At all modern meteorological stations

THE PRECISION INSTRUMENTS OF

JULES RICHARD provide a permanent answer

BAROGRAPHS Recording aneroids with continous cha rts; adopted for over 40 years by the French Meteorological Service. Standard equipment in the French Navy.

THERMOGRAPHS Which can be combined with our barometers and hygrometers. These instruments are outstandingly sen­sitive.

HYGROGRAPHS Direct recording of air humidity on ruled charts. All types of indicators and recorders, including upper-air and dew-point instruments.

SOLARIMETERS Direct read ing and recording ins­truments for measuring the intensity of solar radiation. Pyrheliographs.

ANEMOGRAPHS All types of anemometers, includ ing "Papi\lon" electro-magnetic instru­ments for recordin g instantaneous wind speed at a distance.

RAINGAUGES All types of float, balance and syphon rai ngauges, both recording and non·recording.

upon request

15 I I 161

OFFICERS OF THE WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION

President ; Dr. F . VI. REICHELDERFER First Vice-President : !VIr. A. VIAUT Second Vice-President : Mr. N. P. SELLICK

Dr. F. W. REICHELDERFER Mr. A. VIAUT

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Mr. A. THOMSON Dr. Th. HESSELBERG

Mr. N. P. SELLICK Mr. D. A. DAVIES Mr. F. X. R. DE SouzA

Dr. M. A. F. BARNETT Prof. Dr. Ing. J. LUGEON Mr. L. DE AZCARRAGA Prof. Dr. H. A. FERREIRA

Mr. A. A. SOLOTOUKHINE Dr. 0. G. SUTTON Mr. E .vv. TrMcKE

TECHNICAL COMMISSION PRESIDENTS

Aerology : Prof. Dr. J. VAN MIEGHEM Aeronautical Meteorology: Mr. A. H. NAGLE Agricultural Meteorology: Mr. J. J. BuRGOS Bibliography a nd Publications: Dr. M. M.EzrN Climatology : Dr. C. vV. THORNTHWAITE Instruments and Methods of Observation :

Dr. A. PERLAT Maritime Meteorology :

Cmdr. C. E. N. FRANKCOM Synoptic Meteorology: Prof. Dr. vV. BLEEKER

REGIONAL ASSOCIATION PRESIDENTS

Africa (I) : Mr. D. A. DAVIES Asia (Il) : Mr. A.A. SoLOTOUKHINE

(Acting Pres.) South America (Ill) :

Mr. F. X. R. DE SouzA North and Central America (IV) :

Mr. A. THOMSON South-West Pacific (V):

Dr. M. A. F. BARNETT Europe (VI) : Prof. Dr. Ing. J. LuGEON

SECRETARIAT

Acting Secretary-General : Dr. G . SwoBODA Chief, Technical D ivision: Dr. K. Langlo

Deputy Secretary-General :Mr. ]. R. RIVET Chie f, Administrative Div.: Mr. V. J. Bahr

THE PURPOSES OF THE WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION

(a) To facilitate world-wide co-operation in the establishment of networks of stations for the making of meteorolog­ical observations or other geophysical observations related to meteorology and to promote the establishment and maintenance of meteorological centres charged with the provision of meteor­ological services ;

(b) To promote the establishment and maintenance of systems for the rapid exchange of weather information ;

(c) To promote standardization of meteo­rological observations and to ensure the uniform publication of observ­ations and statistics ;

(d) To further the application of meteor­ology to aviation, shipping, agricul­ture, and other human activities ; and

(e) To encourage research and training in meteorology and to assist in co­ordinating the international aspects of such research and training."

From the Convention of the \ 'Vorld Meteorological Organization, Article z .

THE CONSTITUENT BODIES OF THE ORGANIZATION

(a) The World Meteorological Congress which meets at least once every four years;

(b) The Executive Committee, which meets at least once annually ;

(c) Regional Associations made up of Members oi the Organization the networks of which lie in or extend into

one of the six meteorological Regions of the world . They meet as often as necessary to ensure compliance with the policies of the Organization.

(d) Technical Commissions composed of experts in the various meteorological fields which meet at least once every four years.

THE SECRETARIAT

The Secretariat of the Organization is located at Campagne Rigot, Avenue de la

Paix, Geneva, Switzerland

WORLD M ETEOROLOGICAL ORGA N IZAT I ON

ill!l~~ m~[[~1J~~ J ANUARY 195 4

THE PICT URE ON THE COVER

People living in snow-covered m ountainous regions are well a ware of the dangers of avalanches; it has been estimated that they result in several hundred deaths every year. The damage caused is not only due to t he snow itself, but also t o the wind b last ; in some cases trees and houses more t han r oo yards away from the avala nche have been wrecked. Avalanches may perhaps not be classified as a direct m eteorological pheno­menon , but weather plays a very important part in t heir origin. T he successful forecast ­ing of a\<a lanches t herefore calls for a close co-operation between the meteorologist a nd the snow expert, and provides b ut one example of how meteorology can be applied for t he benefi t of mankind .

Much of our p resen t knowledge about avalanches has resulted from investigations made at t he Federal Inst itute for the Study of Snow and Avalanches situated on t he \ ¥eissftuhj och above D avos, Switzerland. Our cover photograph shows the observation field and some of t he special instruments . A brief account of the history and work of t h is institute will be found on page 27.

VO L. Ill NO .

TABLE OF CONTENTS Page

Fourth Session of Executi ve Committee 2

Membership of W MO 5

Meteoro logy in So uth A merica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

The development of Ag r ic ul tura l Meteoro logy 10

First Session of Commission for A erology . . 15

First Sess ion of the Commission for Instru­ments and Methods of Observation . . . . . . . . . 19

Collaboration with ICAO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Techn ical Assistance Programme . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Activi ti es of the techn ical commiss ions . . . . . 26

T he Federal Institute for t he study of snow and avalanches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Briti sh Cari bbean Meteorological Service . . . 29

Meteorology and Facsim ile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

News and Notes 14, 35

News f rom the WMO Secretariat . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Rev iews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . • . . . 38

Calendar of com ing events . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . 39·

T he purpose of t he \¥MO Bulletin is t o provide a summary of t he wor k of the \¥orld Meteorological Organization and of developments in internationa l meteorology of interest to Members of t he Organization and others concerned with t he application of meteorology to human activity.

The WMO Bulletin is published quart erly in two separat e editions: E nglish and F rench . The price is r Swiss franc per copy, including post age. Annual subscriptions (4 Swiss francs) and a ll other correspondence about t he Bulletin should be addressed to t he Secret ary-General, World Meteorological Organization, Campagne R igot, Avenue de la Paix, Geneva.

Stgned contributions do not necessarily represent the views of the Organization.

WMO Bulletin January 1954

FOURTH SESSION OF EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

IN the report of the Third Session of the Executive Committee (Bulle­

tin Vol. I, No. 3, p. 50), it was pointed out that the agenda contained a higher proportion of technical matters than in previous sessions. This tendency has continued, and of the 59 resolutions adopted at the Fourth Session, held in Geneva from 6 to 26 October I953. no less than 45 deal with technical subj ects.

Before breaking up into the usual two working committees, the Com­mittee on Programme under Mr. N. P. Sellick, and the Committee on Admi­nistrative and Financial Matters under Mr. A. Viaut, the Executive Com­mittee designated Dr. 0. G. Sutton and Mr. E. W. Timcke to fill the gaps created by the death of Mr. Mohammad Aslam and the retirement of Sir Nelson K. J ohnson. The vacancy caused by the retirement of Mr. V. V. Sohoni, former President of Regional Asso­ciation II , will be automatically filled when a new President is elected. Tribute was paid to the services rendered to the Committee by these three former members.

New codes

Undoubtedly the most important practical resolution gives formal appro­val to all the new meteorological codes and forms of message recom­mended by the Commission for Synop­tic Meteorology (CSM). All the new basic codes will be implemented on I January I955· In view of the importance of this change, the new synoptic code is reproduced here (with apologies to those readers for whom it will only seem to be a jumble of hieroglyphics) :

2

(II)iii Nddff VVwwW PPPTT

NhCLhCMCH TdTctjajpjp (7RRjj)

(8N5Chshs) (gSpSpspsp)

It should be noted that the j. jpjp group is subject to regional agreement: in· most parts of the world it will cover pressure t endency.

A new edition of Fascicule I of WMO Publication No. g, Synoptic Weather Messages - Meteorological Codes, is being prepared as a matter of urgency by the WMO Secretariat and will be issued within the next few months. In the meantime, meteorological ser­vices and individuals who wish to study the new codes in detail can refer to the A bridged Final Report of the First Session of CSM and the correction sheet.

Several other matters referred by CSM became the subject of Executive Committee resolutions. The whole question of the desirability of having a universal agreement on units for weather reports (Celsius v Fahrenheit, knots v metres per second, millimetres v inches etc.) was discussed, and it was decided to refer the matter to Congress. However, it was decided that degrees Celsius vvould be used for coding t emperatures in all upper air reports. The Secretary-General was asked to prepare a report showing the units at present used in different coun­tries.

P ttblication of observations

Various recommendations adopted by the Commission for Climatology (CCl) and the Commission for Aerology

WMO Bulletin

(CAe) concerning the need for publi­shing surface and upper air observa­tions were considered. With regard to publication of surface synoptic obser­vations, the Secretary-General was directed to study the existing practices and to ascertain the extent of the demand for these publications. A

resolution was adopted calling on all me­t eorological services to make available checked data of upper air observations, and it was recommended that prefe­rence should be given to the publi­cation forms proposed by CAe. It was also decided that the Secretary­General should carry out an enquiry to determine the value of a publication containing CLIMAT and CLIMAT TEMP data (i.e . the monthly means of certain surface and upper air ele­ments which are broadcast each month for a selection of synoptic stations).

Instrumental questions

The International Barometer Con­vention proposed by the Commission for Instruments and Methods of Obser­vation (CIMO) - see p. 20 - was approved, and it was recommended

3

January 1954

that Members should apply the Con­vention from I January I955· One result of this resolution will be that in future the scales of all new barometers for meteorological services should be engraved to give correct readings at a temperature of oo Celsius and a value of gravity of g8o.665 cm/sec. 2•

The President, Dr. F . vV. Reichelderfer, centre, chat­ting with Professor H . A. Ferreira (Portugal), left, and Mr. A. Thomson (Pre­sident RA IV).

The Executive Committee also adop­ted the CIMO proposal that the Guide to International lvf eteorolo gical I nstru­ment and Observing Practice should be revised, extended and kept up to date as necessary by the Secretariat. It was agreed that several of the CAe recom­mendations regarding atmospherics instruments could be incorporated in an appropriate chapter of the Guide.

Publications

Foremost among the publications questions discussed was the new Inter­national Cloud Atlas. Various decisions were made which will enable the Secretariat to proceed with the pro­duction of the Atlas. The main tasks outstanding in this connection are the text of the A bridged Atlas and the

WMO Bulletin

revision of the English text of the main volume.

In accordance with the decision of the WMO Congress in rgsr that WMO should accept responsibibility for the International Meteorological Bibliogra­phy, the quarterly volumes for rgsz are being published by the Secretariat. Before deciding the future policy, the Executive Committee has now asked the President of the Commission for Bibliography and Publications to sub­mit a report on the need for such a publication in view of the existence of various national bibliographies, and to make proposals about the content and method of preparation of an inter­national bibliography.

Following a proposal from CAe, the Committee decided to set up a working group to review the need for a new edition of the International M eteoro­logical Tables (published in r8go). The group was asked to prepare a list of tables required by meteorological ser­vices and to ascertain how far the needs are met by existing tables.

A recommendation, which originated from the Commission for Maritime Meteorology and received support from CSM, led to a decision to publish an international list of selected and supple­mentary ships containing certain infor­mation about the meteorological equip­ment carried and the observations made by the ships.

It was also decided to start a new series of publications called Wkl"O Technical Notes, with the primary object of giving wider distribution to some of the session papers of WMO constituent bodies.

Technical assistance

The Committee expressed its general satisfaction in the development of the WMO Programme in the field of

4

January 1954

technical assistance and approved the working arrangement with the Tech­nical Assistance Administration. Fuller details about current projects will be found on p. 23.

