SCIENTISTS IN SAMOA.

Hokitika Guardian, 19 January 1926, Page 1

SCIENTISTS IN SAMOA.

WORK AT ART A OBSKKVATOR V

Samoa is heating up. From 1890 until 1925 tlie uvorage temperature lias increased a degree and a-lialf, so that the. months which were hottest in 1890 wore of the same temperature as the coolest at the present time. This is one of the many discoveries made by the Apia Observatory in Western Samoa. The directoi- of the observatory, Air Andrew Thomson, told a reporter something of the- work of Ltie station in the study of natural phenoniena over a wide Hold. Air Thomson is on tour of the observatories in Xcw Zealand and Australia. He is a Canadian, and was a member of the Carnegie Nou-Alagnetie expedition which visited New Zealand in 1921. his special study then being electricity and radium in the air.

There are 55 magnetic stations in the Northern Hemisphere, and only six in the southern. Of tho great value of the Apia station Sir Ernest Rutherford had .something to sav when in New Zealand. Tho Apia Observatory was founded in .1903 by the Society of Natural Sciences of Got ingen. It was originally a base station to co-operate with an Antarctic expedition. The observations were found to be of such great value that live scope of the observatory was extended year by year to include all branches of scientific research in relation to the earth. The British look tho station over in 1921, and unoci

both regimes it has become famous \ow it is international in scope, and is supported by the British Admiralty, the Carnegie Institute and the New Zealand Government. 1 lie ob-erva-t;,rv has a stall' of nine, there are a dozen buildings, and the location is on ground held sacred by the Samoans as t're burial ground of kings. Research investigations include the upper air currents, electricity in the atmosphere, ocean drift, solar heat, with rainfall as hut a minor phase o! the work. . It is t!i o centre for cyclonic to recast, in the South Basilic from Tahiti to Norfolk Island, 3000 miles away. The importance of the interesting observations carried out in the upper

air is apparent in tbcsc days of progressive living liy ‘piano. I lie AAeathei Bureau of I'.S.A. asked last year for information regard in" air currents m southern altitudes for the projected flight froui Homlulu i" Australia 1 11 obTain data, lie aiillmrilics use rubber balloons lour or live feet in diameter inflated with hydrogen. Those balloons are followed hv telescope fur a height. . f jr, miles. li has been aswrlAllied that trade winds blow steadily from the souLh-east up to'a height ol about two miles in the wet season. Above that for eight miles in the summer is a vast stratum of air moving direelly eonirary, so that a balloon goes awav west on one wind and then passes directly overhead on the highei l,od v of air. These air observations have settled problems widen were hitherto not solved. Also, it has been proved that, the velocity m Ha; hignei levels is two or three times greater than in the lower levels. Mr Thomson lias published the results of his invosti"ations up to tiie end of 1921. Another valuable part of the work deals with the study of ocean drill. Through the co-operation ol ships ol ficers a eonsideral.le amount ol data ni regard to the ocean waters of me Pacific in tropic regions have been collected Strong currents moving from cast to west have been found to persist, throughout the year. Jhe 'o--1 unities have been found greater than half a mile an hour over a distance ot 3709 miles. This information d,hers from what was previously holierod a the absence of southerly drill, and extensive eddying movement It is easil> realised how important this uit a is from the point of view ol ocean >. in the use of the drill. Us speed and

location. i,„ In the great expanse td “<*•' found that* 1 the heat received is uniform The temperature at Iwth places rises and falls together. The value . the temperature observations at Ap ■ irises from the fact that the> un possibly he of use in forecasting k ' or in India and Australia. Obsem b i„ both countries can forecast changes ... j 1 1> trrOiltC r JICCIII iICJ • . It is a completely-equipped magnetic station, 'and a study is made o seosmo!,mv. Twenty or 30 earthquakes mi left at Apia each year the sens. tive instruments record 300 oi earth-movements in a ycai. . Ania is also the centre ol (\<lo.iu weather reports, which are received front eight stations twice a day »> - storm season, and once a d.ij in drv season.