Abstract
WITH reference to the recent paper by Dr. Pocklington before the Royal Society, on the functions of the Martian canals, a notice of which appeared in NATURE of November 11 (p. 58), I should like to suggest that these canals may perhaps be used for power-storage purposes. In Mars, possibly, there are seasons of winds or monsoons during which the upper reaches of the canals would be pumped full by innumerable windmills, and the power thus stored utilised during calm seasons, and transmitted electrically for lighting, heating, and general power purposes. For a population which had exhausted ali its mineral fuel, which possessed no extensive ocean, and whose soil and climate were unsuitable for the growth of fuel, this would indeed appear to be the only means of obtaining heat and power. The same canals could serve the triple purposes of communication, power, and irrigation.
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HUNT, H. The Functions of the Martian Canals. Nature 82, 69 (1909). https://doi.org/10.1038/082069d0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/082069d0
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