124 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXII. No. 552. 



not yet filled, the observatory is under the 

 temporary charge of Dr. T. Okada, an assist- 

 ant meteorologist in the Central Meteorolog- 

 ical Observatory of Tokio, and who is one of 

 the ablest and most active among the young 

 scientists of Japan. 



The establishment of the Mt. Tsukuba 

 Meteorological Observatory by Prince Yama- 

 shina is certainly the initiative of a perma- 

 nent meteorological survey of the upper at- 

 mosphere in Japan, and there can be no doubt 

 but that this generosity of His Imperial High- 

 ness will prove eventually to be a great con- 

 tribution to cosmical physics. As above men- 

 tioned, the topography of the mountain is 

 peculiarly favorable to the study of meteor- 

 ology and its allied sciences. Moreover, the 

 mountain lies on the route taken by many 

 cyclones, so that the observations at this ob- 

 servatory will contribute as much to the study 

 of atmospheric motions, as they will to the 

 physics of the atmosphere in general. 



S. Tetsu Tamura. 



Washington, D. C. 



CURRENT NOTES ON METEOROLOGY. 



MONTHLY WEATHER REA^EW. 



There is much of general scientific interest 

 in recent numbers of the 1905 volume of the 

 Monthly Weather Review of the United States 

 Weather Bureau. This publication is becom- 

 ing more and more indispensable to students 

 of meteorology, and is now well recognized as 

 one of the important meteorological journals 

 of the world. One feature of the Review is 

 the monthly list of ' Recent Papers Bearing on 

 Meteorology.' This bibliography of current 

 literature would be far more useful if some 

 system of listing titles were adopted other than 

 that now used. At present the articles are 

 listed under the names of the different journals 

 and other publications. These names are not 

 given alphabetically, and while the number of 

 the volume is given, the year is not included. 

 Where so much space is allotted to these 

 bibliographical lists, it is much to be regretted 

 that some more systematic, and hence more 

 useful, scheme of listing is not adopted. With 

 the first number of the 1905 volume a new 

 list of recent publications is started, under 



the heading, ' Recent Additions to the Weather 

 Bureau Library.' These, it is to be noted, 

 are arranged alphabetically, but the year is 

 not in all cases given. 



The following papers have appeared in re- 

 cent numbers of the Review: 



No. 1, 1905, ' Escape of Gases from the At- 

 mosphere,' by Dr. G. Johnstone Stoney, P.R.S., 

 reprinted from the London, Edinburgh and 

 Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal 

 of Science, Vol. 7, June, 1904, 6th series, p. 

 620. A subject of theoretical interest in 

 meteorology, but of great uncertainty. 



' Meteorological Charts of the Indian Ocean,' 

 by C. F. Talman. For some years the 

 Meteorological Service of India issued daily 

 synoptic weather maps of the Indian monsoon 

 area, for the region between 36° N. Lat. and 

 12° S. Lat. It has now been decided to ex- 

 tend the field of observation over the greater 

 part of the South Indian Ocean, and also to 

 include broad areas of the surrounding conti- 

 nents and islands. This new enterprise is an 

 important step towards ' world meteorology,' 

 with successful long-range forecasting as the 

 ultimate end in view. 



' Apparatus for Instruction in Physics and 

 Meteorology,' by Professor C. Abbe. A few 

 well-considered suggestions as to the inad- 

 visability of using expensive and complicated 

 instruments in schools. Those who have seen 

 teachers and scholars trying to understand 

 fully the workings of some of the more com- 

 plex instruments will cordially agree with 

 Professor Abbe. 



No. 2, 1905, ' A Relation between Autumnal 

 Rainfall and the Yield of Wheat of the Fol- 

 lowing Year,' by W. N. Shaw, secretary of 

 the Meteorological Council. Read before the 

 Royal Society, February 2, 1905. The author 

 finds that the dryness of the autumn is the 

 dominant element in the determination of the 

 yield of wheat of the following year in Great 

 Britain. This is one of the few investiga- 

 tions which lead to a fairly definite and direct 

 relation between crop yield and the variation 

 of some meteorological element. 



' High Water in the Great Lakes,' by Pro- 

 fessor A. J. Henry. The outlook for the pres- 

 ent season of navigation is not favorable to a 



