An account of meteorological observations in four balloon ascents : made under the direction of the Kew Observatory Committee of the British Association for the Advancement of Science / by John Welsh ; communicated by Colonel Sabine, by the request of the Council of the British Association for the Advancement of Science.

  • Welsh, John, 1824-1859.
Date:
1853
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An account of meteorological observations in four balloon ascents : made under the direction of the Kew Observatory Committee of the British Association for the Advancement of Science / by John Welsh ; communicated by Colonel Sabine, by the request of the Council of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. XII. An Account of Meteorological Observations in Four Balloon Ascents, made under the direction of the Kew Observatory Committee of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. By John Welsh, Esq. Communicated by Colonel Sabine, R.A., Treas. and C.P.R.S., by the request of the Council of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. Received April 27,—Read May 26, 1853. In July 1852, the Committee of the Kew Observatory resolved to institute a series of balloon ascents, with the view of investigating such meteorological and physical phenomena as require the presence of an observer at a great height in the atmosphere. The arrangements made for carrying out this resolution have been stated by the Committee in their report to the Council of the British Association, a short account being at the same time given of some of the results derived from the ascents already made. Having been to a great extent entrusted by the Committee with the conduct of the observations and with the instrumental arrangements, I now, at their request, proceed to give a more detailed statement of the mode in which the experiments have been made, and of such results as may most readily be deduced from the observa- tions recorded in the ascents. The object to which especial attention was devoted, was the determination of the temperature and hygrometric condition of the air at different elevations above the earth’s surface. Besides this, the observers were furnished with the means of pro- curing specimens of the air at different heights for the purpose of analysis, and of examining, if opportunity offered, whether the light reflected from the upper surface of the clouds was polarized. 1. Instruments and Apparatus. The instruments required for the investigations contemplated were—a barometer; dry and wet thermometers; an aspirator; Regnault’s condensing hygrometer; Daniell’s dew-point hygrometer; a polariscope; and glass tubes, furnished with