Other technical projects

There was considerable discussion about the policy for the draft Technical Regulations to be submitted to Con­gress. In view of the difficulty of giving a complete picture of the WMO decisions on a specific subject in a set of regulations limited to the mandatory standard practices, it was decided to include in the Technical Regulations certain optional recommended practices. The Secretariat was instructed to proceed with the preparation of the draft Technical Regulations using as a basis the proposals submitted by various technical commissions.

After reviewing the report by the Chairman of the Working Group on the International Geophysical Year, together with the recommendations adopted at recent sessions ofWMO cons­tituent bodies, the Committee decided formally that the Organization should participate in the proj ect. The 'Narking group was reconstituted and requested to establish a detailed meteorological programme.

The Committee expressed great in­terest in the report of the \iVMO Arid Zone Panel (see Bulletin Vol. II , No. 3, p. 77) and drew up a programme for the future work of the panel. Special attention was called to the work already undertaken by individual Mem­bers of WMO.

R elations with other international orga­nizations

The Secretary-General was author­ized to continue the negotiations with the United Nations Educational, Scien-

WMO Bulletin

tific and Cultural Organization with a view to concluding a working agree­ment between the two Organizations. A working arrangement between ·wMO and the International Civil Aviation Organization, which had already been approved by the ICAO Council, was adopted with the suggestion that it should become effective from I January I954·

Correspondence with the Internatio­nal Union of Geodesy and Geophysics had led to a proposed working agree­ment and this too was approved by the Executive Committee. Briefly, the IUGG is recognized by WMO as an international forum for the advance­ment of meteorology as a science, while WMO is recognized by IUGG as having the primary responsibility for the international organization of meteoro­logy.

On the more general question of the relation between vVMO and non­governmental organizations, it was decided to create a consultative status for those organizations which are espe­cially interested in the work of WMO. Amongst other provisions, this status

January 1954

accords the right to be represented by an observer without voting powers at sessions of WMO Congress, Regional Associations and Technical Commis­sions, and to present working docu­ments on items on the agenda of the meetings which are of particular inte­rest.

Budget for I954

Before the details of the I954 budget could be settled it was necessary to decide the date of the Second WMO Congress. Some members were in favour of holding Congress in the autumn of I954, but April I955 was eventually chosen. This decision led to a revision of the budget originally proposed by the Secretary-General, and the proposed expenditure for I954 was reduced to US $363,000. Of this amount $27,250 were allotted for publications, in addition to the sum of S64,500 allocated for the production of the I nternational Cloud Atlas.

The Fifth Session of the Executive Committee will open in late August or early September I954·

MEMBERSHIP OF WMO Two NEW MEMBERS

The British Cm-ibbean T enitories became a Member of WMO on 24 Sep­tember I953 when the necessary for­malities were completed. Ethiopia became a Member of WMO on 3 De­cember I953 when it deposited its instrument of accession to the Con­vention with the United States Depart­ment of State.

This brings the total membership of WMO to eighty-two.

5

FURTHER APPLICATIONS OF

CONVENTION

The Governments of France and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland intimated on I Sep­tember I953 that they were applying the WMO Convention to the Condo­minium Territory of the New Hebrides. The Government of the United King­dom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland also gave notice on 29 October I953 that the WMO Convention will be · applied to the Protectorate of British Somaliland.

WMO Bulletin January 1954

METEOROLOGY IN SOUTH AMERICA FIRST SESSION OF REGIONAL ASSOCIATION Ill

THE First Session of the Regional Association for South America was

held in the conference room of the Hotel Gloria, Rio de Janeiro, at the invitation of the Government of Brazil, from 15 to 25 September 1953, under the presidency of Dr. F. X. R. de Souza, Director of the Brazilian Meteo­rological Service.

Of the 13 States and Territories of South America, delegates were present from allg Members, and representatives from the remaining 4 non-Members. During the session, notification was received that the British Caribbean Territories had become a Member of the Organization, and these Territories were thereupon elected a Member of the Association. Further, the repre­sentative of Bolivia was able to an­nounce that his Government had decid­ed to make a formal application for membership of the Organization.

It is a remarkable and impressive demonstration of the interest taken by States in meteorology, that delegates and representatives were present from all South American countries.

The United States of America, the Dominican Republic and French West Africa sent delegates. The Food and Agriculture Organization, the Inter­national Civil Aviation Organization and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization were also represented. Observers were also present from various Brazilian Ministries, aviation companies, and other concerns such as the Sao Fran­cisco V alley Commission. Prof. Hilgard Sternberg of the International Geogra-

6

phical Union was present as an invited expert. Capitan de Fragata (R) C. N. Monasterio, Vice-President of the as­sociation, was also present throughout the session. Professor ]. C. J unqueira Schmidt acted as General Secretary to the session. Mr. ] . L. Galloway repre­sented the WMO Secretariat. A total of 57 persons in all participated.

In the presence of Sr. Joao Austre­gesilo de Athayde, representing the Vice-President of the Republic of Bra­zil, Dr. de Souza introduced His Excel­lency Dr. J oao Cleophas, Minister of Agriculture, to open the session. The Minister spoke of the importance of the study and application of meteorology to the defence of the fundamental interest of all peoples, who depend for their livelihood on agriculture, and whose means of communication with each other increase, day by day, with the ever-growing progress of aviation. The Minister referred to drought, frost and flood which had caused serious economic losses in Brazil in recent years and expressed a belief, based on recent experiments in Brazil, that subterra­nean water might be used successfully in irrigation. He considered that the discussions which would take place in the Regional Association would con­tribute much to the solution of these problems.

Spanish and English were adopted as the official working languages, but the Brazilian Government had provided facilities for simultaneous interpreta­tion in French and Portuguese as well : most papers were also available in these four languages. Progress was therefore rapid and enabled a thorough discus-

WMO Bulletin

sion of all 35 items on the Agenda, which covered the entire field of meteo­rology. The work of the conference was subdivided between two working com­mittees of which the Chairmen were the Vice-President and Mr. L. R. Ra­tisbona (Brazil). A drafting committee of four members, whose mother tongues

January 1954

distributed during a reception held during the evening of the same day.

The work of the session has been covered in some det ail in the A bridged Final R eport. However , some of the more important points are noted in the following paragraphs.

First Session of Regional Association Ill.

Left to right : R. H . Fein (Surinam), Y . lVIognoni (Uruguay), J. de la Fuente (Chile). E. Barr6n (Peru), T. Farina (Paraguay). F. X. R. de Souza (Brazil, President RA III), C. N. Monasterio (Argentina, Vice-President RA III), Vv. A. Grinstecl (British Caribbean Territories, r epre­senting British Guiana), R. Vidaurre (Boliv ia), L. H . Paredes (Venezuela) , A. M. Cespedes (Colombia), P. Leclercq (France, representing French Guiana), J. Chiriboga (Ecuador).

were the four languages, under the chairmanship of Professor A. A. Crespi (Argentina), prepared resolutions and recommendations. Seven plenary mee­tings were held: the minutes of the first six were approved in plenary. Of the 38 resolutions and 6 recommenda­tions approved, final t exts of 27 reso­lutions and 5 recommendations were distributed to delegates and represen­tatives in the two official languages during the course of the final meeting. The remaining papers were similarly

7

Networks

In South America, where centres of population are not uniformly distri­buted and where there are many unpo­pulated and inaccessible areas of moun­t ain , desert, and tropical rain forest, a uniform network of stations is extre­mely difficult to realize. Likewise, visiting stations is difficult and expen­sive and sometimes dangerous. The Regional Association drew up a list of 477 surface synoptic reporting and 19

WMO Bulletin

upper-air stations to recommend to governments as the minimum essential network for South America. It recom­mended to the WMO Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observa­tion (CIMO) the study of the develop­ment of registering instruments at stations which would only require visi­ting at intervals of from 3 to 6 months.

Surface pressure

The reduction of surface pressure for use on synoptic charts has always been a matter of difficulty in mountainous country. The Regional Association resolved that "low stations" as defined by CIMO should report pressure re­duced to sea level by the method adop­ted by CIMO at its First Session at Toronto, that other stations would report pressure reduced to the thou­sand geopotential metre level nearest to the geometrical altitude of the sta­tion, employing the method in use by the US Weather Bureau, and that if it were not possible to reduce pressure to a standard level, as would be the case if the exact altitude of the station were not known, pressure would be reported for station level.

lvf aritime meteorology

The Regional Association noted with . pleasure the intention of Brazil to operate one and possibly two stationary weather ships in the South Atlantic. Hitherto the sphere of operation of such vessels has been restricted to the North Atlantic and the North Pacific under the direction and maintenance of European and North American countries.

One of the recommendations adopted under this item was of particular inte­rest to countries concerned with the Selected Ships Scheme of obtaining weather reports from ships at sea. In

8

January 1954

order to stimulate international fellow­ship among weather observing ships as recommended by the Commission for Maritime Meteorology at its First Session, London 1952, the Regional Association recommended that the World Meteorological Organization de­sign and approve an international pennant for the use of all ships taking part in the Selected Ships Scheme.

A gricultural meteorology

In its first report, the committee under the chairmanship of the Vice­President echoed the tone of the open­ing address of the Minister of Agricul­ture in the following words :

"The South American continent is of relatively recent colonisation, with large agricultural and forest potentialities, and thus offers an exceptional ground for the development of agricultural meteorology. The use of scientific methods, intelligently directed, will promote to a marked degree the South American contribution to world economy.

The development of other continents had been conducted in the past without the aid of what is now available to us as modern scientific discovery. It is in our hands to ensure that these mistakes are not repeated in South America."

Resolutions adopted related, inter alia, to the study of the influence of meteorological factors in increased crop yields, to the intensification of studies of processes of vernalization and conditioning of plants and to the uses of climatological and ecological maps in agricultural planning. Attention was also directed to the locust problem in South America and a resolution was adopted urging Member States to esta­blish co-ordination between national organizations engaged in locust control and national meteorological services, in order to apply synoptic meteorology and climatology to the greatest effect in the fight against this parasite.

WMO Bulletin

Artificial production of rainfall

This is a problem of particular inte­rest to South American countries and in fact during the period of the session local newspapers were reporting experi­ments being undertaken in the neigh­bourhood by a private firm. The sub­ject was discussed very thoroughly. Great damage was caused to regional economy by long periods of drought, and there was an immense potential value in minimizing these difficulties by a modification of the rainfall regime. However, studies undertaken hitherto by responsible scientific institutions had not as yet led to a confident asser­tion that precipitation occurring after rain-making experiments had really resulted from those experiments. Ne­vertheless, countries could not remain indifferent since any modification of existing rainfall patterns could have a significant effect on the economy of the countries.

The Regional Association resolved that its Members should promote such studies and experiments as would de­monstrate the possibility of producing significant amounts of rain by the artificial stimulation of precipitation.

Establishment of working groups

It was considered necessary to establish five working groups to act until the next session of the Regional Association, as follows: Telecommu­nications, Equatorial Meteorology, CF~­matology (climatological atlas and punched cards), Maritime Meteorology, Meteorological Terminology.

Membership of these groups was not constituted during the session as it was considered desirable that delegates should obtain the concurrence of the experts proposed. It was agreed there­fore that the President should write formally to all South American coun­tries inviting their participation and the designation of individuals.

9

January 1954

Dr. F. X. R. de Souza (Brazil), and Captain de Fragata (R) C. N. Monas­terio (Argentina), were unanimously re-elected President and Vice-President respectively.

Radio and press publicity were excellent, reports of the meetings appearing daily in the local papers, often accompanied by photographs. The Regional Association was received by the Ministers of Finance, Foreign Affairs, and Marine. Further, on the social side, the Government arranged for a lunch, a reception and a Sunday excursion. The conference was also entertained by the Jockey Club of Brazil, and by its President.

Speaking with considerable emotion, Captain Monasterio thanked the Bra­zilian Government in the name of all delegates and representatives for its hospitality and help. In his reply on behalf of Brazil, Dr. Orsini de Castro, of the Brazilian Meteorological Service, said that it would give Brazilians plea­sure to know that their guests might consider his country as their own.

The success of the session was very considerable. The advantages gained by the provision by the Government of Brazil of facilities for simultaneous interpretation in four languages were immense. Without this, so much work could not have been accomplished in so little time nor could so many dele­

. gates and representatives of the va­rious organizations of the host country have contributed so much to and benefited so much from the pro­ceedings.

