Full Exhibit Text

  1. Camillo Agrippa Dialogo ... sopra la generatione de venti, baleni, tuoni, fulgori, fiumi, laghi, valli, & montagne Rome : 1584

    Agrippa (1535-89), a native of Milan, was a mathematician, engineer, and writer on military science and navigation. He is particulary famous for having found means to move the obelisk at the Piazza di San Pietro in Rome in 1583. This work, the first edition of one of the great rarities of the meteorogical literature of the sixteenth century, includes commentary on winds, the origin of sounds, thunder, rivers, valleys and mountains.

  2. Michael Adelbulner Kurze Beschreibung der barometer und thermometer : auch andern zur meteorologie gehörigen instrumenten : nebst einer Anweisung wie dieselben zum Vergnügen der Liebhaber : und zum Vörtheil des Publici gebraucht wersen sollen Nürnberg : 1768

    This appears to be a rare monograph on a number of meteorological instruments, including a barometer, manometer, thermometer, hygrometer, and a machine designed to measure the speed of winds.

  3. Dominique François Jean Arago Meteorological essays ... with an introduction by Baron Alexander von Humboldt London : 1855

    Through his long-standing friendship with Humboldt, Arago was led to write popular articles on meteorology and physical geography, which ranged from discussions of the temperature of the earth, the seas, and the atmosphere to earthquakes and magnetic variations on the earth. He was particularly influential in propagating Humboldt's concept of isothermal lines and in setting down the purposes of and data required from scientific expeditions.

  4. A.D. Bache Lecture on the Gulf Stream, prepared at the request of the American Association for the Advancement of Science New Haven, Connecticut. : 1860

    A thorough report on the U.S. Coast Survey's study of the Gulf Steam.

  5. Edward Barlow An exact survey of the tide : explicating its production and propagation, variety and anomaly, in all parts of the world, especially near the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland, with a preliminary treatise concerning the origin of springs, generation of rain, and production of wind,with twelve curious maps London : 1717

    Edward Barlow, educated at the English College of Lisbon and working as a priest in Lancashire, is best known as the inventor of a repeating clock. His mechanical bent may be seen in the "Conclusion" of this volume, where he refers to the oceans being like a pendulum having a "ponderous as well as voluble element." There is much American information in the book: four of the 12 maps are of American interest, and there are discussions of the tides in Hudson's Bay and currents off Brazil.

  6. Lorin Blodget Climatology of the United States : and of the temperate latitudes of the North American continent, embracing a full comparison of these with the climatology of the temperate latitudes of Europe and Asia, and especially in regard to agriculture, sanitary investigations, and engineering ... Philadelphia : 1857

    First edition of the "first work of importance on the climatology of any portion of America. It was so carefully and thoroughly done that subsequent myriads of observations have essentially confirmed Blodget's major conclusions." Blodget was on the staff of the Smithsonian Institution, in charge of researches on climatology.

  7. Ralph Bohun A discourse concerning the origine and properties of wind : with an historicall account of hurricanes, and other tempestuous winds Oxford : 1671

    This work is considered the first scientific attempt to present an explanation of weather phenomena.

  8. Heinrich Wilhelm Brandes Untersuchungen über den mittleren Gang der Wärme-Aenderungen durchs ganze Jahr : über gleichzeitige Witterungs-Ereignisse in weit von einander entfernten Weltgegenden : über die Formen der Wolken, die Entstehung des Regens und der Stürme : und über andere Gegenstände der Witterungskunde Leipzig : 1820

    Brandes (1777-1834), professor of mathematics at Breslau and of physics at Leipzig, was credited with preparing the first synoptic weather charts. The majority of graphs depict the weather patterns for the year 1783. The two plates illustrate the several kinds of clouds.

  9. Nicolas-Théodore Brémontier Recherches sur le mouvement des ondes Paris : 1809

    This is an early work on the formation of waves and their causes. Bremontier also considered methods of measuring the height of waves, and their effects on beaches.

