Dear Shirley, This, I believe, is the origin of the story: When the Indonesian volcanic island Krakatoa blew up in 1883, it did so with such fury that it is said to be several of the loudest noises in recorded history. My grandfather in central Texas (age 5) claimed to have heard it! (He said that the family believed (incorrectly) that a new Indian war had broken out, and the army was firing artillery! What it also did was to put so much volcanic ash and rock into the air that the global climate actually cooled (reduced sunlight) for several years. This is, at least in part, the origin of the "Summerless Summer". Here is what the MS Encarta Encyclopedia says of Krakatau or Krakatoa: Krakatau, also Krakatoa or Rakata, small volcanic island, southwestern Indonesia, in the Sunda Strait, between Java and Sumatra. Until the night of August 26-27, 1883, Krakatau had an area of about 47 sq km (about 18 sq mi); at that time, a volcanic eruption and its consequent explosions destroyed most of the island, so the present area is only 16 sq km (6 sq mi). The waves produced by the submarine earthquake that accompanied the eruption attained a height of 15 m (50 ft) and traveled some 12,875 km (some 8000 mi); they killed thousands of people along the coasts of Java and Sumatra and destroyed incalculable amounts of property. One explosion produced one of the loudest noises in history; it was heard at a distance of 4830 km (about 3000 mi). The rock ejected was in the form of fine dust, which was diffused by aerial currents throughout the upper atmosphere; for three years thereafter, observers all over the world reported brilliant colorations of sunrise and sunset, caused by the refraction of the rays of the sun by these tiny particles. The island displayed volcanic activity again in 1927, and the inhabitants were evacuated; the island is now uninhabited. Encarta® 98 Desk Encyclopedia © & 1996-97 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.