The session well illustrated a recent remark in the London Times that "the WMO can claim to be a fragment of the United Nations which functions as it was hoped the whole would".

J. L. G.

WMO Bulletin January 1954

THE DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURAL METEOROLOGY

PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS AT THE FIRST SESSION OF THE COMMISSION

FOR AGRICULTURAL METEOROLOGY PARIS, NOVEMBER 1953

BEFORE man made his appearance on the earth, and consequently a

very long time before meteorology, cli­matology and ecology had been clearly defined and their limits ascertained, weather phenomena over countless years formed the apparent creative force of nature. Direct or indirect elements of this force crushed the rocks and carried pieces of them away to deposit them in given places. These same elements or other factors coming into close contact with the surface layer of the earth's crust determined its evolution and led to the formation of soil. In certain areas zonal soils were formed under the influence of the weather while in other places the absence of these weather factors or obstacles which militated against them gave rise to the formation of azonal soils. In those localities where rain­fall regularly exceeded evaporation, pedalfers were produced, while where the opposite occurred, pedocals were formed; from such considerations it is possible to explain nearly all the different types of soil.

In the same way as with the rocks, life itself was also affected by the weather, and was in fact a passive medium in which the action of the weather was demonstrated. However, in the case of living creatures, the influence of the weather is much more far-reaching as it operates on their inmost physiological reactions.

The primary transformation of solar power and weather gave rise to plant life, and the action of these elements,

10

varying in the different geographical regions, produced forests in some places, scrub in others, and elsewhere grassland, steppe or desert, each with its typical fauna.

During the great climatic changes which have disturbed the balance of nature, all forms of life either as indi­viduals or in groups have found in evolution the sole means for restoring this balance.

Birth of agric~tlture

\ iVhen homo sapiens made his appea­rance on the earth, a second natural force began to be revealed. 'vVe may never be able to state exactly the date when this force first appeared, but its first manifestation was most probably in digging up the soil to improve the deficiency of the water balance and then sowing seeds of one or other useful plant. 'vVe can also venture to say that this act, which implies an empirical knowledge of the influence exercised by the weather on both soil and plants, was at the same time one of the first demonstrations of agricultural meteo­rology, of agriculture and of human civilisation before these concepts had even been defined.

In extending his dominion over the world, man conquered fresh areas in which, without his help, an equilibrium had already been established between the weather, the soil and life under the influence of natural processes through countless ages. Man was successful in

WMO Bulletin

his endeavour to introduce various vegetables and to breed useful animals, and by his intelligence he was able to overcome systematically the inherent difficulties in adapting plants and animals to new environments. In this

January 1954

hardy and to increase the yield of certain crops which have deteriorated.

All this empirical knowledge, which formed the basis of agriculture and gives us an insight into the develop-

Professor J. J. Burgos delivering his opening actress. On left, Mr. M. Olmi, Secretary of State for Agriculture, France ; on right, Mr. A . Viaut, VIMO Permanent Representative,

France.

way he learned to appreciate the value of irrigation, the importance of the choice of the right method of tilling the soil, of choosing the right time for sowing and harvesting, and of expo­sure. He also found out the value of selecting certain varieties which stand up to bad weather better than others, and the usefulness of such practices as introducing seeds and plants from other areas to make the crops more

11

ment of agricultural meteorology even in those far distant times, was limited to the influence of weather on the soil and on useful plants and animals. It is only within the last few centuries that systematic science came into being, and that man has therefore been enabled to acquire a real knowledge of his creative power and of his ability to modify nature. He studies and observes all aspects of nature and of

WMO Bulletin

its evolution ; he records and classi­fies his results and conclusions and thus, going on from success to success, he achieves more in a few years than was accomplished by empirical methods in several centuries.

With the arrival of the systematic scientists, other scientists also appeared on the scene who endeavoured sys­tematically to define and to determine the limits of their work, to draw up definitions and to make a synthesis, in the form of a theory, of the progress achieved. But we must admit that, \vith a few exceptions, man has been more successful in his practices than in his theories. We thus perceive that while definitions and theories have very often been modified according to cir­cumstances and have even hindered scientific progress, concrete results have retained their intrinsic value and have been the starting point for new progress which, when introduced as new elements in the balance of nature, have testified to the creative power of man.

Growth of meteorology

Meteorology is no exception to this general rule of the evolution of science . Originally it was an application of physics to weather phenomena but gradually it became a separate science independent of physics, without how­ever breaking the fundamental ties. Its chief aim was to obtain theoretical knowledge about the weather. With the discovery of the telegraph and taking account of the influence of geographical features on the weather, it was hoped to achieve by observa­tions made over an extensive network of stations the wish that man has had from time immemorial, to be able to forecast the weather, and at the same time to give a more accurate and

12

January 1954

rational explanation of the main geo­graphical areas described as Klima by the Greeks thousands of years ago on a purely astronomical basis.

It was in this way that synoptic meteorology and climatology took shape and remained distinct from one another in their methods and objects but remained nevertheless united to the mother science of meteorology. Meteorology meant, however, the study of weather processes in the general sense of the term and almost indepen­dently of the geographical site where these processes occurred; climatology, on the other hand, referred to the statistical study of the various factors, frequent or rare, of these processes in all parts of the world.

But both synoptic meteorology and climatology have avoided the actual surface conditions and the influence of weather on different soils. This was obviously because both sciences dealt with general atmospheric phenomena and not with the complicated, unpre­dictable effects produced on the surface of the ground. Weather observations were therefore carried out under shel­ters, insulated from the sun and from the ground, placed at a height of two metres ; the speed and direction of the wind were measured in such a way as to eliminate as far as possible the influence of local surface irregularities.

When the field of meteorology was enlarged to cover the whole atmos­phere and when the close interrelations were discovered between its elements and the physical laws which govern them in the free atmosphere, the two basic sciences got further away from the earth's surface to become what has been defined as dynamic meteorology and dynamic climatology. In this particular case, dynamic climatology was regarded as being the study of the frequent or occasional dynamical pro-

WMO Bulletin

cesses of the atmosphere in each of the main geographical regions of the world. This means that climatology in its general sense has always represented the geographical viewpoint of meteo­rology and that it found its concrete expression in a statistical analysis of the simple and complex factors of the atmospheric processes.

Applied meteorology

Practical applications developed alongside these theoretical investiga­tions. Some countries, for example, founded meteorological services and networks of weather stations, some for improving or guiding agricultural deve­lopments, others for protecting the major interests of maritime navigation. In this way agricultural meteorology and maritime meteorology came into being. Later the development of avia­tion demanded that meteorology should proceed with the study and the systematic observation of the upper atmosphere and this led to the creation of aeronautical meteorology.

Each of these sciences deals with its own portion of space. While agri­cultural meteorology is concerned with the space in which plants live, i.e. the soil and the adjacent atmosphere, maritime meteorology deals with the coasts and the seas, and aeronautical meteorology studies the free atmos­phere. Each of them has its own special requirements with regard to instru­ments, observations and networks of specialized stations ; each endeavours to extend the knowledge of meteoro­logy and climatology in its own parti­cular sphere. But this differentiation should, of course, not be taken to mean that they have broken away from the basic sciences, for progress in practical applications has very often led to the creation of new possibilities for scienti­fic development.

13

January 1954

We thus see that agricultural meteo­rology is one of the chief aspects of applied meteorology. With the passage of time it has developed a character of its own and by its methods and pur­poses has become distinct, not only from the other applications of meteo­rology, but also from the basic sciences of meteorology and climatology. This was universally recognized when the Agricultural Meteorological Commis­sion was set up within the International Meteorological Organization in 1913, and when many countries, wishing to ensure a fuller development of this subject, formed within their meteoro­logical services sections to deal with agricultural meteorology separate from those dealing with other aspects of applied meteorology and with clima­tology.

Requirements of agricultural meteorology

As a matter of fact, the methods used in agricultural meteorology are more or less opposed to those followed in general meteorology, which makes it difficult to solve the highly specialized and varied problems of agriculture and of other allied human activities. What was required was a detailed meteoro­logy which instead of getting away from the surface would come closer to it and even penetrate into the soil with a view to studying crops. In other words, a meteorology vvhich, instead of isolating a small volume of air two metres above the ground and studying its physical properties, would examine these properties in the form in which they are received, transformed and felt by living matter. A need was felt for a specialized climatology which, instead of characterizing only repre­sentative districts, would deal precisely with non-representative places and which, instead of making a synthesis with a small number of climatic ele-

WMO Bullet in

ments to determine the position of the main climato-geographical regions, would prepare bioclimatic indices or factors that would enable small bio­climatic areas to be defined for each species. In other words, what was needed was a meteorology and a clima­tology in which the goal of the investi­gations ·would not be the air in itself, but the life that depends on atmos­pheric processes. And it is precisely here that we find the chief difference between agricultural and other bran­ches of applied meteorology.

The earth utilises and transforms the >\reather elements to produce the che­mical and biological reactions necessary for its evolution and formation ; plants in their turn utilise and transform them for their inner metabolism and thereby establish reserves for themselves and for the animal kingdom.

In this particular case, it is impos­sible to separate the physical element from the physiological process which it sets in motion; we can observe for example that the same temperature which destroys the fruits of certain kinds of plants is necessary in others for the hormonal process which, in the following months, will lead to flowering and fruition. In other branches of applied meteorology, the weather ele-

WMO RECOGNIZES ILO ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL

O N 26 November 1953 the Govern­ing Body of the International

Labour Organization approved the application of the statutes of the Administrative Tribunal of ILO to the WMO which had recognized by Res. 6 (EC- IV) the competence of that tri­bunal for appeals relating to the non­observance of WMO Staff Regulations and Internal Staff Rules.

14

January 1954

ment acts in an external and mecha­nical manner and is not linked up with the internal process of the subject under consideration. That is why agricultural meteorology calls for a special treatment, so that it can pro­duce the expected results, that is to say a treatment which covers not only the study of weather processes but also the study of the medium to which this knowledge has to be applied.

I shall not attempt to define agri­cultural meteorology or even to ascer­tain whether this is the best name because, following the principles ex­pressed earlier, I would not like to compromise its progress and because I prefer achievements to definitions. But if I were however called upon to state its scope, I should say that agri­cultural meteorology begins with the weather phenomena which affect the vegetable and animal kingdoms, that it continues with the formation and development of the soils and ends with the intimacy of the physiological or physico-chemical processes which are set in motion by the weather. It was not until the problem had thus been regarded in its entirety that the results bore their full fruits and that agricultural meteorology really came into existence.

]. ]. BuRGOs.

ALPINE METEOROLOGY

THE third international meeting on alpine meteorology will be held at

Davos-Platz, Switzerland, from 12 to 14 April 1954. The programme includes the relevant aspects of synoptic meteo­rology, radiation, bioclimatology, snow and ice.

Further information can be obtained from Dr. W. Morikofer, Observatoire physico-meteorologique, Davos-Platz.

WMO Bulletin January 1954

FIRST SESSION OF COMMISSION FOR AEROLOGY

A T a joint opening meeting with the Commission for Instruments

and Methods of Observation (CIMO), the delegat es to the First Session of the Commission for Aerology (CAe), held at Toronto from ro August to 5 September 1953, were welcomed by Mr. Andrew Thomson, WMO Per­manent Representative in Canada. He reminded his audience that it was just roo years since the first inter­national meteorological gathering (see B~tlletin Vol. II, No. z, p. 53). He was glad that it had proved possible to hold these first sessions of two \ iVMO commissions in Toronto, the site of the last sessions of the corresponding commissions of the former Inter­national Meteorological Organization. The original meaning of the name Toronto - in the Huron language it signifies a meeting place - was very appropriate for meteorologists. Canada had one big advantage in that her supplies of pulp for paper were enor­mous, and he had therefore been able to obtain from local resources the r Yz million sheets of paper required for the meetings !

The participants at the session included delegates of r 6 WMO Members (Belgium, Belgian Congo, Canada, France, India, Ireland, Italy, Nether­lands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Union of South Africa, United Kingdom, USA and Yugosla­via), representatives of the Meteo­rological Services of the German Feder­al Republic and J apan, and six expert s attending in an individual capacity. The International Civil Aviation Organiza­tion, World Health Organization, Inter­national Union of Geodesy and Geophys­ics and the International Scientific Radio Union were also represented.

