DR. E. KIDSON DEAD

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXIII, 13 June 1939, Page 6

DR. E. KIDSON DEAD

GOVERNMENT METEOROLOGIST BRILLIANT. SCHOLASTIC CAREER '"■•iteii Press Assnriation I WELLINGTON. This Day. .ah occurred suddenly to-day ui Kidson, 0.8. E., Director of Meteorological Services. Dr Edward Kidson. 0.8. E.. D.Sc. F. Inst. P.; F.R.S.N.Z., was appointed Government Meteorologist in 1937. He was educated at Nelson College, Christchurch Boys’ High School, and Canterbury College. He won in succession a junior and senior national and was awarded the degree of M.Sc. (New Zealand University), with first class honours in physics in 1904. He completed the honours course in mathematics and was awarded the degree of D.Sc. by the University of New Zealand, for researches in meteorology. In 1905 he was appointed assistant-Magnetic-Observer, Christchurch under the Department of Lands and Survey. In 1908 he joined the staff of the Carnegie Institute of Washington, and until 1914 he worked on magnetic surveys in South America, Newfoundland, at sea, and in Australia. During his two years

at sea on the Carnegie he made the observations for the navigation of the vessel. From 1915 to 1919 he was on active service with the meteorological section of the Royal Engineers. He developed the forecasting service and application of meteorology to gunnery for the Salonika Forces, and for his successful work, was mentioned in despatches and awarded the 0.8. E. In 1919 Dr Kidson was appointed to the Watheroo Observatory, Western Australia, and in 1921, as Supervising Meteorologist and Assistant-Director to the Commonwealth Meteorological Service. He was the representative of the Royal Society of Victoria at the meeting held at Wellington in 1923 of the Association for the Advancement of Science in Australia and New Zealand. Dr Kidson was a Fellow of the Institute of Physics, and a member of the Australian National Research Council, and had published numerous original papers on meteorology, with particular reference to the methods of forecasting and to the use of meteorological obser- I vations of the upper atmosphere for the i use of aviators, while he was specially j selected to write up critical studies of the meteorological results of the first I Shackleton and Mawson Antarctic i expeditions.