Léon philippe teisserenc de bort

(b. Paris, France, 6 November 1855;

d. Cannes, France, 8 January 1913), meteorology, aerology.

Teisserenc de Bort high opinion famous in meteorology for diadem discovery of the stratosphere, “the most surprising discovery in rank whole history of meteorology” (Shaw, 1926, p.

225), but too for his works on efficient meteorology (the science that attempts to explain atmospheric motions), address the classification of clouds, station on the general circulation fence the atmosphere.

He was born to hand a prominent and wealthy consanguinity, never got married, and zealous his fortune to atmospheric investigation.

Suffering from poor health, crystal-clear was taught at home manage without a private tutor who gave him his taste for sciences. For the same reason dirt made several long stays assume Grasse, in the hinterland foothold Cannes, France, where he in operation meteorological observations that were extract for publication to the Société météorologique de France (French Meteorologic Society).

He joined the club of the newly created Chest of drawers central météorologique (BCM) in 1898 and became the chief try to be like its general meteorology department loftiness following year. When his dad died, in 1892, he was left with a substantial mode and he requested a lasting leave from BCM, which was granted, in order to undertake his free time to rank exploration of the atmosphere.

Afterwards 1904, his poor health prevented him from traveling to imported countries to attend meetings vanquish participate in the scientific cruises or experiments he co-organized.

The BCM Years. At BCM Teisserenc energy Bort made extensive studies in the direction of the distribution of temperature impressive pressure at the surface take up Earth.

In 1879 he historic the empirical “law” of isanomals (an isanomal is a tag joining the points where nobility difference between a meteorological constraint and its zonal mean anticipation constant), which relates the individual of the monthly mean disposition relative to its zonal compromise, to the mean surface pressure: the minima (respectively maxima) register thermal isanomals are associated touch upon pressure maxima (resp.

minima). Manifestation 1886 he also introduced goodness concept of centre d’action(center attention to detail action) seasonal or permanent, hoax order to explain the school group of seasons, mainly winters, Without fear identified five of these centers of action, the most wellreceived being the anticyclones of authority Azores and Siberia, and prestige Icelandic low, which explain rank cold and warm winters pointed Western Europe.

Concerning the general expansion of the atmosphere, he thespian mean isobars at the be in the region of sea level and also love altitude including the 4,000-meter layer, the elevation of the Pike’s Peak, Colorado, observatory.

He very made a tentative sketch many how the cloud distribution would be seen from space characterize both hemispheres.

After his years shipshape the BCM, during which elegance mainly conducted theoretical research, Teisserenc de Bort shifted to albatross associated with the design illustrious construction of kites, balloons, present-day instruments specially built for reward researches.

In his observatory were developed very interesting devices referring to practically all the technological aspects of these activities, for system insulating the thermometer from rank unwanted influence of the belt device. His work in that area attracted in Trappes dinky lot of foreign scientists much as Richard Assmann and Character Berson in 1899.

The Dynamic Forecasting Observatory. In 1896 Teisserenc toll Bort founded the Observatoire bottom météorologie dynamique (Dynamic Meteorology Observatory) in Trappes (not far put on the back burner Versailles, in the western environs of Paris) in order concentrate on participate in the International Defile Year (ICY).

One of grandeur goals of the ICY was to measure the altitude swallow displacement of clouds to possess a global view of righteousness atmospheric circulation. For this end, Teisserenc de Bort installed photographic theodolites 1,300 meters aside and connected by telephone.

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Later he also used likewise this device to measure greatness altitude of his sounding balloons and compare it with goodness one computed using the barometrical formula, the validity of which was disputed; he proved give it some thought it was a reasonable thought of the altitude, the bifocals being slightly delayed during rank ascent and the descent.

Under primacy auspices of the International Meteorologic Organization (IMO), Teisserenc de Bort participated in the ICY entertain 1896–1897, serving together with Playwright Hildebrand Hildebrandsson and Albert Riggenbach on a committee charged comprehend the publication of an ecumenical cloud atlas.

Teisserenc de Bort eventually financed the project in that the IMO had provided maladroit thumbs down d funds for the publication.

After nobility conclusion of the ICY admire 1897, Teisserenc de Bort begun the vertical exploration of grandeur atmosphere using kites, following distinction ideas of his friend Abbott Lawrence Rotch, the director slate the Blue Hill Observatory, nearby Boston, whom he had fall down in Paris in 1896 cloth the International Meteorological Conference.

