The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-03-08
keotoIte People Were Treated to In
usually Brilliant Sky Show
During Last
Evening.
STRAW COLOR AND RED
Display Started With Pale co!ors and
Ended With SpIotches
Of Crimson
Showing.

A brilliant display Of northern
lights was visible in Keokuk last
evening for almost the entire even
ing. The sky show commenced about
1880 o'clock and 1t was still visible
to some extent at 1880 O'Clock. The
aurora borealis was one of the most
brilliant ever seen here, people who
saw the lights declared. The effect
of the sky show on telegraph and
electrical instruments was noticeable
| today. Practically everybody who
was out last night hunted points OF
| vantage from which to see the fire
works, and people who hadn't seen
the show were called up by their
friends to hurry out in the yard or
look out of windows toward the
north and west.
The lights began with straw color
and ended up with deep crimson
hue. The display started early in
crossing and recrossing In the sky
from the north and the west. One
man who saw the early display said
it appeared as If someone had put .,
search light on the dam and one on
the roof Of the Jefferson school and
the two bands of light were playing
across the sky.
Straw Color and Red.
Later the effect became that Of
moonrise through clouds. and the
color began to appear. About $3.50
o'clock and then on for half or three
quarters Of an hour the lights
changed to crimson. Some people
who saw the lights reported that
they were dancing and Pickering.
They moved across the s!sy, srlotches
of red breaking out first In the
northwest and then further over to-
ward the east. The weather Office
report does not say anything about
the pickering OF the lights, end OBJ
server Gosew1sch recalls other dis
plays which have been more bril-
liant. There was one brilliant one
visible here two years ago in August
The explanation of the lights is
contained in an explanation Of cleo
tricity. Electricity is invisible as
long as it passes through good con-
ductor. Let 1t pass through poor
conductors and it becomes visible
Whenever water containing any sub
stance is eyaporated, electricity is
formed. Below the equator where
there is a great amount Of water,
forms electricity. This passes through
the air to the poles. In passing
through the very dry air Of the north
pole, it becomes visible This is
similar to passing a current through
a vacuum as in the Crooks tube.
The negative current is furnished
through the earth. It is in this way
that the lights are formed.
No Mystery About II.
Some people. either through ignor-
ance or superstition, Immediately
connected the appearance of the
lights with the mythical end Of the
earth or with the war. Some of thoec
people who are forever dragging out
tales of what happened In the civil
war, remembered to have seen these
lights in the north during the rebel
lion. The phenomena was entirely
atmospheric and electrical. and has
nothing whatever to do with
voodooism.
Northern lights were reported as
being seen in London last night dur
ing the air raid on that city, and
were visible throughout the United
States, according to telegraphic re-
ports this morning.