Voyage and today in modern liner may be risky.The element is stronger than man and machine.And what had the Mariners, go to the edge of the unknown on the fragile sailing?To whom would expect someone to cry for help during a terrible storm?
Since ancient times, Mediterranean sailors rejoiced and rest, when the masts of sailing ships in bad weather appeared inexplicable glow.This meant that their patron saint Elmo took them under protection.
On strengthening storm said the dancing, and the weakening of the - still St. Elmo's fire.
St. Elmo
Memorial Day Catholic martyr Elmo, who is known as the Erasmus (Ermou) or Formiysky Antioch, celebrated June 2nd.The relics of the saint are in the temple its name in Gaeta (Italy), he died in the next form in the year 303.Legend has it that he died as a martyr - the executioners wrapped his guts on the winch.
This item was as an attribute of the saint, with whom he has come to the rescue sailors in distress.
Coldflame
fire on the tips of the masts from the descriptions looked like a candle flame or fireworks, brushes or balls of pale blue or purple.It affects the amount of these lights - from 10 centimeters to a meter!Sometimes it seemed that all gear is covered with phosphorus and light.Radiance could be accompanied by a hissing or whistling sound.
Attempts to break off of the gear shift and the flames did not work - a fragment of the fire climbed up the mast.From the flame does not light up, it did not burn anyone, although the light for a long time - from several minutes up to an hour or longer.
Historical information
ancient Greeks called this glow "Castor and Pollux", "Elena".Occurs and the denomination of lights: Corpus Santos, «Holy Hermes", "Saint Nicholas."
In the extant written sources from Pliny the Elder, and Julius Caesar, travel notes of Columbus and Magellan, Darwin's letters from the ship "Beagle", the writings of Melville ("Moby Dick") and Shakespeare said about the meetings of seafarers with lights.
Chronicle circumnavigation Ferdinand Magellan tells us: "During the storm, we many times he was in the form of St. Elmo ... extremely light on dark nights on the mainmast, where he remained for two hours or more, saving us from discouragement."
familiar not only sailors
not only ships, but also on the corners of buildings and spiers, flagpoles, lampposts, lightning and other high objects and structures with sharp end, lit St. Elmo's fire.
airplane pilots also familiar with this phenomenon.Screw, pointed tips of the wings and fuselage airliner flying near clouds may appear kistochkoobraznye level - St. Elmo's fire.Photo by James Ashby - crew commander - once made in a thunderstorm during a landing in Phnom Penh, shows the blue glow on the nose of the aircraft.
At the same time there are strong static interference.It was suggested that this fire caused the fire was the cause of the hydrogen and the collapse of a huge and luxurious airship "Hindenburg" in May 1937.
well acquainted with the lights of St. Elmo climbers.When they enter the storm cloud over the heads may appear glowing halo shining tips of his fingers, dripping with ice axes flames.Observers say that even in a thunderstorm lit the top of the trees, the horns of bulls and deer, tall grass.
Mysterious effects
Nature presents a lot of interesting people to guess.Everyone knows that phenomena such as rainbows, halos (three suns) in the cold, a mirage in the heat - optical tricks of the atmosphere created in the air prisms and mirrors, refracting and reflecting light.
Stunning blue and green flashes of the aurora creates a disturbance of electromagnetic fields of the Earth.For St. Elmo's fire responsibly electricity atmosphere.
scientific explanation
So what are the St. Elmo's fire?What is the nature of this phenomenon?Mythology retreated before explaining Benjamin Franklin made in 1749.This he described as a lightning rod attracts the heavenly "electric fire" of the clouds in the distance even before the strike occurs.The glow at the tip of the device and a fire of St. Elmo.
Atmospheric electricity ionizes the air around sharps ion concentration becomes maximum.Ionized plasma glows, but unlike lightning standing still and not moving.
color depends on the composition of the plasma of ionized gas.Nitrogen and oxygen, of which mainly consists atmosphere created by light-blue glow.
corona discharge
Crown or smoldering, the discharge occurs when the potential of the electric field in the air is not homogeneous, and around a single object is greater than 1 kvolt / cm.In good weather, this value is a thousand times smaller.At the beginning of the formation of storm clouds, it grows up to 5 volts / cm.Lightning Strike - this category of more than 10 kvolt centimeter.
magnitude of potential non-uniformly distributed in the atmosphere - it is more near the pointy objects at height.
becomes clear that the proximity of a thunderstorm (or tornado) creates an atmosphere of potential for the emergence of a sufficient ion avalanche causing bluish glow pointed objects located on a hill.Sandstorm and a volcanic eruption also ionize the air and can cause this phenomenon.
Taming glow
modern man not necessarily go to the swimming or flying in a thunderstorm to watch the glow of ionized gas, what are the St. Elmo's fire.What is it - can be seen in a conventional fluorescent lamp, neon and halogen lampah.Na other aircraft have to install devices that prevent atmospheric electricity to build up on the surface and cause interference.
But although the romance and myths are replaced by commonplace interest and excitement associated with the unusual phenomena of nature, not a man will never leave.Mysterious blue St. Elmo's fire will excite the imagination of travelers and interested readers.
