Evening star., 1921-03-17

SAN FRANCISCO. March 1.-THE
Carnegie Institution OF Washington
has just completed what might be
termed am N-ray OF the earth's at
mosphere. and has forwarded from
here all data in regard to the expert
ment, which was made through the
use of the noH-magnetic snip Car
negie, which arrived here recently.
The N-ray was in the form of OBJ
servations of compass and other mag
netic variations on all of the earth
oceans. these variations being
traced in the atmosphere by two spe-
cially designed instruments called a
dehector and magnometer. These
tracings later will be shown on a
chart which might be likened to the
N-ray plate. This chart Will be made
available to every navy and merchant
marine on earth as a guide to naVi-
cation. as nearly exact as 1t is hu-
manly possible 10 make such guide.
Charts shown to BE Wrong.
SO intensi. ely and penetratingly did
the instruments work. aided by the
utter absence of magnetic attraction
by everything else on the Vessel. that
certain degrees of longitude in the
Indian ocean We're found recently to
be radically different from the best
charts and projections available up
TO that time. In some instances these
differences amounted to several min
utes.
There is a constant play of these
variations over the ma aEnetic fields.
and the cause of this play or change.
although eXhaustively theorized upon.
never has been exactly explained. the
Carnegie scientists said. These mag
netic changes make the utilization OF
the non-mag agnetic ship and its instru-
ments and the preparation OF ne"
charts constantly necessary. For IN
stance. a mariner using magnetic
chart prepared by the institution ten
years ago could not steer as ac-
curately as if he consulted cnart
prepared but year ago
Not Directly North.
The magnetic ship made an aoso-
lutte myth out of the belief that the
compass always points directly north.
It added convincing proof to the
scientific theory that there are only
two longitudinal lines. one of them
extremely irregular. where such
thing occurs. Whenever snip
crosses one of these lines the COM
mass will get the direct polaric m
huence. Everywhere else 1t Will point
either east of north or west OF north.
In the taking of these figuratiye X
rays and the compilation OF IT'S 1a.s; ;
sometimes interestingly geographicai
as we'll as magnetic. the Carnegie mas
travelled more than 100000 miles since
she was launched. June u. 1909. She
is the only vessel credited with nav
ing circumnavigated the globe IN the
subantarctic regions. In this voyage.
entirely within the confines OF the
great southern ocean. which has come
TO be the scientific name for the Ant
arctic. she stopped but once. that be-
ing at the Island of Georgia. whal-
ing station in the south Pacific
On the present voyage. which began
in October. 1919. she touched at
French West Africa. Buenos Aires. the
Island of St Helena. where Napoleon
was exiled: Cape Town. Ceylon. Aus
tralia, New Zealand. PaDeete. the Fan
ming Islands and San Francisco. She
will go from here to Samoa and the
Panama canal and then home to
Washington.
Uses Auxiliary Gas Engine.
The Carnegie ws-s compelled to use
her auxiliary gas engine number OF
times to take her out of equatorial
calm belts and to help drive her
through storm tossed seas when the
sails were in danger of blowing away.
This engine contains the only mag
netfc influence on board. but 1T is so
far away from the recording instru-
n,ents that il has absolutely no effect
on them.
The Carnegie carries complement
Of twenty-three persons. Capt. J. p
Ault of Washington has full charge
OF both the navigation of the vessel
and the recording of the magnetic
data. He is assisted by second in