EEPORT ON METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS AT WISLEY. 125 



standing the generally unsettled character of the weather, was in excess 

 of the average amount. Fogs were not so common as they frequently 

 are in January, but thunderstorms occurred with unusual frequency for 

 the middle of winter. 



The results obtained from the observations taken at the Climatologi- 

 cal Observatory in the Gardens at Wisley are as follows : — 



Mean temperature of the air in shade ... 39°.8 



Highest „ „ „ 56°.9 on the 2nd 



Lowest „ „ „ 19°.l „ 27th 



Lowest „ on the grass ... 14°.2 ,, 27th 



Number of nights of ground frost ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 13 



At 1 ft. At 2 ft. At 4 ft. 

 deep. deep. deep. 



Mean temperature of the soil at 9 a.m 39°.6 41°.8 43°.6 



Highest „ „ „ 45°.0 44°.4 44°.8 



Lowest „ „ „ 34°.3 37°.5 40°.9 



Mean relative humidity of the air at 9 a.m. (complete saturation being 



represented by 100) 87 % 



Bain fell on 17 days to the total depth of 1*80 in. 



(Equivalent to about 8^ gallons of water to the square yard.) 



Heaviest fall on any day 0*67 in. on the 27th 



The prevailing winds were south-westerly. 



The average velocity of the wind was 8| miles an hour. 



There were 77 hours of bright sunshine, equal to 30 per cent, of the greatest 



possible amount. 

 There were 7 days on which no sunshine was recorded. 



February. — Throughout this month the winds v/ere almost entirely 

 from southerly and westerly quarters, and as a result the mean tem- 

 perature was higher than the average, and unusually uniform all over 

 the Kingdom. The latter part of the opening week, and the greater 

 part of the third week, were the warmest periods; but at no time did 

 the thermometer record any very high temperature; whilst, on the other 

 hand, there were no severe frosts, such as frequently occur in February. 

 At Wisley 54^ was the highest temperature reached, but at a few places 

 in the west it rose 4*^ or 5^ higher. On two or three occasions, 

 early in the month, 10° or 12° of frost occurred upon the grass at 

 Wisley, but this was much exceeded in some parts of Central Scotland, 

 and at Balmoral the low reading of 5° was registered by the thermometer 

 upon the grass. The month was an unusually wet one, and although, 

 as a rule, the daily falls of rain were not excessively large, yet a measur- 

 able quantity fell almost every day, and produced in most parts of the 

 Kingdom a large total for the month. An exception in one direction 

 to this state of things was afforded by the extreme north-east portion of 

 Sco'Lmd, where the total fall did not amount to one inch; but, on the 

 other hand, at some stations in the hilly districts of the west very large 

 fahs occurred over great tracts of country, and enormous totals were 

 registered here and there; at one of these places — the Stye Pass — the. 

 fall for the month amounted to 45.10 inches ! There were some se^vere 

 gales in the course of the month, and strong winds were very frequent 

 all through ; but notwithstanding the disturbed and unsettled weather, 

 . there was more bright sunshine than usual, several places getting a 