  10. Thomas Belden Butler The philosophy of the weather : And a guide to its changes New York : 1856

    Butler illustrated his work with wind charts, tables, maps, and scenes which detailed the weather worldwide.

  11. James Capper Observations on the winds and monsoons illustrated with a chart, and accompanied with notes, geographical and meteorological London : 1801

    Capper (1743-1825) was a colonel in the service of the East India Company and spent considerable time in charge of fortifications on the Coromandel Coast. On his return to England, he devoted all of his time to the study of meteorology and agriculture. In this work, he concentrates on the meteorology of the coasts of India and the Arabian gulf, using information drawn from his own observations, a number of ships' logs, and earlier writings.

  12. John Claridge The shepherd of Banbury's rules to judge of the changes of the weather, grounded on forty years experience : to which is added a rational account of the causes of such alterations, the nature of wind, rain, snow, &c. on the principles of the Newtonian philosophy London : 1744

    First published in 1670 under the title The Shepherd's Legacy, Claridge's charming volume contains twenty-six chapters, each discussing a particular observation.

  13. William Cock Meteorologiae : or, the true way of fore-seeing and judging the inclination of the air, and alteration of the weather in several regions London : 1703

    Cock was a native of Edinburgh who wrote this articulate treatise on meteorology.

  14. Louis Cotte Traité de météorologie Paris : 1774

    The first general treatise of meteorology. With a deep Baconian faith in the efficacy of fact gathering, Cotte was a self-appointed clearinghouse for meteorological information, a chronicler of the development of organized study of the weather, and a proponent of the arrival of meteorology as a distinct science. To Cotte, meteorology encompassed phenomena concerning earthquake, aurora borealis, terrestrial magnetism, atmospheric electricity, and lunar periodicity, as well as temperature, atmospheric pressure, winds, and precipitation.

  15. François Célestin de Loynes-Berraud, Chevalier de La Coudraye Theorie des vents : piece couronnée, en 1785, par l'Académie royale des sciences, arts & belles-lettres de Dijon Fontenay : 1786

    First edition of the author's prize-winning treatise on the origins and patterns of winds throughout the world. Coudraye analyzed the earlier researches of Alembert, Bernoulli, and Derham and described major meteorological phenomena, including monsoons and typhoons.

  16. John Dalton Meteorological observations and essays London : 1793

    Dalton's first book contained the first statement of "Dalton's Law of pressures." The foundation of the work was his poineering daily record of temperature, pressure, wind, humidity and rainfall over a five year period. He established the physics of the water-vapour content of the air, denying a chemical theory of the attraction of water for air and flouting the othodox and Newtonian view. his experiments showed that the water vapour content of air was not dependent on pressure, and that it exists in the atmosphere in an independent state.

  17. John Frederic Daniell Meteorological essays and observations London : 1897

    Daniell (1790-1845), professor of chemistry at King's College, developed many important meteorological instruments, which are described in this book. This work is "the first attempt to collect scattered facts on the subject, and to explain the main phenomena of the atmosphere by physical laws. Daniell insisted on the paramount importance of extreme accuracy in meteorological observation, and kept a model record of atmospheric changes. He called attention to the necessity of attending to the moisture of hothouses, and caused a revolution in hothouse management."

  18. Jean André de Luc Recherches sur les modifications de l'atmosphère : contenant l'histoire critique du barometre et du thermometre, un traité sur la construction de ces instrumens, des expériences relatives à leurs usages, et principalement à la mesure des hauteurs et à la correction des réfractions moyennes Geneve : 1772

    De Luc addressed his two volumes on his studies of the atmosphere to theLAcademie Royale des Sciences in Paris. He wrote lengthily on the history and use of the barometer and thermometer.

  19. Heinrich Wilhelm Dove The distribution of heat over the surface of the globe : illustrated by isothermal, thermic isabnormal, and other curves of temperature London : 1853

  20. Heinrich Wilhelm Dove The law of storms : considered in connection with the ordinary movements of the atmosphere London : 1862

    This is Dove's great contribution to meteorolgy; he was the first to find a system in weather changes, described here.