15

The CAe meetings were presided over by Professor J. Van Mieghem, whose opening address was reported in the last issue of the Bulletin.

Apart from the joint opening meet­ing, the CAe and CIMO plenary meetings were held separately. One joint working committee on Upper Air Observations was set up under the chairmanship of Dr. A. Nyberg to cover all items of mutual interest. Three other CAe working committees were formed ; Aerological Research under Dr. R. C. Sutcliffe, Constants, Tables, Technical Regulations and Publication of Data under Professor P. A. Sheppard, and Representation of the Free Atmosphere under Dr. VI . L. Godson. Dr. D. P . Mcintyre was elected Vice-President for the duration of the session.

Aerological publications

One of the most important decisions of the session was to recommend that all Members should make available checked data of upper air observations to satisfy the requirements of scientific and operational investigations. A sur­vey carried out by the WMO Secret ariat prior to the session had shown that many services were not at present publishing their data and that there was little uniformity in the layout of the existing tables ; specimen forms were therefore prepared showing two alternative preferred methods of pub­lishing the dat a.

Among the information to be includ­ed in these publications is the temper­ature and pressure at significant levels, including the tropopause. Significant levels may be broadly defined as those

WMO Bulletin

levels, additional to the standard levels, for which data are required to enable a meteorologist to reproduce on an aerological diagram a reasonable copy of the original sounding. A more precise definition of the term is however fraught with difficulties, which the commission was not able to solve completely. Working definitions were however recommended and it is intend­ed to reconsider the matter at the next session in the light of experience gained in their application.

Aerological usearch

The meteorological programme for the International Geophysical Year (1957-58) was considered in detail. Many proposals had been received by the President in his capacity as Chair­man of the WMO working group on this subject, and the commission had been asked to make suggestions which might lead to a useful and practicable programme. Various recommendations were made for setting up aerological stations to provide data along certain lines of longitude and latitude and the importance of having at least one ascent per day to 50 mb or higher was stressed. As a broad guide in selecting problems for investigation, it was recommended that primary attention should be given to those concerning large-scale dynamical and thermo­dynamical processes.

The usefulness of ocean weather ships was considered from the scientific point of view. In the resulting resolu­tion it is stated that

"... prognostic maps constructed for ocean areas will be extremely unreliable, and for levels above soo mb virtually valueless without adequate data from ocean weather ships. . . . Meteorology cannot advance as a science and be of growing benefit if the observational network is not constantly improved and maintained in phase with other development in the science.

16

Janu ary 1954

In this respect the commission calls attention to two points : in the first place many efforts have been made recently to improve the methods of extended forecasting. There is ample evidence to show that progress in this field will be greatly hampered if sufficient upper air material, well distributed over the whole hemisphere, is not available. In the second place attention is drawn to the rapid developments in the field of numerical forecasting. Here also, upper air information is indispensable, and it has been shown that it is necessary to make highly accurate analyses of upper air maps, since small deviations of the maps from the true state of the atmosphere may lead to large devia­tions of the predicted maps from the actually occurring situations."

Numerical forecasting was also the subject of another resolution which sets up a working group to study the requirements of the upper air network for numerical forecasting taking into account time and space intervals, variability of the atmospheric values and the variation of requirements with height and latitude.

Cloud physics

Considerable attention was given to different aspects of cloud physics. In the first place the WMO Congress had referred to CAe the problem of anti­hail measures. In some countries con­siderable sums of money are being spent in attempts to prevent hail by the artificial nucleation of clouds, using t echniques similar to those employed for the artificial inducement of precipitation (see Bulletin Vol. I, No. 3, p. 74). It was decided to set up a working group to survey the problem of the modification and control of clouds and hydrometeors, with special reference to the artificial pro­duction of precipitation and to the prevention of hail in the various geographical regions.

The second problem of cloud physics arose from a request from ICAO for a study of the physical characteristics

WMO Bulletin

of clouds and their relationship with icing of exposed surfaces. It was recom­mended that a report on this subject should be prepared by the Secretariat in time for consideration at the First Session of the Commission for Aero­nautical Meteorology.

January 1954

lishing various definitions, tables, etc. relating to radiation. The commission recommended the adoption of revised definitions of relative humidity (based on mol fractions instead of on mixing ratios) and of thermodynamic wet-bulb temperatures.

First Session of the Commission for Aerology.

Front row (reading left to right) : W . L. Godson (Canada), R. C. Sutcliffe (United Kingdom), 0 . M. Ashford (WMO), J. M. Van iYiieghem (Belgium). P .A. Sheppard (United K ingdom), A. Nyberg (Sweden). R. Pone (France). Second row : Seri Busapabutr (Thailand) , L. S. iYiathur (India), 0. Godart (Belgium), A. K Angstrom (Sweden), A. J. Drummond (Union of South Africa), P. Queney (France), G. Fea (Italy), L. Ma let (Belgian Congo), G. P . Cressman (U.S.A.) . Third row : E. E. Austin (Un ited Kingdom) , Yukio Kawabata (Japan), J. Lugeon (Switzerland), A. Hauer (Netherlands) , P . D efrise (Belgium), H. Flohn (German Federal Republic), J. R. Fulks (U.S.A.), W. Bl!;eker (Netherlands). Back row : C. M. P enner (Canada), P. K. Rohan (Ireland), Marijan Cadez (Yugoslavia), E. Grytoyr (Norway) ,

T. J. G. H enry (Canada), G. J. W. Oddie (ICAO).

Constants, tables and definitions

The Working Group on Physical Functions and Constants and Aero­logical Tables had proposed various changes to IMO Publication No. 79 (see Bulletin Vol. I, No. 3, p. 78) and had suggested a programme for estab-

17

It did not prove possible to discuss in det ail the radiation questions and a working group was therefore set up to prepare a report on definitions and values of radiation functions and con­stants, and proposals for tables which may be used by meteorologists in the application of the laws of solar, atmos­pheric and terrestrial radiation.

WMO Bulletin

Representation of the free atmosphere

Following an enquiry by the Secre­tariat, a survey had been made of the various aerological diagrams now being used by meteorological services. It was felt by the commission that this survey could be usefully extended to cover an assessment of the respective advantages of the different diagrams for various uses and a working group was set up for this purpose. The group will also prepare a report on the use of diagrams and charts for the full representation of atmospheric dynamic and thermodynamic variables.

R adiometeorolo gy

The items on the agenda dealing with radiometeorology, including aerological soundings and atmospherics techniques, were discussed by the joint CAe-CIMO working committee. The .results are partly covered in the CIMO report (see p . r g) . The recommenda­tions arising from the session of the Working Group on R adio-electric Meteorology at Zurich in March 1953 (see Bulletin Vol. II , No. 3, p. 67) were considered and formed the subj ect of r o CAe recommendations. Several of these referred to detailed instrumental procedures and it was suggested that they might be incorporated in a chapter on atmospherics t echniques in the Guide to I nternational Meteorological I nstrument and Observing Practice . A new working group was set up to study further the problems of the international exchange and co-ordina­tion of atmospherics observations.

Conclusion

It has only been possible in this article to mention a few of the rz resolutions and 36 recommendations

18

January 1954

adopted at the session. The full t exts are contained in the Abridged Final R eport.

In addition to the formal meetings of the commission, there were nine scientific lectures and discussions dur­ing the session. The subj ects ranged from dynamic instability, numerical and long-range forecasting, atmos­pheric radiation, turbulence and tropic­al circulation patterns to representa­tion of the earth's pressure field and the relation between vorticity, deforma­tion and divergence and the configura­tion of the pressure field. Most of the opening contributions were published as CAe Scientific Papers. A limited number of copies of these P apers are available on application to the Secre­t ary-General, World lVIeteorological Organization, r , Avenue de la Paix , Geneva, Switzerland.

Several social gatherings were held, including a garden party at the Uni­versity, a banquet at the invitation of the Canadian Government and an outing to Niagara at the invitation of t he H ydroelectric Commission.

At one of the meetings there was a discussion about the name of the commission. Several speakers express­ed doubt about the meaning of the word aerology, which is variously used to denote all scientific aspect s of meteoro­logy, the physics of the atmosphere, and the t echniques for making sound­ings of the upper atmosphere. Although it was generally agreed that the present name was not altogether satisfactory, there was no large mea­sure of support for the alternative of " Commission for the Physics of the Atmosphere" . Perhaps the best defini­tion of aerology is "the science covered by the ·wMO Commission for Aero­logy"!

O.M.A.

WMO Bulletin January 1954

FIRST SESSION OF THE COMMISSION FOR INSTRUMENTS

AND METHODS OF OBSERVATION

TH E First Session of the Commis­sion for Instruments and Methods

of Observation (CIMO) was held at Toronto, Canada, from ro August to 4 September 1953 at the same time as the F irst Session of the Commission for Aerology (CAe).

Delegat es from r8 WMO Members (Belgian Congo, Belgium, Canada, France, French West Africa, India, Ireland, Italy, Madagascar, Nether­lands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Union of South Africa, United Kingdom, United States and Yugoslavia) attended the session and, furthermore, the Meteorological Ser­vices of Japan and the German Federal Republic sent observers. Twelve experts from Canada and United States were also present by invitation of the President of CIMO. The Inter­national Scientific Radio Union, the World Health Organization, and the International Civil Aviation Organiza­tion were represented by observers.

The President, Dr. J. Patterson, in his opening speech , reminded the delegates that the agenda was very heavy and suggested that prior con­sideration should be given to such important items as the Draft Provisional Technical Regulations and the reduc­tion of pressure to sea-level.

Four working committees, under the chairmanship of Dr. A. Angstrom (General questions, Technical Regula­tions), Mr. L. P. Harrison (Barometry etc.) , Dr. W. E. K. Middleton with alternate Dr. R. Frith (Humidity, Wind, Visibility, R adiation) and Dr. A.

19

Nyberg (Upper air questions) , were established to t ackle the various agenda items. Dr. Nyberg's committee was a joint Ci lVIO-CAe committee.

It is impossible to mention here all the 7 resolutions and 36 recommen­dations adopted during the session and interested readers are therefore referred to the Abridged Final R epo1•t of the session issued by the Secretariat as W.MO Publication No 19. RP. 9·

G~tide to I nternational Meteorological I nstrument and Observing Practice

A review of the first ten chapters of the G~tide to I nternational M eteorolog­ical I nstrument a1·td Observing Practice was published in the WlVIO B~tlletin

(Vol. I, No. z). Two further chapters, dealing with Pilot and so~mding balloon techniq~te and 111 easU1·ements of upper winds have since been issued. The comm1sswn revie\oved these twelve chapters and noted that Chapter 13 on Aerological meas~trements by radio­sonde is now in the press. Careful con­sideration was given to the question of publishing an additional chapter dealing with Aerological observations from aircraft. It was decided that as the existing draft of the Manual of Meteorological 0 bsetving in A irctaft does not entirely fall within the scope of the G~tide, it should not be included. The commission recommended with regard to the future work on the Guide that the WMO Secret ariat should be empowered to make such re-arrange­ments and revision as may be necessary or desirable and to keep the Guide up to date.

WMO Bulletin

International Barometer Convention

It has been unfortunate that in the development of the mercury barometer use has been made of different scales (millibar, millimetre, inch), three diffe­rent standard t emperatures (o°C, 285° A and 62° F) and three variants of standard gravity (g8o.665 cmj sec2,

g8o.6z cmjsec 2 , and gravity at mean sea level in latitude 45°). In order to obtain greater uniformity, a proposal for a barometer convention was put forward by the Meteorological Office, London, in rgso. Furthermore, based on advice from the International Geodetic Association, the Aerological Commission has agreed upon a conven­tional value of standard gravity and on detailed procedures for calculating the theoretical value of local acceleration of gravity . All the above proposals were incorporated by CIMO into an International Barometer Convention. Among other things, this convention lays down that the standard gravity shall be g8o.665 cmj sec 2 and that the standard temperature to which mer­cury barometer readings are reduced shall be oo Celsius.

