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Beyond the Beagle
Thu Sep 15, 2005
Listen in RealAudio 
As commander of HMS Beagle, the ship which carried Charles Darwin to eventual
fame, Robert FitzRoy seems just a historical footnote. However, FitzRoy is also known
as the Father of the British Meteorological Service. Hi, I'm Bryan Yeaton for The
Weather Notebook.
For FitzRoy's second voyage with Beagle, in 1831, Naval Hydrographer Frances
Beaufort asked him to observe the winds using Beaufort's new scale, as part of
weather surveys.
The five-year mission proved so successful that FitzRoy was promoted to Captain in
1835. Over the next decade, FitzRoy would be elected to Parliament and then
appointed Governor of New Zealand.
In 1854, to organize weather data collected at sea, the British founded the
Meteorological Office, and appointed Robert FitzRoy as its chief.
FitzRoy had earlier recognized the role of barometers in foreseeing stormy weather.
After a deadly storm struck the British Isles in October 1859, sinking 200 ships and
killing 800 people, he began portraying storms by using charts drawn from weather
observations, the forerunner of today's synoptic weather maps. From this, FitzRoy
conceived the possibility of foretelling or, as he called it, forecasting the
weather.
To implement FitzRoy's forecast scheme in 1861, fifteen stations telegraphed regular
weather observations to London. This data was the basis for storm forecasts.
Whenever a gale was predicted, storm-warning signals were raised along the coast:
the world's first regular, national storm forecasting. Although criticism of this service
may have contributed to Fitzroy's suicide in 1865, today, he is respected for his
foresight into forecasting.
Thanks to our contributing writer, meteorologist Keith Heidorn. The Weather Notebook
is funded by Subaru and The National Science Foundation.
Today's Links
Fitzroy and the Beagle
http://www.magma.ca/~jdreid/temp.htm
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