The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-01-13
KITES AIDING SCIENCE
Fine Meteorological Work at Blue
Hill Observatory.
Valuable Experiments Made In Con-
nectfon with Harvard University
Studies of the various Forms of
Clouds - Self-RecordinE Instru-
ments for the Aerial Apparatus.

BOSTON, Jan. 1.-THE Blue Hills. ten
miles to the south of Boston, comprise
the highest elevation of land on the At
lantic Coast between Maine and Florida
The highest point in the range. the Great
Blue Hill. so called. is 535 feet above the
level of the sea. The range is prominent
in the landscape for miles around. The
Indians called it Massachusetts, 1.-The
Great Hills" whence came the name,
originally given by Capt. John Smith. OF
Massachusetts, Bay itself, and afterward
OF the colony, province, and State OF
Massachusetts. 1t is now a part Of the
great metropolitan park system of Boston,
in which it forms the largest, and, in
many respects. most interesting link, in
GLIDING some 4.5O0 acres of picturesque.
constantly varying woodland and hill.
matched only, If at all. by the great sea-
shore park at Revere Beach.
Here, on the summit of the Great
Blue" is the Blue Hill Meteorological
Observatory. maintained by Mr. A. Law
renee Rotch, of this city, as q station Of
the Astronomical Observatory of Harvard
University. 1t was founded privately in
1855 by Mr. Rotch, and since then it has
been supported entirely from his pirate
means at total cost Of nearly 100000
but in 1899 it was transferred, by lease
of the land on which it stands, TO the gen.
eral care OF the Harvard astronomical de-
partment in the publications OF which the
records of its investigations since 1887
form a part or the whole OF four large
volumes, making an interesting counter
part to the records of the lofty mountain
meteorological stations maintained by the
Harvard Observatory In Peru. Mr..
Rotch's work as director continues as be
fore. with the continuance also OF his own
personal staif-inciuding at the present
time Mr. H. Helm Clayton, meteoroiogist;
NJ. S. p. Ferguson, meehanioian tan i'm
portant position in an observatory where
novel experiments call constantly for new
and specially devised apparatus), and Mr..
A. f. Sweetland, observer.
The work of the Blue Hill Observatory
has been notable and interesting in many
ways. With the exception OF the munich
pal observatory in New York, it was the
first in the country TO be equipped with
Instruments which recorded graphically
and continuously all the meteorological ell
ements-except the form and motion of
clouds-uzually observed at a station of
the first order. Commencing with 1885.
hourly values as indicated by these in
struments were printed for the year. The
secondar! stations. like the main obseT
vatory equipped with self-recorGing in
struments. have been maintained. almost
from the beginning. lower down on the
hill and in the valley. at attitudes respec-
lively of so and 210 feet above sea level.
And for many years tho observatory has
Cd frrTT nF ft.a -oyfpa
forms of clouds. The first series of measS
urement in America OF the height any
velocity OF clouds, by trigonometrical and
other methods. was made here in fs9G-'9l,
ard the measurements we're repeated six
years later as a part Of an international
system.
But to the popular Imagination the
most interesting thing done at Blue Hill
is the kite-flying-the exploration OF the
free air. as it is more scientifically called.
by means of self-recording instruments
attached to kites. In this the Blue Hill
Observatory was tie pioneer, and its
methods have been widely adopted for
meteorological observation. Kites have
been used for many years, to be sure, for
scientific purposes. as everyone who re-
calls Benjamin Franklin's famous expert
ment viii know. In 1T49, three years be-
fore that celebrated fight, however, two
Scottish scientists had raised thermome-
tiers into the clouds by the same means.
During the first part of the nineteenth
century the same use of kites for as
pertaining the temperature in the free air
was made by various European investi-
gators; and, In 1870. Espy. in this coun-
try, employed kites to verify his calcu-
lations OF the height of clouds
Modern kite-hying for scientific pur-
I'll n
1888, when Douglas Archibald. in England
fastened to the kite wire thermometers,
which registered totaI-as distinguished
from continuously recorded-wind move
ments, and so obtained differential meas
ures of the wind velocity at heights up
to zoe feet On Blue Hill Itself, in 1885,
Mr.. Alexander McAdie. now OF the
Weather Bureau, repeated Franklln's
electrical experiment. using, however,
the modern electrometer instead of Frank
Inns primitive key; and in 1891 and 1892
he measured simultaneously the electric
potential at the base of Blue Hill. on the
hill, and, with kites as collectors, sew
eral hundred feet above the hill top. About
the same time German (WeberJ made a
more extensive use Of kites TO collect at
mospheric electricity.
But the man who is naturally thought
Of as the person who really popularized
the scientific use OF kites is Mr. William
A. EDDY. Of Bayonne. n. ]. He introduced
the novel form which took the place. for
scientists. of the common kite OF child
hood. and was perhaps the first to sug-
ge5t the use Of kites to obtain data for
forecasting the weather. In August, 1894
Mr.. Eddy. at the invitation Of Mr.. Rotch.
brought his kites-which he was then fly
ing tandem for the sake OF greater steadi-
ness and power-to Blue Hill and with
them lifted a thermogrsph. which was
partly reconstructed OF aluminium so that
II weighed only two and a quarter pounds
10 the height Of 600 feet. where the ear
lest automatic record Of temperature was
obtained by means Of a kite. Next sum
mer Mr.. Eddy was back again in Boston
TO assist in further experiments at the
Blue Hin Observatory, and at this time
secured from his kites number Of the
'hlrdseye" photographs which have since
become so well known.
By this time the possibility OF real
scientific results from kite flying was
proved, but Mr.. Rotch and his assis' ants
have had many difficulties to overcome
before attaining the present comparative
perfection of the kite and the instru-
ments attached to IL. Mr.. Eddy has used
a tailless kite. presenting. aside from its
pockets" convex surface to the wind
At Blue Hill the kite now used. in tan
dems OF two to six. is commonly the Har-
grave box kite. as modified by Mr.. Clay
ton, which had originally been devised
for aeronautical experiment in Australia
Steadiness, power. and. for a kite, a sat
isfaetory degree of reliability are its use
full characteristics. simple form of
this kite has been introduced on the mar
ket by manufacturer as toy. and is
well known as the Blue Hill box kite"
from its place OF origin. But the modified
KIor-o L H..