SCIENCE PROBES UNPARALLELED DISASTERS
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SO n-;.r rculUr rwl unuaual
charnrs hv occurred on th
earth aurfaca of lata. inolri-. .
(real taniata to proprrtr and ;M
Ion of Ufa. i!iat tha quratlon naturally
rus. What la tho cauaa of trteaa un
prvfs2rrti dia:rT
Ar tha Wlotrra becoming mora a
ttrt? I ttia rllmata of tha world
e.t.gng. with tha extreme coM
weather In tha Foulh last Winter,
whila Alanka and tha artlc rasiona
were bakinit In a aprlnirtlme aun?
Ara flixtla Inrreailna? Ia It beoominc
warmer In tne polar riRlona, iboa
taurine a (reater drift of IcettfrM
much earlier la tha rear than uaual?
Can the aun ai'ta have anrthlna: to do
wti!i tha unuatial coincidence of ua
Varallelrd a:ater T
Lajt Winter waa tha moat never
ever known In the greater part of
tie I'mteJ etatea. Thla fact la eitab
lishrd by thousands of complalnta re
reived by th rostofflre Wpartment
from Its rural mall carrlera In all aec
tiona of tha country, together with
atatementa f actentlsta who bve
mart a siujr of the s'Jt'J'ct. And Juat
iboul te time when the eold waa
moat severe In the titatea. it was re
p.rtd from Alaska that they wera
bavin the warm'St winter arer re
rorteJ la tUa history of that territory.
This peculiar fart of Itself would stand
out a altosether unuauaL Soma
erientlsta claimed tha awltchlna; of tba
warm Jiimb current waa tha reason
tr tha warm weather In Alaska, but
upon Investigation this explanation
w-s not found to ba aufflclent. And
ere la where tKa writer waa Brit
Initialed Into tha mystery of tha aun
spots.
Kvery one la familiar with tha recent
extraordinary disastrous floods of tha
Mississippi Hirer, resulttna; In mllliona
of dollars of damage to property and
Me loaa of thousarxis of Uvea. One
explanation sr'ven tor the cause of
floods Is that tha Missouri, tba Ohio,
and tha Mississippi Rivera were all In
flood almultaneoualy eomethlne; that
has never happened before In the cen-liiry-lnnar
hlelory of this Kather of
Water. Then, to no back still fur
thrr. It Is said tha floojs prlmarilv
are di:a to the unprecedented fall of
enow In tha siat.es throuab which these
rivers flow, and that thla srreat quant
Itv of snow could not sink Into tha
round bacause of Ita fraaen condition,
but nhen tha thaw rama In tha spring
all of It melted about tha same time
and flowed Into the rivers. When tha
s !ent!s mere aeke-1 what ransed thla
arreat fall of snow they admitted they
were op against It. t'nat there waa no
known reason except It m'ght ba traced
directly to tka Influence upon tha
earth's surface of other celeallal bod
1'S. Thla naturally brought u? tha
question of tha aua spots.
win a gen la.
Uhil was the cans for ancb a great
field of lea comfnc down from the arc
tic region so early In tha year, and
ro u 1.1 thla fact ba traced to weatrer
coivlitlona In tha arctic circle? All
scientists said there must hare been
an unusually v arm winter at the
North 1'ole. and this warm weather
totuel LL entire acU circle, tuca j
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a. winter would naturally loosen thoua
amis of miles of lea and eventually
c.ue peaks to break loose from tha
vast Ice ftelda of tba North to seek
their special mission of destruction aa
tceberirs much earlier than uaual. To
get at the baalo facts, tha queatlon
waa asked. What caused this warm
weather In tha arctic circle. Hera
again the scientists admitted it was a
hard problem, and that the reaaon
must ba sought among tha celeattal
bodies Thla answer In turn ended
with the usual reference to aun spots.
What la a sun spot? A good popular
definition, divested of all technicalities,
la a bole in tha aun. Pclentlsts de
srribe these boles In tba aun aa having
tha aprearanco of an enormous crater
of a volcano. This crater, or hole. Is of
such magnitude that tha whole earth
could ba ptcke-d up and dropped Into It
without causing any commotion on tha
aiirfaco of the aun. ITvery ona knows
that the diameter of the earth Is about
t00 miles. Tha diameter of one of
these sun spots Is about JSO.OOO miles.
From this may be gathered something
of their magnitude.
Some yeara aun spots are mora nu
merous than In others. In fact, at
times tha eurfare of tha sun appears
entirely clear of spots. Tba sun spot
maximum, as It Is called, occurred
about tha first of this year. 11S. The
minimum waa during tha Summer of
1S05. Tha period of aun apot eyclea Is
about 11 years. Aa wa sea tha aun It
rotatea from aast to west, but In re
ality It la rotating from weat to east.
