LATE city

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 247, 9 January 1928, Page 11

LATE city

ARTIFICAL RAIN

EXPLOSIVES to fill dams UfTLE LOCAL KNOWLEDGE _estion has been made that half SU of dynamite would solve Auck- * *2l water difficulties. When a counwas asked w hat he of Phis this morning he asked, they mean under the Town Hall?’* that thß water position has be- * so serious that Tamaki, DevoncoS' Mount Kd.-n and Mount Albert '’l evins warnings citizens are begin- *** • maice suggestions, and the * ing t “ m edlum of THE SUN, is that or gelignite should be used. shsUKgestion emanated from a. Gerit present visiting AuckFJ* 1 } who states that, released at a suit* v time, bait' a ton of explosives, or . ® tW o hundredweight, would give Efficient rain to fill the dams. iU {xo states that it is no unusual thing . Qunrr to send explosives up by iv ’loon with a time-fuse. The explo•on is timed for half an hour after the hL loon is released, and takes place at vthing from 14,000 to 20,000 feet. tv concussion is upwards, and in suithle conditions will cause rainfall over an area of 20 miles either way. The cost was suggested as £3OO or £4OO. “WORTH MORE” •*We would gladly pay that and even more for a decent rainfall,” remarked fr J. A. C. Allum this morning, “but lately* th?re do not seem to have been Tjoiigh clouds to give more than a shower.’’ Whether there was any possibility of the suggestion being taken seriously he could not say. artificial means of making rain have been discussed and experimented with for centuries, and at one time the theories of Mr. James P. Espey, an American, created world-wide attention in scientific circles. Unfortunately he had a propensity for ready adoption of conclusions, and little disposition to review and test them. He held that at certain condition of the atmosphere, nothing was necessary to make it rain, bat to create an Immense fire. This would produce an upward current, vapour would condense, the upward movement would thereby be increased, currents of air would flow In with more condensation, until clouds of rain spread over a great surface of country. Many examples of the possible truth t it this belief have been provided, and to it are attributed the excessive rain over some large cities. There being no suggestion that the ferrets in the Waitakere Ranges should be set on Are, Auckland is left with the xploeion theory, which is somewhat on the aune principle, in that the explosion au the high altitude creates a vacuum causing the air current. The naval authorities have had considerable experience of using high explosives in anti-aircraft work, but they havs no great faith In this method of producing rain. Apparently the local knowledge is Insufficient to allow of any further action, however great the present need. MARKET GARDENS Several complaints have been made to THE SUN that market gp-rdeners continue to use large quantifies of water. The Waterworks Department knows this, but points out that to prevent it would be taking away the livelihood of iiuite a number of people. All the water used on market gardens is metered and paid for, and discontinuance is not conemplated except as an emergency matter.