Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-01-08
~ WALTER X. McCAIL.CM.


@EERIHG through the cloud mist
- that spread over the st0rn-
tossed fisntic. two Govern
i ment bureaus have set in mo.
ton pioneering activities in.
tended to- pave the way for the host
If airmen who will attempt the trans-
atlantic flights next Spring. summer
and Fail With the Lessons learned
from the bravery and reckIessness Of
those who succeeded and those who
found their graves In the eastern
ocean. ever before them the certainty
that no way can be found to predict
weather over the ocean at great dis
Ia noes - hours or more In the future.
two branches Of science Of the Gov.
eminent have joined hands to make
ira nss tia ntic flying far less hazard.
Gus affair than IL was In it's pioneer
ycar--a year that saw but four flights
across the ocean from North America
To England and Europe. although sew.
eral moe were started. never to finish.
The photographic Office Of the Navy
has Just made public the initial issue
Of 4 chart for transOceanic aviators
Who attempt the hazardous fight
across the Alta ntic. prepared by the
Navy Department in cola borstiOn with
the Weather Bureau for the intrepid
airn,en who attempt the long hop
acrpss the heaving wastes Of the sea.
Other charts are to fGIlow. their infDr-
nation TO be furnished in more and
more elaborate detail until science
reaches its peak Of exactness and
leaves man alone to fight his way
through the triple perils Of fog. storm
and high wind which science cannot
predict and which form with unparai-
Ieled speed over the gray wastes Of the
sea. Little faith is placed in the
| theory advanced by Capt. Paul Schlu-
| ter. navigator OF the old school. that
aviators 0f the future who ny across
the oceans westward ran strike the
trade winds and move With them to a
| safe landing. Rather the scientists
believe daily and hourly forecasts the
only true gauge by which. aviators car
| foreteIl the weather they NAV expect
over the vast reaches OF water.
OKers Another Idea.
But Capt. Schluter has another idea
. and one that il receiving careful con
| siderati0n III those who have TO dc
with forecasting the weather for ira MS
atlantic flights. That is. that to ths
| enormous mass OF data already com
| tons over water, wind trends. wea tn
er trends and other meteorological
material. there be added definite data
on the great air currents which SWEEP
across the oceans. hundreds and thou
| ~ nds of feet in the upper air.
| This dat cannot he secured by air
plane. for "a plane moves too fast IL
measure the wind. Securing OF IL b,
| dirigible IN impractical bic because o.
| the heavy cost, 50 Capt. Schlutel
would have the Navy send up tria
| balloons from ships over all parts o
| the Atlantic and Pacific. which woul,
| give science the key. to the riddle al
| the winds which sweep through tn.
upper strata Of the air envelope sur
rounding the earth and the oceans.
Transatlantic flying for the early
Winter. the hydrogra phic office infers
| should be undertaken only bv sea
| planes. because Of the prohs bllity o
| sudden formation OF storms which
might force down any plane. ans
which a land plane could not survive
| IN the surface OF water. So the Navy
in its frst map of the treacherou
ocean OF the Winter, has suggeste.
that s~spsanes making the biz hol
| should avoid the dangerous .'grea
| circle" route immedia teiy east @
| Newfoundia nd--the route taken h,
Iandbergh. Chamberlin. Byrd an,
Brock-and route their course IA
south OF the ship travel route to
spot in the ,neishborhood of Bermuda
proceeding thence east 10 the Azores
and from these isIsn dx IN the poin, oil
tha European continent or the British
Isles desired
| While the Navy and the Weathe
I far.
wind trends and storm trends, alnns
| with fog formal ton and other ASPECTS
of meteorological conditions over IN,
ocean. their activities along these line.
W~te4 sp,trred far hevoud the is,ia
course hy the transatlantic flights q
| 1877. Now. after many months a.
study. the transocea mic AYERS of 1872
will have before them weather map
showing the routes they should travel
the weather they will proisa i,iy strike
An shown by averages taken owe
many years, the wind roses ~
averages. such a. never before hz
heen ioue.
i Maps Of rtmast Value.
nasmnrh a. air activity over tn,
Atls n,ic for 1928 Promises ta he Ia
greater than last wear. the mxps, cor
forecasts by The Weather Hurra u
should lie 81 the utmost value Ia ,h,
airmen-~and women~-who ply IN,
aerial routes TO the other side Of tn,
ocean.
From the United States ccaSs tn,
air temperatures have been found Z,
spread out In n fan shape across IN,
ocean to the European and Africa
continents, giving Glasgow. Scotland
an air temperature ~ 30 degrees. o.
the same ~ for the City Of Washing
ton for the same time, although Glas
cow il II degrees Of latitude ar NOR,
than loco nautical miles north q
Washington, The effect az these sur
face air temperatures on the Se,ectio,
OF the northernmost routes 10 az
parent"
In attempting to connect the cen
tiers NJ largest population an the TIVE