R eduction of pressure to mean sea level

After some discussion as to whether this subject fell within the field of responsibility of the commission, it was agreed to recommend that the terms of reference of the commission should be changed to ensure the inclusion of questions of corrections and reductions to be applied to observations. Conside­rable time was devoted to the subj ect of methods of pressure reduction, but the working committee dealing with this question was unable to reach unanimous agreement on any single method except for use at low level stations. However, the Chairman of the committee submitted a compre­hensive report - which has since been

20

January 1954

distributed to all Members of the Orga­nization - discussing the difficulties involved in pressure reduction and con­taining several suggestions as to rele­vant formulae and methods which may have some chance of being generally adopted . The committee agreed that the work on this problem should be continued in co-operation with CAe and CSM.

Radiation

The commission considered the im­portance of radiation measurements in various meteorological studies and agreed that it was essential that radia­tion instruments should be calibrated and checked regularly against absolute standards at properly equipped radia­tion centres. A detailed programme was established for the work to be carried out at specialized r adiation stations. It was realized, however, that there are still many problems on radiation which require further study, and it was therefore agreed to re­establish a working group covering the whole field of meteorological radiation measurements.

Comparison of radiosondes

Radiosonde observations gtvmg in­formation about conditions in the upper levels of the atmosphere are important for the provision of meteorological forecasts for aircraft operating at high levels, and the increasing use of jet aircraft makes these observations even more valuable. The joint CIMO-CAe committee recognized the desirability of determining the accuracy of radio­sondes now in use and discussed the question of making further compari­sons of these instruments on a world­wide scale. The first international com­parison of radiosondes was carried out at Payerne, Switzerland, in 1950, and

WMO Bulletin

at its Third Session in September rgsz, the Executive Committee agreed that a second world-wide comparison should be carried out within a few years. CIMO recommended that, as soon as

January 1954

Working groups

The comm1sswn agreed to establish several working groups to carry on the work until its next session. In addition

First Session of the Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation.

Front row (reading left to r ight) : L. S. Mathur (India), R. Frith (United Kingdom), A . K. Angstrom (Sweden), J. Patterson (Canada), A . Perlat (France), A. )lyberg (Sweden), K. Langlo (WMO) . S econd row : Seri Busapabutr {Thailand), 0 . Godart (Belgium), D. M. Swingle (USA), A. ]. Drummond (Union of South Africa), P. Defrise (Belgium), F. Margeti6 (Yugoslavia), V. Sanit (Tha iland), L. Malet (Belgium). Third row : V. S. Harclin (USA), Y ukio Kawabata (Japan), J. Lugeon (Switzer la nd), A. Hauer (Netherlands), C. Harmantas (U.S.A.), H . Flohn (German Federal Republic), G. J. ' 11' . Ocldie (ICAO) , vV. Bleeker (Nether­lands) . Fmwth 1'0W : H. Treussart (Madagascar), C. F . Brooks (U.S.A.), P. K. Rohan (Irela nd), F. W. Benum (Canada), D. N. Harrison (United Kingdom), E. Grytoyr (Norway), D. C. Archibald (Canada), J. W. Miller (U.S.A.). Back row : V. Marc (French West Africa), C. C. Boughner (Canada), M. N . Monsinger (Canada), S. '"' · C. Pack (United Kingdom),

G. Cena (Ita ly) .

possible afterwards, a third compari­son should be held for those types of radiosonde not included in the second. In the meantime, it was recommended that comparisons should be arranged between two or three neighbouring countries, especially where instruments had not been previously compared . A working group was set up to make arrangements for the second inter­national trials.

21

to those mentioned above, a working group on hygrometry, including psy­chrometry, was set up to review the present state of knowledge in this field ; a group on the measurement of visibil­ity was established t o study the national instructions for observing visibility ; and another group was charged with carrying out a survey of the influence of wind and exposure on different types of rain gauges and

WMO Bulletin

shields, and of the methods of measur­ing rainfall at sea.

For some additional information on the Toronto meeting, readers are referred to the article on the F irst Session of CAe, which can be found on page IS of this issue of the B~tlletin.

Election of Officers

At the end of the session, Mr. A. Perlat (France) was elected President of the Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation and Dr. L. Malet (Belgium) Vice-President. In paying tribute to his predecessor,

January 1954

Mr. Perlat said that CIMO was losing a President who had occupied the chair for many years to the great benefit of the commission. Dr. Patterson was widely known for his work on meteoro­logical instruments and he had always taken a great interest in all aspects of the work of the commission. Mr. Per­lat felt that CUviO was now entering a new era where increasing demands from colleagues in other commissions for more precise measurements were calling for even greater efforts on the part of CIMO. Mr. Perlat ended his speech by quoting the well-known saying of Lord Kelvin : "There is no science without measurements" .

K.L.

COLLABORATION WITH ICAO

IN accordance with decisions made by the Council of the International Civil

Aviation Organization and the Execu­tive Committee of WMO (see p. 5), the new working arrangements be­tween ICAO and WMO came into effect on I J anuary I954·

The two organizations have recog­nized the desirability in the interest of efficiency and simplicity of defining working arrangements for securing close co-operation, including an under­standing regarding t he allocation to one organization or the other of prim­ary responsibility for certain sectors within the field of common interest .

In determining this allocation, it has been agreed that the following broad principles should apply :

Matters which for their successful reso­lution, (i) require direct and particular­ly close collaboration with other (non-

22

meteorological) aeronautical services or (ii) co-ordination with planned or actual airline operations, should be regarded as lying primarily within the field of responsibility of ICAO.

Matters (i) which relat e to the basic meteorological facilities required by Meteorological Authorities to provide service to international air navigation, (ii) which relate to the meteorological techniques and practices employed in providing such service or (iii) which, for their successful resolution, require close co-ordination with the procedures and facilities employed in other (non­aeronautical) applications of meteoro­logy, should be regarded as lying prim­arily within the field of responsibility of WMO.

Matters which do not fall clearly within any of these categories should be regarded as the responsibility of both organizations and dealt with by appro­priate collaboration between them.

WMO BULLETIN

Activities of the R egional Associations South America (RA Ill). . South-·West Pacific (R A V)

Activities of the T echnical Commissions Aerology ... . .. . . -\ eronautical Meteorology .-'l.gricultura l Meteorology B ibliography and P ublications Climatology . . . . . lVIaritime Meteorology .

VOLUME 11 Index

Instruments and Methods of Observation Synoptic Meteorology

Arid Zone research . .

Collaboration with other international organizations ECOSOC. l ATA . ICAO . I F ALP A !TU . . IUGG .. TAB (See T echnical Assistance Programme) UNESCO . WHO

Commission for Aerology, F irst Session International co-ordination of meteorological research

Commission for Climatology, F irst Session A charter for climatology . . A renaissance of climatology ? .

Commission for Synoptic Meteorology, First Session \Veather forecasting - Science or art ? Synoptic meteorology . . . .

Direction of the \VMO Secretariat

Dynamic climatology

Executive Committee, Fourth Session

French automatic weather station

Location of thunderstorms

(1953)

Ill

Ill

IO, 46, 76, IIO

47, IIO

76, Ill

76, Ill II

II

12, 47, 76, IIO

II , 47

19, 77

!12

6, 75, IIj

52, 73, II 2

75 rq

6

7 52

g6

40 62

70 IOI

I Ij

!21

rr8

Il9

Sferics, l~'orlcl Symposium on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Membership of W.MO .

Meteorological centenary

Meteorology and agriculture

Meteorology and aviation .

News and notes Bilham, E. G.

78, 124

53

13

20

ss

Boerema, Death of Prof. Dr. J . Goldie, Dr. A. H. R. Nelson K. J ohnson, Sir Sohoni, V. V. Sutton, Prof. 0. G. . . Application for membership of Japan

Cloud Atlas Hydrogen Generator. Rome exhibition . . University of Buenos Aires

News from the Secretariat Administrative Division Publications Section The T echnical Division Visit of U.N. Secretary-General Visit of Dr. C. V'l. Thornthwaite Vlorld Thunderstorm Maps

Obituary : Mohammad Aslam

P ublication of weather analyses

Recent \¥MO Publications

R egional Association I, F irst Session Meteorology in Africa . . .

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125

126 126

12 12 12

125

127

S7 55 25 S6 S7 S7

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57, SS, 128

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Regional Association I V (North America) , F irst Session . . . . . . . . . . roS

Reviews: Brooks C.E.P . and Carruthers N. - Handbook of statistical methods in

meteorology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Holland D .J . - \l\1eather inference 93

Kampe H. J. Aufm - Das \¥etter und seine Ursachen 26

Kirk T. H. - Seasonal change of surface temperature of the North Atlan tic

Ocean . 130

Middleton vV. E. K. - Vision through the atmosphere sS

Robinson A. H. - E lements of ca rtography 92

Roulleau J . and Trochon R. - lVI:eteorologie generale . 90

de Rudder B. - Grundriss einer Meteorobiologie des Menschen 27

Sanson J . - Conferences de meteorologie appliquee a !'agriculture 130

Sutton 0. G. - iVIicrometeorology . . . 90

Viaut A. and Sanson J. - Le temps et les travaux des champs 130

Geofisica e Meteorologia - Vol. I, No. r - Bulletin of the Italian Society of

Geophysics and Meteorology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Climatological Atlas of the British I sles - Meteorological Office, London . sS

South Africa introduces metric units

Technical Assistance Programme Bolivia China .. Dominican Republic Iran . . Israel J ordan Libya . Yugoslavia Additional items

Weather resources. .

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PUBLICATIONS OF WMO

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WMO- No. IO. RP. 2 - Commission for Maritime Meteorology. Abridged Final Report of the First Session, London, July 1952. English ­French . P rice : Sw. frs . 3.-

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Final 1953·

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\ VMO - No . r 7. TP. 5 - Bibliographie iVIeteorologique Internationale. Annee 1952.

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MEMBERS OF THE WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION*)

Argentina Australia Belgian Congo Belgium Bermuda Brazil British Caribbean Territories British Central African

Territories British East African

Territories and Indian Ocean Islands

British lVIalayajBorneo Territories

British \ ;v'est African Territories

Bulgaria Burma Byelorussian S.S .R. Canada Ceylon China Cuba Czechoslovakia Denmark Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt Ethiopia Finland France

French Cameroons French Equatorial Africa French Oceania French Somaliland French Togoland F rench ,;y est Africa Greece Guatemala Haiti Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indochina Indone:;ia Iraq Ireland Israel Italy J apan Lebanon Luxembourg Madagascar Mexico Morocco, French

Protectorate Neth erlands Netherlands Antilles Netherlands

New Guinea New Caledonia

New Zealand Norwav Pakist~n Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal P ortuguese East Africa Portuguese ·west Africa Romania Spain Surinam Sweden Switzerland Syria Thailand T unisia Turkey Ukrainian S.S.R. Union of South Africa United Kingdom of Great

Britain and Northern Ireland

United States of America Union of Socialist Soviet

Republics Uruguay Venezuela Y ugoslavia

*) As of 21 December 1953

WMO Bulletin January 1954

A f\ ASSisT;;g~N~~~~RAMME~1

~ ......... r-et,,.,,.~ .. . .. , ,.,. . ..... ,.................... .. INFORMATION BR OC HURE

AN illustrated information brochure entitled : M eteomlo gical /mow­

ledge serves mankind - an introdttction to weather services in technical assist­ance programmes , has now been prepar­ed and given a wide distribution. In addition to the English and French versions, texts are also being prepared in Spanish and Arabic. This brochure, which sets forth the potentialityofWMO in t echnical assistance, will be of value to governments in the planning of their technical assistance programmes. F ur­ther copies are available on applica­tion to the Secretary-General.

SU RVEYS

During his recent visit to the Americas, Mr. J. L. Galloway, Chief of the Technical Assistance Unit, took the opportunity of making calls in all the countries of Central America. Here he found universal interest ex­pressed in meteorology and in its application to economic development . These countries are all going ahead with development plans in meteorology, but need the advice of experts and facilities for the local training of fore­casters and observers, and it is expected that a number of request s for t echnical assistance in this connection vvill be presented in due course.

