The determination of the meteorological conditions of the atmosphere by the use of radio-sounding balloons

Abstract

Radio-signalling methods are sometimes applied to indicate or record temperature, pressure, humidity, and wind velocity, where the installation of an ordinary meteorological observing station would present difficulties due to the inaccessibility of the desired observing point. Such methods may also be applied to free balloon ascents for sounding the atmosphere, in which case the use of radio-signalling gives rise to three great advantages over the self-recording type of meteorograph. First, a record is obtained during the ascent of the balloon and consequently the ultimate loss of the apparatus is of no importance; secondly, a large amount of aerological data can be obtained at a cost far less than that required for aeroplane observations; thirdly, information can be obtained at altitudes considerably greater than those given by aeroplane instruments. For these various reasons considerable attention has been given in certain European countries and in America to radio-sounding methods of exploring the atmosphere. The collection of reliable aerological data is now a matter of prime importance for a variety of purposes. Since a large number of ascents are necessary to obtain an adequate knowledge of conditions over a large area, and since many of the instruments will be lost or returned in a damaged condition, it is important to keep as low as possible the cost of the apparatus. In the present paper a description is given of a satisfactory radio transmitter equipped with meteorological instruments to give instantaneous indication of the pressure and temperature of the atmosphere.