THE METEOROLOGY OF SOUTHLAND IN 1871.

Southland Times, Issue 1550, 12 March 1872, Page 3

THE METEOROLOGY OF SOUTHLAND IN 1871.

•> G-eitebal Remarks. — The splendid weather which had prevailed during the last five months of 1870 continued without the slightest break during the first four months of 1871 (the temperature occasionally rising to 86 degs. in the shade, and 162 degs. in the sun), not terminating until May 4th, when the temperature was as high as 71 degs. (the highest in Hay for ten years), and the barometer had fallen in four days from 30*44 to 29.01 inches. That night a heavy flood occurred (239 inches in 12 hours) followed by a snowstorm of 2 inches. The remainder of May was very wet and stormy, with strong westerly gales on the 18th, 22nd, and 29th, the last being preceded by a fall of the barometer to 28"88 inches. Jane was fine, dry, and calm throughout, with sharp frosts. July was constantly wet, with much hail, snow, thunder, and lightning;, but no strong wind j the mean height of the barometer was the lowest monthly mean on record — 29 410 inches ; the barometer fell to 2855 on the 18th, and 28"79 on the 26th, and was below 29 inches on 8 days in the month. No perceptible result answered to the barometric depression of the 26th, A month of very fine weather intervened between July 23rd and August 24fch, when a severe storm of snow, hail, rain, thunder, and lightning occurred, and the weather was continuously bad up to the 17th of September, with a great deal of snow. An unusually heavy snowstorm was experienced on September 5, — to the depth of 5i inches. The latter half of September was fine, the first three weeks of October very wet and stormy, and the last ten day3 of the same month very fine and bright. November and December were cold, windy, and showery ; rain fell almost daily, but in quantities bo small that there was a serious deficiency at the close of the year. September, October, November, and December, taken tsgether, proved the coldest and most ungenial spring experienced in 13 years, although the rainfall was much under the average. Snow fell on the 19th of November. December was remarkable for the two severe storms which occurrel within ten days of one another. The first (on the evening and night of the 12th) was preceded by a barometric fall to 2890 ; it blew from due N., and was the heaviest gale for 3 years ; max. measure, 37 lbs to the square foot. It, however, sank utterly into insignificance compared with the terrific hurricane of the 23rd, which far exceeded in violence any gale hitherto known in Southland. The barometer on the 22nd fell rapidly, reaching 2899 inches at midnight, when the gale set in from N., and blew violently until 2.30 a.m., when it abated, but at 9 a.m. suddenly increased to a furious hurricane from N.W. to W., which blew from about 9.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. with unprecedented force. The anemometer showed 246 miles to have passed in these 3 hours, and in the strongest justs (not of more than a few seconds' duration it a time) the velocity was from 50 to 53 yards per second, or 100 to 107 miles an hour, representing a pressure of 50 to 52 lbs to the square foot. The gale abated gradually from 1 p.m. until sunßet, when it ceased. Great damage was done throughout Southland and Otago, both in the towns and in the country districts. No rain accompanied the gale. The mean height of the barometer in the year at the Martendale Observatory, was 29798 inches, corrected for index error and capillary action, and reduced to sea level and temperature of 32 deg. The maximum was 30*566 inches on the 30th of April ; minimum, 28552 on the 18th of July; the total range in the year was herefore 2-014 inches. J

The mean temperature of the air in shade was 50 0 deg., which is precisely the same as that of 1870, and I*s deg. below the average of 12 years, and 4 deg. lower than 1860 and 1861, but 1 deg. higher than 1868. The maximum temperature in shade was 860 deg. on the loth of January, the minimum 2l"0 deg. on the 21st of June ; the total range was therefore 65 deg. The maximum heat in sun (by self-registering black bulb solar radiation, thermometer insulated in vacuo) was 162 deg. on the 26th of January. The minimum temperature on grass (hy selfregistering . terrestrial radiation thermometer in focus of parabolic reflector) was 90 deg. on the 27t-h of June ; the extreme difference between the exposed temperature of summer days and winter nights was therefore 153 deg. The mean deg. of atmospheric humidity (by dry and wet bulb hygrometer) was 75 deg. (saturation being represented by 100) which is 1 deg. above the average. The mean temperature of evaporation was 46 - 2 deg. ; dew point, 42-2, | and elastic force of vapour 0269 inch. The total rainfall on surface of ground was 3903 inches, which is 5"26 inches les3 than the 12 years' average. Rain fell on 141 days, or 4 days more than the average number. Q-ales or hiah winds occurred on 11 days in the year ; thunder on 18 days ; snow, 10 days ; hail, 24 days ; fog, 1 day ; earthquakes, 2, on April 19th at 4.55 p.m., two rather sharp shocks, and on the following morning at 1 a.m. another smart shock. Auroras and meteors very frequent — the former of almost nightly occurrence at several parts of the year ; they were specially noted and described on 35 days. The mean amount of ozone was 76 degs., slightly less than the previous year. The anemometer showed a mean daily velocity of 157 miles, or 6 - 6 miles per hour, representing a mean measure of 0 2 lbs to the square foot. The following table exhibits the principal returns for each month : —

C. Rous Makten-, Director. Martendale Observatory, Southland, January 1, 1872.

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