The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1904-09-14
THE HUE o T TILE SKY.
WHY THEsDoME oF.THE HEAVENS
las A BLUSH TINT.

4 The Be.ntffuI ColorinE Is wrouEht
by the Reflection OF the Sunlight
1 Upon the M4riads OF Minute Par
! ticles Tha. Float In the Air.
Every one notices the blue color OF
| the sky. It has grown familiar to ell
! by daily observation from childhood.
| yet few persons realize the great sci
entidc and artistic interest attaching
| to this beautiful color.
| Sir Isaac Newton tried to explain the
color in the year 1913 by referring it to
the blue coiorS seen in the soap bub-
bIes used N his experiments. He
thought the air was filed with small
particles of water which reflect the
blue portions Of the suns light falling
upon our earth and thus produce the
blue tintS of the armament.
Sir John Herschel explained the color
OF the sky by Newton'S theory. but
later writers have proved that in some
important respects his theory was
wrong.
In 1869 Professor John TyndaIl. the
famous British physicist. found that
he could produce Sky blue by eNper
iulents in the laboratory For this pi1r
pose he filed Il glass tube about q
y
with air of one-tenth TIC ordinary
density MIXED with nitrite of butyl
vapor, which is extremely volatile.
Then. on passing through the mixture
q powerful beam of electric light in 1t
room otherwise dark. the mixture pre-
cipi1ated = beautiful blue cloud which
in color rivalad the finest Italian sky
Further experiments proved to Tyn-
Gail that he had at last discovered the
secret OF the blue color OF the sky.
which had puzzled the greatest DhiIoso-
pliers of al! ages.
Lord Rayleigh. the famous professor
of experimental physics at Cambridge
England. a2d one of King Edwards
original twelve members OF the new
order cf merit. invcsti"3 ted Tyndalrs
theory CT the color of tie SKY by pro
found l2:atL2uat teal resca relies extend
ing over many years. He confirmed
Tyn1all's theory that the blue arises
from the reflection of sunlight from
small particles il the air less than one
one-hunttred thousandth of an inch IL:
diameter.
These atomic particles i'll the atLlos-
phere. ana by rejecting the blue part
of the suns light give the dome of the
heavens q blush tint.
.ocilit " tiS>E l'tli IIClGS III e q" u
but most of them arc Composed Of tie |
oxygen and nitrogen of the air
Professor T. I. J. See of the United |
States navy is one of the American |
scientists who studied the subject IL
another ::Srsct. He Observed the color |
Of the SKY il various attitudes, in high
mountains and IL dry and moist couu-
tr:c". such ~ E--'.,t ard Greece go.
Arizona and lie Mississippi VALLEY.
His conclusion l.. that the beautiful res:
colors Of sunsets ;.:ii.. sunr:seS 50 !2l;.c,i
spoken of by Crack and Roman writer's
and so often Illustrated in landscape
arises from water vapor il:
the lower regions of the atmosphere
absorbing the blue and ira ns!nittiac
the red light. According to DR.. See.
the reddish cclors come from that is;.-r
Of our air within five miles OF t.:'a
aarth's surface. while the deep blue ot
the sky arises from reflections of mi
lute particles IN the higher parts OF
our atmosphere.
The water vapor does not extend
very high, clouds never rising higher
han ten miles above the earth The
blue streaks cast by clouds at sunse:
show that the red arises near the
.arth, while the blue has its scat very
ky has all the blaclness of the Gar.-eS:
light.
Professor See watched the duration:
Il the blue sky after dark nd found /;
o continue for about an hour and IF
cen minutes. and from this he shows
hat tie atmosphere extends to 4 ;lei-.::
f fully 100 miles. AStronoEl erS have
SuallE found the height of the at:c:G
phere by computing the height of l.e-
eorS, but none ever made the hci:c!:;
f the atmosphere over 100 miles.
The study of the blue color OF tie
Ky thus proves also that our ::tIlr-;
here extends considerably higho: than
cientisIS Lave heretofore supposed. ,
On dark days the blue color Cf tx ,
ky is shut out by inca rs and cG!!-bi- :
atoms Of colors due to rejecting :
louds. ana countless iuyriads Of part:, .
les in the ethereal Regions high above +
lie earth give the bright light which t
50 I2luclt reiished in daily life
rooklyn Eagle. 7