Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-11

BOSTON, January 1O.-fS Especially Of
the greatest Of the unsolved problems of
meteorology Is concerned with the perma-
nent circulation of the atmosphere, es-
pecially. In the higher reaches at attitudes
greater than 1900 feet. The surface
currents, including the steady trade winds
Of the tropics, have. been pretty thor
oughly studied; but Just what takes.
place In the upper air has still been rath-
er guessed at than discovered. In the
tropics on either side of the equator there
are supposed to be great anti-trade cur
rents flowing above the trade winds and
In al, opposite direction, while IN the
North Temperate zone peculiar conditions
of: temperature and direction OF air cur
rents have been discovered that have led
! many scientists to conjecture, that great
masses of warm air rise about the equa-E
tor and roll off in constantly descending
and cooling streams toward the two
poles.
In support Of such q. hypothesis the
scientists bring forward the we'll estab-
lishcd fact that the air does not grow
steadily colder at the rate of one degree
| Fahrenheit for every S3z feet of vertical
| ascent, as we were taught In our physical
geogra plies at school, but that there are
| warm strata even up in the region Of
eternal cold. This phenomenon has been
iments at the Blue Hill Observatory, the
meteorological station of Harvard Uni
versity, situated little south Of Boston.
! In the opinion Of most authorities. how
ever. the problem Of SUCH seeming ir
regularities can DO settled only in q.
| manner proposed by Mr.. a. Lawrence
Rotch, the director at Blue Hill, who was
able, moreover, at the recent meeting: in
| Washington Of the American Association
"a -
sent definite proposition from the Ger
| man government for International CO.
operation in study of meteoric condi tons
in the middle Atlantic about, the equa-
tor.
| The Germans, Mr.. Rotch, then an.
nounced, have agreed to furnish a ship:
equipped Tor a three-months' cruise i'll the
i tropics on condition that American scien-
| tific men provide. the necessary ap-
paratus and pay certain Of the incidental
| expenses. The total cost to the. people
on this side of the water would not ex-
coed $4,000, and although Mr.. Rotch adj
| mits frankly that no one; can foretelf with
! assurance that the results of the eSpedi-
| ton would be, of, commercial. or even
! scientific va1ue-since it is case of ven
| turing into an entirely unexplored
| feld-he is personally confident that: great:
benefit will come to the weather ser
vice Of the whole world if it can be dis
covered accurately just what goes on
above the tropical trade winds.
It is theory Of Mr.. Rotcf1's that be-
tween the trade winds and the a1ati-tradess
! interyenes an interval Of comparatively
still air. This is by no means absolutely
certain, buttit is in accordance with con-
| ditions. discovered in the. kite~dying ex-
perments at Blue Hill Observatory; and.
! if found, 1t will justify Mr.. Rotchs con-
| tention that the most feasible means Of
exploring the higher atmospheric levels
| about the tropics is through use OF kites
| flown from movable base
It is indeed upon the kite that. the.
/ American scientists wisl chiefly rely If
| the proposed expedition takes place;
| though the rubber balloon employed for
/! similar research. by DR.. Assman, Of Ber-.
| lin. will also undoubtedly be used. The
limitations of. the: balloon, however. are
so manifest that it:WiN scarcely supplant
the "Hargraye" and Hanson high
hiers. It can be- sent to: great heights,
but it cannot be- maintained there for
| purposes of CONTINUOUS observation. Fur
ther1nore. the hunt for the meteorological
instruments which are released from 1t
| by parachutes-over; a circle Of 20 or 80
miles radius-is am annoying feature Of
| the sport on land, and will be likely to
| constitute a very serious objection by.
! sea. As for the paper balloons which the
French meteoroogists still use their case
| is even worse; they do not burst, like the
: German balloon, on attaining certain
altitude. but drop slowly. drifting some
times 100 miles before they finally reach
earth.
Over both these methods, therefore, the
! kite has decided advantages. Kites have
been sent to. the height of three miles
at the Blue Hill Observatory, and by
working from a movable base. Mr.. Rotch
is confident that he can go higher yet,
for the most serious drawback in flights
from the land is that above the surface
! winds one ordinarily encounters deep
strata of stagnant air through which the
kite will not rise. By utilizing the on
ward pull of a moving vessel 1t has. been
shown that the kite can be drawn through
this quiescent layer into the next windy
tract. further advantage is that if the
direction of this upper current proves to.
be opposite to that Of the surface wind