  21. John Evelyn Fumifugium, or, The inconveniencie of the aer and smoak of London dissipated : together with some remedies humbly proposed London : 1661

    Evelyn's work, on the pollution of the air in London, is one of the earliest classics of ecology. Evelyn suggested two remedies: that certain trades be removed several miles outside London, and that a belt of fragrant trees and shrubs be planted around the city limits. His efforts at legislation, however, failed. This copy is from the Evelyn family library.

  22. William Ferrel The motions of fluids and solids relative to the earth's surface : comprising applications to the winds and the currents of the ocean New York : 1860

    Ferrel was the first to understand in methematical detail the significance of the earth's rotation for the motion of bodies at its surface, and his application of this understanding to the motions of ocean and atmosphere opened a new epoch in meteorology.

  23. Robert Fitzroy The weather book : a manual of practical meteorology London : 1863

    This is the first edition of Fitzroy's important meteorological work, which includes some of the first weather charts produced. Fitzroy was the first meteorologist to issue regular weather forecasts, a term he helped to popularize. This work inaugurated a distinct advance in the study of weather. Rear Admiral Robert Fitzroy (1805-1865), Commander of the Beagle during the historic expedition with Charles Darwin, turned his attention to the study of weather after his retirement from naval duties. Appointed director of the newly formed Meteorologic Office in 1855, Fitzroy established a series of weather stations which telegraphed information to London, enabling him to produce weather charts and issue storm warnings. By the end of 1860, the Times began printing daily weather predictions and Fitzroy rose to a prominent, though controversial, position as a consequence of his forecasts. A serviceable and inexpensive barometer, designed by him, is still known as the Fitzroy barometer.

  24. Thomas Ignatius Maria Forster Researches about atmospheric phaenomena London : 1815

    This work is an eloboration of Luke Howard's nomenclature of clouds and includes chapters on meteors and electricity.

  25. Benjamin Franklin Experiments and observations on electricity : made at Philadelphia in America ... to which are added, letters and papers on philosophical subjects ; the whole corrected, methodized, improved, and now first collected into one volume, and illustrated with copper plates London : 1769

    This book contains Franklin's important investigations on electricity, including his kite experiments, proving that lightning and electricity are identical, and his invention of the lightning conductor. He also included the important discovery of the course of storms over the North American continent and other meteorological subjects of almost equal importance. It was due to his work in electricity that Franklin became the first American to develop an international scientific reputation.

    Franklin's studies on cloud formation and the electrification of clouds constitute a major contribution to the science of meteorolgy. he appears to have been the earliest observer to report that northeast storms move toward the southwest. He si also the first to have observed the phenomenon of convection in air.

  26. David Herlitz De pluviis prodigiosis speculatio physica et historica : von blutregen und andern wunderbaren unnatürlichen ungewühnlichen regen, eine trewhertzige unnd nothwendige erklerung gestellee Gryphisswaldt : 1597

    Herlitz (1557-1636), a German physician and professor of mathematics at the University of Griefswald, published the first ephemerides devoted to predicting changes in the weather. He was a careful observer of the famous and controversial comet of 1618 which so interested Galileo and Kepler.

  27. Luke Howard Barometrographia : twenty years' variation of the barometer in the climate of Britain, exhibited in autographic curves, with the attendant winds and weather, and copious notes illustrative of the subject London : 1847

    Howard (1772-1862), one of the founders of the science of meteorology, provided barometric observations made at his home in Tottenham for the years 1815-34. His records of meteorological phenomena for the early part of the nineteenth century, including those printed here, are practically all that have been preserved.

