NA TURE 



381 



THURSDAY, AUGUST 21, 1879 



WEATHER CHARTS FOR THE NORTHERN 

 HEMISPHERE 



WE present to our readers with this number a copy 

 of the latest work of the United States Signal 

 Qfgce — the Monthly International Weather Chart of the 

 Northern Hemisphere based on simultaneous observa- 

 tions. The copies are the first published for distribution 

 in Europe, and are at our request furnished from Wash- 

 ington. The work marks an important step in meteoro- 

 logical progress. The origin and purposes of the chart 

 and its connection with others are sufficiently set forth in 

 the following extracts from the Annual Report of the 

 Chief Signal Officer to the Hon. Secretary of War of the 

 United States :— 



"The proposition adopted at the congress of persons 

 charged with meteorological duties, assembled at Vienna 

 in 1873, and to the affect that it is desirable, with a view 

 to their exchange, that at least one uniform observation, 

 of such character as to be suited for the preparation of 

 synoptic charts, be taken and recorded daily and simul- 

 taneously at as many stations as practicable throughout 

 the world, has continued to have practical effect. 



" By authority of the War Department, and with the 

 courteous co-operation of scientific men and chiefs of 

 meteorological services representing the diffisrent coun- 

 tries, a record of observations taken daily, simultaneously 

 with the observations taken throughout the United States 

 and the adjacent islands, is exchanged semi-monthly. 

 These reports are to cover the territorial extent of Algiers, 

 Austria, Australasia, Belgium, Great Britain, China, 

 Central America, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, 

 Greenland, India, Italy, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, 

 the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Spain, 

 Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Tunis, British North 

 America, the United States, the Azores, Sandwich 

 Islands, Malta, Mauritius, West Indies, South Africa, 

 and South America. 



"On July I, 1875, the daily issue of a printed bulletin, 

 exhibiting these international simultaneous reports, was 

 commenced at this office, and has been since maintained, 

 A copy of this bulletin is furnished each co-operating 

 observer. The results to be had from the" reports thus 

 collated are considered as to be of especial importance. 

 The bulletin combines, for the first time of which there 

 is record, the labours of the nations in a work of this 

 kind for their mutual benefit. There is needed only the 

 assistance to be had from the naval forces of the different 

 powers (that of the navies of the United States and of 

 Portugal being as heretofore related already given to 

 extend the plan of report upon the seas) to bring more 

 fully within the scope of study observations practically 

 extending around the northern hemisphere. This end is 

 to a great extent already attained. 



•'In this connection the office has to acknowledge the 

 cordial and valuable co-operation of the meteorological 

 services of the different countries, represented as 

 follows : — 



"Algiers, by General Teissier, Commandant Sup^rieur 

 du G^nie ; Austria, by Prof. Dr. Julius Hann, Director 

 of the Imperial and Royal Central Meteorological Institute 

 at Vienna ; Belgium, by J. C. Houzeau, Director of the 

 Royal Observatory at Brussels; Great Britain, by 

 Robert H. Scott, F.R.S., Secretary of the Meteorological 

 Council, London; Alexander Buchan, M.A., F.R.S.E., 

 Secretary of the Scottish Meteorological Society, Edin- 

 burgh, and the respective observers ; Costa Rica, by 

 Vol. XX. — No. 512 



Sefior Federico Maison, Director of the Central Office of 

 Statistics and Meteorology; Denmark, by Capt. N. 

 Hoffmeyer, Director of the Royal Danish Meteorological 

 Institute at Copenhagen; France, by U.J. Le Verrier, 

 Director of the Paris Observatory, Prof. E. Mascart, 

 Director of the Central Meteorological Bureau of France, 

 and the respective observers ; Germany, by Prof. Dr. 

 Geo. Ncumayer, Director of the German Naval Observa- 

 tory, Hamburg ; Greece, by Prof. Dr. J. F. Julius Schmidt, 

 Director of the Royal Observatory at Athens ; India, by 

 H. F. Blanford, Meteorological Reporter to the Govern- 

 ment of India ; Italy, by the Minister of Agriculture, 

 Industry, and Commerce, and the respective observers ; 

 Japan, by the Imperial Meteorological Observatory, and 

 the Imperial University of Tokei, Japan ; Mexico, by 

 Senor Mariano Barcena, Director of the Central Meteoro- 

 logical Observatory in the City of Mexico, and the respec- 

 tive observers ; Netherlands, by Prof. Buys Ballot, 

 Director of the Royal Meteorological Institute of the 

 Netherlands at Utrecht; Norway, by Prof. H. Mohn, 

 Director of the Royal Norwegian Meteorological Institute 

 at Christiania; Portugal, by J. C. de Brito Capello, 

 Director of the Meteorological Observatory of the Infante 

 Don Luiz, at Lisbon; Russia, by Prof. H. Wild, Director 

 of the Imperial Central Physical Observatory of Russia, 

 at St. Petersburg ; Spain, by Antonio Aguilar, Director 

 of the Royal Observatory at Madrid, and the respective 

 obsei-vers ; Sweden, by Prof. R. Rubenson, Director of 

 the Royal Swedish Meteorological Institute at Stockholm, 

 and of Dr. H. H. Hildebrandsson, Chief of the Metero- 

 logical Division of the Upsala Observatory ; Switzerland, 

 by Prof. R. Wolf, Director of the Observatory at Zurich, 

 and of Prof. E. Plantamour, Director of the Observatory 

 at Geneva ; Turkey, by A. Coumbary, Eftendi, Director 

 of the Central Observatory at Constantinople, and of 

 Prof. C. V. A. van Dyck, Superintendent of the Lee Ob- 

 servatory at Beirut ; Canada, by Prof. G. T. Kingston, 

 Director of the Magnetic Observatory at Toronto, and 

 Superintendent of the Meteorological Office of the Do- 

 minion of Canada, and the respective observers ; United 

 States Navy, by Navy Department, through Rear- Admiral 

 Daniel Amraen, and Commodore W. D. Whiting, U.S.N., 

 Chiefs of the Bureau of Navigation ; and by individual 

 observers at other points. 



"The Office has to regret the death since the date of the 

 last annual report of the following distinguished co- 

 labourers in the work : — Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier, 

 Director of the Paris Observatory, Prof. Ernst Quetelet, 

 Director of the Royal Observatory at Brussels, Prof. 

 Edward Heis, of Miinster, and Prof. Pietro Angelo Secchi, 

 of Rome. 



" A number of observations taken on vessels at sea to 

 complement the synchronous reports of the service, and 

 at the request of the department, have been received on 

 the form provided for the purpose, paper 49. Their 

 utility is evident in the study of storms approaching our 

 coasts or which endanger vessels sailing from our ports. 



" The co-operation of the navy of the United States in 

 the taking of observations simultaneously with the system 

 adopted at this office, wherever naval vessels of the United 

 States may be, as assured by the general order of the 

 Secretary of the Navy, dated December 25, 1876, has 

 largely increased the data of this class. This co-opera- 

 tion has been skilfully rendered by the Navy Department 

 and the United States Navy, through the Chief of the 

 Bureau of Navigation. 



" The people of the United States are thus the first 

 nation whose army and navy co-operate, as all armies 

 and navies should, under official orders, in the taking of 

 simultaneous observations wherever the forces may be. 



" In view of the existence of the system of simultaneous 

 reports to be made at sea by the vessels of the naval and 

 commercial marines of the United States and other 

 nations, and to provide for its extension, carefully tested 



