An amateur scientist (actually, an electrical engineer) friend of
mine did some experimentation and said (though I haven't checked this
personally) that the flame turns blue whenever the flame goes out (like when
a tube put over it smothers the flame rather than the air being removed
entirely).
Just another data point in this strange phenomenon...
Chris
-- Chris Clayton
(first year physical science teacher)
Mt. Zion Senior High School
305 S Henderson
Mt. Zion, IL 62549
email: misterc@uiuc.edu
(currently forwarding to: clayton@webmart.net)
MSN Chemistry Forum Assistant
ChrisC_Asst@msn.com