  28. Luke Howard Essay on the modifications of clouds London : 1865

    In this work, Howard applied the method of Linnaeus to the varying forms of the clouds. The author defines their three chief modifications, which he names Cirrus, Cumulus, and Stratus, and four intermediate or compound modifications, the best known of which is the Nimbus or rain-cloud

  29. Luke Howard Papers on meteorology : relating especially to the climate of Britain, and to the variation of the barometer London : 1854

    Howard, probaably the most important English meteorologist of the nineteenth-century, published these papers as an appendix to his 1847 Barometrographia.

  30. Luke Howard The climate of London : deduced from meteorological observations made in the metropolis and at various places around it London : 1833

  31. Johann Michael Hube Ueber die Ausdünstung, und ihre Wirkungen in der Atmosphäre : In zwey Büchern Leipzig : 1790

    Hube (1737-1807) studied at Leipzig and Gottingen and was professor of physics and mathematics at the military college at Warsaw. He wrote an interesting series of works on various scientific subjects. This book is concerned with evaporation and the role it plays in the formation of clouds, mist, fog, and rain, and there is much on atmospheric electricity.

  32. Alexander von Humboldt Des lignes isothermes et la distribution de la chaleur sur le globe Paris : 1817

    As a result of Humboldt's five-year scientific expedition to the Americas, he laid the foundation of the science of meteorology. "By his delineation (in 1817) of 'isothermal lines,' he suggested the idea and devised the means of comparing the climatic conditions of various countries. He first investigated the rate of decrease in mean temperature with increase of elevation above the sea-level and afforded, by his enquiries into the origin of tropical storms, the earliest clue to the detection of the more complicated law governing atmospheric disturbances in higher latitudes."

  33. Alexander von Humboldt Über die Haupt-Ursachen der Temperatur-Verschiedenheit auf dem Erdkörper Berlin : 1827

    Humboldt (1769-1859) was one of the founders of studies in meteorology and climatology. This is one of his most important contributions: he described the main causes of temperature differences over the face of the earth.

  34. James Hutton The theory of rain Answers to the objections of M. de Luc with regard to the Theory of Rain Edinburgh : 1788

    Both titles are excerpted from Transactions of the Royal Society. The question between Hutton and De Luc centered on Hutton's belief that "when two masses of air of different temperatures are mixed together, the humidity of the new mass is greater than the mean between the humidities which the two masses had separately."

  35. Hugo Hildebrand Hildebrandsson Atlas international des nuages = International cloud-atlas = Internationaler wolken-atlas Paris : 1896

    "In 1874, the year of the first International Meteorological Congress...important new efforts were initiated in the [field of cloud classification]. During the succeeding 20 years constructive proposals were advanced in many countries by a large number of workers whose combined efforts led in 1896 to publication of the International Cloud-Atlas". This atlas documents an early cooperative scientific investigation on an international level. U.S. observations were made at Blue Hill Observatory, south of Boston.

  36. Richard Kirwan An estimate of the temperature of different latitudes London : 1787

    From records of Irish weather covering forty-one years, Kirwan worked out a system of probabilities with a view to forecasting the weather for seasons ahead. his predictions were more often right than wrong and were much valued by farmers. His concept of air masses-- which he termed 'polar' and 'equatorial,' 'supra-marine' and 'supra-terrene' anticipated modern classification.

  37. Jean Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet de Lamarck Annuaire météorologique pour l'an ... Paris : 1800

    Meteorology was the first scientific area in which Lamarck prepared a memoir. His meteorology was devoted to a search for those laws of nature which regulate climatic change. A great admirer of Benjamin Franklin, he thought such laws must exist because of Franklin's success in identifying lightning and terrestrial electricity.

  38. Wilhelm August Lampadius Systematischer Grundriss der Atmosphärologie Freyberg : 1806

    A pharmacist and professor of chemistry and mineralogy at the Mining Academy of Freiberg, Lampadius is best known for his discovery of carbon disulphide. He also made contributions to meteorology, deriving meteorological phenomena from the principles of his phlogistic chemistry. This work contains a bibliography of meteorological books which may be the first of its kind.

