DISCOVERY 



IQf 



imagined that a great stimulus to airship transport 

 would have accrued. 



It is admitted that the saving of time effected by 

 aeroplane flights is largely neutralised by the fact that 

 passengers and cargo have to be landed on the outskirts 

 of cities, and from thence taken to their destination by 

 existing means of transport. This argument, although 

 holding good for flights over a comparatively speaking 

 short distance of ground, cannot be cited against the 

 airship when maintaining services across the oceans 

 and continents, which will shorten the duration of 

 jiuirneys by several days. 



In addition, it is possible to build an airship capable 

 of carrying passengers and goods in great quantity 

 without any radical alteration in design, a state 

 impossible of attainment with the aeroplane as at 

 present constructed. This happy position seems to be 

 the crux of the whole question, as it is only the carrying 

 of goods in bulk or passengers in large numbers which 

 will render any aerial transport company a profitable 

 enterprise. 



Official figures have been published to show that an 

 airship service can be maintained between this country' 

 and India by using airships of the type and capacity of 

 R38, a ship nearing completion in this country which 

 has been sold to the Americans. This ship has a 

 capacity of only 2? million cubic feet, and yet could 

 carry over fiftj' passengers together with mails. 

 The figures, which have been worked out in addi- 

 tion for services to other parts of the globe, give 

 approximate times of transit of 2 days to Egypt, 4^ 

 days to India. 6 days to South Africa, and gi days 

 to Australia. Moreover, the suggested passenger 

 fares are not greatly in excess of those demanded 

 by the steamship companies to-day. This under- 

 taking is estimated to produce a profit of 15 per 

 cent., and proves that a return ma^- be expected on 

 capital outlay with the airship as it exists to-daj'. 



Calculations have been made, also, for operating 

 airship services using ships of si million cubic feet 

 capacity. The constructional sheds in this country 

 are large enough to accommodate such vessels. An 

 estimated disposable lift of 68 tons will be attained, 

 of which some 15 tons will be available for passengers 

 and cargo. New York could be reached in 2i days 

 from London, while it is estimated that the time taken 

 to make the journey between England and Australia 

 would be 7 davs, allowing twelve hours for refuelling 

 at Cairo and Colombo. 



These figures are in themselves sufficiently astonish- 

 ing as showing that there is hardly a city in the world 

 which could not be reached from London in less than 

 a fortnight, while the saving in time to business men, 

 both for personal travel and conveyance of letters, 

 must be manifestly of the greatest importance. 



There is, practically speaking, no limit whatever to 

 the carrying powers of the airship, as this is determined 

 by merely increasing the size, and the lift is proportional 

 to its cubic capacity. For example, an airship of the 

 volume of 10 million cubic feet would have five times 

 the lift of the airship of 2 million cubic feet, but the 

 length of the former would be only 17 times greater.' 



A ship of this size would have some 200 tons lift 

 available for fuel and freight, and would possess suffi- 

 cient endurance to voyage round the world without 

 refuelling. 



The Germans are aware of the unbounded possibilities- 

 open to the airship, and are at the moment under 

 negotiations with the Americans to finance a company 

 to exploit a service with large airships between New 

 York and BerUn. By the close of the war we had 

 reached the position of the leading Power in the air, 

 and it is to be hoped that, when it is realised that the 

 value of airships is appreciated in foreign countries, we 

 shall take everj' step possible to retain that supremacy. 



An Up-to-date Meteoro- 

 logical Equipment — I 



By Donald W. Horner, F.R.A.S., 

 F.R.Met. Soc. 



R.^IN -GAUGES 



In a short series of articles, it is intended to deal with 

 up-to-date meteorological instruments, to interest 

 readers generally in meteorologJ^ 



In recent years the Royal Meteorological Society 

 has ceased to collect observations, but the Meteoro- 

 logical Office, with its newly acquired branch the 

 British Rainfall Organisation, both require fresh 

 voluntary observers in various parts of Great Britain 

 and Ireland. Rainfall observers are required by the 

 last-named institution, and those wishing to undertake 

 the work are invited to send a post-card to the Super- 

 intendent at 62 Camden Square, London, N.W.i, 

 who will send full particulars of how the work should 

 be done, and where rainfall-stations are required most. 



It is only by an intelligent comprehension of the 

 geographical distribution of rainfall that eventually 

 we may be made to utilise the vast quantities of water 

 now allowed to run to waste annually. 



Rainfall observations are therefore considered of 

 such importance that we .'shall first of all consider the 

 rain-gauge. 



' Since volumes of similar figures are proportional to the 

 cubesof their lengths, and the cube rootof 5 is approximately 1-7. 



' All illustrations except Fig. 4 are from blocks lent by Messrs. 

 Xegretti & Zambra, of London 



