NO. 4 TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC 263 



the sun spot curve. In the years 1885 and 1887 there is also no 

 agreement.' But in general there is obviously throughout a quite 

 good agreement between the sun spot curve and the temperature 

 curve. A minimum in the one corresponds to a minimum in the 

 other ; occasionally, however, with some displacement of a few 

 months. There is, the obvious difference, that the greater de- 

 pressions which we have noted in the sun spot curve often cor- 

 respond with quite small depressions in the temperature curve or 

 vice versa that great depressions in the temperature curve come 

 simultaneously with small depressions in the sun spot curve. As 

 particularly characteristic examples, we refer to the variations in 

 the years 1878 to 1884. 



This characteristic relation of the distribution and magnitude of 

 the minima in these different curves is the reason for the apparently 

 opposite course which they show and which we have referred to 

 above in relation to the time before the middle of the 90's. As an 

 example of this, we point to the fact that a small minimum in the sun 

 spot curve for 1888 corresponds to the very deep minimum in the air 

 pressure curves, figures 95, I, and 96, IV, and in the temperature 

 curves figures 96, V and VI, for the same year (assuming that the 

 temperature minimum at the beginning of 1888 did not correspond 

 to the sun spot minimum of a whole year earlier), whereas the deep 

 minimum of the sun spot curve for 1890 corresponds to a very 

 inconsiderable minimum in the other curves some months later. 

 Furthermore, the small minimum in the sun spot curve in the years 

 1892-3 corresponds to a very well-marked minimum in the other 

 curves at the corresponding time. This difference in the minima 

 in the sun spot curve occurs towards the middle of the decade of 

 the 90's, and that is the reason why greater direct agreement be- 

 tween the sun spot curve and the other curves seems to come in 

 after this time. 



It is worth remarking that in very many cases the maxima and 

 minima of sun spot curves fall later than the corresponding maxima 

 and minima of the air pressure and temperature curves. In the 

 time from 185 1 to 1865 the sun spot curve (fig. 95, III) and the 

 meteorological curves (fig. 95, I and II) are very different and go 

 in part oppositely to one another. 



^ If we consider, however, the magnetic curve I we find that in this time there 

 was a quite good agreement between it and the temperature curves, if we 

 admit a displacement of a few months. Also a direct agreement could be 

 found between the sun spot curve and the temperature curves for these years 

 if we should admit a displacement of about a year. 



