Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-10-16


would be- presented Co Utah o. there
should be % decided increase I'm the pre-
cipitation n the Bonneville basin. such
a condition now confronts u.s.
Ever since the writer has been "a
close student of the cause ana effect OF
Climatic ccaddion- in tnis intcnnoun-
sain country Every student ni physics
knows that the warmer air becomes
no greater amount of moisture il win
take up before IL arrives at the point
OF eatuIation. also. that when warm,
moist air comes boz contact with 90 nlgh
mountain range on meets colder cni-
rent of air. on us temperature is low
erred in any way below its saturauon
point. It's excess of humidity must az
onco be thrown down las precipitation
In some form. consequently piacucally
an the additional moisture We get ~
this basin must be- brought 300 from the
south bv a prevailing wind oi some
duration From the east We cannot
have "a prevailing wind owing Go the
trend Of the high mountains east OF us.
and even should moist warm Wind
blow from the east for several days
its excess moisture would Zoe thrown
down on the east side of the range,
owing 70 the cooling effect of the high
attitudes. SO that even if the wind
should get over the mountains into TINS
basin. It's relative humidity would ho 80
low that 10 could give us no prccipita-
ton The same is true Ot air currents
from the west. owing 20 the coast
range Ditto from the north. but IN ~
less degree. but to make mp for that
an air current from the south Is CON
tinually growing warmer so that IT'S
relative humidity is constantly falling
That tho above is true. can easily be
seen by anyone who has noticed that
every general storm here is preceded by
AT least two or three days wind from
the south. which brings the warm.
moist air from the Pacific and the Gull
uf California, aud when this warm air
IS met by cold wind from the north
we get the storm Anyone that has not
noticed this can easily verify It by OBJ
serving for "a few months.
sALroN SEA THE CAUSE.
Now. as 10 tine decided increase in
precipitation that is causing ana viii
continue 10 cause the lake TO rise for
some time. SO that 10 BIS menace 10
the vested interests of Salt Lake valley.
In 1906. while the southern Pacific
was TRYING 10 close the break In the
bank Of the Colorado. and prevent IL
from filling the Saltou sea, the writer
made the prediction to a railroad man
that II they did not succeed the South
crn Pacific would lose the Lucin cutoff
inside Of Ave years
Had they failed we would have, or
be rapidly approaching the same cli-
matte conditions that existed when the
'Salton sea was the outlet Of the Colo
RADIO and the sea was overlooking INTO
the Gulf OF California. and at the same
time the water OF Lake Bonneville was
at the level OF the lower bench on the
foothills. and was overlooking the bnm
of the basin through the Bonneville
river into Snake river. However they
succeeded in closing the break, and In
stead of having about 1900 square miles
of water IN the Salton basin, there was
only 40 square miles. This body or
water Is now disappearing an the rate
OF about six vertical feet per year,
which means there was 5.052. 9a2. 100000
gallons Of water taken up by the air
from the surface of this body Of water
alone. during the first year 50 that the
amount Of water evaporated from this
source is constantly growing less, but
this Is more than equal,zed by the con-
slant increase OF evaporation In the
same basin. caused by the greater
amount Of land irrigated and cultivated
IN the Imperial valley, so that il will
not be long until all Of the surplus
water OF the Colorado viii be cyapo-
rated in the Salton basin.
EFFECT ON UTAH CLIMATE.
Now. some readers win al once ask,
"But how can that affect the climatic
conditions of Utah at such great dis
tance2" The answer 70 that. When
the humid winds leave the gulf ON
their northward course they pass over
several hundred miles of the hottest
area In the whole north temperate
zone. and they are SO supcrheated when
q f..fH
evaporation rs greater than az any
known point ON the whole earth. that
they are I'm perfect condition to alb
sorh and carry an diffuscd moisture
with which they may come In contact.
not only that. but on their route from
the Salton basin TO this, they continual
ly take mp more moisture through the
increased evaporation caused bv the
greater natural vegetation due 90 the
greater precipitation on the route over
which they pass, So their humidity Is 20
great that they are almost at the
point of saturation oven az their own
temperature upon arrival
From this, there can De but one re-
suit increased precipitation in this bss-
in. and the lake must rise. But another
fact that cannot be- couIoyertod as, al
this altitude, increased precipitation
causes a decided lowering OF temper
allure and higher relative humidity Of
the air. consequently We Will have more
frequent local storms and of Increased
precipitation which stiu further lowers
the temperature and increases the rel-
alive humidity But another effect Of
the lower temperature and higher hu-
nudity is that when The general storms
occur as there is already more moisture
in rho airthc precipitation of that storm
WI be just that much greater. $50 that
Increased precipitation works Boz an
endless chain, consequently the Increase
Of precipitation ls at least the square
81 the increase Of the additional mois-
turc brought into thc basin.
Nov, a7 Co tho rico and ram OF the
lake. tho cooling effect ana the greater
humidity of tho aIr caused by moro
rain, decidedly shorteus tho heated sea-
con during which the lake rcccded and
mot only decidedly lessons tho daily
evaporation of tho water OF tho lake
during that period bat also decreases
The evaporation ON Hll streams and
their trIhutarie# which flow into the
lake. so there D. considerable more
water flows into the lake during that
period.
pREClPITATlON FIGURES
Anyone can see. by comparing the
yearly rain IAN ana tho rise and IAN
of Cine lake during the years such reC-
prooipirtIlu fOr tho year has reached
the nelghhorhood of lh inches the lake
bag risen, when loss than that o. has