Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1896-02-27
MANY AERoLITEs FELL.
In the Department Of the Landes nnJ
mt BInrritz and san Sebastian.

deaux to the Eclar. an aerolite mas beeh
seen to fall near Sores. in the depart
ment of the I.andes The observation was
made at about 10 o'clock on Monday
morning. the hour at which the aerolite
recently fell at Madrid. TWO people
who were in field noted the phenome-
non. The fall Of the aerolite was
accompanied BY a report and a train
OF yellow fire. which suddenly changed
10 red.
The fall was from the west 20 the
east. in an oblique direction, and the
aerolite struck the river Leyre. The ex-
plosion seemed TO occur about thirty
yards from the ground. At the time the
weather was beautifully fine.
Blarritz and San Sebastian fishermen
report having seen an aerolite, followed
BIZ a luminous train. AT the hour OF the
phenomenon over Madrid. THIS aeroilte
FELL into the sea The same phenomenon
was observed at the port Of Naience. 1t
would thus appear that the fragments
OF the aerolte We're scattered over the
Spanish, coast from the north TO the
south.
OPINIONS OF FRENCH SCIENTISTS.
n. Stanlslas Meaunier professor at the
Paris Natural History Museum, who has
made a special study OF aerOltes, has
been interviewed By the Temps Oh tn,
recent remarkable phenomenon at Madrid.
The scientist explained that up 10
the present very incomplete information
had been received IN regard TO tho
Madrid occurrence. but. from what E1
could gather II was one presenting eX-
tremely unusual characteristics. The de-
scriptiol which had reached them GER
tainiy resembled that of a shooting star,
and the two phenomena had an lncon-
testible analogy. In 1S22 the aerolite OF
Anglers was taken by the Poltlers people
for a shooting star.
But 70 think that they were the same
would be 70 make a great error. The
fall OF IN aerolte was always accom-
panied by a great noise. In the case OF
shooting stars there was no noise what
ever. On the occasion OF the Madrid
phenomenon The noise could be heard
as far as Saragossa, which is more than
go miles away. In 1854 the noise Of the
fall OF an aerolite at Orgueii, in the De-
partment Of Tarn-et-Garonne. was heard
IN Paris.
THE EARTHS FUTURE.
The cause OF the fall Of aerolites, said
VI. Meunier, was the progressive less OF
initial heat. BY sow degrees worlds grew
colder. contracted. and finally burst
asunder. Seas would disappear under the
rays ~ the sun; the atmosphere would
disappear. and the earth itself would
some day fan TO pieces. Some day. IN
fact. the earth would itself provide aero
lites.
According 10 the opinion Of VI. Faye.
the we!l-known astronomer never has
there been so remarkable a phenome-
non as this Madrid aerolite since such
phenomena were studied on a scientific
basis
Interviewed by the Gaulols. the sci
enlist explained that II was believed that
aerolites were detached fragments Of
neighboring planets. Upon reaching the
atmosphere Of tlNearth the friction be-
came so great. owing 10 the rate al
which they were travelling, thar they
were very often completely burned up
before striking the ground.
Their own velocity" said VI. Faye.
sis from twenty-four 20 twenty-seyen
miles q second. The velocity Of the earth
round the sun is about eighteen miles a
second. So that one # these objects
meeting It would penetrate our atm0s-
phere ut the rate OF thirty-seyen 10 forty
two miles a second.
Under this term. 'aerolite' many peo-
pie coniound aeroltes and shooting stars.
But they have neither the same compo-
sition nor the same origin. According
to the hypothesis generally accepted.
shooting stars are the cosmic matter
abandoned by certain comets. and which
faii upon the earth In the form OF fine
| powder.
THE MADRID PHENOMENON.
THE characteristics Of the Madrid pho
/ nomenon are its intensity, andN specially
| its duration, for generally aeroites, after
passing rapidly through the air. are shat
/ tered AID disappear. leaving a luminous
/ train. which instantly vanishes In the
/ present cases the phOsphorescent light
/ was seen for more than three hours.
"Laplace." continued n Faye. "attribu-
/ ted aerolites to the lunar volcanic erup-
| tons, because Of the relative nearness
OF our satellite and the vastness Of the
volcanoes Of the moon. But the obser-
vations made since his day have shown
| that these volcanoes are extinct. and
therefore the hypothesis is untenable."
The Eclair says that about two months
ago an aerolite passed over Paris from
| the east to the west. Fortunately II
! disappeared, without any explosion being
heard. NJ. Tisserand. director OF the
Paris Observatory. is at present collecting
facts on this phenomenon.
Many accidents have resulted from the
| fall OF these bodies. Records at the PART
| Observatory show that at the end of the
| eighteenth century an aerolite killed two
sailors on board a Dutch vessel while out
at sea. About the same time a monk
was killed in the streets OF Milan. on
January 16. 1925. at Oriang, in British
India. an aerOlite killed a man and Sc
| riously injured his wife