  39. Georg Christoph Ludwig Christian Friedrich Christian Lichtenberg Lichtenberg Kries Bertheidigung des Hygrometers und der de Lüc'schen Theorie vom Regen Göttingen : 1800

    Lichtenberg (1742-99), professor at the University of Gottingen, was the leading German expert in a number of scientific fields, including geodesy, geophysics, meteorology, astronomy, chemistry, statistics, and geometry, in addition to experimental physics. This volume is a defense of Jean Andre Deluc's theory of rain formation.

  40. Dortous de Mairan Dissertation sur la glace, ou, explication physique de la formation de la glace, & de ses divers phénomènes Paris : 1749

    This book is concerned with meteorological phenomena, could and heat, how ice forms, and sources of heat in the earth. Mairan tried to explain temperature variations and changes of state. His theory of heat was essentially kinetic, but he felt that a subtle matter necessary to account for the motions of the ultimate particles of ordinary matter and for the changes in these motions. On the basis of observations, experiments, and ingenious estimates, Mairan concluded that the earth has a 'central fire' which is an important source of its heat.

  41. Luigi Ferdinando Marsili Histoire physique de la mer : Ouvrage enrichi de figures dessinées d'après le naturel Amsterdam : 1725

    Marsili (1658-1730), a founder of the Accademia delle Scienze dell'Instituto di Bologna, combined his love of travel wiht the sharp eye of an observer imbued with the Galilian method.

    The first treatise on oceanography, HISTOIRE PHYSIQUE DE LA MER treatedproblems which until then had been veiled by error and legend. Marsili examined every aspect of the subject: the morphology of the basin and relationships between the lands under and above water: the water's properties (color, temperature, salinity) and its motion (waves, currents, tides); and the biology of the sea, which foretold the advent of marine botany. Marsili was the precursor of the systematic oceanographic exploration that was to begin half a century later with the famous voyage of the Endeavor.

  42. Matthew Fontaine Maury Explanations and sailing directions to accompany the wind and current charts Washington : 1851

    First edition of this important work in which Maury developed his theories of the general circulation of atmosphere and ocean.

  43. Matthew Fontaine Maury Gales in the Atlantic Washington : 1857

    Maury's compilation of data on winds and currents was taken from manuscript ships' logs, enabling him to present a climatic picture of the surface winds and currents of all oceans, especially the Atlantic.

  44. Matthew Fontaine Maury The physical geography of the sea New York : 1855

    For the first time, the sea was here viewed as the subject matter for a distinct branch of science.

  45. Matthew Fontaine Maury Wind Charts London : 1856

    Maury's charts presented a climatic view of the surface winds and currents for the oceans. This set of twelve large folding lithographed charts is preserved in its original cloth-covered envelope.

  46. Geminiano Montanari Le forze d'Eolo : dialogo fisico-matematico sopra gli effetti del vortice, ò sia turbine, detto negli stati Veneti la Bisciabuova che il giorno 29 luglio 1686 hà scorso e flagellato molte ville ... Parma : 1694

  47. Pierre Perrault De l'origine des fontaines Paris : 1674

    This volume presents the first serious attempt to measure rainfall. Perrault, a French llawyer who took an interest in meteorology and geology, reviewed earlier hypotheses on the origins of springs and proposed an experimental investigation to prove that rainfall alone is sufficient to sustain the flow of springs and rivers. The result of his experiment was proof that rainfall is more than adequate to supply river flow.

  48. Christoph Heinrich Pfaff eber die strengen winter vorzüglich des achtzehnten jahrhunderts und über den letzt verflossenen strengen winter von 1808-1809 Kiel : 1809

    Pfaff's work is the fullest historical account of the exceptionally hard winters of the eighteenth century, offereing a comparative account of these winters as they affected various countries of Europe.

