60 
The Windrush 
in ^larch, ’go. 
Auroras. 
Relation to 
solar activity. 
Sky glows since 
August, 1883. 
Reported 
elsewhere. 
Bright Sunshine 
from 1881, by 
Stokes’ Re¬ 
corder. 
Amount and 
percentage. 
Jubilee year 
sunniest. 
barometer fell to 28’2S here, but to 27*332 at Crieff, N.B. ; 
1889, X. 7, and 1890, I. 19, on both which occasions salt 
crystals were again found on West-fronting windows. A full 
account of the Windrush on March 8th, 1890, appeared in our 
last Heport. In consequence of a secondaiy depression, south 
of York, the very low barometer of December 8—9, 1886, 
gave no storm. The centre crossed Durham (27*553 at 
Darlington) from N. Ireland (27*24 at Omagh). 
Auroras have been noted with some regularity since the 
Seventies, before which only a tew scattered references occur 
in the Reports. On October 24th, 1847—a year of maximum 
sunspots—Professor Phillips sent to the Atheuceum an account 
of an unusually magnificent display. The next maximum of 
sunspots (1859—60) brings records in *58 and ’60, only two 
others having been noted in the interval. Then comes a break 
of six years, followed by one record in ’67, 3 in ’69, 16 in ’70, 
18 in ’71, 10 in ’72, and 2 in ’74. The sunspot max. was in 
1870 (140 spots). After ’76 the next are one in ’82 and two 
in ’83. This was the year of maximum sunspots, but there 
were only 68, not half as many as 13 years previously. In 
1884 and ’85, Auroras were “few and in significant.” After 
another blank, four Auroras were noted in 1890 [a number, it 
may be observed, greatly exceeded in 1891, when 14 were 
recorded at York]. 
Sky-glows. — The remarkable series of these, resulting from 
the terrific volcanic convulsion of Krakatoa, were carefully 
observed here. Full details have already been published 
elsewhere.* The first special observation was made here on 
November 8th, 1883, the eruption having occurred on August 
27th and 28th. 
Bright Sunshine has, since the Autumn of 1880, been 
carefully recorded by means of Stokes’ large glass sphere. This 
concentrates the rays upon a prepared card, which is scorched 
whenever the sun is at all bright. The mean for the ten years 
gives 1223 hours of bright sunshine. This is 26f per cent., or 
rather over one quarter of the possible total. The Jubilee year, 
1887, was sunniest, with 1377 hours, or 29 per cent., and a 
temperature of 46*5. The 1321 hours of 1883 gave a higher 
* See Vol. I. of Publications by the Warner Observatory, Rochester N.Y., 
U.S.A., and the Report of the Krakatoa Committee to the Royal Society. 
