The father of the periodic table was also a proponent of the
beta-atmosphere:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dmitry_Mendeleev
"In 1902, in an attempt at a chemical conception of the Aether, he put
forward an incorrect hypothesis that there existed two inert chemical
elements of lesser atomic weight than hydrogen. Of these two proposed
elements, he thought the lighter to be an all-penetrating,
all-pervasive gas, and the slightly heavier one to be a proposed
element, coronium."
And Mendeleev had good reason to believe in coronium:
http://sunearthday.nasa.gov/2006/locations/coronium.php
Dmitri was also the first to propose an abiotic origin of petroleum in
1877;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abiogenic_petroleum_origin
although, better understanding of the process has prevailed.
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