Towards the southwest and
the immediate east, the plain appeared to be very flat, no protuberance,
no prominence of any kind lifting itself above the general dead level.
Towards the north, on the contrary, as far as where the peninsula
jutted on _Oceanus Procellarum_, the plain looked like a sea of lava
wildly lashed for a while by a furious hurricane and then, when its
waves and breakers and driving ridges were at their wildest, suddenly
frozen into solidity. Over this rugged, rumpled, wrinkled surface and in
all directions, ran the wonderful streaks whose radiating point appeared
to be the summit of _Copernicus_. Many of them appeared to be ten miles
wide and hundreds of miles in length.
The travellers disputed for some time on the origin of these strange
radii, but could hardly be said to have arrived at any conclusion more
satisfactory than that already reached by some terrestrial observers.
To M'Nicholl's question:
"Why can't these streaks be simply prolonged mountain crests reflecting
the sun's rays more vividly by their superior altitude and comparative
smoothness?"
Barbican readily replied:
"These streaks _can't_ be mountain crests, because, if they were, under
certain conditions of solar illumination they should project
_shadows_--a thing which they have never been known to do under any
circumstances whatever.
Pages:
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214