The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1872-10-17
The Red Aurora.

The red aurora of Monday night, with its
accompanying atmospheric disturbances, will
probably be regarded as one of the most re-
markabe on record. But in some respects it
was not so noteworthy as that of November
14th, 1887. The night before had occurred
the periodic meteoric shower. On the even
ing of the 18th, about six O. clock, while it was
yet showing, the sky, air, and every out-of-
door object, suddenly became of blood-.ed
color. In many cities and towns in the
United States an alarm of fire was given, it
being supposed, at first, that some dreadful
confagration was raging. When the nature
of the appearance was known, great conster-
nation prevailed, especially among the ignor-
ant and superstiti0us, who supposed that the
day of doom was impending. 1t is altogether
probable that the unrestrained, unscientific
imagination of the ancients led them to see in
celestial appearances, no more remarkable than
those of Monday night, the marching, coun-
termarching and fighting men, of which so
frequent mention is made in their annals,
as well as the other extraordinary spectacles
which seem to have been of almost nightly
occurrence two Thousand years ago.
When we read the accounts Of the
appearance of spears, towers, cities and
men in battle array, and Of the abject terror
with which they were beheld, we realize
more than ever thb debt of gratitude we owe
TO the studeuf1 Of nature who, while they are
possibly as far a. ever from the true explana-
ton of the aurora and its cognate phenome-
na, have at least brought them within the
realm of natural occurrences aud shown that
they have a connection with other things
which we both know and understand. This
emancipation from superstitious terror at ur-
usual appearances in the heavens is account
ed by Plutarch one of the peculiar glories Of
Pericles, that statesman being fortunate ia
having teachers Of an enlightened spirit while
youth.
But with all that scientific men have told
us about the aurora borealis, as we must still
call it, though aurora dustrais would often
be as accurate. we are still mainly in the dark
as to its cause. The favorite theory now-a-
days is that it is caused by the impact of the
fine particles of matter that are known to ex-
list in immense quantities in the wide wastes
that separate the stars, on the atmosphere of
the earth. Though the air is extremely rare
fed in those upper regions where
the contact with the meteoric bodies
takes place, the friction is sufficient to reduce
the particles to a gaseous condition almost
instantly. On this hypothesis the luminous
appearance, the inconeevablc velocity of the
movements of the rays of light and almost all
the other appearances attending the aurora
are somewhat satisfactorily explained. The
electrical disturbances accompanying dis
play like that of Monday are accounted for,
it is supposed, by the ferrugnous nature of
the nebulous matter that comes in contact
with the atmosphere of our planet. The
meteoric showers and the zodacal light are
supposed to be caused, like the aurora, by
these wandering particles of formlsss mat
ter.
The height at which the display takes
place has been a subject of much dispute
among philosophers. The only means of
reaching any conclusion in this matter is the
observation of the exact position of definite
forms of the aurora, like arches and an occa-
sional corona, by observers at some distance
apart, and afterwards making trigonomet-
rical calculation. The best authorities think
that the height varies from so to $50 miles.
Other observers, however, conclude that this
must be mistake as they have seen the
under surfaces of clouds illuminated by the
auroral light. This was clearly the case dur
ing the display of Monday night, indicating
a position much nearer the earth than that
indicated above.