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Updated: May 5, 2025
For a long time Barbicane and his companions looked silently and sadly upon that world which they had only seen from a distance, as Moses saw the land of Canaan, and which they were leaving without a possibility of ever returning to it. The projectile's position with regard to the moon had altered, and the base was now turned to the earth.
"Two," answered Barbicane; "either the projectile's speed will be insufficient, and it will remain forever immovable on this line of double attraction " "I prefer the other hypothesis, whatever it may be," interrupted Michel. "Or," continued Barbicane, "its speed will be sufficient, and it will continue its elliptical course, to gravitate forever around the orb of night."
At what precise moment will the moon present herself in the most favorable position to be reached by the projectile? What point in the heavens ought the cannon to be aimed at which is intended to discharge the projectile? What place will the moon occupy in the heavens at the moment of the projectile's departure?"
What is the exact distance that separates the earth and her satellite? What would be the duration of the projectile's transit to which a sufficient initial speed had been given, and consequently at what moment should it be hurled so as to reach the moon at a particular point? At what moment would the moon present the most favourable position for being reached by the projectile?
But the corvette had no proper machinery, which must be both fixed and powerful; so it was resolved that they should put in at the nearest port, and give information to the Gun Club of the projectile's fall. This determination was unanimous. The choice of the port had to be discussed. The neighboring coast had no anchorage on 27@ latitude.
The Projectile, impelled and maintained by forces inexplicable and even incomprehensible, had come within less than thirty miles from the Moon's north pole. But during those two hours of immersion in the dark shadow, had this distance been increased or diminished? There was evidently no stand-point whereby to estimate either the Projectile's direction or its velocity.
Its impulsive force still prevailed over the lunar attraction, but the projectile's course was certainly bringing it nearer to the moon, and they might hope that at a nearer point the weight, predominating, would cause a decided fall.
The humidity of the interior was changed into ice upon contact with the glass, preventing all observation. So that, in spite of the many reasons for economizing, Barbicane, after having begged light from the gas, was also obliged to beg for heat. The projectile's low temperature was no longer endurable. Its tenants would have been frozen to death. 1@ Fahrenheit.
"If the projectile passes the neutral point, the lunar attraction will draw us to the moon." "Then our feet will be upon the roof," replied Michel. "No," said Barbicane, "because the projectile's center of gravity is very low; it will only turn by degrees." "Then all our portables will be upset from top to bottom, that is a fact."
Barbican's theory of the elliptic orbit was unfortunately too well grounded to allow a single reasonable doubt to be expressed regarding the Projectile's fate. It was to gravitate for ever around the Moon a sub-satellite.
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