During this series of visits the importance of meteorology in the handling of water economy was parti­cularly emphasized by Ministers and officials. This was also the main point made by the Mexico City office of the

23

Economic Commission for Latin Ame­rica. Countries lacking mineral sources of power are interested in water as a source of power and in this connection processed dat a on rainfall are of paramount importance. F urther , in the tropics, rainfall is a more important climatic element than temperature and its study is thus one of the essen­tials in agricultural planning. These needs have been well recognized in hydrological surveys past and present , but there is no doubt that much remains to be done in the application of meteorology in those fields of economic development .

1953 PROGRAMM E

Bolivia

In order to meet the wishes of the Government, which is anxious to obtain the services of a Swiss expert who will not be available until the spring, the misswn in agricultural meteorology has been deferred.

China

It has not yet been possible for the United States expert in synoptic meteorology to t ake up his assignment .

Meanwhile, Mr. Shao-Hou Ling has t aken up his scholarship at the Univers­ity of Chicago. In the autumn t erm he studied meteorological observations, codes and instruments, techniques of upper-air observations and the thermo­dynamics of the atmosphere. H e reports good progress.

WMO Bulletin

Dominican Republic

Mr. Fernando Huerta, meteorologist at Barajas Airport, Madrid, was briefed by Mr. Galloway in New York in December, 1953, on his way to Ciudad Trujillo, as a member of the WMO two­man mission to the Dominican Repub­lic.

Israel

Mr. George V. Parmelee, of the American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers, completed his mission to Israel in indoor climate. The practical side of his programme centred on the t ype of housing units being constructed in agricultural vil­lages. On the educational side he addressed public meetings at different places and gave a seminar of eight two-hour lectures on indoor climate research. Stress was placed on the need for application of the principles of heat transfer and fluid flow. The release of his report by the Govern­ment for publication is awaited with interest.

Two Israelis are at present studying on fellowships . Mr. M. Thaller, Super­visor of Instruments in the Meteorolog­ical Service, visited Geneva in December 1953, after completing studies in Canada under Mr. An drew Thomson, Controller of the Meteorolog­ical Division, and in the United States under Professor Thornthwaite, of] ohns Hopkins University, President of the Commission for Climatology, prior to further studies in Switzerland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Mr. E. Charasch, Senior Forecaster, is studying in the Institute of Meteorology at the University of Stockholm. He reports that the autumn semester comprised lectures on the dynamics of large scale motion, the general circulation of the atmosphere and the microphysics of clouds, together with problems in dynamic meteorology.

24

January 1954

Jordan

Mr. ] acques Cocheme, United King­dom, has taken up his appointment to advise the Government on the deve­lopment of its Meteorological Service, with special regard to the agricultural requirements of the country. In the latter connection, Mr. Cocheme took part in the Locust Conference organized by FAO at Damascus, 5 to 8 November 1953. Mr. Cocheme has wide experience of meteorology in this part in the world, having served in both Syria and the Sudan.

Libya

Dr. C. A. Lea, formerly Director of the Meteorological Service of Malaya, was briefed in Geneva on his way to take up his appointment in Tripoli to organize a national meteorological service for Libya.

Southem R hodesia

Mr. V. G. Miles visited Geneva on his return journey to his home-country after completing his studies on radar meteorology for which a fellowship to the United States had been awarded him. Mr. Miles is responsible for the application of radar to meteorology in his country and his fellowship enabled him to meet workers in the same field at ten different centres in the Eastern and Southern States and in McGill University, Montreal, Canada. Mr. Miles described vividly in Geneva the immense stimulus and encourage­ment he had received from personal contacts with the authors of original research, reports of which had hitherto been available to him only in papers an~ publications.

Thailand

Arrangements have been made for Lt. Sawai Suwanpong, of the Meteo-

WMO Bulletin

rological Service, to take up a six months' fellowship in Australia in the field of meteorological instruments.

Yugoslavia

In the latter part of 1953 four experts have undertaken missions to Yugo­slavia as follows : Professor Tor Ber­geron, of the Meteorological Institute at Uppsala, Sweden, in synoptic meteo­rology ; M. ] uan ] . Burgos, Chief of the Agro-meteorological Department of the National Meteorological Service

of Argentina and President of the WMO Commission for Agricultural Meteorology, in agricultural meteoro­logy; Dr. Ing. Werner Olbers, of the Instruments Division of the West German Meteorological Service, in meteorological instruments ; Mr. Louis Guilloux, Chief of the Climatological Division of the French Meteorological Service, in climatology. The final reports of the experts are awaited but it appears from Yugoslav sources that their missions have been most success­ful.

Fellowships awarded to four semor members of the H ydrometeorological

25

January 1954

Service have been taken up in Western Europe in the following subjects : Ing. Milisav Perovic, Director of the Federal Service, in telecommunications; Professor Franjo Margetic, Chief of the Instruments Section of the Federal Service and Director of the Croatian Service, in meteorological instruments; Ing. Branko Ratkovic, Chief of the Agricultural Section of the Federal Service, in agricultural meteorology ; Dr. Marijan Cadez, Chief of the Aero­logical Division of the Federal Service, in aerology.

Professor Bergeron lecturing in Y ugoslavia.

(Note the headphones for simultaneous interpreta­tion.)

1954 PROGRAMME

Approval of the entire Expanded Programme of Technical Assistance for 1954 vvas t he main business of the 27th Session of the Technical Assistance Board, held in New York from 7 to 19 December, 1953. All Organizations participating in the Expanded Pro­gramme were represented, the \ iVMO by Mr. ]. L. Galloway.

Of the funds expected to be available, the Board fixed a ceiling of obligation of 12 million dollars up to 30 June, 1954 : this sum would be composed of

WMO Bulletin

many currencies, a number of which were not convertible. Allocations were made regionally to obtain as wide and balanced a global distribution as pos­sible of the t echnical assistance to be given .

Proj ects submitted for inclusion in the Programme had been drawn up on a basis of planning at country level.

WMO projects approved for imme­diate implementation included the pro-

AGRICULTURAL METEOROLOGY

AT the invitation of t he French Government, the Commission for

Agricultural Meteorology held its First Session in Paris from 3 to 20 November 1953 ; the opening address by the President of the Commission will be found on p. 1 0. The rr resolutions and 19 recommendations which were adopted covered the provisional Tech­nical Regulations and various problems to be studied before t he next session . The collaboration between WMO and the United Nations Food and Agricul­ture Organization was considered in detail.

Five ·working groups were estab­lished to carry out the future pro­gramme on t he lines discussed during the session . Professor Juan J. Burgos, Argentina, was re-elected President of the Commission and Dr. H. Geslin, France, was elected Vice-President. A full report of the meetings will be given in the next issue of the Bulletin.

26

January 1954

ject s in the 1953 Programme in Bolivia and China, which it had not been pos­sible to commence in that year, exten­sions of the 1953 proj ects in the Dominican Republic, Israel, Jordan and Libya, and fellowships in H aiti , Indonesia, Iran, Thailand and Turkey. New projects were approved for imple­mentation, subj ect to availability of funds, in Central America, East Africa, Haiti and Iran, together with additio­nal extensions of the projects in China and Libya.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND PUBLICATIONS

The First Session of the Commission for Bibliography and Publications was held in Paris from 24 November to I2 December 1953, at the invitation of the F rench Government . As only nine Members were represented at the session, insufiicient for a quorum, it will be necessary to submit the four resolutions and the seven recommend­ations by correspondence to members of the commission for formal approval.

Mr. M. lVIezin (France) was re-elected President and Mr. G. A. Bull (U.K.) was elect ed Vice-President .

The main items discussed were the Guide to Meteorological L ibrary Prac­tice, the new version of the meteorol­ogical section of the Universal Decimal Classification - 55 r.5, the setting up of a World Meteorological B ibliography and the preparation of a JIII eteorological L exicon and Vocabulary . A more det ailed account of the proceedings will be published in a later issue of the Bulletin .

WMO Bulletin January 1954

THE FEDERAL INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF SNOW

AND AVALANCHES

THE earliest inhabitants of the Alps were already familiar with the

threat of avalanches, as is evidenced by the discovery of old t erraces for holding back snow on some of our mo\lntain slopes. Mountain dwellers first built their houses on the least

"":

The construction of these defences and their maintenance absorbed such enormous sums that the question arose whether it would not be advisable to study the problem scientifically in order to establish the basic principles for avalanche protection. A commission for

..... -

Avala nche a t Zermatt (no cohesion) (Photo Pen·en, Zermatt).

exposed spots but later building was more widespread . As the roads and railways developed and the traffic increased from year to year, the danger of avalanches became greater. New defences were constructed, such as retaining walls, diverting walls, tunnels, galleries, etc., to protect the villages, roads and railways. This activity was intensified particularly after the catas­trophic winter of 1887-1888.

27

the study of snow and avalanches was set up for this purpose in 1933. Under its direct ion, young research workers commenced investigations in the ·Davos region, where there is a considerable snow cover in winter. Results were so interesting that a permanent research organization was founded in 1936. In 1942, during the war , an institute was constructed at a height of 2670 metres on the vVeiss-

WMO Bulletin

fluhjoch ; it contains some artificially­cooled laboratories in addition to the offices and a workshop for the construc­tion of apparatus. Fourteen persons, including 6 university graduates, are at present working there. The original programme has been extended, but the study of snow and avalanches is still the basis of the work of the Institute, which can be divided into scientific research and practical applications.

Scientific research

The scientific programme includes investigations of the formation and development of snow crystals in the air in relation to weather factors ; studies of hail are associated with these inves­tigations. The climatology of snow depends on various weather elements and forms the subject of a special investigation which includes the distri­bution of snow cover, the limits of per­petual snows, the duration of snow cover and, above all, the measurement of precipitation at high altitudes. All these investigations lead one to the study of glaciers, and of melting and evaporation. The most important task is the study of snow on the ground, its mechanical and crystallographic pro­perties, which control the release of avalanches.

In the laboratories it is possible to determine the influence of temperature on tensile strength, cohesion and plasticity of the various types of snow. Measurements made in the field give the characteristics of the various layers and their transformations, as well as the influence of weather on snow cov~r. Investigations of the friction of solid bodies on snow, or of snow on snow, are also of great importance in the mechanism of avalanches and of all sorts of problems relating to transport on snow and to snow clearance. Melt­ing plays an interesting part in the

28

January 195~

mechanism of snow cover and in the release of avalanches.

Practical applications

The Institute's work includes the practical application of established theories and of newly discovered phenomena. Protection against ava­lanches is of course among the most important of these applications. This protection may take the form of con­structions for holding back the snow in the release zone, or for deflecting or slowing it down once it is in motion; they may also provide direct protection. These constructions have been per­fected and their number increased since the fatal winter of rgso-sr.

The Institute is best known through the broadcasting of its avalanche bulletins which give warnings of danger and indicate the area threatened. These bulletins are also broadcast regularly every Friday for week-end skiers. Tou­rists are warned of possible danger or, on the other hand, are encouraged to take advantage of good conditions. When there is a risk of disaster, mountain inhabitants are warned so that they may, if necessary, evacuate the chalets or the sections of the villages threatened.

The avalanche bulletins are prepared on the basis of data from 50 observa­tion posts distributed throughout the Alps. The headquarters on the \iVeiss­fluhjoch receives daily by teleprinter from these stations reports of ava­lanche and snow measurements, so that the persons responsible for preparing the avalanche bulletins are con­tinuously informed of conditions in the Alps.

DR. M. DE QUERVAIN

ANDRE RocHE

DR. TH. ZINGG.

WMO Bulletin January 1954

BRITISH CARIBBEAN METEOROLOGICAL SERVICE

IT is only recently that the British Territories in and around the

Caribbean Sea decided to combine in forming a unified Meteorological Service

to serve all the individual t erritories, and the British Caribbean Meteorolog­ical Service came into being on April 1951, the first Director taking up his appointment at the end of October, rgsr.

Meteorological work has, of course, been undertaken in the individual territories for many years, climatolog­ical observations having been published in British Guiana since 1846, in the Bahamas since r852 and in Barbados since r853 . A Jamaica Weather Service was formed in r88o and the British Guiana Agricultural Department has maintained a meteorological section for a similar period, while several territories have maintained active co­operation with the United States Weather Bureau for many years, par­ticularly in connection with the hurri­cane warning organization.

