The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1886-05-19
TORNADOES.

Several more cyclones, this time in Indi-
ana and Ohio, attest the deadly power of air
n motion. Their causes are not adequately
known, and they seem to have recurring
periods of maxima and minima involving
several years between extremes. They are
more confined to open prairie countries, al
though the testimony of pioneers of Michi-
gan and Indiana show that this is not con-
elusive. Often wide swaths were found cut
in the native forests. and they have occurred
with great destructive force nearly to the con-
fines of Pennsylvania.
All sorts of theories have been offered to
account for them, but without much reason,
and we think the solution must be sought by
the physicist rather than by the meterologist,
for all hypothesis from the latter fail to ac-
count for facts observed in the phenomena.
Solar and planetary disturbance has been
assigned as the cause, and their
periodic functional intensity bears a curious
relation to solar periods of differing intensi-
ty of disturbance. But a cosmical origin
would imply, or seem to, nearly an univer
sal terrestrial disturbance, and this it is
needless to say, does net correspond with the
phenomena, for they are confined in their
violent aspects, to very restricted areas.
But they no doubt do exercise an influence
of induction that leads to electric and chemi-
cal changes in the atmosphere, which in
turn produce the destructive cyclone.
As defined by the British Encyclopedia,
"the atmospheric conditions which appear to
precede the formation of a tornado, are VIC
lent contrasts of temperature and humidity
Immediately to the north and south Of the
path to be traversed by the Storm" and this
leads to the question of difference of electric
al potential in the two regions, and
The changes effected by this
electrical action upon the atmos-
phere and upon the water vapor contained
IN it. 1t is well known that this action in
duces great chemical changes in the gases of
the atmosphere, and is particularly produc-
tive in polarizing oxygen into two elements
known as ozone and antozone. The presence
of the former invariably follows a severe
thunder storm or tornado, and in such
quantity as to be readily detected by its
peculiar odor. Oxygen in this state looses
nearly one-third in volume But recently
the synthesis of ammonia has been artifici-
ally demonstrated from nitrogen gas by
electrolysis. The presence of considerable
ammonia in rain water is likely to be due TO
its creation by the electrical potentiality of
the storm cloud. If so there would be an
enormous contraction in volume OF the gas
so reduced to ammonia, and it is clear that
should considerable area be effected by the
changes induced In the formation OF ozone
and ammonia, that sufficient vacuum would
ensue to account for all the wind force
actually exerted; and taking this with the
further fact that this induction by cleo ro-
lysis may take place throughout all the mass
affected simultaneously and is affected in an
Incredibly short time, makes a logical ex-
PLANTATION possible upon the hypothesis that
the points of greatest humidity would be
positive and negative sources of electrical
action, and In the effort TO reach equilibrium,
involves an electrical exchange that would
produce a partial vacuum at those points,
and that the air movement would be
from within outward to those points where
the partial vacuum would De produced by
this creation of ozone and ammonia, and
perhaps other elements whose volume would
suddenly decrease. This would make the
center of disturbance. or that point furthest
remoyed inward from the humid zone Of