450
��in (he broadest nay. uieaii thst tli<; auu it blue, but raeui a great deal more than [hat ; this blueupss In it- ■elf balng. perhaps, a curious fact only, but, In what It implies, of practical moment. We deduce in counec- tlon wllb it a new value of the eoiar heat, so far alter- ing the old estimates, that we now find It capable of melting a sliell of ice sixty yards thick auiiiially over tbe whole earth, or, what may seem more intelligible in Its practical bearings, of exerting over one-horse power for each square yard of the normally exposed surface. We have studied the distribution of this heat in a spectrum whose II ml Is on the normal scale our explorations have carried to an extent of rather more than twice what was previou-ly known, and we have found that the total loss by absorprlon from the atmosphere is nearly double what lias lieen hereto- fore supposed. We have found It probable that the human race owes its existence and preservation to the heat-sioring action of the atmosphere even more than has been believed.
The direct determinallon of Lhe effect of water- vapor in this did not come within our scope; but that the importance of the blanketing action of our almos- pheric constituents has been in no way over-stated, may be inferred when I add that we have found by our experiments, that, if the planet were allowed to radiate freely Into space, without any protecting veil, its aunllt surface would probably fall, even in the tropics, below the temperature of freezing mercury.
I will not go on enumerating the results of these inveitlgatioiiB; but they all flow from the fact, which they in turn confirm, that this apparently limpid sea above our heads, and about us, is carrying on a won- derfully intricate work on the sunbeam, and on the heat returned from the soil, picking out selected parts in luindreds of places, sorting out incessantly at a task which would keep the soi'tiug demons of Maxwell busy, and, as one result, changing the sun- beam on its way down to us in the way we have seen.
I have alluded to the practical utilities of these re- searches; hut, practical or not, I hope we may feel that such facts .ts we have been considering about sunlight and the earth's atmosphere may be stones useful in lhe future edlRce of science; and that, if not In our own hands, then in those of others when our day is over, tlicy may find the best jusliflcatiun for the trouble of their search in the fact that they prove of some use to luan.
May 1 add an expression of my personal gratifica- lion in thi^ opportunity with which you have hon- ored me of bringing these reaearchua before the Uoyal institution, and my thanks fur the kindness with which you have associated yourselves for an hour, in retrospect at least, with that climb toward the stars which wo have made together, to find from ligbt in its fulness what unsuspecceij agencies are at work to produce for us the light of common day.
��NOTES AND NEWS.
TuE Committee on meteorology, Instituted by the
Intumatioual congress of meteorology, will meet for a
Ihinl session in Paris in the beginning of the coming
��September. Up to Ilie present time, the rollowlnc'^ iiueetions have been proposed for consideration dur- ing this session: 1". Report of the secretary on the labors of the committee since the meeting at Copdt- hagen; 2°. Report of Messrs. Brito Capello, Hilde- brandsson, and Ley, on the observation of tbecimu; 3°. Does it seem opportune to soon convene » third 1 nterliall on al congress of meteorolc^lsls V 4". E»t>b- llshment of stations of the first order on the Kongo; 5". Discussion on the utility of the summaries of the state of the weather as published in the different countries, and the eventual preparation of a plan for more iml/ormlty; 6". Discussion of lhe ulillly of the meteorological telegrams from America proposed by Gen. Bazen, and of an eventual organisation for their distribution in Europe; 7°. By what nteans can the timely receipt of meteorological telegnuns be assured '? 8". Should lhe reduction of barometer readings to gravity under 45° of latitude be generally introduced ? 9°. Is It dei>irab1e to also count in meteorology the hours of the day from 1 h. to 2-t fa. according to llie resolutions of lhe International con- ference in Washington ? ID". Designation lor ft uni- formly covered sky according to the form, of the clouds; 11°. Definition of rain and snow days; 12°. Should not the general adoption of a uniform height above the earth tor rain-gauges be recommended^ iii°. What progress has been made lately In the it exact meastirement of snow ; 14°. Internaiional i meteorological tables; IS". Modification of the rain ] forthe administration of the International committeeL i Any meteorologists Intending to submit to i mittee remarks on one or lhe other of these quesliona, j or to propose other rjtiesiions, can address Mr. RoboftJ B. Scott, Meteorological office, llti Victoria Slree^^
— The French Academy of inscriptions ar lettres offers the Bordin prize In 18ST for the l treatment of the subject, 'A critical examination the geography of Slrttbo.' Competitors are invite ' 1°, to review the history of the constitiition of C text of the work; 3°, to compare the language of] Stral)o with that of contemporaneous Greek writeis^.T such OS Diodorus Slculus, etc. ; 3°, to classify the oilgl^ ■ nal observations of Strabo, and segregate them f such as are merely quoted by him from other authotu J Ities; 4°, to draw such definite conclusions u t' above-mentioned studies may suggest. The m under the usual conditions, should be deposited ii the secretary of the academy at Paris by the ) of December, 1880.
— The Gtth German geographical congress wkb h at Hamburg, April 0-11 last, under the ausplcea o local committee.
— A meeting of the American metrologlcal society ^ was held at Columbia college on Wednesday, HajraO. J Several interesting communications were made.
— The Geographiselieajahrliuch {Gotha), now edited .J by H. Wagner since the death of its founder, I will hereafter appear In two annual parts, with alM nallng contents, instead of as a single volume c two years, as heretofore. The part of volume x.
�� �
