at the college, says that up. until recently comets were thought ,, But today. much more is known about comets. For iristance as the comet passes around the sun- every-75 years it should become less fainter than the previous trip. When the comet gets closer to the sun some of the material from the surface of the comet evaporates, explains the math and physics instructor. “You get a cloud of gas coming off the comet which isn't replenished. A certain amount of dust is lost. Each time it passes by the sun it loses a part of itself. Each time it goes by there is less to go by the next time.” For: this reason, Halley’s comet won't be anything like it was in William The Conquerer’s Time or in 1456, Jones says. And because the comet loses part of itself every time it passes near the sun, Jones says it will eventually evaporate. “Many comets break up tito pieces and what is left is trailof. which, when the earth Halley was also a friend of Isaac Newton. Halley was one of those who persuaded Newton _to-publish—his——————— —theories of gravity and laws, of motion. Halley was also the second Astronomer Royal of Britain. = “He was a very respected member of the British scientific coimmunity,” Jones says. A comet had been seen by Kepler in 1607 and a comet which Halley saw in 1682 seemed to be in the same position. Halley argued that it must be the same comet, travelling around the sun ‘once every 75 years and he proved his case. ‘This was the first time that the revolution around the sun was proved for any comet. He found that just about 75 years before, in 1607, a comet had been seen. And 75 years before that — in 1456 a comet had been seen which had terrified the world. Halley predicted that the comet would return again about 1758. Later, it was calculated that Jupiter and Saturn, by their gravitation, would slightly delay the comet, so that it was expected in 1759. It came in that year. It also came in 1835 and in 1910. goes through thie / path, produces shooting stars resulting in'a meteor shower.” Although it is technically true that the comet gets fainter each orbit, two community astronomers from the In..1910_.there widespread fear that the comet would come within” 13” iiillion believed that the long tail streaming out from the co nucleus might sweep over the globe as the two bodies passed one another. ht-to-boost-their- Summer's travelling astronomy program say that it-wilt be hard to say exactly how bright the comet will be. Bill Barnyeat and Bojan Tic of McMillan Planitarium and Southam Observatory in Vancouver say it's impossible,to predict. Jones notes that if it weren't for the gasses of the comet we wouldn't be aware of it at all. When the comet travels around the sun it heats up. Some of the material — mainly water, ice or frozen amonis. — evaporates. This gives rise to gases which ish—f ns It’s a three word summary of our business philosophy—a philosophy that will never change. We’ll be here to give you the best products and service that we.possibly can just as we’ve done over the years. We say it’s important to trust the people running your station or bulk fuel agency. And that has nothing to do with colour. If our competitors think that the quality of the service extends only as far as the colour, maybe “that says" “something” about ‘them. ” i Drop in and see us the next time you need gas or service or bulk fuels and Gulf Hydrotreated lubricants. Gulf dealers invite you to bring along any of the competition’s gas coupons (including Shell’s). We'll be here to redeem them. GULF DEALERS, AGENTS AND RESELLERS MEAN MORE * Nore’ experience. More service: More people who care. "Gulf Canada Limited registered user. the-sun'sstigh “We don't see the actual nucleus of a comet” which is probably a few miles across, says Jones. Halley's comet returns every 75 or 76 years. During that time, the comet goes in an orbit to between Saturn and Uranus. IConly-spends about a year Of its orbit close to the sun. _Jones says that there are so many comets in_the by printing sensational stories about the event. When astronomers detected cyanogen gas in the comet, it set the public believing that the encounter with the tail could be lethal. Peddlers took advantage of the sitaution and on the . streets of cities they sold comet pills and even primitive gas masks intended to protect people from the comet's poisonous fumes. The fear raised by newspaper articles—w: reinforced by the sight of the pale, glowing specter visible each morning low in the eastern sky. Jones says Halley's comet should be visible through binoculars by Noverpber— “As it gets later and latel in the year it will be closer to the sun, and further from earth,” he says. He adds that the best time to view the comet will be in November_when it is as far north as it will get. universe he can't begin to’ count them. long-period comets. Halley's comet, he says, is the longest of the short-period comets. Short-period comets are those with an orbit of less than 100 years. i “Long period comets are the ones which come in and go out and you probably never see them again,” he says. “The periods are so long (hundreds of thousands of years) it’s very difficult to get an accurate time for it.” It is thought that comets were created around the time the solar system was formed. At that time it is thought that most of the material that made up the solar system collapsed to form the sun. Some residual material collapsed into other bodies which became the planets. “The stuff that got left behind collapsed into similar bodies which became a cloud of bodies going out maybe a light year or two from the sun,” Jones says. ¥ Unfortunately November is also one of the poorest There are a number of. both -short -period— and——viewing months ! because of the-amount .of rain in Castlegar. ior October, Jones says, should also be a good viewing month, a]though viewers will have to stay up later to see it. Jones advises that those wishing to see the comet. * should obtain an observer's handbook which contains a very detailed map showing where to look for the comet on particular dates. He says a good viewing spot for the comet should be Nancy Greene Lake, providing headlights of motor vehicles don't interfere. “Look for a fuzzy thing,” Jones says, “probably, with a tail, although we'll never know unti Burhyeat and Tic recommend that if you want a good view of the comet head south next spring — to South Comet Halley better known today DARK spoT +++ Bojan Tic, a community astronomer with the McMillan Planetarium and Southam Ob- servatory in Vancouver says the key to seeing _ America or Australia, where viewing