224 



INTERNATIONAL ASPECTS OF OCEANOGRAPHY 



Staff: Director, Dr. B. Sundara Raj, M.A., Ph.D., 

 Oceanography. 

 Assistant Biologist, Dr. D. W. Devanesan, M.A., 



Ph.D., D.I.C., Marine Zoology. 

 Personal Assistant to the Director of Fisheries, 

 Dr. M. Ramaswamy Naidu, B.A., Ph.D., 

 Oceanography. 

 Provision for visiting investigators: Three to six work- 

 ers can be accommodated in each of the labora- 

 tories mentioned under Equipment. 

 Income: Sources: Fish curing yards, fishery rentals, 

 pearl and chank fisheries, aquarium gate collec- 

 tions and zoological specimen supply, tanur 

 productions, oyster supply, Nilgiri Fisheries, 

 fishing license. 

 Amount: Rs. 380,500. 

 Provision for 'publication of results: Fish Statistics, 

 Madras Fisheries Bulletin, Trawler's Reports, 

 Bulletin on Marketable Fish, Bulletin on Pearl 

 Fisheries, other publications relating to Madras 

 Fisheries. 



Meteorological Department, Government of 

 India ('34) 



Location: Central Office, Poona near Bombay. 

 Organization to which attached: Government of India. 

 Staff: Director-General of Observatories, Dr. C. W. 

 B. Normand. 



In the Indian Ocean the meteorological phe- 

 nomena are of so great influence on the ocean that 

 a memorandum entitled, "Brief Notes on Marine 

 Meteorological Work undertaken by the Indian 

 Meteorological Department" prepared by Doctor 

 Normand is quoted in full. It is as follows: 

 Storm Warning for Ports and Shipping: 



Whenever a storm or a disturbance exists in the 

 Indian seas, suitable visual warning signals are 

 hoisted at such ports on the coasts as are likely to 

 be affected by the disturbance. The Meteorologi- 

 cal Department keeps Port Officers supplied with 

 the latest information with respect to all disturban- 

 ces, and ships in port apply to them for information 

 to supplement the storm signals. In addition to 

 the regular ports on the west coast and on the 

 Bay of Bengal there are some river ports and River 

 Police Stations and a number of District Police 

 Stations which have to be warned in connection 

 with disturbed weather at the head of the Bay of 

 Bengal. Of the ports on the Bay of Bengal some 

 are provided with additional "locality signals" 

 which indicate the particular areas in which weather 



is disturbed. The details of these arrangements 

 are described in this department's publication 

 entitled, "Code of Storm Warning Signals for use 

 at Indian Ports." 



Shipping at sea is also supplied with the latest 

 weather information bymeans of wireless bulletins, 

 which briefly describe the position, development in 

 intensity, probable movement of storms whenever 

 any exist, or describe the general weather situation 

 in the sea areas. The issues, which are ordinarily 

 twice daily, are increased in disturbed or stormy 

 weather to three or six times a day. When neces- 

 sary, further messages are broadcasted at interven- 

 ing times also. The radio stations at Bombay, 

 Karachi, and Aden serve the Arabian Sea area, and 

 those at Calcutta, Rangoon, and Madras serve the 

 Bay of Bengal area; the wireless station at Matara 

 serves both areas. The details of the arrange- 

 ments for broadcasting meteorological bulletins to 

 ships at sea and for ships to transmit by wireless 

 their weather messages to the coastal radio stations 

 are fully explained in this department's publica- 

 tion named, "Indian Ship's Weather Code." 



The warnings to ports and shipping in the 

 Arabian Sea against the approach of cyclonic 

 storms, or of bad weather is done from the head- 

 quarters office at Poona, while similar warnings for 

 disturbances in the Bay of Bengal are issued by 

 the Meteorological Office at Alipore, Calcutta. 

 Collection of Marine Meteorological data: 



Coded wireless weather messages from ships at 

 sea constitute the chief source of marine data 

 available for all purposes and, in supplement to the 

 telegraphic observations from coast stations, they 

 are essential in the maintenance of the warning 

 system for ports and shipping at sea. 



Another important source of marine meteorolog- 

 ical data is the extracts from steamer's weather logs 

 collected by the marine clerks of this department 

 in Calcutta and Bombay, and sent from some 

 steamers direct. Two log forms are in use — one 

 for use during ordinary weather and the other, the 

 pink form, for use during disturbed weather — and 

 are designed to secure the collection of full marine 

 meterological data for purposes of later study. 

 The port authorities at Rangoon also help in the 

 collection of these extracts by allowing the ob- 

 servers of the Time Ball and Tidal Observatory 

 of the Port Commissioners to copy or collect ship's 

 weather logs. Occasionally, in special cases, logs 

 of steamers with experience of disturbed weather 

 are collected at Madras; and the Colombo Port 



