The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1901-01-09

Nft'"A east NWRN EANN
eems 70 Be q favorable one for seeing
: he more distinct and remarkable
Effects Of that optical illusion known
rs the mirage, says the Hartford
Times. A surprisingly distinct one
was seen between nine and ten o'clock
on a recent morning by the people Of
3uffalo. Like q previous one. seen by
the passengers in New York Central
train dozen miles or more east Of
isuifalo some years ago. the spectacle
was az the north. The one seen from
the cars showed Lake Ontario, with
fli its capes and other shore features,
including the trees, with remarkable
sistinctness in the sky, altheagh the
real lake at its nearest shore was
thirty or forty miles away and wholly
invisible. The one seen az Buffalo
was the entire city 81 Toronto. ia
Canada, on the lake some sixty miles
away. It's steeples docks and other
features were seen, at great distance,
With wonderful distinctnoss Of detail
Even the steamers on the lake and a
yacht were distinctly shown-the
former pouring ont the trailing smoke
from their smokestacks. and the lat-
ter. showing exactly the position Of the
sails, could be seen careening before
the west wind. The lake itself was
largely visible. II must have been a
very surprising and impressive exhibi-
ton.
Seen in the sky by the caravan trav-
elers on the desert, the mirage pre-
sents an appearance Of objects reflected
in a surface Of water. cool lakes. with
shady palm tress, mock the hot and
thirst-striclSen travellers. The heated
earth rareies the lower air faster than
1t can ascend and escape. The air is
denser overhead-contrary 70 the Gus
tomary experience; and the fatness Of
the desert contributes TO the duration
Of the attractive but deceptive appari- q
tiOn. There must be some real lake.
IN some cases. as a basis for these re-
ported exhibitions. The mirage Is
caused by the excessive refraction. or I
bending Of light rays in penetrating 4
adjacent layers Of air OF greater differ 7
ing de1sities, not far above the surface /,
of the earth. This excessive refracfion
presents, when the lower stratum Of
ar is heated by very hot sun, an up
lifted, distorted or inverted image Of e
some 8tual object or scene. Along 4
certain portions Of the Italian coast Il /
sometimes produces the exhibition
Of an inverted ship, up in the
real ship being distant
and invisible and Of course, right side
mp. These aerial and marine refiec-
tions, csten strange and complicated.
and known as mirage, looming" and -
the Italian, ''fata morgana," f" according
20 the characteristics they present. are
an allied 70 general law. The school
books have explained the general phe- =
nomenon. II is out Of the usual course
Of things for the lower stratum Of air 2
70 be rarer than the one above II, but Il
happens, Suppose the light
rays are coming from distant land in
visiblel object, situated in the denser
which In these wonderful ex-
hibitions lies over instead OF being be- a
meath the rarehed stratum-as a hill a II
little above the earths surface-the TX
-nys come in q direction nearly paral- Il
el 70 the surface, and meet the lower. -
'arer medium at a very obtuse angle. ~
instead Of passing into that warmer
lir' the rays are reflected back to tho q
lenscr stratum above ~ the common q
ulface Of the two strata acting as a f.
mirror. Let the spectator be looking ~
rom some eminence, AZ an object thus
ituated, like himself. in the denser air,
nd he viii see it by directly transmit Al
ed rays; butrays from. Il also will be =
the upper surface Of q
he lower, more heated air-presentinR
be image inverted and in lower posi- n
ion. IN the reproduction OF distant and a
lyiaible objects-as in the case Of the =
ity Of Toronto seen 10 plainly In tho ~
~ sixty miles south, at Buffalo the
honomenon belongs, apparently. to A
be GLASS known 10 sailors as looming" "a