Mikhail Lomonosov. Oratio De Meteoris Vi Electrica Ortis - Discourse on Atmospheric Phenomena Originating from Electrical Force (1753). English translation and commentary by V.Shiltsev
M.V.Lomonosov, V.Shiltsev (translation, commentary)

TL;DR
Lomonosov's 1753 discourse presents an original theory of atmospheric electricity, explaining lightning, auroras, and comet tails through vertical air movements and particle friction, supported by experiments and mathematical estimates.
Contribution
This work is the first complete English translation of Lomonosov's seminal 1753 theory on atmospheric electricity, combining experimental observations with a novel mechanistic explanation.
Findings
Proposes vertical air movements as the main cause of atmospheric electricity
Suggests friction of water vapor and organic particles generates electrical charges
Explains lightning, auroras, and comet tails as electrical phenomena
Abstract
This is the first complete English translation of Oratio De Meteoris Vi Electrica Ortis - seminal work of the great Russian polymath Mikhail Lomonosov (1711-1765). It was presented at the public meeting of the St.Petersburg Academy of Sciences in November 1753 and is traditionally listed among Lomonosov's most important scientific accomplishments. In the Discourse, Lomonosov presents an original theory of generation of electricity in the air and lightning, many elements of which are profoundly correct even by present day understanding of the phenomenon. The theory is based on experimental observations and measurements and supported by some mathematical estimates. The basis of the Lomonosov theory is the idea of vertical air movements as the main cause of atmospheric electricity - the immersion of the cold upper strata of the atmosphere into the lower (warmer) layers causes mechanical…
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Taxonomy
TopicsPlant and Biological Electrophysiology Studies · Magnetic and Electromagnetic Effects
