Abstract
THE meetings of the International Polar Conference began in Vienna last week under the presidency of Herr Heinrich Wild, the Director of the Physical Central Observatory of St. Peters burg. In his address the President praised the great merits of Count Wilczek with regard to Polar research, referred to the lamented death, since the 1 ast conference, of the Secretary of the Polar Commission, Capt. Hoffmeyer of Copenhagen, and finally gave an outline of the work done since the St. Petersburg meeting by the various expeditions and observing stations. Herr R. Müllcr, Director of the Hydrographic Office at Pola, was elected secretary in the place of Capt. Hoffmeyer, deceased. The principal subject discussed at the first meeting was the determination of the minimum extent to which each expedition party is bound to work out and publish its own observations at its own expense, and the establishment of a universal form of publication of results for their easier comparison. First of all the meteorological observations were discussed in this regard. The debate turned on the uniform way of noting down the obligatory observations at each station, i.e. the observations of tem perature, atmospheric pressure, humidity, wind, clouds, hydro-meteors, rainfall, and temperature of the ground, snow and ice. Among those who have arrived at Vienna are the following:—MM. R. Lcnz (Professor at the St. Petersburg Technological Institute), H. Mohn (Director of the Christiania Meteorological Institute), R. H. Scott (Director of the London Meteoro logical Office), Lieut. P. H. Ray of Washington, Lieut. E. von Wohlgemuth (Vienna), Herr Wijkander, Prof. Guido Cora (Turin University), Capt. Dawson (Chief of the Fort Rae Expedition), Dr. Giese of Hamburg (Chief of the German Antarctic Expedition), H. Paulsen of Copenhagen (Chief of the Danish Polar Station at Godthaab), Lieut. Payen (Paris), Dr. Snellen (Director of the Utrecht Meteorological Observatory), Aksel S. Steen (of the Christiania Meteorological Institute), Count Hanns Wilczek (Vienna). The following were expected to arrive shortly:-Prof. G. Neumayer of Ham burg (Director of the German Seewarte), Prof. E. Mascart (Director of the Paris Meteorological Central Bureau), Dr. Borger (of the Kiel Marine Observatory), Prof. Lemstrom (Helsingfors), E. Riese (Chief of the Finnish Polar Station at Sodankyla).
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Geographical Notes . Nature 29, 606–607 (1884). https://doi.org/10.1038/029606b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/029606b0