29

The British Caribbean Meteorological Service has its headquarters in Port of Spain, Trinidad, and the Government of Trinidad and Tobago is responsible

Convection cloud over Tri­n idad seen from Port of

Spain.

for supervision and control on behalf of all the co-operating governments. The Service has three main meteoro­logical offices, originally opened by the

0 :uwatd ts

··e.; Windward Is 1

.,

.' 1!-rl>ados

United Kingdom Government during World War II, providing a 24-hour service for aviation and other public

WMO Bulletin

services, in Trinidad (at Piarco Air­port), in J amaica (at Palisadoes Air­port, Kingston) and in the Bahamas (at Oakes Field, Nassau) ; it maintains a subsidiary office in Barbados and a number of observing stations, but is dependent for the operation of the greater part of its synoptic and clima­tological networks on the co-operation of other departments including Depart­ments of Agriculture, Civil Aviation and Telecommunications, whose officers make the observations and transmit them to the nearest centre.

vVhile a large proportion of their efforts are devoted to providing service for aviation, the three forecasting offices provide public forecasts, hurri­cane warnings in co-operation with the US Weather Bureau, other warnings

January 1954

for shipping etc. , over a very wide area. The headquarters is assembling past records, raising the standard of obser­vations and developing the use of meteorological information for agri­culture and industry. At present the headquarters is also running a Train­ing School for forecasters.

As the Service caters for territories situated between r 0 N and 27° N and between S7° \-,.,r and 8g0 W, it is largely concerned with tropical meteorology, including hurricanes. Fortunately there is a high degree of co-operation between most of the many countries in and adjoining the Caribbean , as is shown by the successful work of the Eastern Caribbean Hurricane Com­mittee, now organized as a working group of Regional Association IV.

METEOROLOGY AND FACSIMILE

THE record of the IlVIO Conference at Copenhagen in 1929 (OlVII

Publication No. 3, p . 274), contains Resolution XXVIII of the Commission for Synoptic Weather Information which appointed a sub-commission "to consider the best method of utilizing wireless pictures in synoptic meteorology and of keeping the Com­mission informed of the progress made in different countries in the develop­ment of this system" . Photographs of charts, plain language forecasts and messages in figure codes which had been received by the Belin and Siemens­Karolus-Teleprinter methods were cir­culated to members of the commission.

In 1930 the R adio Corporation of America started broadcasting news by radio facsimile and inaugurated a radio weather map service for ships at sea. About the same year, regular

30

transmissions of weather charts were broadcast by radio by the British Broadcasting Corporation using the F·ultograph process. The process was relatively simple but the pictures were crude and measured only about S X 3 inches. They were received by several meteorological offices in the United Kingdom and also by an airship in flight, but interest was not maintained and the transmissions ceased after a relatively short trial. A reproduction of one of these early charts was shown by Watson Watt in a Symons Memorial Lecture to the Royal Meteorological Society on 2oth March 1929 (Q.J.R. Met. S . Vol. SS, p. 27s) .

The idea of the transmission of pictures by t elegraphy goes right back to r843 when Alexander Bain was granted a British patent for an "auto­matic electro-chemical recording tele-

WMO Bulletin

graph". Bain's work was followed by Bake well and in r865 an Italian, Giovanni Caselli, operated the first commercial facsimile service between Paris and Lyons. Later in the century many developments were suggested by workers in several countries as fresh applications such as the selenium cell and photographic technique be­came possible. In rgo3 Dr. Korn

produced a system of transmitting photographic copy which incorporated many of the improvements developed by previous workers, and, shortly after, Belin in France demonstrated his system. By rgro a wirephoto circuit was in existence between Lon­don, Paris and Berlin and in rgzz the first picture was sent by cable from London to New York. Much experi­mental work followed in America leading to the introduction of the first commercial transatlantic radio­photo circuit four years later.

Recent developments

It was during World War II that facsimile transmissions came to be

31

January 1954

used fairly extensively for meteorolog­ical purposes by the US Air Weather Service and US Navy involving the installation of many long distance circuits for the exchange of synoptic charts compiled in widely separated areas. The equipment was mostly in the form of transceivers (i.e. the same machine could be used either as a transmitter or a receiver), giving a

Facsimile Recorder. (Full size picture is

18 X 22".)

Courtesy Muirhead & Go

picture size of rz x r8 inches. The apparatus could be used for photo­graphic recording or for direct recording on Teledeltos paper; each map required zo minutes for transmission. At the present time a very extensive network exists in the USA.

During and immediately after World War II no other meteorological services could draw on sufficient funds to enable experimentation into facsimile technique to be undertaken, but by 1947 some European countries had been able to initiate limited trials which demonstrated the urgent necessity for some measure of international stan­dardization if the full benefits of the exchange of maps between countries

WMO Bulletin

was to be secured in the future. The question was discussed in much detail at a meeting in Stockholm in April 1949 of the IMO Region VI Sub­Commission for Transmission of Weather Information when, as a result of collaboration between meteorologists and technical communications advisers, a list of certain desiderata was com­piled, the intention being to enable manufacturers interested in develop­ment work to know the chief require­ments. From the meteorological point of view it was stressed that continous recording (as with a teleprinter) is necessary because of limitations of available personnel; also in view of the fact that the types of map required to be disseminated fall roughly into two categories -line drawing (e.g. isobars, contours, etc.) which do not require high definition, and larger­scale plotted maps, it was recommended that apparatus should be designed to be capable of operating at more than one speed. At a subsequent meeting of the sub-commission held in Paris in February 1952, the requirements were revised and mention was made of suggested indices of co-operation for apparatus designed for meteorological purposes.

Technical requirements

In order to secure successful inter­working it is essential that the index of co-operation, the direction of scan and the speed of rotation of the transmitter drum and the drum (or other scanning device such as a helix) of a receiver shall be identical. The index of co-operation is defined inter­nationally as the product of the diameter of the drum and the number of lines scanned per unit of length. Various indices of co-operation have been adopted at international meetings in the past to suit different non­meteorological requirements. Amongst

32

January 1954

these are 352 (CCIT, Bern, 1930) 440, 528 and 984.

For handling the average meteoro­logical chart, a drumhaving a diameter of about 6 inches is convenient. A drum much smaller would not accom­modate a chart covering a sufficiently large area, whilst the employment of a much larger drum would involve a large increase in manufacturing costs both for transmitters and recorders. As regards definition, about 100 lines per inch has come to be regarded by meteorologists familiar with facsimile apparatus as meeting most require­ments. A greater number unduly reduces the speed of transmission whilst a lesser number renders it necessary to make special boldly­plotted synoptic charts to ensure good legibility over radio circuits where interference and multi-path effects have to be taken into account. Fur­thermore since a number of meteoro­lo!jical facsimile transmissions were (and are) already being made using appa­ratus with 6-inch drums and 96 lines/ inch (i. e. an index of co-operation of 576), the first proposal was that this should be recommended to CCIT (International Telegraph Consultative Committee) as a standard for meteor­ological facsimile transmissions. There are, however, other considerations, including compatibility with existing non-meteorological equipment, which are felt by some services to have an important bearing on the subject of the best index of co-operation, and at the present time opinion is divided on the relative merits of adopting sz8 or 576. Transmissions made with appa­ratus having index of co-operation of 576, if received on a recorder having the same drum size as the transmitter but designed for an index of sz8, would lead to a distortion of the picture of 9 % in one direction. Although devices might be adopted by meteor­ologists to mitigate the effects of this,

WMO Bulletin

or equipment could be produced to operate on more than one index of co-operation, standardization on one particular index is obviously desirable if it can be achieved. Further discus­sions are necessary and these could well take place between the appropriate study group of CCIT and a WMO Working Group on Meteorological

-11'1/

So";'

-1-

January 1954

m1sswns by land-lines where these exist to major airports, for example, and by radio for interception at more remote airfields and by ships at sea. The required characteristics of land­lines is a matter for further discussion but it may be said that to make the best use of the latest available equip­ment, circuits require to be equalized

500 mb chart of the J apan area for 0300 GMT 5 December I953-Received at Dunstable, England at o848 GMT 5 December I953 by direct radio

interception of YOKOSUKA (NDT) /J apan on 9427 kcfs.

Transmissions. At the present time only a small number of machines specially designed for meteorological purposes work on an index of sz8.

Transmissions can of course be made either by land-line or radio and may be on a point-to-point basis or broad­cast. Requirements of different meteor­ological services will vary according to the territory which has to be covered and the availability of lines and radio equipment. In some cases it might be profitable to make simultaneous trans-

33

to about 3000 cycles per second. Landline networks of course afford privacy, obviate the necessity for using radio frequencies and enable transmissions to be made with com­plete freedom from blemishes caused by interference or multipath effects. An amplitude modulated carrier is normally used for transmissions by land-line, but for radio working a form of frequency modulation is generally employed which mitigates the adverse effects of variation in signal strength due to fading. At the present time

WMO Bulletin

carrier-shift modulation is adopted for meteorological radio facsimile trans­missions made by US agencies whilst those from UK use sub-carrier fre­quency modulation. The former results in a somewhat greater signaljnoise ratio whilst the latter has some operat­ing advantages especially where the equipment is used by non-technical personnel. However, convertors are available which enable either form of transmission to be taken by simple switching. Tests have shown that a degree of radio interference which would render morse W j T or radio­teleprinter signals so garbled as to be worthless for plotting purposes, often does not prevent an intelligible picture being received by facsimile. The picture is marred by strong horizontal lines but the configuration of isobars, contours etc. can be picked out without difficulty. Indeed, cases have occurred in near black-out conditions when fac­simile charts have been received across the Atlantic when no information at all was received by any other radio circuits.

Meteorological applications

There can be but little doubt that a great future lies ahead for the exchange by facsimile of meteorological data - especially processed or semi­processed data. The meteorologist's tools are charts of isobars and fronts, aerological diagrams, contour charts, thickness charts etc. To transmit these by selecting points on lines, coding the positions of the selected points, sending the message by Tj P or W jT, decoding and plotting at the receiving station and then joining the selected points by lines is a laborious undertaking and is liable to give results which differ from the original to such an extent that derived informa­tion, e.g. upper wind direction and speed, may be in error to a dangerous

34

January 1954

extent. The use of facsimile for this type of traffic not only reduces the number of operations involved, result­ing in speedier working and an economy of effort, but also ensures that the recipient is provided with a faithful reproduction of the original chart . Facsimile can be used, of course, for the transmission of cross-section charts or flight forecasts charts required for aviation, and for sending any written of printed matter. Also, there is no problem in receiving a distant radio­fax transmission and relaying selected pictures by land-line to certain reci­pients. As regards the dissemination of basic data (coded s-figure groups), provided that the whole of the scanned area is used, it is possible with present day equipment to transmit about three times as many groups per minute by facsimile as by teleprinter and seven times as much as by hand-morse W j T. It is not, however, generally convenient or practicable to cover the whole of the scanned area with data and so this speed is unlikely to be attained in the normal way. Assuming however that only 6o % of the picture area is used, the transmission of basic data could be speeded up considerably, and over good circuits, using a drum speed of rzo r.p.m. it would seem reasonable to suppose that one facsimile channel might in certain cases give service equivalent to two teleprinter channels with teleprinters operating at 50 bauds.

Modern continuously-recording r8-inch recorders occupy no more table­space than a teleprinter, require less maintenance and are much less noisy. Some incorporate automatic stop-start mechanism, an obvious advantage in meteorological offices which cannot be continuously-manned. For example, a forecaster coming on day-duty can have displayed before him the mid­night, 0300 and o6oo GMT charts as analysed by a central headquarters. News has been received that Canada will soon have a large network of

WMO Bulletin

stations using facsimile apparatus based on the specification developed at the 1949 meeting of the RA VI Sub­commission and capable of automa­tically making all operational setting­up adjustments, including phasing, setting signal level, running off a few inches of paper, recording a trans­mission and reverting to the stand-by condition without manual assistance. The illustration shows one of these recorders. A full-size picture is 18 x 22 inches and at 120 r.p.m. this can be transmitted in approximately 17 mi­nutes.

