New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-01-01
SCIENCE FOR THE PEOPLE.
THE WORLDS RAINFALL.

Ia an article ON rainfall ~ The AWCricoH
JOHrB OF Science ioI January, Professor Elias
Looms, whose writings on mete0TOiO-y rank
b!m a. one 0i the highest AMT oTiur> no this
compar lively now field. gives ~ 4 "e'ng.T
valuable table of the mean annual uuni2ll 10
Il3 stations scattered over tie globe. The
ta'ie Includes the name of the station. ITS
elevation above sea level in feet, it, latitude
and longitude, the number II Years owe. NhlcL
She observations have extended. the rainfall DE-
lncho and Oh authority for the facts ,.at,d
Uni Die Is divided into eight groups oassI-
fed according to the amount Of the rainfall.
The wettest portion OF the globe seem, 10 be
ChcupUnU m Assam where the mean annual
fall for over sixteen years reaches the enormous
I'pth OF 4H2i2 inches ur upward OF SKI" lcti
rather more than half Of ;Ha quantity failing
in the months Of june and july. AZ several
point, il Chill and Pc d, also in Northern
Africa, no rainfall Is recorded.
The following are given as the principal
causes OF excessive rainfall !. DE mteun- Oh
the northeast and southeast trade winds result
lng IN % great Taln-Hclt surrounding the giobe
> The irregular blromctric dcVre,,lOns oil tHe
middle ATTITUDES. The average TRACES 81 great
barOmctric dcDrCsSOns Is not Is distinctly
marked by al excess # rainfall a. might he
expected nevertheless storm tIadh> EXHIBIT
tendency to incline toward district where tHt
rainfall Is unusually great, az, New IOuhdldh0'
Iceland, coast of Norway, North italy, etc.. ..
Mountain ranges causing increased rain ] on
the side from which the prevalent w. pro
CCcUS. !. PROXIMITY 10 Thc ocean, lrp'''ldIS
when the pre- Valrut wind comes from the ocean.
e.g., Western Europe; eastern coast OF SCUM
America, Africa and Australia. .. tapca ana
hcadiandS projecting CONSIDERABLY INTO the ocean
generally receive z It"r rainfall than neigh
boring districts. e., pc lIattcra> New ouud-
land, south est coast of Ireland and England,
Cape OF Gopd Hope, etc.
The causes of def cent rainfall are thus
summed up: /. a ncarll uniform direction o!
the wind, throughout the year. such a. prevails
within % portion oi the ~'..tm Ct the trade
winds. especially IN mld-ocrau, and to some
extent over the continents e.. T.. Ascension
Island. the Sahara, southern California, south
Africa and Australia .. The prevalent wind.
having passed over range % elevated moan
taIL~, dc~cruds upon the lreWnrd SIDE OK,
desert Of Cobb. Iartary, Cain. North America
east of the Rock. Mountain $, central portion "l
Spain. etc. j. Ranges of mJura'lu~ So situated
o., ro ob~truCt the free movement OF the surface
winds toward central region; q. r.. or~'r, Oh
cobb. Iart.it, southern California, Salamanca
u spain, c,C. J. Erm1fca,s- from ihr ocean
measured I'm th" direction from which the
prevalent Wl@d proceeds. There is marked
dImuuJion lnr the mean annual rainfall TO- We
advance eastward from Western Europe. >.I--
liar effect rs uoricrai,.a lu many oIh,, Uirie oi
thr world uut Do . generally ,ouauca'ed 1L tae
combinations of other CI'-D-. 1. lI-h l.''-
tuGe Beyond a.. parable. OF Gu n. id.tauc.
.- 70 lttl. distance from the ocean, t'r 100
annual 4.nIa. seldom mech exceeds .rn
inches: and there are apparently regions oi
great extent lr Asia ANA No.,n America Where
tine annual rainfall is less tuln ten inches.