You step outside, sniff the air, and say: "It's going to rain." You're not psychic. You're just smelling the storm before it gets here.
That clean, sweet, almost electric tang is ozone. Lightning splits oxygen atoms, which recombine into O₃, carried down by wind. Then there's petrichor - the earthy scent of plant oils released by dry soil after a long dry spell. And geosmin, produced by bacteria in damp earth. These three scents ride the breeze ahead of the raindrops.
So when your nose twitches on a summer afternoon, trust it. The sky is sending a telegram, and you just learned how to read it.
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You're confusing molecules with atoms. Splitting atoms is called nuclear fission.
ReplyDeleteAl_in_Ottawa
I assumed everyone could smell rain.
ReplyDeleteYeah...absolutely. Admittedly it's easier for me to notice in the country. However if I'm not sure I just look at the maple tree leaves - if it's going to rain they ofter turn over. It's not 100% but neither is The Weather Channel.
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