The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1905-03-14
HOW WEATHER REPORTS ARE
MADE.
(By Prof. Joseph Rea.)

Weather bureaus include the gov.
ernment Offices maintained by all civ.
ilized nations for the systematic OBJ
servation of the weather from day
to day and the predictions of what
may follow these observations Many
fore weather predictions were consid.
cred practicable or even possible.
Weather tables as published on cal
endars and in almanacs were not
thought of until the weather bureaus
had recorded valuable truth regarding
storms, but there is no established
law of storms which forms any basis
| for predicting storms and changes
! of weather years in the future, as
in astromical tables.
The original object of the weather
| bureaus was the collection of climat-
ic statistics for the description of the
country and the study of agriculture,
disease, and other vital phenomena
Some OF these bureaus were estab-
lished early in the fifties of the last
century. The bureau was the out.
growth of the daily bulletins furn.
ished to the leading newspapers by
telegraph companies.
1t was not until after the civil war
that the system was placed on a firm
basis through the influence and as
sistance of the Smithsonian Insti-
tute, which had well developed sys.
TEN of daily maps and statistics COM
piled and published in its reports.
About 1872 the weather bureau be-
came world wide institution, and
the first exhibition of the workings
of the bureau was at the centennial
exposition of 1876. Over one hun
dred and fifty stations are now es.
tablished in the United States, a num-
Der throughout southern British
America, and also in the West Indies.
At eight a. IN. and eight p. m,
Washington time, observations are
made of the condition of the weather
whether clear, cloudy, or partly
cloudy, the temperature, the direction
and the velocity of the wind, the
barometric pressure, and the amount
of precipitation, for the twelve hours
preceding. In few minutes a cipher
report is in the care of the telegraph
operator at the station, the wires are
in control of the weather bureau for
a few minutes, the reports trans
mitted to Washington City, the sta
tistics tabulated and a complete re-
IN hA arf, ,tn
where the weather map Is printed
and by II a. m. is in the mails for
distribution to the subscribers in diff.
ferent parts Of the country Instead
of the weather map the postoffice
receives a telegraphic report every
morning from Columbus between 8: 80
and 10 o'clock, which report on the
small sheets is distributed by our
mail carriers.
These stations are most numerous
along the great lakes. the sea and
the gulf coasts, where the reports
are especially beneficial to commerce.
Six are located along the south
shore Of lake Erie, at Detroit, Tole-
do, Sandusky, Cleveland, Erie and
Buffalo. The prediction Of weather
condictions are not made for longer
time than thirty,six hours, as be-
yond that time, the conjectures are
not looked upon as reliable.
Copies Of reports are kept on file
in the various Offices, averages are
made and percentages calculated for
monthly and longer periods, such as
seasonal annual semiannual, &C.
The general average of predictions
for 80 hours In advance is n per
cent; for "a hours in advance, "a per
cent. Storm signal predictions aver.
age rs per cent while cold wave
signals average 72 per cent. The
writer kept a record for one month
a. year or two since, of rain pre-
dictions published on the map, all
OF which were verified. The figures
given above are constantly being i'm
proved and the percentages are be-
coming higher