Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1875-09-10


Eyefvone knows tliat the heat of the
sun raises water from the earth In the
formrof vapor, which becomes clouds that
fiuat around and az last discharge the
wafer of which they consist; this simply
Is the cause of rain. But we ask the reader
If Inc has soverconsidered thatthe amount OF
water evaporated by the sun depends on
the latter's heatY III this were increased
more water would evaporate and more
would come down; and If Il were dimin:.
ished less would evaporate and less would
come down, and the amount of rain would
diminish, as Il is certain that the water
which comes down as rain must have been
previously raised by the heat OF the sun {;
as the sun is sometimes obscured by spots,
II miist be supposed to give less heat, and
therefore cannot raise so much water as
vapor; and under these circumstances the
sun cannot properly be the cause OF ex-
traordinarily heavy rains and foundations.
This Is the theory advocated in some
quarters, but il cannot stand the scrutiny
of reason.
Measurements show that the heat emit
ted by the sun is not regulated by the
spots; while at the same time that spots
appear, the facule, giving more heat also
make their appearance, and go far to
compensate for the dimunition of heat
caused by the spots, so that the total heat
emitted by the orb Is, for all practical
purposes, tolerably constant quantity;
and il must be remembered that the evap
oration chiefly takes place from the sur
face of the ocean, which covers three
fouHhs of the oarth's surface. Three
fourths sf this evaporated water falls
back into the ocean, and one-fourth on
the land, or perhaps little more, as
clouds appear to be attracted by mount
aims, and by preference discharge their
contents on land but in any case the
ocean receives back, in the form OF rain,
more than half the water evaporated ron
the surface. The circumstances attending
the condensation of the cloudvapors into
rain are very complex; and this operation
is subject to so many various conflicting
influences that regular distribution OF
rain would be matter of surprise, il not
a total impossibility, and therefore we see
the greatest irregularity in the rainfall
prevail. In some limited regions of the
earth, however, there exists a regularity
in this regard; but this is simply caused
by the more uniform circumstances in
which such exceptional localities are
placed; and the causes of this regularity
may be, and have been, clearly traced by
those who make the investigation Of this
subject a special pursuit
If the total amount of evaporation, over
the whole surface of the earth, be nearly
constant quantity, the total amount of rain
falling over its whole surface must also be
regular, because what goes up must come
down; and five had rain gauges distributed
over the whole earth and ocean surface
this proposition would, no doubt, be
verified. But, by the irregular distribu
ton of rainfall, some localities may 4be
literally supplied at the expense of others
Jr, at some periods of time, the rainfall
NAV become concentrated into shorter
periods. II, then, such larger rainfalls
take place within the limits of the valleys
which supply our rivers, an inundaticp is
The consequence. 1t may be that the
amount of rainfall in some inundated dis
triCts is not greater for the whole season
than is usually the case or, If 1t is, the
rainfall of other localities or on the ocean
may have been so much less; so that, IN
order to account for an inundatiOn or Q
great rainfall, it is not necessary to sup
pose the total amount of water falling ha:
been greater than usual.
These considerations show how unneces
sary it is 10 look for cosmic causes in ex
PLANTATION of such comparatively tritling
meteorological phenomena as an extra
rainfall in some districts. Some philoso
pliers have even gone so far as to attribute
ii to the Jets of incandcscent hydrogen
elected in the form of protuberances dur
ing solar storms) from the suns surface 4
height of hundred thousand miles to
ward the earth, which, cooling while ap
preaching our atmosphere, form water
If we consider that at distance of 5000,
300 miles from the sun, the gravity to
ward that body is nearly as great as is tn,
gravity on the surface of the.earth TOWARD
The earth, it is clear thatthis ssolarhydrogel
has little chance to reach us. II it did
and if it combined with our atmosphere
oxygen TO form water, aterrible fate woulC
be in store for the earth; because, if all tn
oxygen in our atmosphere were exhausted
to combine with hydrogen to form water
it would only form water enough to rails
the surface of the ocean six feet, as i
easily proved by calculation.-Seientff
.4mericdn.