  49. Anton Pilgram Anton Pilgrams Untersuchungen über das Wahrscheinliche der Wetterkunde durch vieljährige Beobachtungen Wien : 1788

    The first edition of this important meteorological work, based on 26 years' worth of observations contained important contributions regarding weather prediction. Pilgram was a Jesuit astronomer at the Vienna observatory, and he maintained meteorological records of Vienna's weather from 1762 to 1786. He was one of the first to realize that barometrical variations foretold changes in the weather.

  50. John Pointer A rational account of the weather : shewing the signs of its several changes and alterations, together with the philosophical reasons of them ... Oxford : 1723

    The author of this guide to weather phenomena and forecasting was a chaplain at Merton College, Oxford. This volume is of some importance in that it formed the basis of the long-popular Shepard of Banbury's "Rules" for weather prediction. Pointer cites not only his own observations, but also such earlier writers as Boyle, Halley, Ray, Wallis, Pascal, and even Dryden.

  51. Thomas Pownall Hydraulic and nautical observations on the currents in the Atlantic ocean : forming an hypothetical theorem for investigation ; addressed to navigators by Governor Pownall ; to which are annexed some notes by Dr. Franklin London : 1787

    Thomas Pownall, one of the most successful of British colonial administrators, instigated several important surveying and scientific projects during his tenure in America. In the course of numerous Atlantic crossings, he observed the actions of the Gulf Stream, which he discussed here. He shared this interest with Franklin, who was the first to publish information on the Gulf Stream, and who here supplied footnotes to Pownall's text.

  52. Sir William Reid An attempt to develop the law of storms by means of facts : arranged according to place and time; and hence to point out a cause for the variable winds, with the view to practical use in navigation. Illustrated by charts and wood cuts London : 1838

    First edition of an important book which laid down those broad and general rules which are known as the "law of storms." The announcement of this law was received with great interest by the scientific world; the book went through many editions and has been translated into many languages, including Chinese. Reid (1791-1858) became interested in storms while residing in Barbados and experiencing numerous hurricanes.

  53. Sir William Reid The progress of the development of the law of storms, and of the variable winds : with the practical application of the subject to navigation; illustrated by charts and wood-cuts London : 1849

    This work contains the further researches on storms made by Reid after the publication of his Attempt to Develop the Law of Storms in 1838.

  54. James Rennell Observations on a current that often prevails to the westward of Scilly; endangering the safety of ships that approach the British Channel London : 1793

    Rennell, the noted geographer, was an early student of winds and currents. He explained here, for the first time, the causes of the occasional northerly set to the southward of the Scilly Islands, which has since been known as "Rennell's Current."

  55. Franciscus Resta Meteorologia de igneis, aereis, aqveisq. corporibus Romae : 1644

    First edition of a rare and quite fascinating book which deals in detail with comets, meteorology, earthquakes, rainbows, oceans, springs, rivers, precipitaion, and water in its various states. Resta was a native of Tagliacozzo, and this work was one of the most complete treatises on meteorology then published.

  56. Charles Romme Tableaux des vents, des marées et des courans qui ont été observés sur toutes les mers du globe : avec des réflexions sur des phénomènes Paris : 1806

    Romme (1744-1805) held a position as royal professor of mathematics and navigation at the marine academy at rochefort. He wrote many works on navigation, cartography, and marine science. This book is one of the most complete and detailed early acounts of aceanic currents and tidal patterns, and gives an excellent description of the distribution of the winds over the globe. Romme provided full information on the yearly weather patterns and tides of all the coastal areas of continents, save Antarctica, and other large land masses.

  57. George Augustus Rowell An essay on the cause of rain and its allied phenomena Oxford : 1859

    Rowell had no formal scientific training but through private study he became an acknowledged expert on meteorology. He was appointed assistant in the Ashmolean Museum and later was elected to a similar position at the New Oxford University Museum. In this work, the author objects to the cyclone theory of storms, and advances one of his own.