Now. wImo a spot appeara on tba east
ern edge and la brought forward by
tha rotation of tie sun it becomea
clearer and very often changea are aeen
to take place from day to day. Some
times a apot ia aeen to rotate) aa It
tbera ware some kind of cyclonlo or
volcanic action going on. Aa the apot
ftrcgreesea across tha surf see of tha
aun. It usually breaks up Into smaller
apota until It finally disappear al
together. Tha Saa soots' Ska re.
It ! generally known that tha sun
la an Incandescent gaaeous body rotat
ing In space and at the aama time alao
rotating upon Ita axis witft a motion
verr similar to that of tha earth. Rev
olution and rotation generata terrlfla
currents upon the sun s surface, and It
la alao said to ba tha cause of the In
tense heat of tha aun. All aclentlsts
acres there ara constant upheavals and
cyclonlo motions going on similar to
volcanic eruptions aa wa know them.
As tha hot matter la projected out into
the upper layers of tha euna atmos
phere, cooling oaf takes place, and thla
cooled material falling back on tba
sun's surface shows up as dark apots
when aeen through tba telescope. Thla
Is tha explanation of a sun spot, based
on the records of 14 yeara' observations
at the United States Naval Observatory
near Washington, and these reoorde In
turn are based upon actual photographa
of tha aun taken every clear day dur
ing the year.
Now for tha affect of tha aun apota
upon our earth- The spots seem to ef
fect terrestrial roadltlona according to
the time of tha aun spot cycle. For
Instance, at tha minimum period iltoS)
wa get more even weather conditions
ea. aaxtb, bat el the nutjaium period
TIIE SCXDAT
Caose Of Dire
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a. (Kit) magnetlo conditions on earth
ara greatly changed. Suppose a sun
spot is crossing tha aun's aurtaca dur
ing tha maximum. This, it is claimed.
Intensifies or electrlflea conditions oo
tba sun's surface. Tbls. In turn, reaots
upon tha earth and causes cold waves
and many terrific thunder atorma.
Tbera la little question but what the
suirvaffects tha earth magnetically, aa
there have been many casea traced di
rectly to the sun spots
Edward H. Bowie is Uncle Sam's
weather expert at Waahlngton. under
tha direction of Professor Willis L
Moore. He made a day-to-day atudy
of the peculiar weather combinations
of last Winter, and bis explanation of
these coincidences Is full of interest
But In line with other scientists. Mr.
Bowie acknowledges there must have
been other causes at work, and reaches
tha conclusion that these other causes
must ba tha magnetic Influence of ce
lestlal bodies upon tba surface of tha
earth.
Mr. Bewte Mystified
"Most folks would say that tha early
coming- down of the icebergs waa due
to the cold Winter, but the contrary is
tha case." said Mr. Bowie. "Last Win
ter in the arctic regions haa been open
and tha Icebergs started out earlier
than usual because of thla fact. They
had a warm Winter in Alaska, and it
ia only natural to assume that this
warm weather extended over the Arc-
tlo Ocean and the region of Greenland.
This. In turn, caused an early run of
lea and waa undoubtedly the cause of
Icebergs appearing off Newfoundland
ao early thla year. It la impossible to
conceive of any other cause. If there
had been a cold Winter tha lea would
have been thick and atrong, and would
nave started out later than usual.
"Why there was such warm weather
In the north and cold in tha eouth, I
must admit I don't know. Dnring the
w Inter montha of January. February
and Marcu we had vary stormy weather
over the Atlantic ocean, with exceed
tngly low barometric pressure, which
Ig always a condition indicating cold
weather In the United States east of the
Rocky Mountains. Why this should be
you can readily aee. The air currenta
starting from the American continent
flow out to the Atlantic Ocean and
from there to the northwest and tha
Arctic Circle, and back again to the
continent, thus bringing tha cold air
down to aouthern latitudes. Tha cold
air In the British Northwest baa been
brought farther south thla year than
ever before. Thla waa because these
waa a deficit In the air mass over tha
Atlantic Ocean. What caused this de
ficit we do not know. It Is probsble
that thla might be traced ta tha affect
of the sun upon the earth.
'Low barometer ever tha Atlantic
Ocean and high barometer over Canada
and tba North weet existed during near
ly tha whole of last Winter, and thla la
something unusual. What brlnga thla
about. I don't know. Here, again, wa
must look for causes away from the
earth a surface. The International
charts or maps wa have been using
for the past five years have never
shown such conditions for such pro
longed perloda of time. It is altogether
unprecedented.
