The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1885-03-18
OUR WEATHER PROPHETS
nRAwYwn OFFICIAL oBBuRvATToNs
AND PRBDxCTroNs.

by Congress TO make these observers
amenable TO military discipline by en-
listing them in the signal corps Of the
army. The wisdom of this measure, 1t
is claimed by the officers of the service,
is amply proven by the clock-work pre-
cision with which each man performs
his duty. Three times daily, at in
tervals of eight hours, is he noting the
reading of his instruments: First, the
weight of the elastic force of the atmos-
phere as shown by the barometer; sec
pnd, the relative humidity OF per cent Of
moisture contained in the air, as de-
Eermined by the hygrometer; third, the
lelocity, force and direction of the
wind, as per thermometer; and lastly,
the kind, amount and direction OF
clouds, and amount of rainfall. For the
purpose of brevity this is reduced to
cypher form, and within thirty minutes
from the time the first instrument is read
the full observation IS received by tele-
graph at the Office of the chief signal
officer in this city.
These observation Offices are distributed
Neyer everJ section of the country from
F1oridafe Oregon. They record their
observations at exactly the same moment
CWashington time1. Therefore when re-
ceived at headquarters and their facts
and figures charted upon a map of the
United, States, the chart becomes simple
photograph of the conditions existing in
Che atmosphere at that moment. 1t is
from this chart that the predictions for
the following day are made. BY draw
ing line connecting all stations of the
~ hn Af
lowest barometer is easily located. Moist
air being ligh II than dry, the center of
low barometer becomes the storm center.
This center has no wind direction geo
graphically, the atmosphere moving with
a rotary motion upward and the sur
rounding air being drawn toward the
center. The winds always blow from a
heavy atmospheric pressure toward the
pS9int of least resistance, moving spirally
Inward toward the storm center.
The low area is usually several hum
Sa,& miles in extent. When the storm
is stationary its form is nearly circular,
but when moving eastward its sides are
depressed until it becomes an oval, the
depression being proportionate with its
velocity. | Twenty-four hours is the aver
age time required for a storm to travel
from the Mississippi river to New York,
and nearly the same time from New
York TO Newfoundland.
The preparation of these daily weather
charts enable the students to go back
fourteen years and find complete record
of every storm that has occurred during
that time; where formed, the direction
and velocity with which it travelled
he o1l lao
phenomena attendant upon it from its in
ption to its dissipation. 1t is the ac-
nFacy of these records that has enabled
United States to take the first place
-Ang all nations in the progress made
the science of meteorology; and it is
study of them that enables the indi
on officer of the signal service to de-
the formation OF storm in its in
ICY and to foretell the path it viii
and give warning accordingly.
course of storms is UNIVERSAL,
rd. No storm of the Pacific coas
reaches us, as, in crossing successive
several ranges of mountains inter
", the atmosphere is forced up t.
n elevation that all moisture is con
by cold and it descends the east
ope of the Rocky mountains per
dry air; indeed, so void of all hu
" that hunters cure fresh meat il
middle of summer by simply hang
< it on the limbs OF trees, and the re
.gion for hundred miles east of the hill
is a barren waste.
Many of our severest storms form i
the region just west of the Mississippi
river, pass eastward off the Atlanti
coast, and augmenting in force as the
cross the ocean, continue their cours
over Europe until dissapated by en-
countering some range of mountains. BE
tween July and October the Unitei
States is usually visited by from one t
three heavy storms, which come up froI
the West Indies, crossing the extrem
Southern States in a northeasterly direc
ton, and then following up the coas
violent gales always attend. II is claime
that millions of dollars are annual
saved to shipping interests of the Allan
TIC ports by means of the warnings dis
played by the signal service sewers
hours In advance of these storms.
A cold wave is an immense river of al
flowing from the Arctic regions south
ward through British America, and en-
tering the United States between tn
Rocky mountains and the Great Lakes
when it spreads out East and South. ]
always comes from the same direction
and usually takes about twenty-fou
hours to travel from st. Paul, Mimi. [
New York and Washington, AS III
cold waves come from the Northwest
! would be natural 70 suppose that Ii
warm waves come from the eouatori,
Eregions. But such is not the case The
also come from the Northwest. Whe
observations become more general ovl
the entire world, it is presumed that tn
seeming Inconsistency win be explaine,
Every few years some person sudden
Eains notoriety as a weather prophet
predicting snow or rain several montl
in advance. They usually claim tn
their predictions are based upon son
astronomical influence. The claim IA,
there is any ground for such predictic
is disputed by the best authority. Rel
in no Z