  58. Eusèbe Salverte Conjectures sur la cause de la diminution apparente des eaux sur notre globe : adressées au Cit. Francois (de Neuf-Chateau) Paris : 1799

    First edition of this extremely rare work which is an early and unrecognized work on ecology in which the author reflects on the causes of the diminution of water on earth. He attributes this without hesitation to the activity of man, in particular to his destruction of forests. Salverte (1771-1839), a lawyer before the French Revolution and afterwards a liberal active in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, envisioned nature as a fragile balance put out of equilibrium by man.

  59. Nicolas Sarrabat Dissertation sur les causes et les variations des vents : qui a remporté le prix à l'Académie royale des belles lettres, sciences et arts, pour l'année 1730 Bordeaux : 1730

    Sarrabat (1698-1737), a Jesuit, was royal professor of mathematics at Marseille. In this prizewinning work, the author stated that winds are caused by the action of the sun's heat on the atmosphere. He went on to describe the differing wind patterns in the Mediterranean, the norgh and south Atlantic, and the Indian Ocean.

  60. Horace Bénédict de Saussure Essais sur l'hygrométrie Neuchatel : 1783

    In this book, Saussure (1740-99) described his hygrometer, an instrument which measures humidity; described the general principles of hygrometry as a science; and dealt with evaporation and the application of his researches to meteorology. Cuvier regarded this book as one of the greatest contributions to science made in the eighteenth century.

  61. Alexander Thom An inquiry into the nature and course of storms in the Indian Ocean south of the Equator : with a view of discovering their origin, extent, rotatory character, rate and direction of progression, barometric depression and other concomitant phenomena : for the practical purpose of enabling ships to ascertain the proximity and relative position of hurricanes : with suggestions on the means of avoiding them London : 1845

    Most of this book relates to the island of Mauritius, where the author was stationed as a military surgeon.

  62. Giuseppe Toaldo Novae tabulae barometri aestusque maris Patavii : 1773

    Toaldo (1719-98), celebrated Italian physicist and professor of astronomy, geography, and meteorology at the University of Padua, was the author of a number of important memoirs on meteorology, lightning, and electricity. he held strong Franklinian views and was the first to introduce the lightning rod in the Venetian states. This rare meteorological work gives information on tides as well as the influence of the moon on weather.

  63. Evangelista Torricelli Lezioni accademiche Firenze : 1715

    Torricelli (1608-47), Galileo's most promising pupil, succeeded him as professor of mathematics at Florence. This work, published nearly seventy years fter his death, contains the lectures he gave to the Accademia Crusca and on other occasions; they deal with problems of mechanics, physics, meteorology, and military architecture.

    The lectures on the force of impact and on wind are of particular interest. in the former, he said that he was reporting ideas expressed by Galileo in their informal conversations. in the lecture on wind, Torricelli advanced the modern theory that winds are produced by difference of air temperature.

    The fifty-page introduction by the editor, Tomaso Bonaventura, includes the tow letter by Torricelli to Michelangelo Ricci of 11 and 28 June 1644, in which he described his epoch-making experiment witht the tube of mercury.

  64. Henry Toynbee Report to the committee of the meteorological office on the use of isobaric curves and a line of greatest barometric change in attempting to foretel winds... : with some practical suggestions for seamen, and a few remarks on Buys Ballot's law London : 1869

    Published under the authority of Great Britain's Meteorological Committee, Toynbee devised the use of isobaric curves to prove the value of the knowledge that the direction and force of "ordinary" winds were related to barometric differences.

  65. Francesco de Vieri Trattato di M. Francesco de' Vieri ... : nel qvale si contengono i tre primi libri Delle Metheore In Fiorenza : 1582

    In addition to meteorological subjects, this volume treats comets, the tides, and the rainbow. Book IV, which is contained only in this edition, is concerned with Aristotelian meteorology and physics. This is, in fact, one of the first vernacular commentaries on Aristotle's Meteorologica.