-I don't bellevo there la aojthltijr I
OREGOXIAy, PORTLAND,
Is tJie Climate of theWorld Changina? Wmters Becoming More Severe in Wide Area Each Yeai
Extreme Cold Weather in the South, While Alaska and Arctic Regions Basking in Springtime Sun
Floods Increasing Since 1900. According to Figures of Geological Survey Great Drift of Icebergs
Much Earlier Than Usual Scientists Discuss Reasons for Changing Conditions.
ZsctotljrjoA '
tha story about the Japan current be
ing the cause of warm weather In the
Arctic and eold weather In the eouth.
The Arctic regions will have Just aa
cold Winters hereafter aa before. The
great ahlftlng of tha wlnda last year
may have had something to do with It.
The wlnda over the Pacific Ocean ex
tended farther Inland and carried tha
warm air of the Pacific to the Coast
States. This is an explanation for the
warm weather In Alaska during Jan
uary and February. Bat to get at
the root of the matter and answer tha
question. What caused tbls great
ahlftlng of winds? you will have to
look for that among the celestial bodies
which undoubtedly exert a great In
fluenca on the climate of Mother
Karth."
The Cause of Floods.
Professor H. C Frankenfleld 1
TJncle Sam's flood expert of the Weath
er Bureau. He gave an interesting In
terview regarding tha floods in the
Mississippi Valles. and the cause of
the unusual conditions.
"The first great Mississippi P.Iver
flood of which there is a record oc
curred in 1786, and it is said to have
been the greatest flood In the history
of tbc Middle Mississippi Valley." said
the expert. "Unfortunately the records
are somewhat clouded, and the precise
data of the flood of 1814 are now ac
cepted as tha high-water records for
the Lower Mississippi and Middle Mis
sissippi Valleys. This was remembered
aa the greatest of s.11 floods until the
changing condltiona of the last 20
yeara have resulted in other floods that
have much diminished Us fame.
"The flood of the present year did not
differ much from Its predecessors, ex
cept that it set In about a month later
tban usual. January and February were
cold, mere was a fair aupply of anow
on the ground at the end of February,
with a further Increase during tha first
half of March. The first Southwestern
storm passed over the Qulf States and
the Ohio Valley on March 11 and 12. At
this time tba lower Ohio and lower Mis
sissippi Rivers were at high stagea on
account of an Ohio River rise in the
earlier part of the month. On Marqh
14 and 15. and again on March 20 and
SI. southwestern storms again moved
over the Gulf States and the Ohio Val
ley, attended by moderately heavy rains.
but not by very high temperatures. On
March II and 34 there was another, but
thla was attended by abnormally high
temperatures and excessive rains, with
a fall of anow over Missouri and Kan
sas that waa almost unprecedented for
the season. On March 2S and 29 there
waa another acuthwest atorm, accom
panied by high temperatures and heavy
rains, and still another on April 1 ana
The precipitation waa from two to
four Inches In excess of the normal
amount over the lower Missouri, the
Ohio and the middle and lower Missis
sippi watersheds, and owing to the
frozen soil, a much larger percentage
than usual of the total amount must
have run into the rivers, carrying with
It the water from the meited snows.
hlch over the Ohio watershed must
hsve amounted to at least an additional
half-Inch. The Ohio River beran to
rise Immediately after the passing of
the first storm on March 11 and 13.
'Again It must be remembered that
tWa XlooA t 111 cajca Utum tha Ohio I
MAT 19, 1912.
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River and its tributaries. It Is true
that tha lower Missouri and the upper
Mississippi contributed somewhat, but
the great bulk ol the water came from
the Ohio. The Arkansas River was in
moderate flood only, while the Red
River was not at all high. It Is also
true that there is no record of a flood
in the lower Mississippi River caused
by simulataneous floods in all of the
large tributaries, a's a rule, whenever
the eastern tributaries were in great
flood, the western ones failed, and vice
versa, but the possibility of a combined
flood' Is always present, and. if such a
flood should come the stages of 1913
would ba exceeded."
Floods Increasing for 11 Tears.
M. O. Lelghton is another of Uncle
Sam's flood experts In tne ueoiogicai
Survey. He has made many years'
study of flood conditions in the United
States, and according to his statement,
floods have been Increasing for 11
years. In speaking of the flood prob
lem, Mr. Lelghton said:
"You ask me are floods increasing in
the United States? Tes. Present con
ditions are admittedly most unusual,
flooda of both the Ohio and Missouri
rivers swelling the already Heavy now
of the Mississippi itself, and this has
created what will probably pass down
In history aa the worst flood of the
Mississippi since the settlement of the
country. .
