COLONIAL METEOROLOGY.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume III, Issue 166, 18 March 1864, Page 6 (Supplement)

COLONIAL METEOROLOGY.

[Prom the Daily Southern Cross.] Being one of those men who have devoted much time and attention to observations of a climatic nature, I had the curiosity recently to look into the Blue Book of New Zealand, compiled for 1863, which shows you are far back (by a year), in your statistics. Among other revelations of a remarkable caste, I .could not avoid comparing notes from the meteorological tables ; and no part occasioned more surprise than the column of mean daily force of wind at different places. As the tables are all incomplete, the six months of July to December are taken inclusively. The average mean force of wind for those six months are thus given, viz.:— Napier 363 Taranaki 335 Nelson 1-65 Wellington nearly 1 There is some error in recording at Wellington, or the anemometer must be wrong. Wellington, the most windy, boisterous, blustering, blowing place in all New Zealand or elsewhere, to indicate less force of wind than snug, quiet, calm Waimea-wind Nelson. By the Greek god EEolus, and all his winds, especially the S.E. and N.W’s., but this transcends the transcendeutals of all that we have ever saw, read, or heard of, in or from that region of the winds, Cook’s Straits—alias, windy Wellington the healthy. Why, the old residents have been so accustomed to windy weather, that, when any two of them meet, if perchance a calm day should ever happen (once in a month), the usual salutation runs in the formula of “ Here's one of those disagreeable calm days” —like cabmen of old, in old England, “ Another of your fine days.” If Mr. C. Knight allows this report to benight him, we will avow that all his observations are not correctly registered, and his record wrong. Jt is satisfactory to read his confirmation of Dove s law. Not only from our observations, but from the remarks of sea-captains having long experience in these South Seas, is this fact determined, that the winds go round with the sun. If West, the wind veers S.W., S.S.W., S., S.E., E.S.E., E.W.E., and so round to the westerly again. Should the wind shift the reverse way, a shift very rare, we then may expect very bad weathei ; but it will be certain to return in the solar apparent circuit before good weather sets in. Cyclones revolve in contrary directions within the North and South tropics, not contrary to hands of watches. Some tempests we have sustained with a pressure of lOlbs. ; to the square foot, and some of the West and East India hurricanes are said to have exerted a force of 30ibs. to a like area. Luckily, in the thirties, no such visitations ever are known, for a single hour of one would not leave a single house standing in Auckland. The gale which drove the Mary Merril ashore at Wellington, blew with a pressure of 71bs. So little range is noticeable in the means of barometric variation at Auckland that it may be called nominal. The greater is noticeable at Wellington, as might be expected. At Nelson, the barometer seems to rise highest, but the differences are very little in estimation. Not so the thermal indices. At Auckland the mean annual temperature rules higher than expectation. 63'6 suggests a hotter year than the averages of 5. Probably 1863 will reduce it, for the recorded mean heat of Auckland is put down 57- to 59£, as you will read in the Cruise of the Novara, and other publications. The lowest reading of the thermometer at Auckland is found in August, at 48T ; but the monthly mean comes out 55" the mean temperature of England. The highest ascends in h eb to 80‘5 ; but the medium of that month gives 73’2 thus showing a mean monthly minimum and maximum range of 181 and the greatest extreme differences 32'4 from the lowest cold to the highest heat. With the single exception of wind-force column, the Auckland tables are complete, and they only. In making comparisons, we must take the last six months of the year 1862, but our conclusions can be considered merely as approximates, affording a slight outline only. Tiie monthly means of said six months in the relations of temperature read nearly as thus : Auckland 56-5 Nelson 56Napier 53-4 New Plymouth 55-15 ' Wellington 53-33 No returns from Canterbury, and little from.Dunedin —barely 3 months. The column of humidity indicates high figures indeed, but not higher than anticipation. At Auckland the greatest amount was. In December 85Lowest in April, at 68Mean of the year 76-1

At New Plymouth 85At Napier 59 06 At Nelson 66 83 Wellington unknown, as 2 months of the series are unrecorded ; but it is inferred, from the figures of 93, 94, 97, 79. and none less than 74, that the heaviest rains fell in that quarter. If the number of rainy days are taken into account, this supposition will be rendered a confirmation. Number of days on which rain fell, during the last 6 months of 1862 : At Wellington 97 days’ rain At Nelson 37 “ “ At Napier 50 “ “ At New Plymouth ... 101 “ “ At Auckland 83 “ “ If we compare Auckland and Wellington for 11 months rain, January not being returned for Wellington, then the number of days rain in Auckland rates at 161 (11 for January)—l72 in all, and at Wellington 188 days rain ; so that in 11 months Wellington had 27 more days’ rain than Auckland. Again, counting the depth of rain at the various stations, in those 6 mouths, we have for Nelson 17-98 Auckland 18-95 Wellington 2031 Napier 20-95 New Plymouth 35 - 88 Thrice were the figures summed up of the New Plymouth column; and thrice they showed the same amount. Take Wellington and Auckland comparatively for 11 months— The depth of rain fallen at Auckland was 43T5 inches Wellington 4-P9I inches So that they are only 1| inches of difference between the two, for 11 months. Pull fall of rain in Auckland for the year -15.15 inches Auckland, situated on a narrow strip of land, between two immense oceans, is likely enough to have its full share of rains, and the year of 1863 will indicate much deeper rain guages than the previous year. When we look at the New Plymouth columns, with monthly falls of 1349~ inches in June ; B'2o in July : 9 in September ; the high average may he easily reconciled. Probably the vicinity of Mount Egmont with his hoary head and white mantle, where the clouds love to rest, may account for this colonial excess of rain at Taranaki.

At Auckland the deepest month fall of 7.41 inches descended in April. 1 lie frequent local winds of Wellington, irrespective of the greater general winds, owe their causes to variations of temperature. With the huge land mark of Egmont jutting into the Straits—the loftier Kaikorus opposite the warmer land of Nelson, and waters of Blind Bay, Wanganui, Waivau, and many other deep inlets and proruotaries, Ac., Cook’s Straits may be compared to a funnel through which the currents of air, at various heats, seek an equilibrium. These local winds seldom blow far out to sea, as testimonies of seamen fully confirm. Might not a general direction of the winds be included in the series of observations? Electrometry is not included in the plan, perhaps right. We have heard that all the attempts at electrical observations in the country miscarried over 10 of the 12 Stations in New South Wales, notwithstanding that Professor Scott joresided. Perhaps Mr. Knight might make observations with one of of the electroscopes, if he has one. “We have an idea that the electric tension in New Zealand is weak, and the ozone of a feeble oxidation. Ozone papers are very slightly affected, and thunder-storms seldom are seen or heard, even in the hottest months of summer, in comparison with neighbouring colonies. Any casual thunder-storm is attended only by broad sheet lightning. An injustice would be done not to compliment Mr, Kinght on this report. We can readily comprehend the difficulties against which has to contend, before be fits up good instruments, and teaches men to make the proper use. None except enthusiasts will ever give due attention. When meteorology rises to a science, it is pleasing to see that this colony follows in the wake. U.