ON INVESTIGATION OF THE UPPER ATMOSPHERE. 255 



Investigation of the Upper Atmosphere.— Report of Committee (Sir 

 Napier Shaw, Chairman ; Mr. C. J. P. Cave, Secretary ; Prof. S. 

 Chapman, Mr. J. S. Dines, Mr. L. H. G. Dines, Mr. W. H. Dines, 

 Dr. G. M. B. Dobson, Commr. L. G. Garbett, Sir R. T. Glazebrook, 

 Col. E. Gold, Dr. H. Jeffreys, Dr. H. Knox Shaw, Sir J. Larmor, 

 Mr. R. G. K. Lempfert, Prof. F. A. Lindemann, Dr. W. Makower, 

 Mr. J. Patterson, Sir J. E. Petavel, Sir A. Schuster, Dr. G. C. 

 Simpson, Sir G. T. Walker, Mr. F. J. W. Whipple, Prof. H. H. Turner). 



The Committee was originally constituted in 1901 to co-operate with the Royal Meteoro- 

 logical Society. It was in abeyance from 1915 until it was reconstituted in 1920. It 

 presented a report at the meeting at Hull in 1922 in which the main principle for the 

 operations of the Committee was ' the desirability of inviting the co-operation and 

 interco-operation not only of Directors of Institutes and Observatories but also of 

 Scientific Academies and Societies in the study of the upper air.' 



In its report the Committee mentioned that, at its suggestion, a resolution had 

 been brought before the Meteorological Section of the British National Committee and 

 passed on to the Meteorological Section of the International Union for Geodesy and 

 Geophysics with suggestions as to procedure in the development of the plan. It was 

 thought by the officers of the Committee that the Meteorological Section of the 

 British National Committee might take over the work from the British Association ; 

 but the Committee thought otherwise and in June 1923 decided that as the study of 

 the upper air was only a part of meteorology the preferable course was to promote the 

 co-operation of the various voluntary agencies interested therein, namely the Meteoro- 

 logical Section of the National Committee, the Royal Meteorological Society and the 

 British Association in a joint committee for the upper air. 



The special objects which the Committee then had in view were a pamphlet of 

 instructions for observers in the use of (1) ballons-sondes at sea, and (2) pilot-balloons 

 of long carry, with a view to observations at sea and in the less frequented parts of the 

 world. 



At the meeting of the Meteorological Section of the Union for Geodesy and Geo- 

 physics at Rome funds were allocated for the objects which the Committee had 

 recommended, and with them were also joined an international investigation of dust 

 in the atmosphere, the composition of the atmosphere above 20 kilometres, and the 

 problem of solar radiation, all of which are closely interrelated with the more ordinary 

 features of the exploration of the upper air. 



Solar and Terrestrial Radiation. 



For the last two years the Committee's attention has been directed towards solar 

 and terrestrial radiation, which must always be regarded as the fundamental problem 

 of meteorology and of primary importance for any effective investigation of the 

 upper air. 



The Committee was glad to see a resume by one of its own members of the results 

 of observations of solar radiation at 59 stations in various parts of the globe which 

 formed an Annexe to the report of the meeting of the Meteorological Section of the 

 U.G.G.I. at Madrid. It recognises that a summary of the present state of our know- 

 ledge of the subject is much needed and has learned with satisfaction that the Meteoro- 

 logical Section of the British National Committee is taking steps to secure that 

 the issues of the sections of the U.G.G.I. which contain data of the kind indicated 

 may be made more generally accessible for the scientific reader. The Committee is 

 also informed that our knowledge of solar and terrestrial radiation is treated as the 

 basis of the science of meteorology in a Manual by Sir Napier Shaw, now in course of 

 publication. It awaits with interest the development of that part of the subject which 

 deals with the relation of solar and terrestrial radiation in different wave lengths. 



In 1925 a grant of £38 was obtained for a self-recording radiometer and in con- 

 nection therewith the co-operation of the Royal Meteorological Society was revived ; 

 the subjects are now under the consideration of a joint committee of the two bodies. 

 The instrument was acquired at a cost of £60, to which £17 was contributed by the 

 Royal Meteorological Society and £5 by a member of the Committee. The cost of 