Precipitation enncr snow or rn
ulrlmatelv taKO two courses.
either along the surface of the ground
directly Into water courses or Into the
ground by percolation, with aubsequent
discharge into the rivers by- seepage.
The water which causes floods is that
part of the precipitation which Is not
absorbed into the ground and whlcn
therefore must now along tne eartn
surface.
To go back a little. There are nve
classea of agencies or conditions affect
ing the flow of streams. The first Is
climate, under which are comprised
raiafall, evaporation, temperature, wind
and humidity. Although these are ex
ceedingly variable from day to day
and from season to season, the obser
vations that have been recorded indi
cate that a period of yeara embraces all
conditions, so that the mean of them
may be considered rainy constant.
TJjura is vtrj; little evidence, except injeay that la the last Xw xtaa there
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special areas, that reveals any pro
gressive and permanent change in cli
matic conditions. The second agency
is topography, and the third geology,
both or which may be considered abso
lutely stable. The fourth is surface
vegetation, which includes forest
covered and cultivated land. The fifth
consists of artiflcal agencies, such as
storage reservoirs and drainage, which
produce rapid and marked effects on
river discharge.
"When the physical condition on the
drainage areas are summed up, the one
great change that has been produced
in the vegetative conditions is the re
duction of forest area. On some of
these drainage areas it has 'occurred
by slow progression and on others
more rapidly. It is certain that in
some areas this forest cutting has
caused barren conditions because the
land waa of such a character that after
It was relieved of forest protection it
eroded eaaily and ita productive por
tions were quickly swept Into water
courses.
"Summarizing, It may be stated with
confidence that the increase in flood
tendency ehowu so unmistakably is due
In a large measure to the denudation
of forest areas."
An Interesting fact in connection
with this subject Is that the climate
of the world waa originally equable
all over the surface of the earth, and
differed very little between tbe equa
tor and the poles. The glacial period
from which we are Just now emerging
ia the only exception, and represents
a very amall part of the earth's his
tory, probably about 10 per cent. We
are now a little past the climax of the
glacial period, and on the way toward
a warmer or more equable climate. The
glacial era commenced 500,000 yeara
ago. Some authorities estimate the
end of that period, the time when ice
disappeared altogether from the east
ern part of the United States, and hu
man beings took up their habitation
aa late aa 30,000 years ago.
Glaciers are reducing at a fast rate
In Alaska right now. Very often places
can be found in the Arctic Circle, from
which tbe glaciers have receded within
a very short time, and vegetation has
not yet had time to cover the spaces
formerly occupied by ice. Scientists
OF 1912
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haa been a decided increase in the rata
at which the glaciers are disappearing.
Now. to return to that interesting
subject sun spots. For nearly 300
years the scientific world has been
familiar with spots on the sun, dis
covered almost simultaneously by Gal
ileo, Fabricius and Scheinar. Galileo
is credited with the frst discovery by
telescope of sun spots, in October,
1610. Fabricius followed closely after
in December of the same year, and
only a few .months later, in March,
1611, Scheinar made the same discov
ery. Ail were original discoverers, as
each worked in entire ignorance of the
labors of the others. As Fabricius waa
the first to publish his discovery In
June, 1611, the discovery is credited to
him, although the other two are en
titled to equal honor.
As large sun spots are visible to the
naked eye, many were no doubt seen
before the invention of the telescope.
The records of the Chinese afford evi
dence of such observations. These
spots are often of enormous extent,
covering sometimes millions and even
billions of square miles, one having
been measured showing an area of
25.000,000,000 miles. They generally
appear as small points, and enlarge
rapidly until they attain their maxi
mum, and after a comparatively short
period, ranging from a few days to
several months, fill up and disappear.
They are mostly confined to that
part of the sun's surface correspond
ing to our torrid zone, or rather to
two zones, one on each side of the
equator. These zones of maximum sun
spots shoot out each way, so that very
few are found within 10 degrees of
the equator or SO degrees north and
south of it. These spots are dark at
the bottom and partially light at the
edge, extending to the depth of thou
sands of miles. The upland or plane
in which these volcano-like openings
appear 'ia called the sun's photosphere
that is, the incandescent surface
which sends forth light and heat. But
Immediately below this photosphere la
another stratum composed of the same
substance, but at a lower temperature,
and still lower is tbe nucleus or body
of the sun. The spots are variable
In size and direction.
(Copyright, 1912, by William L. Alt-dorfcr),)
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