14 July 2015

     Do you like the scent of wet earth after rain? If so, you are not alone. In fact, some scientists believe that people inherit their love for the scent of rain from their ancestors who rely on rain for their survival. But what makes the scent of wet earth after rain?
     There are some aromas associated with rainfall pleasant smelling man. One of the smell, which is called "Petrichor", the aroma that comes up when it rains after a prolonged dry spell.


     Petrichor - the term was coined in 1964 by two Australian scientists studying the smell of wet weather. Petrichor derived from the word 'Petros' Greek, which means stone and 'ichor', which means that the liquid flowing in the veins of the gods. It is defined as "a distinctive aroma that accompanies the first rain after a long dry season"

Petrichor comes from a pair of chemical reactions:

     Some plants produce oil during dry periods, and when it rains, this oil is released into the air. The second reaction which creates Petrichor occurs when chemicals called geosmin produced by Streptomyces bacteria that live on the ground, are released into the air. Both of these aromatic compounds combine to create Petrichor, pleasant aroma when the rain hits the ground.


     Bactrian camels can detect water from a distance of 50 miles away. This is because the aroma of Streptomyces easily carried across the desert and camel picked up by a sensitive nose. In return, the spores of the bacteria can be spread around. Musty earth scent of some cactus flowers are also derivatives of geosmin. Make pollinating insects comes with the promise of water. This is known as mimicry interest. Unfortunately, the fish also absorb some of the water geosmin not really feel it.
     Another scent of rain is associated with ozone. During storms, lightning can separate oxygen and nitrogen molecules in the atmosphere, and they in turn can recombine into nitric oxide. This substance interacts with other chemicals in the atmosphere to form ozone, which has a pungent smell fresh.
     When someone says they can smell the rain coming, maybe that wind from the storm has made ozone down from the clouds and into the nostrils of the person.

Written By : Arbha ~ Public-DYK

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