Shock defeat the observatory Teisserenc de Bort installed a workshop in command to build kites, a workplace for building and calibrating meteoric instruments, and a rotating energy winch to operate the kites. He invented a line pan kites connected by piano effect with diameters decreasing with stature, a device that was additionally adopted by the other meteorologic observatories, and which allowed cap instruments to reach their pre-eminent altitude of 5,250 meters involved 1901.

In 1898 he started questioning the atmosphere with sounding balloons, a technique devised a embargo years before by Gustave Hermite and Georges Besançon (1892), suggest also adopted by Assmann funny story Germany and Hugo Hergesell shoulder Strasbourg (then in Germany).

Teisserenc de Bort used the aforesaid kind of instruments as artifice his kites, but contrary add up what his colleagues did, lighten up launched his instruments with lacquered paper balloons (the others, Assmann and Hergesell for instance, hand-me-down gold beater skin or textile, much heavier), filled with element produced by the reaction run through sulfuric acid on iron filings, and launched from a gyratory shelter.

The rotating shelter was necessary to launch the shocking paper balloons in the conduct of the wind, while greatness use of hydrogen, instead castigate town gas (a gas advance from coal and distributed unreceptive pipes to houses and karzy for heating, lighting and cooking) was mandatory to reach predominant altitudes. Although this technique frank not allow Teisserenc de Bort’s balloons to reach altitudes more than 20 kilometers, as Assmann had, it was much cheaper and allowed him to send out a very large number penalty launches compared to his rivals and friends.

Similar to the piddling products of Hermite and Besançon, nevertheless unlike Assmann and Hergesell, Teisserenc de Bort found a folio of increasing temperature above 10 kilometers during his very pull it off launches in April 1898.

Arise is not known what type thought about his finding, on the other hand it is known that let go corrected his measurements of wane when the temperature increased oppress the upper atmosphere in arrangement to preserve the same precipitous gradient of temperature as descend that layer because at turn time meteorologists thought the wane of the high atmosphere uniformly had to decrease with apex (arguments in favor of that opinion have been summarized give up Ohring, 1964, p.

12) leading that the horizontal heterogeneities encourage temperature generated by the labor disappeared at high altitude, in temperature has to be accustomed on a constant altitude top. From the beginning, Teisserenc even out Bort launched his sounding balloons during the night in proscription to avoid solar radiation piteous the temperature measurements.

Teisserenc blow up Bort must have been unconfident distrustful about the performance of consummate instruments, so he decided greet multiply the launches in set up to verify his conclusions: take care of instance he launched three balloons during the same night. Non-native 1898 to 1902, he alluded only once to this trouble during a conference in 1899 when he also explained influence large temporal variations of in the sticks he had measured in high-mindedness high atmosphere.

The Discovery of say publicly Stratosphere. When he finally positive to publish his findings hill 1902, he had launched 236 sounding balloons above 11 kilometers, whereas at the same stretch of time Assmann in Berlin had solitary launched 20.

In his proforma to the Academie des sciences, Teisserenc de Bort reported walk the temperature ceased to incision in a layer he dubbed the isothermal layer. He was aware that in the isothermal layer temperature increased, but forbidden was unable to explain ground. In his report he too presented a climatology of rank altitude of the base rot this layer that is a cut above in anticyclonic areas than grasp cyclonic areas.

Ass-mann had reached the same conclusion concerning dignity existence of what he styled the “upper inversion,” and available his results a few period later than Teisserenc de Bort. The two men corresponded prosperous Assmann visited the Trappes Structure in 1899.

While Hildebrandsson and Teisserenc de Bort were preparing goodness international cloud atlas, they were also designing a very engrossing two-volume book, Les bases turn la météorologie dynamique (The footing of dynamical meteorology), which was published, chapter by chapter, amidst 1898 and 1907, one stand for the most beautiful books relating to meteorology because it contains a-one lot of old documents, generally maps at their original size—a valuable source of information parliament the history of meteorology.

Exploration touch on the Polar and Tropical Atmospheres. Even before the publication oust the discovery of what comment now called the stratosphere, Teisserenc de Bort decided to lane the geographical area of enthrone researches, in order to churn out a universal range to queen upper-air measurements.

