Meteorology: The Science of the AtmosphereTalman, Charles Fitzhugh
Science
Meteorology: The Science of the Atmosphere
Talman, Charles Fitzhugh
Meteorology
Upward movements in the air suffice to carry millions of tons of dust
aloft every year, and horizontal air currents carry the same dust
far and wide over the earth. The transportation of soil by the wind
leads to some results of remarkable interest, practical as well as
scientific. In the first place, far-reaching changes in topography are
brought about by this process. Thus in China vast areas are covered to
a depth of hundreds or even thousands of feet with a fine yellowish
earth, called “loess,” which is believed to have been blown thither by
the winds from the deserts of Central Asia. Less extensive deposits of
this wind-borne material are found in many other parts of the world,
including the Mississippi Valley. Another effect of wind transportation
is the mixing of soils. There is a constant interchange of soil
material between different regions, so that the composition of the
soil on a particular farm, for instance, is not the same now that it
was a few years ago or that it will be a few years hence. Lastly, the
presence of dust in the atmosphere, whether derived from the soil or
otherwise, has various interesting and important effects upon the heat
and light we receive from the sun and modifies, in numerous ways, the
conditions of human life upon our planet.
Several cases in which enormous quantities of solid matter have been
carried to great distances by the wind have formed the subject of
elaborate investigations on the part of meteorologists. Thus, during
the three days, March 8-10, 1901, heavy dust storms occurred in the
deserts of southern Algeria, and the sequel of these storms was
carefully studied by Hellmann and Meinardus. A widespread cyclonic
storm, central over Tunis at the time, sucked up the dust, which was
carried northward by the winds at high altitudes. Deposits from this
dust cloud occurred over an area extending as far as 2,500 miles from
the place of origin. Reports collected from hundreds of observers
indicated that 1,800,000 tons of dust fell over the continent of
Europe, and one-third of this fell north of the Alps. As much more is
believed to have fallen over the Mediterranean, while on the African
coast itself the deposit is supposed to have amounted to 150,000,000
tons. In March, 1918, a shower of dust discolored falling snow at
various places in the United States over an area of at least 100,000
square miles, extending in an east-west direction from Dubuque, Iowa,
to Chelsea, Vt. Reports of this shower were collected by Messrs. E. R.
Miller and A. N. Winchell, who estimate that the amount of dust could
not have been less than a million tons, and may have been several
hundred million. The dust is believed to have been blown up from the
arid regions of the far southwestern United States and to have been
transported a thousand miles or more.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account