  66. Constantin-François Volney Tableau du climat et du sol des États-Unis d'Amérique : Suivi d'éclaircissemens sur la Floride, sur la colonie française au Scioto, sur quelques colonies canadiennes, et sur les sauvages. Enrichi de quatre planches gravées, dont deux cartes géographiques et une coupe figurée de la chûte de Niagara Paris : 1803

    This book contains the first geological map of the United States and the first general account of the geology of the trans-Allegheny region. The result of Volney's travels in America during the years 1795-98, the Tableau not only gives an excellent account of the geological features of the eastern part of the U.S., but also provides much information on the people, settlements, geography, natural resources, and climate.

  67. William Charles Wells An essay on dew and several appearances connected with it London : 1814

    In this great classic of meteorology, Wells' most important contribution was his meticulous study of the formation of dew and the correct interpretation of his data. he proved that dew is neither invisible rain, falling from heaven, nor 'sweat' from plants, but is due to condensation from air in contact with objects that have been cooled by radiating their heat into the cloudless night sky. he showed experimentally that dark substances collect more dew than pale ones, that poor conductors of heat collect more dew than good conductors, and that windless nights favor dew formation as the air is allowed to remain in contact with cooled objects long enough to deposit moisture. For this important work, Wells was awarded the Rumford Medal of the Royal Society. His researches on the subject were of major importance in the development of the science of ventilation, particularly in its relation to relative humidity and the influence of the latter on the comfort of the occupants of factories, ships, and theatres.

  68. Johannes Werner Canones sicut breuissimi, ita etiam doctissimi, complectentes praecepta & obseruationes de mutatione aurae Norimbergae : 1546

    This edition of the "guidelines that explain the principles and observations of the changes in the atmosphere" is the earliest printed collection of meteorological observations.

    This work includes Werner's notes for 1513-1520, altogether over one hundred observations, each one being accurately dated. he reported, for example that the winter of 1513-1514 was one of the severest in historical times, and that traffic could safely pass over the Rhine and Danube. he investigated the sudden weather changes, winds, and snowfalls. Although Werner did not collect the data systematically, he attempted to incorporate meteorology into physics and to take into consideration the geographical situation of the observed site. Thus he may be regarded as a poineer of modern meteorology and weather forecasting.

  69. John Williams The climate of Great Britain : or remarks on the change it has undergone, particularly within the last fifty years. Accounting for the increasing humidity and consequent cloudiness and coldness of our springs and summers, with the effects such ungenial seasons have produced upon the vegetable and animal economy London : 1806

    The result of many years of experiment and recordkeeping, Williams's volume discussed the increase in humidity, the consequent cloudiness and coldness of the spring and summer months, and the effects upon the agricultural economy.

  70. Jonathan Williams Thermometrical navigation : being a series of experiments and observations, tending to prove, that by ascertaining the relative heat of the sea-water from time to time, the passage of a ship through the Gulph Stream, and from deep water into soundings, may be discovered in time to avoid danger, although (owing to tempestuous weather,) it may be impossible to heave the lead or observe the heavenly bodies. Extracted from the American philosophical transactions. Vol. 2 & 3. With additions and improvements Philadelphia : 1799

    Williams probably acquired his interest in the Gulf Stream from Benjamin Franklin, his great-uncle and the first to understand the nature of the Gulf Stream. Like his uncle, Williams observed its action during his trips across the Atlantic as a diplomat. in this work, he investigates how ships approaching the American coast can take advantage of the temperature differntial of the Stream to establish their position in any weather, without celestial sightings. This was an important navigational aid in the stormy north Atlantic, and one of great use to mariners.

  71. Hugh Williamson Observations on the climate in different parts of America, compared with the climate in corresponding parts of the other continent : to which are added, remarks on the different complexions of the human race ; with some account of the aborigines of America ; being an introductory discourse to the History of North-Carolina New York : 1811

    This work ranges from considerations of climate to a discussion of the nature and properties of heat, to speculations on the origins of man, specifically the American Indian. Williamson recorded much important data and deserves credit as a poineer in the fields fo climate and race.