170
Stations
Julianehaab, Qreenland ___.______.
Reykjavik, Iceland-. .__ ____..._._
Lerwick. Shetland Islands .-...-.-
Valencia, Ireland __.._._._._______. Lisbon, Portugal _____________.___
Madeira ____________._____________
Horta, Azores ____._______________
Belle Isle. Newfoundland _________ Halifax. Nova Scotia ______________ Nantucket ____._._.---____________
Hatteras __________________________ Bermuda ___________._____________
Turks Island. _._._._____________
Key West ________._______________
New Orleans _______--________-__-
MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW
WEATHER OF THE ATLANTIC AND PACIFIC OCEANS
[The Marine Division, W. F. MCDONALD. in charge]
-4verage pressure
Inches
29.69
29. 68
29.84
30.09
30.04
30.04
30.25
29.85
29.99
29.99
30.00
30.13
29.99
29.93
29.95
NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN
By H. C. HUNTER
Atmospheric pressure.-The northern and extreme
western portions of the North Atlantic area, also the
Gulf of Mexico, had average pressure below normal in May 1934, the departure being almost a quarter of an
inch a t Reykjavik, Iceland. The central and eastern
North Atlantic had pressure moderately above normal. The lowest pressure a t any of the selected shore stations during the month was 28.98 inches a t Reykjavik
on the 8th. During the 2 days preceding this, however, a few readings slightly lower than 28.98 inches had been
noted by vessels not far distant from the west coast
of Ireland.
TABLE 1.-Averages, departures, and extremes of atmospheric pres' sure (sea level) at selected stations for the North Atlantic Ocean and
its shores, May 1934
Xghest
--
Inehrs
30.24
30.32
30.42
30.49
30.29
30.27
30.46
30.28
30.44
30.58
30.39
30.32
30.08
30.11
30.20
Datf
23,21
25
11
?!
9
2
1
1
1
14
15
9
1
Depar. ture
Inch
-0.24
+. 04
+. 14
+. 07
+. 03
+. 09
-. 06
+. 02
.oo -. 01
+. 02
-. 01
-. 04
-. 02
-
.._._.
Lowest
~
Inches 29.1s
2x. 9s
29.10
29.24
29.74
29.81
29.94
29.00 29.42
29.52
29.63
29.82
29.86
29.72
29.75
Date
-
7
R 17
li
16
23
w 6
7
7
29
24.25
25,245
26
30
NoTE.--AII data based on a.m. observations only, with departures compiled from best available normals related to tlme of observatlon. except Hatteras, Key West, Nantucket, and New Orleans, which are 24-hour corrected means.
Cyclones and gales.-By the 4th a moderately well-de-
veloped storm was affecting the main steamship lanes near mid-ocean, and on the 6th and 7th this storm at- tained somewhat greater strength near Ireland. This
storm soon drew to northward, however, and ceased to affect the chief steamship routes. The only instance yet
known of a gale of force 11 in Atlantic waters this month
was connected With this storm, the German steamship Berlin encountering winds of that force late on the 6th. The next period when several vessels encountered gales
occurred about the 18th, when a LOW from the Lake
region united with a small LOW that originated a t lower latitudes over the Atlantic, causmg fresh to whole gales
in regions south and east of Newfoundland on that day
and the 19th.
MAY 1934
A minor disturbance attained moderate strength near
the south Atlantic coast of the United States about the 27th and a few steamers reported fresh to strong gales in
that area. This storm had inany characteristics of a tropical hurricane as it moved inland over South Carolina on hfay 29.
Fog.-hfany parts of the North Atlantic had an in- crease of fog, compared with April, particularly areas to
northward of the 40th parallel, between the 45th meridian
and Europe. On the whole, there was even more fog than norinally occurs during Rfny along the chief routes
to northern Europe, also near the American coast north
of Cape Hatteras. The region of greatest frequency was the 5' square between 40' and 45' north, 45' and 50'
west, where fog was reportecl on 21 days. The periods from tbe 8th to 10th and 19th to 23d had least fog in this vicinity.
As a rule, the region between the 50th and 65th merid- ians experienced somewhat less fog near the steamship lanes than is normal for hfsy, but in areas from south-
western Nova Scotia to tlie vicinity of Hatteras, some 5'
squares had 15 days with fog, which is more than nornial
for the month. Here fog was present frequently during the first 5 and tlie last 5 days of hlsy, also from the 14th
to the 23d, inclusive. During the 3d and 4th the fog led to two collisions and one grounding near the north and middle Atlantic
coasts, but fortunately none of these had serious results.
On the forenoon of the 15th, however, the British liner Olyinpic, from Southampton to New York, ran into and sank the Nantucket Shoals lightship, wit) loss of 7 of the
crew of 11 on the lightship.
Dust ut sea.-On h h y 11, when n t most places in the
North and Middle Atlantic States fine dust was percepti-
ble in the air, the British steamship Boston City, from
Fowey for Boston, reported fine powder or dust noted about 6 p.m., the vessel then being about 140 miles east
of the entrance to Boston Harbor. Transatlantic $ights.-There were two flights over the
North Atlantic. Capt. George Pond and Lieut. Cesare
Sabelli crossed from Floyd Bennett airfield to near
L a h c h , Irish Free State, m about 33 hours, on the 14th and 15th. The conditions over the ocean on the 14th are
presented in chart VIII. Lieut. Maurice Rossi, with Paul Codos as companion,
flew from Paris to New Pork in about 39 hours on the 26th to 28th. The weather situation of May 27 is shown by
chart IS.