Whitney as Site for Meteorological Observatory. 95 



port on International Cloud Observations," (Vol. II of 

 the Report of the Chief of the United States Weather 

 Bureau, 1898-99), or equation 52, p. 66, of his ''Report on 

 the Barometry of the United States," etc., (Annual Report 

 of the Chief of the United States Weather Bureau, 1900- 

 1901, Vol. II), is as follows: — 



h — h^ — (56517+ 123.36' + 0.003/^) 



+0.378-^-^ (l +0.0026 cos 2 log 



Using the values for 10 a.m. July 8, B^— 30.06 inches, 

 as at San Francisco, B — 17.680 inches, as on Mt. Whit- 

 ney, and a mean temperature 6 — 53°, we obtain 



logi5o-=log^ + ^ , , rfi— /3)(i— 



^ ^ ' 56517 + 123-3(53) +0-003/^ V ' ' )' 



whence h = 63096 X 0.230507 = 14,515 feet.* 



Previous Determinations of Altitude. — On page 201 

 of his ''Researches on Solar Heat" (Professional Paper 

 of the Signal Service No. 15), Professor Langley gives 

 what is probably the best series of observations as yet 

 made on Mt. Whitney. The observers were Mr. E. O. 

 Michaelis, Mr. J. J. Nanry, and Mr. J. E. Keeler. 



The readings given in Table 173 of his work are as 

 follows : — 



* Prof. Abbe having kindly pointed out that I had not made full use of the 

 Independence readings, I give herewith the following values : lo a.m., 14,441 feet ; 

 II A.M., 14,414 feet; noon, 14,378 feet; i p.m., 14, 355 feet, which, as the editor 

 remarks, are to be considered as only a portion of a continuous 24-hour series. 

 Having also seen Mr. Heiskell's computations, I would add that the values 14,53° 

 and 14,532 obtained by him by using the Bigelow tables agree with the values 

 obtained above in which the value of d was 53°, or a degree less than that used by 

 him. Recomputing the elevation, but using a temperature of 54° and sea-level 

 pressure of 30.06, my computation gives 14,572. The sea-level pressure used by 

 Mr. Heiskell was 30.04 inches and the station-pressures 17.694, which, according 

 to the method of computation used above, would give an elevation of 14,534 

 feet. — A. M., November 20, 1903. 



