Theory of Solar Action. 403 



duced from the decomposition of the water. When heated in 

 contact with iron, water is readily decomposed, the whole of 

 its hydrogen being set free and the oxygen combining to form 

 magnetic oxide. Magnetic oxide is accordingly found exist- 

 ing in meteoric bodies. Some of this oxide would, however, 

 be reduced in the way before mentioned, and thus the major 

 part would consist of iron. The fused shell of material sur- 

 rounding the body would prevent the escape of these gases, 

 which would thus exist under a state of pressure. There can 

 be no doubt that the volume of hydrogen thus produced would 

 be many times greater than the volume of the body ; for, 

 taking Mohr's figures and assuming the average specific gra- 

 vity to be only 3, we find that the volume of hydrogen would 

 be more than thirty times that of the meteor containing it. An 

 objection to this theory is, that the time during which the 

 meteor is heated is so short that the changes indicated would 

 not be likely to occur. This is simply a matter for experi- 

 ment. It may, however, be mentioned that, supposing the 

 body to fall from rest through the atmosphere (supposed for 

 the present purpose to be 50 miles high) to the earth, it would 

 take about 2 minutes in the descent. But the meteor which 

 falls to the earth today may have on some previous occasion 

 passed through the atmosphere of our own or some other 

 planet, and been heated by the passage. The evidence there- 

 fore afforded by these bodies may not really be of much im- 

 portance ; in fact, if the above view be accepted, it must be 

 admitted that they afford us no insight into the composition 

 of the supposed interplanetary atmosphere. 



The prime cause of the movement of the cosmical atmo- 

 sphere is the rotation of the sun upon its axis. But all the 

 planets rotate also; and as they are all immersed in the same 

 atmosphere we shall have the same action occurring in their 

 case — i. e. a drawing-in towards the poles and a propulsion 

 at the equator. Thus we ought to find an aerial current flow- 

 ing constantly in the northern hemisphere from the north-east 

 (allowing for the gradually increasing velocity of rotation), 

 and in the southern hemisphere from the south-east. As 

 these currents would occur in the higher regions of the atmo- 

 sphere, they would be exactly opposed to the " return trades" 

 which are prevalent there. This is a consequence of the 

 theory which may have been overlooked. 



If there is one fact more than another upon which scientific 

 men are agreed, it is upon the existence in the sun of metallic 

 vapours. These Dr. Siemens considers to form an inner 

 atmosphere surrounding the nucleus (?). .Supposing this 

 theory of solar action to be a correct one, and that dissocia- 