should be best. But in the Northern Hemisphere the key is to get out of town and find a dark spot. Castlegar residents will also have a chance to view Halley's Comet is to get out of town and find a dark spot. Costtews Proto department at the college, says the college will have a night where “we will pull out the telescopes” and invite the public to come and view the comet. The college has two telescopes — one with an the comet through Selkirk College's Dwayne Hamilton of the Math and Physical Sciences ight-inch mirror tel and an 12% inch mirror telescope. ms SPACE.PROBES Comet wiill By. LEE SIEGEL _LOS ANGELES (AP) — Five unmanned space probes ‘will swoop by Halley's comet next March while the U:S. space agency, NASA, unable to mount its own mission to the comet, plans to have six spacecraft watch from afar. “It's going to be a very productive exploration of Comet Halley,*-said-David—Morrison, chairman of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's solar system exploration committee. “Whenever-you-go some place for the first time, that’s exceptionally exciting.” Federal budget decisions in the Carter and Reagan administrations eli the of sending an American spacecraft in Earth and Venus orbits and inter-'. planetary space, said Geoffrey Briggs, director of NASA's solar system exploration program.’ 7 Four of the other probes will pass through the comet's bright gas-and-dust atmosphere. They are the Soviet Vega-1 and Vega-2, Japan's Planet-A fihd the European Space Agency's Giotto, which scientists hope to aim within 510 kilometres of the comet so it can take the first photographs of the dark nucleus, -the solid ice and dust centre. The fifth foreign probe, Japan's MS-T5, will remain several million kilometres away. The two Vegas and Giotto, equipped with cameras and numerous instruments, will “take photographs-dnd other _ data on the comet nucleus,” Morrison said. “Each of them will be making direct measurements of the gases and dust in the comet's atmosphere. And each of them will be measuring the interaction of-the comet with the solar wind.” NASA comét scientist Malcolm Niedner said MS-T5 and Planet-A will study how the comet's atmosphere and tail are influenced by the Solar wind, a hot, electrically charged gas that speeds away from the sun at almost 1.6 million km-h. At least 22 countries are involved in ‘the five space probe missions. Briggs said 35 American’ are be ‘studied EDMUND HALLEY ___.... Astronomer Royat data from their probes to help the Europeans guide Giotto on its plunge past the comet's nucleus. Each of the probes will encounter the comet for only a few hours in a one-week period in March when the comet is most accessible as it crosses Earth's orbital plane, Niedner said. Vega-1 will fly within 10,000 kilometres of Halley's comet March 6. Planet-A.may approach as close as 95,000 kilometres. March 8, followed March 9 by Vega-2 at a working on tto, a few on Vegas and at least one pn the Japanese project NASA will help the Soviets aim the Vega spacecraft toward the comet. Then the Soviets and Japanese will use of 3,000 kil _Then Giotto will make its daring swoop to within 500 kilometres March 13. Scientists yexpect it. will be destroyed by the impact of dust particles. MS-T5 will be a few million kilometres from the comet in March. co j Viewers leave town sy DANIEL HANEY CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Want to see a comet? Then leave town. Better yet, head south. Right now, Halley's comet is just a vague blur for the i copes. But by November, even the stronomers should: be dle to see-i “The public will see Halley's comet is just a vague blur for the world’s biggest telescopes. But by November, even the most rank amateur astronomers should be able to see it. “The public will see Halley's comet if they go about it the right way,” said Stephen James O'Meara, assistant editor of Sky and Telescope magazine. First, that means going some place dark. Ride into the countryside well away from the lights of cities and towns. The darker the night, the better the comet-gazing. Be sure to let eyes adjust to the dark, which should take about 20 minutes. Even these preparations do hot guarantee a-spec- tacular show. In fact, Halley's may be downright under- whelming. No one can accurately predict yet how bright the comet will be. USE BINOCULARS The comet may be distinguishable with the naked eye. But binoculars will improve chances of getting 4 good look. A telescope is not necessary. Binoculars are easier to use and show a bigger slice of the sky. In November, Halley's will be viewable with bino- culars in the Northern Hemisphere. In the middle of the month, it will be just south of the star cluster Pleiades, sometimes: called the Seven Sisters. The comet will probably be a fuzzy blob, like a large. ff star. April, Halley's will be in the sky in the early morning. -just before dawn. Unfortunately, it will be so close to the southern. horizon that it will be hard to see in Canada. “The best advice I'd give is that if you're in the - Northern Hemisphere, above.latitude 20,.go.sauth.”. said. O'Meara. The comet will be visible in much of North America but brighter below the 20th parallel, an east-west line running approximately from the southern edge of Cuba through Mexico City. Viewing will be better in the southern part of the United States and best in the Southern Hemisphere. There, it should be present in the night sky for about nine hours a night in early April. In the second half of April, Halley's returns to the evening sky after dusk. Binoculars will keep it in sight through early August, when it heads off for deep space until its next visit in 2061. Facts about the comet NEW YORK (AP) — with an average ot 76 Here are a few of the vital years. = statistics for Halley's Closest approaches to comet: Earth-on this’ return: ‘93 million kilometres on Nov. Size: estimated at 6.5 27, 1985; 64 million kilo- The comet should become barely visible to the naked eye in'December, when it will be high in the southern part of the sky. In January 1986, Halley's will gradually brighten, but_it. will also sink closer and closer to the horizon in the western sky. For most of February, it will be lost from view. as it swings around the sun. When it returns in March and s metres on April 11, 1986. Mass: 5 Maximum size of Maximum speed: comet's halo (coma): About km-h when rounding the 160,000 kilometres across sun. Minimum speed: 3,200 when closest to sun. km-h when farthest. from Maximum length of tail: the sun. Orbital period: 80 million kilometres when 74.42 years to 79.25 years, closest to sun.