138 Scientific Intelligence.: 
Divina which are complete in themselves and may be considered as 
individuals of their kind, which at the same time show distinctly one of ~ 
the periods through whi ch they have pased. 
n viewing meteorites we Raenbatliy must start from certain a 
tal considerations, proved by the phenomena themselves in order to arrive 
at a full understanding of for: forms and conditions. These are: “Ist 
the stone leaves the extra-terrestrial space as a solid; 2d, its velocity is 
greatest on entering the atmosphere of our earth; 34, it is retarded by 
the resistance of the air; 4th, the “fireball” (or luminous envelope of the 
meteor) is formed by the compression of the air and the rotation of the 
stone resulting therefrom ; 5th, the termination of the first part of the path 
is marked by a detonation, the so-called “ explosion,” so vacuum inside 
: a 
rounded side foremost, which shows over its whole surface ds 
sulcations, resulting from the pisgecee action of the resisting atmosphere 
-upon it, whilst the crust was in a viscous state. The lustrous crust is 
surrounded by a protean g ssibboaiiy® ; the stone had formerly sharp edges, 
which however in the foremost direction of the meteorite were melted off 
and rounded and blown oft ate the back part of the sa 
The time of the passage through the atmosphere up ‘ ‘that of the 
detonation is very short, = pincnally lasts only a few seconds, The 
plibceee of the heating ceases, or in other words, as soon as as the detonation 
has taken place and the “ fireball” disappeared, the inside and outside 
temperatures of the meteorite are soon counterbalanced and the crust is 
a cooled, especially on account of the detonation taking place at 4 
height, where the temperature is generally very low. 
interior mass contain’ a considerable quantity of water of composition 
— can be expelled only at red heat. 
During the real fall of the meteorite or after ‘it already belongs to our 
planet, its velocity is, comparatively speaking, so inconsiderable, that 4 
re-meltin ing of its crust is improbable if not impossi . 
From the form of the Stannern meteorite, the position of its erust and 
must have passed foremost during its passage through the atmosphere, 
and has formed the “head” of the same. Its centre of gravity, which 
always must be foremost in space, lies near that point. It could rotate on 
the axis of its — but could not be irregularly overturned. From its 
form we learn another fact; the stone did not burst in our atmosphere but 
