Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-07-04
Story of Helium
Fascinating Record

washington, d. {. - Helium, the
wonder gas, which, because of its prop
erty of non-infammability, is SO Gag
erly sought Tor the operation of
monster military dirigiblcs, exists in
the atmosphere which we breathe in
the proportion of one part Of volume
in $4,000, according to DR.. r. B.
Moore, chief chemist of the United
States Bureau Of Mines. From SAM
pies of air taken at an altitude of sew
eral miles, tn" proportion of helium
! has proved to &c about the same as at
, lower levels; at extremely high alti-
tudes. such as 200 miles or more, the
proportion may, however, be much in
creased, says Or. Moore. Helium is al
so found in very minute quantities in
SCI. and river water: undoubtedly it
exists in some of the fixed stars, as
We'll as in the sun, and it's presence has
been spectroscorically determined in
many nebule. Helium is found in
the gases evolved from many mineral
springs. Helium is found also in some
| volcanic gases, end in many rocks and
minerals, being almost always assoc
ciated with those of radioactive char
acter.
The story of hclium is one of the ro-
| mances of science. Probably nothing,
except perhaps radium, compares with
it in human interest. Helium is one
of the best examples of a discovery in
pure science that has wide commercial
application. In 1868, an eclipse of the
sun was visible in India, and several
scientific men who were making obser-
vations of the eclipse turned spectro-
scope for the first time on the solar
chromosphere-that part of the at
mcsphere of the sun, about 10000
miles deep, which merges into the CO.
roma A brigh, yellow line was oh.
served and was thought at first to be
due to sodium. Jansen showed, how
ever, that this line was not just the
same a. either the D1 or DE- line of So
dunn, although it was extremely close
to these lines. renee he suggested that
the new line have the designation Dc.
! Frankland and Lockyer decided that
D3 was due to an element in the sun
not previously discovered on the earth,
and suggested for it the name
u
"Helios" the sun.
For several years nothing more was
done in connection with this element.
In 1894. Sir William Ramsay, in con-
junction with Lord Rayleigh, made his
memorable discovery of argon in the
atmosphere. After this discovery,
Ramsay looked for other sources of
the element. He learned that DR.. w.
F. Hillebrana, Of the United States
Geological Survey, had obtained an in
ert gas from certain uranium minerals,
which gas he lad decided was nitro
gen. Ramsay believed that part of it
might be argon: he obtained from Hill
lebrand for experimentation, a sample
or the mineral, cleveite, one of the
uranium minerals, and after extracting
gas from the mineral and purifying it,
he ran 1t into a spectrum tube. The
lines obtained were, however, different
from thoss of argon; among them was
the bright yellow line noted by JAMS
sen. Thus was terrestrial helium dis
covered.
In 1907, .Cady and Mcfarland of the
University of Kansas published a re-
polt on the presence of helium in sew
eral natural gases, mainly Kansas
gases. This work disclosed the infor-
nation necessary for the Inauguration
of the helium project" during the war.
Before the World War, the Germans
had developed type of dirigibIe
called Zeppelin. after Count Zeppelin,
its inventor. The French and British
had no dirgibies at the beginning of
the war. but later FASTENED to repair
then deficiency. From experience
gained in the defense of London, 1t was
recognized that the dirigible was vul-
rerable against a well-organized at
tack. The Germans. too recognized
this and invariably made attacks on
England at night. operating from a
high altitude in order to minimize at
tacks by airplane, as a single incen-
diary bullet fired into a dirigible would
quickly bring the huge ship down, a
mass Of flames. The inflammability of
the hydrogen contained in the ship was
the one weak point in this method Of
attack. The constant danger of 4
swift and terrible death had its effect
moreover on the nerves of operating
crews. lessening their efficiency, The