Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1921-05-15

TliE severe billiards which have made
this Spring so unreasonable. cover.
Ing large sections of the country
with n heavy snowfall and doing ,renen.
dons damage TO orchards and crops, are
declared by science to be the direct result
OF the recently renewed activity of some
OF tho worlds greatest volcanoes
Early in April, Immediately following
brilliant auroral displays caused By sun.
spots, Mount Vcsuvlus In Italy, Mount
Popocatapetl IN Mexico and numerous
other volcanoes in widely separated parts
Of the Garth burst into eruption. From
their cratcrs, which had long been more
or less inactive, there suddenly came bclch-
Ing forth vast quantities OF dust, ashes and
molten lava.
The millions OF tons OF dust and ashes
from these volcanoes quickly saturated the
upper atmosphere OF the earth and formed
n screen which prevents the full warmth
of the suns RAYS from reaching us II is
exactly as if n gigantic sunshadc had been
raised over the earth. Just as we are
cooler on hot Summer day when we raise
parasol 10 protect us from the suns rays.
so tho whole earth is made many degrees
cooler by the intcrposition OF this screen
vi volcanic aust between IL ana the sun.
Volcanoes caused the recent billiards.
by throwing out this dust screen, and thus
shutting off so much of the suns warmth
that the carth's temperature quickly sank
to the freezing point. This low tcmpera-
turc transformed what would otherwise
have been n warm Spring rain into The
billiards. Of hail and snow that caused such
widespread damage.
Nlf the volcanoes continue active, rs now
seems likely, and the dust screen between
us and the sun keeps growing thicker and
thicker. We may look forward 10 unseason
ably cool weather all Summer long and to
q Winter of unusual severity.
The warm Winter we have just had"
says Professor +. p. Frost, OF Yerkes Oh.
scryatory. Williams Bay. Wisconsin, twas
undoubtedly due TO the absence OF volcanic
dust from the air Until April, when the
volcanoes began their violent eruption, the
earths atmosphere had for long period
been particularly clear Of volcanic dust"
Since the dust, ashes and lava which vol
canoes pour out are all at a very high tenn
perature, it might be thought that Il series
of eruptions would have just the opposite
effect on our weather from what it does
that 1t would make the earth warmer in
stead OF colder. But the red-hot matter
from the craters cools too quickly in the
earths atmosphere to make any PERCENT
BILE increase in our heat
Whatever effect the release Of large
quantities OF heat units from the earth's
interior might have in the way Of raising
temperature is more than counterbalanced
by the screen which the dust forms and
which shuts off large part OF the suns
heat.
tremendous eruption of Mount Erebus,
near the South Pole, could, and at least
once has, given us an approximation of the
glacial age in a cold-killing Winter and n
cold Summer i'll which little vegetation
could develop and ripen.
1t is easy TO understand how this could
happen-and how it may easily happen
again.
The temperature of the earth is deter.
mined wholly by the amount OF radiant
energy ii receives from the sun. This