The technicalities of facsimile work­ing are intriguing ; co-operation be-

DEATH OF DR. L. F. RICHARDSON

L F. Richardson, D. Se., F.R.S., • who for many years was an active

member of the IMO Commission for the Exploration of the Upper Atmosphere, died at his home in Scotland on 30 Sep­tember 1953. Although he had largely severed his connection with meteoro­logy for many years, Dr. Richardson will long be remembered as a pioneer in numerical weather forecasting and in atmospheric turbulence. The appear­ance of his book Weather Prediction by Numerical Process in 1922 marked the climax of many years of original research and the full value of his work has only recently been fully appre­ciated.

For the past r5 years Dr. Richardson spent his life in developing a completely new field of investigation, a mathe-

35

January 1954

tween meteorological and communica­tions personnel will lead to optimum results wherever the technique is employed. To quote the words of Recommendation 39 of the Com­miSSIOn for Synoptic Meteorology, Washington, April 1953, there is no doubt that, with modern apparatus, "facsimile is an extremely effective means of communication for meteor­ology, permitting even in its present stage of development, improvements in meteorological services, complete accuracy of material transmitted, and a certain amount of economy".

C. V. OcKENDEN.

matical and psychological analysis of the causes of war. Many meteorologists may wonder with regret what further advances would have been made if he had continued with his meteorological investigations, but posterity may well decide that his war analysis is of even greater significance.

UGGI GENERAL ASSEMBLY

THE next General Assembly of the International Union of Geodesy

and Geophysics will be held in Rome from 14 to 29 September 1954. The provisional programme for the meeting of the International Association of Meteorology is as follows :

Atmospheric electricity. The mete­orology of the mesosphere: (1) rocket data (pressure, temperature, winds) ; (2) atmospheric data from meteors ; (3) the meteorological point of view on

WMO Bulletin

observational data in the mesosphere. Problems of tropical meteorology in­cluding the coupling between the circulations of tropical and extra­tropical latitudes. Atmospheric ozone and circulation in the lower strato­sphere (below so km) and the sub-

NOTES ON THE LIBRARY

A well-documented library is an important part of any scientific

organization, not least of the Technical Division of the WMO. At the time the Technical Division was set up, the library was not very well provided with meteorological textbooks and periodicals, but, thanks to the assist­ance of many meteorological services, this situation has now been remedied. We would particularly like to mention contributions from the following coun­tries :

Argentine, Australia, Belgium, British East Africa, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Malaya, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, United King­dom, U. S. A.

In addition to these countries, many others, such as Canada, France, Japan and Norway, have contributed in the past, and are continuing to do so, by sending copies of their publications as they appear.

During the past few months the library has been completely re-organiz­ed, the main change being the adop­tion of the universal decimal classifi­cation. A large quantity of material relating to other international organiz­ations has been transferred to the External Affairs Section of the Secre-

36

January 1954

stratosphere. Progress of studies in meridional large scale transport pheno­mena. Numerical methods in dynamic and synoptic meteorology. Radiation balance in the lower stratosphere (below so km) and the substratosphere. Radiation in the atmosphere.

tariat. This work has been carried out under the supervision of Miss J. Thieme, who joined the International Meteoro­logical Organization in 1930.

With the funds available, the Orga­nization is able to buy a limited number of books and to subscribe to some periodicals for the library. Some of the publications required are however out of print. Any information that would help the Secretariat to acquire the follo­wing books would be gratefully received :

H ydrodynamique physique avec appli­cation a la meteorologie dynamique, by V. Bjerknes, J. Bjerknes, H . Solberg and T. Bergeron. Vol. I. Paris, Les Presses Universitaires de France, c. 1934·

Atmospharische Turbulenz, by Lettau. Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft, Leip­zig, 1939.

Lehrbuch der Meteorologie, Hann-Sii­ring. Lieferung I - S, 7, 8. S. Hirzel, Leipzig.

Report of International Meteorological Conference, Brussels, r8S3·

Handbuch der Klimatologie, by Koppen and Geiger.

Handbuch der Meteorologischen Instru­mente, by Kleinschmidt.

WMO Bulletin

RECENT WMO PUBLICATIONS

Commission for Aerology : A bridged Final R eport of the First

Session. WMO - No. 18. RP. 8. Pp. 101. Price : Sw. fr. 3.-

This publication follows the normal lines of abridged final reports of sessions of technical commissions. The conclusions reached on each agenda item are briefly described in the general summary. Some decisions which did not give rise to recommend­ations and resolutions are dealt with in more detail in an annex containing selected extracts from the minutes. The full text is given of the 12 resol­utions and 36 recommendations which were adopted during the session. The annex to Recommendation 14 contains alternative formats for publications containing results of upper air observ­ations which were subsequently recom­mended by the Executive Committee for general use by meteorological services.

Commission for Instruments and Me­thods of Observation :

Abridged Final Report of the First Session.- WMO- No. 19. RP.g. Pp. 134. Price : Sw. fr. 3.-

As usual this report includes the agenda, list of documents, general summary of the work of the session and the complete text of the resolutions and recommendations adopted. Par­ticular attention is called to the annexes to Recommendations g, ro and II which contain the International Barometer Convention, the procedure for calculating the theoretical value of local acceleration of gravity, the pro­cedures for determining local acceler­ation of gravity and the approved method of converting existing baro­metric data to the basis of the Inter­national Barometer Convention. All these recommendations were approved

37

January 1954

by the Executive Committee. Another comprehensive annex (to Recommend­ation 36) details a statistical method for handling data obtained in radio­sonde comparisons.

World Distribution of Thunderstorm Days : Part I : Tables. WMOj OMM -No. zr. TP. 6. Price: Sw. fr. g.-

As reported in an earlier issue of the Bulletin (Vol. II, No. 3, p. 87), the Technical Division of the Secretariat has assembled a large quantity of statistical data received from meteor­ological services all over the world relating to thunderstorm days. It is intended that this information, which refers primarily to land stations, shall be used, together with marine data, in the preparation of charts showing the average monthly, seasonal and annual world distribution of thunder­storms. By international agreement, a thunderstorm day is defined as a local calendar day on which thunder is heard, regardless of the actual number of thunderstorms occurring on that day. When a storm begins before midnight and ends after mid­night, two thunderstorm days are recorded. As marine observations refer mainly to " lightning seen", however, it will be necessary to bring the marine data into line with that for land stations before such world charts can be compiled.

Part I of the publication which has just been issued gives the raw material relating to thunderstorm days for land stations as supplied by meteorological services ; no attempt has been made to supplement or adjust the figures on the basis of climatological knowledge. The details given for each station include the latitude, longitude and height, and the average number of thunderstorm days for each month, for the seasons and for the whole year ; the number

WMO Bulletin

of years on which the means are based is also stated. The stations are listed under their respective countries, which in turn are grouped into the six WMO Regions.

Bibliographie Meteorologique Interna­tionale. Annee I952. OMM - No.IJ. TP. 5· Fascicule I. Pp. 213. Fasci­cule II. Pp. z6g. Price (each) : Sw. fr. zo.-

These are the first two volumes of the Bibliographie Meteorologique Inter­nationale to be published by the WMO Secretariat in accordance with deci­sions of Congress and the Executive Committee. Earlier volumes were pub­lished by the French Meteorological Service, which also prepared all the material for the rgsz bibliography ; the volumes for the last two quarters of r gsz will be published in due course. As pointed out on page 4, the Executive Committee has asked the President of the Commission for Bibliography and Publications to make proposals for future issues.

The information in the bibliography is given in the order of the interna­tional decimal classification . All the entries give the title of the paper, the author and details of the publication in which it is contained, while in some

Meteorological I nstruments. By ·w. E . K. iVIIDDLETON and A. F. SPILHAUS. Third Edition. - R evised . Toronto (University Press) 1953· Pp. 286; 192 figures. Price:

11.50.

The earlier editions of this book are too well known to meteorologists throughout the world to need any introduction ; the

38

January 1954

cases a brief abstract is given. An index arranged alphabetically accord­ing to the name of the author is in­cluded.

Fourth Session of the Executive Com­mittee : A bridged report with resolu­tions. WMO - No. zo. R C. 5. Pp. rzo. Price : Sw. fr. 3.50

The previous reports of sessions of the Executive Committee have been limited to the texts of the resolutions adopted, but this new publication con­tains in addition the agenda, a list of those participating, a summary of the session and a general index. A list of the resolutions adopted by the Execut­ive Committee in its first three sessions and a draft agenda for the Second WMO Congress are included as an­nexes.

It should be pointed out that, to avoid unnecessary duplication, some of the resolutions which give formal approval to recommendations from the technical commissions do not contain the full t ext of these recommenda­tions ; for example, anybody wishing to obtain full details of the new synoptic codes is referred to the Abridged Final Report of the First Session of the Commission for Synoptic Meteorology.

chief interest in this third revised edition, in the preparation of which lVIr. Middleton was assisted by Dr. A. F. Spilhaus, therefore lies in the 50 odd pages of new material.

As might be expected, the chief additions relate to upper-air instruments ; a new sec­tion covers the m easurem ent of upper winds by radio and radar and the chapter

WMO Bulletin

which dealt with radiosondes and aircraft instrument s has been considerably extended and brought up to date. There is also a completely new chapter entitled Special meteorologicai assemblies and systems which includes mobile and automatic weather stations and contains a glimpse into the · future in a section on the complete weather instrument - a system in which weather intelligence wou\d be handled automatically right from the observations up to the issue of forecasts from an electronic computer ! Elsewhere in the book we find additional information about the use of thermistors, hydrogen generators, controlled-altitude free balloons, sferics equipment, actinographs and the use of various solutions for cali­brating hygrometers .

To cover such a vast subject as meteorolog­ical instruments in a single volume inevitably leads to a rather strict selection of material, and specialists in some of the subjects may be disappointed that recent developments in which they are specially interested have not been mentioned ; for example, a chapter on visibility instruments would no doubt be welcomed by many. It should also be pointed out that most of the instruments described are of American, British or Cana­dian origin.

Nevertheless, the authors have achieved an excellent balance in their treatment and there can be no doubt that this third edition will be of great value to professional meteo­rologists and to other scientists interested in meteorological measurements.

O.M.A.

Wir plaudern uns durch das Wetter (vVeather talks). By HEINZ PANZRAM, Stuttgart (K. Thienemanns Verlag) 1953 . Pp. 66; 73 illustrations. Price: DM 4 .90.

January 1954

This is a book intended fo r school children b ut grown-ups interested in the weather will en joy the 73 illustrations and the easily understood text. It is tempting to criticise the way the author simplifies the problems involved, and the definitions of meteorolog­ical t erms, e. g. pressure reduction, given in a brief glossary are not always sufficiently clear. However, this book answers a real educational need in giving children some idea of the basic principles of meteorology. It is believed that such a book in other languages too would be welcome among teachers and pupils alike.

K. L.

zooo-soo mb. Thickness North America to Eu·rope I946-5I. lvf onthly li'I eans and Extremes ( JYI eteorological Reports No I 3) . London (Her Majesty's Stationery Office) 1953. Pp. 38 ; 36 maps. Price : zs 6d .

The report under review presents in carto­graphica l form the mean and extreme values of thickness patterns of the lower half of the atmosphere over a large part of the northern hemisphere. Vi' hile the maps will un­doubtedly be of value, it is p erhaps to be regretted that little attempt is made to interpret them and explain their uses. The idea to publish m ean climatic patterns is excellent and can be best fulfilled when the parameters chosen are fit for use as an effective tool to improve our understanding of the behaviour of the atmosphere. Some­times certain parameters and techniques are developed and subsequently emphasized to a greater extent than others. Mean thickness patterns should not, standing by them­selves, be given undue prominence within the whole range of statistical climatic para­meters which atmospheric measurement can give.

A. H . G.

CALENDAR OF CO MING EVENTS World M eteoro/()glcal Organizat1'on

15 June 1954 - zst Session of Commission for Aeronautical Meteorology, Montreal, Canada.

August/September 1954 - 5th Session of Executive Committee, Geneva, Switzerland. (provisional) Other international organizations

9 February 1954 - 4th ICAO Cnnference on North Atlantic Ocean Weather Stations, Paris, France , 8-rB February 1954 - roth Session of United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East.

4 May 1954 17·22 May 1954

Kandy, Ceylon. - 7th World Health Assembly, Geneva, Switzerland. - United Nations Regional Conference for the development of water resources,

Tokyo, J apan.

39

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