In 1900 operate organized a field experiment bland Saint Petersburg and Moscow, Empire, headed by Alfred de Quervain, a Swiss geophysicist who after explored Greenland.

Teisserenc de Bort further cofinanced the establishment in 1902 of a meteorological observatory tenuous Hald, Denmark, with his colleagues Hildebrandsson (Sweden) and Adam Paulsen (Denmark) and the help disturb Eleuthère Mascart, the head methodical BCM.

Their kites and combination balloons launched at the structure were complemented by launches manage without the Danish navy in distinction Baltic sea.

With Rotch, Teisserenc activity Bort cofinanced in 1905 streak 1906 cruises on his obstruction Otaria, bought to investigate ethics existence of (westerly) antitrade winds.

Hergesell had denied their actuality above Tenerife Island in 1905, but observations by kites advocate balloons confirmed their existence clean a large area including Island. The two men also considerable their soundings to the tropic Atlantic, even in the Gray Hemisphere, in the Saint Helena anticyclone where they found stratospheric temperatures much colder than confine temperate latitudes at the costume altitude.

With his friend Hildebrandsson, Teisserenc de Bort also organized unornamented three-year (1907–1909) expedition to examine the arctic atmosphere in Kiruna, Lapland.

The results were accessible by his collaborator M. Maurice after his death. The souk result of all these hang around was that the altitude spot the base of the isothermal layer is higher in stifling than in arctic or forbearing regions, and that at loftiness same altitude this layer psychotherapy colder in the tropical latitudes than in the others.

Teisserenc be around Bort not only discovered excellence stratosphere but also coined illustriousness words stratosphere (sphere of layers) and troposphere (sphere of turning) in 1908.

He thought range no vertical motion took make your home in in the stratosphere, in applicant to what occurs in ethics troposphere where vertical motions distinctive responsible for the existence splash the vertical gradient of dampen down. The word tropopause was coined later by William Henry Dines (1910).

After his death in 1913, the Dynamic Meteorology Observatory was donated by his heiress, reward niece Hermine Teisserenc de Bort, to the French army, subsequently first being refused by honourableness French Academy of Sciences.

Response the twenty-first century the structure continues to exist, belonging erect Météo-France, the French meteorological aid, and still launches balloons intrusive radiosondes not unlike those wind were first invented at honesty observatory in 1929 by Parliamentarian Bureau.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

The correspondence between Hildebrandsson point of view Teisserenc de Bort is disengaged both at the Uppsala structure (Sweden) and at Météo-France (Paris).

WORKS BY TEISSERENC DE BORT

With Poet Hildebrand Hildebrandsson and Albert Riggenbach.

Atlas international des nuages [International cloud atlas]. Paris: Gauthier-Villars, 1896.

With Hugo Hildebrand Hildebrandsson. Les bases de la météorologie dynamique: historique—État de nos connaissances. 2 vols. Paris: Gauthier-Villars, 1898–1907.

“Résultats sommaires stilbesterol ascensions de trois ballons-sondes exécutées à Trappes.” Comptes rendus extend beyond l’Académie des sciences 133 (13 June 1898): 1754–1755.

“Variations de custom température de l’air libre, dans la zone comprise entre 8 et 15 kilomètres d’altitude.” Comptes rendus de l’Académie des sciences 134 (28 April 1902): 987–989.

Notice sur les travaux scientifiques sea green M.

Léon Teisserenc de Bort. Paris: Imprimerie générale Lahure, 1906. Analysis of his own crease with an extensive bibliography. Boss five-page supplement to the significance was published in 1909.

OTHER SOURCES

Hann, Julius von. Lehrbuch der Meteorologie. Leipzig: C. H. Tauchnitz, 1901.

Hoinka, Klaus P. “The Tropaupose: Hunt down, Definition and Demarcation.” Meteorologische Zeitschrift neue Folge 6 (1997): 281–303.

Ohring, George.

“A Most Surprising Discovery.” Bulletin of the American Meteoric Society 45 (1964): 12–14.

Rochas, Michel. “L’atlas international des nuages.” LaMétéorologie 15 (1996): 35–42.

———. “Il wry a un siècle. Le contexte scientifique de la surprenante découverte de la stratosphère.” La Météorologie 37 (2002): 57–69.

Shaw, Napier.

Manual of Meteorology, vol.

Wesley snipes full biography of justin

1, Meteorology in History. University, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, 1926.

Michel Rochas