WIRELESS CHRONOLOGY

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 84, 18 July 1910, Page 3

WIRELESS CHRONOLOGY

Acting upon the suggestion of two members of a scientific society, Captain Guyon and M. de la Grye, the French Government is now experimenting with a scheme for supplying all chronometers at sea with the time at noon, 8 o'clock at night, and midnight by means of wireless messages from the Eiffel Tower.

Tile first trial took place recently with ships at Brest. Three sparks were transmitted at ( intervals of two minutes each. Thus, for instance, one is giVen at 8 o'clock precisely, a second at 8.2, and a third at 8.4. .The same method is to be followed at noon and at midnight. Arrangements were made for the regular transmission of the time at midnight from 23rd May onwards. Captains at sea, therefore, provided with wireless receivers, will be able lo regulate their chronometers whenever they require. A clock, furthermore, specially prepared for this purpose, is to be set going on the Eiffel Tower to transmit the time, second by second, by wireless flashes, so that the lonytitude may be computed almost instantaneously anywhere at sea on ships provided with wireless apparatus. '

The advantage of this procedure in cloudy or foggy weather will be enormous, especially in places where there are irregular currents, and ships in that case will at once be warned if they are drifting out of their course. The new "wireless" will also be used hereaner to determine the longitude of various places on the Continent an! of wireless stations in Afrir-a. /j.h> 'v'.'l'i;! Tower, in fact, is already in regular communication with l>l;nr, Fort Eticnne, and Rufisque, on ;.'ie Atlantic coast of North-

-1; Africa, as well as with the Canary Islands, and with Bizerta and Oran on b' Mediterranean coast.

In a short time it is expected that sev- ■ i\ nosts in the interior of Africa, such as Abecher and Loango and Brazzaville, '■■. her south, will be in regular wireless communication with Paris': '