The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-04-26

Relief from the dreaded tornado, terror of hundreds of thousands of American people, is now being sought by scientists, some of whom hold out hope that man may learn to mitigate the much-feared cyclone" which annually lays waste large areas of territory in the United States alone. The news columns of the past week have been full of reports show ing that the tornado season is now open.
 Although the "cyclone cellar' is nee essary feature of the dwellings of many western towns, it is really misnamed and should properly be called 8 tornado eel lar. Although cyclones and cyclonic storms are frequently confused with tor nadoes, the two are in fact entirely dis tinct.
 The real cyclone is the circular storm of wide extent and comparative mildness; the tornado is the whirlwind of restricted area and of extraordinary energy. The tornado develops within the area of the cyclone, but has no other connection with the name
 Drift of Storms.
 The drift of storm waves to the east ward has been attributed to the revolution of the earth in that direction. But since the atmosphere envelope is but lightly at tached to the earth one might suppose the earth slipping around it would feel the wind in the opposite direction. There is reason to believe the impulse comes from without There is unquestioned cir culation of air from the tropics toward the poles, in the upper strata, and there is @ natural rush of cold air from the poles toward the equator, to fill the par tial vacuum caused by the ascending of the warmer currents This circulation is that familiar to all students of the text books But 1t is not all of the weather story.
 Very recently the source of storm en- ergy has been referred to the suh. It is electrical in character. The tornado IS an electrical manifestation of tremendous energy, resembling the rotary field of the alternating current, so familiar to electri- cal students. And the storm energy is apaprent in the upper strata sometimes more than A hours before it Is felt at the surface of the earth. This tends to re- flute the theory that it's eastward course is influenced by rotation of the earth.
 Some Recent Theories.
 Recently Sven Arenas, distinguished Swedish physicist, has given new turn to speculation about meteorological changes After Hall and Nichol, the Americans, had carefully measured the pressure of light, Arenas analysed many unexplained facts and draw the conclu- sion that myriads of small particles--a sort of cosmic dust-are hurled away from the sun by this pressure of light. These are sent in all directions with the speed of light rays, each particle carrying charge of negative electricity.
 So much of this matter as is hurled to- ward the earth impinges upon it's atmos- phere, which becomes highly charged with negative electricity Then the show CT of atoms forms along the lines of mag netic influence-the earth being large magnet-and as the streams glide off to- ward the poles and thence into space they give rise to that wonderful ribboned H. Illumination known as the aurora borealis. This is the first explanation ofsthe aurora that accords with the observed facts and has been generally accepted by the as- tronomers and scientists
 Marked magnetic and electrical disturb ances always accompany the appearance of the aurora borealis There is some ap- parent connection, too, with the show or sun spots. There is reason to believe there is direct connection between this bombardment of earth's atmosphere with the negatively charged particles borne on the light rays and the creation of storms and cold waves. The weather bureau and other meteorologists are busy trying to work out the details. The highs" and flows" are caused in some way by these electrical charges. And In some way the influence that causes the atmospheric pressure to fall, as shown by the barom- eter, also exerts a depressing Influence upon animal vitality.
 How to Tell Tornado.
 The tornado, as know among the inhab- itants of the cyclone area" of the United States, develops with sudden fury and de- Vastating strength But the possibility of lessening the strength of such storms is held out by many scientists. Said John P. Buckley, who has made an exhaustive study of tornadoes, to Post reporter:
 'T doubt not but in time to come, very high metallic towers will be erected in the tornado districts of the country for no other purpose than the drain the cloud-sphere of it's overcharge of electro magnetic strains. The solid part of the towers will be like so many holes In the atmosphere to the current, for, incredu- lous as 1t may seem,. all conductors Of electricity are nothing more or less than black holes through which the current flows or oscillates, crudely speaking, like water and sand in pipe. These electro magnetic strains must find their way to the earth for having been brought down from the upper regions they, as mem tioned, must die away in the forms of drains lightning, or storms.
 Tn the case of the tornado the upper portion is of large diameter, through which, as mentioned, there seems to flow a continuous current, and as the density of the air becomes denser toward the earth, the form of the tornado grows gradually smaller In proportion, its mar rowest and most violent speed being at contact If the cloud remained station ary In the air, the tornado would proba- ply remain in one spot instead of making itself felt as 1t does.
 But this is not the case; the cloud, in being driven by the wind, or magnetic in fuence, carries the column with 1t, and, as the lower part of the tornado Is strongest in its attraction or contact with the ground, 1t becomes retarded and the two extremities being of two speeds, the intervening part of the column naturally distorts into several curves, thus forming 1t into shape as we see 1t from a dis tance The faster the cloud Is driven, the more obliquely the column of the tornado will appear, and the greater the chances for the whole to break up. As apart from the magnetic strain, the air pressure has an excellent chance to attack that part of the column where the axes have changed and weakened; but if the poten- tial be very high the tornado will con tlnue with violence until the cloud dissi- pates into rain. thus depriving the lines of force from their immediate media, and restoring the air to its normal condition.
 Explains the Lighting.
 During the process of a tornado, light ming becomes vivid and flashes almost in- cessantly in It's wake; the clouds, in com ing into each others sphere of magnetic proximity, become charged and discharge their electric fluid until electrical equilibrium state Is brought about, or we may say, the storm is over. This 'un- balanced state is caused by one clouds capacity for electrical saturation over an other, and as long as the potential re- mains higher in one than in the other,