The First Systematic Meteorological Observations in the Americas (Recife, 1640

The First Systematic Meteorological Observations in the Americas (Recife, 1640–42)

Published:2023-08 Issue:8 Volume:104 Page:E1493-E1506
ISSN:0003-0007
Container-title:Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
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Author:

Domínguez-Castro Fernando¹,Gallego María de la Cruz²,Vaquero Jose M.²,García Herrera Ricardo³,Corral Victoria²,Sáez Rosa M. Marina⁴,Trigo Ricardo M.⁵,Libonati Renata⁶,Noguera Iván⁷,El Kenawy Ahmed⁷,Peña Angulo Dhais⁸,Vicente-Serrano Sergio M.⁷

Affiliation:

1. ARAID Foundation, and Departamento de Geografía y Ordenación del Territorio, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain;

2. Departamento de Física, Universidad de Extremadura, Badajoz, Spain;

3. Departamento de Física de la Tierra y Astrofísica, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, and Instituto de Geociencias (IGEO), CSIC-UCM, Madrid, Spain;

4. Departamento de Ciencias de la Antigüedad, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain;

5. Instituto Dom Luiz (IDL), Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal, and Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;

6. Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;

7. Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (IPE–CSIC), Zaragoza, Spain;

8. Departamento de Geografía y Ordenación del Territorio, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain

Abstract

Abstract In 1639, the German naturalist Georg Marcgraf established the first astronomical observatory in the Americas, located in Recife (Brazil). There, he made the first daily systematic meteorological observations of wind direction, precipitation, fog, and thunder and lightning from 1640 to 1642. We outline the circumstances that led to this observatory being established and analyze the observations. The range of values obtained from all the variables recorded by Marcgraf corresponds well with Recife’s current climate. However, wetter-than-normal conditions were recorded during 1640, while anomalous concentrations of foggy days occurred from May to December 1641. We hypothesize that these anomalous record foggy days could be associated with the highly explosive eruptions of the Komagatake and Parker volcanoes, both in 1640.

Publisher

American Meteorological Society

Subject

Atmospheric Science

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