112 



INTERNATIONAL ASPECTS OF OCEANOGRAPHY 



Assistant Superintendent of Charts, Mr. G. B. 



Stigant. 

 Superintendent of Sailing Directions, Captain 



F. A. Reyne, R.N. (retired). 

 Superintendent of Tidal Work, Commander 



Harold D. Warburg, R.N. (retired). 

 Superintendent of Light Lists, Captain S. A. G. 



Hill, D.S.O., R.N. (retired). 

 Superintendent, Chart Production and Supplies 

 Branch, Cricklewood, Mr. C. Jowsey. 

 Provision for visiting investigators: Naval officers, 

 scientists, engineers, surveyors, and others, are, 

 as a rule, shown over the Department provided 

 arrangements are made beforehand. 

 Income: Derived from the sale of charts, etc., but is 

 returned to the Treasury in accordance with the 

 usual custom for Government offices. 

 Provision for publication of results: Charts are pub- 

 lished by the Department and books by H. M. 

 Stationery Office, as and when required. 



Meteorological Office (Marine Division) Air 

 Ministry, London ('37) 



History or origin: The Meteorological Department 

 of the Board of Trade was established in 1855 

 for marine meteorological work. 



In 1865 the Meteorological Office was estab- 

 lished as a separate department and the Meteoro- 

 logical Department of the Board of Trade became 

 the Marine Division of the Meteorological Office. 

 In 1919 the Meteorological Office, with all its 

 Divisions, was made a Department of the Air 

 Ministry. 

 Location: Kingsway, London. 

 Organization to which attached: See above. 

 Purposes: To collect from British ships information 

 on winds, weather, currents, and ice of the 

 oceans with the object of improving ocean naviga- 

 tion and making it safer. 

 (Scope of activities: The Marine Division arranges 

 for and supervises the voluntary observations 

 made by the officers of 350 British ships which 

 make regular observations and of a number of 

 ships which make occasional ob.servations. 



Of the 350 ships which make regular obser- 

 vations : 



(a) Thirty ships take observations at the end 

 of each watch and record them in the 

 Meteorological Log; these ships are engaged 

 mainly in the North Sea, the north and 

 south Pacific Ocean, and the Arctic and 

 Antarctic. 



(b) The remaining 320 ships take observations 

 at one or more of the international hours 

 for synoptic observations at sea, namely 

 0000 hr., 0600 hr., 1200 hr., and 1800 hr. 

 G.M.T. and record them on Form 911 

 which is called the Meteorological Record 

 to distinguish it from the Meteorological 

 Log referred to in (a) above. 



(c) Of the 350 ships referred to in (a) and (b) 

 281 are "Selected Ships" and transmit 

 their observations at scheduled times by 

 W/T for the information of other ships 

 and of national meteorological services. 



The meteorological logs and records from the.se 

 ships are examined in the Marine Division and the 

 necessary data extracted for discussion and 

 publication. Special attention is being given at 

 present to the data of ocean currents and a series 

 of current charts of the oceans is being prepared 

 and published. 



In addition to the 350 regular observing ships 

 arrangements are made with a number of British 

 ships to make observations and to report them 

 by W/T when they are in regions where there 

 are no selected ships. The list of these ships is 

 at present small but it is being added to as oppor- 

 tunity offers. 

 Equipment: All British Observing ships, whose 

 names appear in the fleet list in the "Marine 

 Observer," carry a reliable mercurial barometer. 



The Meteorological Office lends to meteorologi- 

 cal log-keeping ships a complete set of meteoro- 

 logical instruments, consisting of a Kew Pattern 

 Marine Mercurial Barometer, Thermometers with 

 screen, and Hydrometers. 



"A" Selected Ships, that is Selected Ships 

 which have long range wireless telegraphy, are 

 also equipped with thermometers with screen and 

 a barograph. Some "B" Selected Ships which 

 have not satisfactory instruments of their own 

 are also provided with thermometers and screens 

 by the Office. 



The Marine Division itself has the usual office 

 equipment; has access to the technical and 

 scientific library of the Meteorological Office, 

 and has the advantage of the use of the Air 

 Ministry Hollerith Electrical Sorting lithographic 

 and printing pres.ses. 

 Staff: Headquarters: Marine Superintendent, 1 

 nautical a.ssLstant, 1 meteorological assistant, 

 9 technical a.ssistants, 13 clerical assistants. 

 London Docks: 1 nautical assistant, 1 clerk. 



