One hundred years looking at time

Rementeria Argote, Nagore

Elhuyar Zientziaren Komunikazioa

For the last hundred years there have been eleven days of phareo, lightning, wind and fog. And at the Meteorological Observatory of Igeldo there has always been someone who has noticed these weather circumstances, collecting data. Somehow, this observatory has seen how meteorology becomes science over a hundred years of history.
One hundred years looking at time
01/01/2006 | Rementeria Argote, Nagore | Elhuyar Zientzia Komunikazioa
(Photo: Hardware N)

The Meteorological Observatory of Igeldo does not arise by chance. Weather circumstances have always worried man. Long ago I dreamed of knowing what time I was going to do the next day, and for that dream and the necessity, the XVIII. At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 19th century, numerous meteorological observatories were built in most of the world. But, as I said, Igeldo's idea did not come by chance: behind that idea there was a tragedy.

On Holy Saturday in 1876, a terrible galerna led the lives of 500 fishermen in Bizkaia and Cantabria. That tragedy shocked a 12-year-old Hernaniarra boy, Juan Miguel Orkolaga: Founder of the Igeldo observatory.

Apparently, Orkolaga's interest in time intensified markedly after that event. And he did not resign himself to the coast until weather forecasts and a warning system for storms and storms were made.

Margarita Martín is currently the director of the Meteorological Observatory of Igeldo.
Hardware N

Thanks to the collaboration of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa that opened the Maritime Meteorology Observatory of Igeldo in 1905, on November 8 it has turned 100 years. The merit of that man could not be limited: at that time the meteorology was in the process of becoming science, but still prevailed the predictions and superstitions of the shepherds, so it had little science.

But Orkolaga was clear that the basis for predicting time was in science. To do this, he brought the measuring instruments from the outside, and also manufactured several instruments by hand --there were no approved measuring systems and each meteorologist adapted as much as possible -.

At first the tooling was quite poor: Systems Barometer of the Richard House (presented by King Alfonso XIII), kinematograph, maximum and minimum temperature thermometer and a differential Orkolaga pluviometer, a microbarometer and several mercury barometer, among others. These were simple but essential tools for collecting data that define time and make predictions.

In Igeldo measurements are made with old and modern tools, both.
g. Ro

Weather in the world

By the time of Orkolaga, weather was very advanced in the world. For centuries the basic instruments of meteorology were invented: The pressure barometer invented by Torricelli in 1643, with which it was discovered that the decrease of the air pressure indicated the arrival of a storm, in 1667 Robert Hooke invented an anemometer to measure the speed of the wind, in 1714 the mercury thermometer Daniel Fahrenheit to measure the temperature and in 1780 the hygrometer of the humidity of the air Ssurbe.

The atmosphere data were first collected by Laurent Lavoisier, who measured pressure, air humidity and wind speed and direction in 1765. Lavoisier was sure that with that information he could predict the time he was going to do the next day. Therefore, weather forecasting could be done scientifically, regardless of beliefs. But to do this, a quick communication tool was needed that did not reach until 1843, when Samuel Mors invented the telegraph.

Thanks to the telegraph, weather forecasts began to be made regularly, and it was the origin of modern weather. By telegraphs, from different observatories of a territory, data of a specific nature were sent, added to them, placed on a map and knew the situation in which the data were collected. From the analysis of the evolution of these maps it was announced what was going to happen in the coming hours. The truth is that before the invention of the telegraph data were collected, but they arrived late to make predictions.

Today, fishing vessels have modern communication systems, but weather forecasting is as necessary as a hundred years ago.
Hardware N

Thanks to telegraph and necessity, meteorology advanced. And in this case there is also a tragedy behind everything. The truth is that in 1854 a storm sank a warship and 38 cargo ships in the port of Balaklava in Crimea. Reviewing the records of the previous days, they found that the storm surfaced two days earlier and toured Europe.

If weather data were collected and interpreted on time, that storm could be predicted. Thus, France launched the storm alert service. And that is the event that is conceived as the origin of modern meteorology. Thanks to the telegraph, the Paris Observatory began to develop meteorological maps, which was followed in 1872 by the British Meteorology Office.

However, the main advance in meteorological predictions occurred during World War I. By then the theory of Vilhelm Bjerknes had already been approved; XX. According to this theory, published in the first decade of the 20th century, the interaction between temperate and cold air masses had a great influence over time. And the idea was imposed that time conforms to the laws of physics, which allowed to study meteorology in a scientific way.

Currently, weather forecasts are made with data collected via satellite, but meteorological observatories are still necessary for the prediction of a particular place.
www.infoclimat.fr

At the tip of the weather

During World War I, weather forecasts were fundamental for aircraft flights, etc. were safe. And from then on the meteorology had a constant advance. When Orkolaga presided over Igeldo's observatory, meteorology advanced greatly, as seen. In fact, Orkolaga was not a breakthrough in the investigation, but his identity continued after his death. In the early years, family and friends around Orkolaga maintained the work of the observatory. And so came the golden age of the observatory: At the time of Doporto.

Mariano Doporto was an important meteorologist, who later became director of the Irish Meteorology Service, and knew the latest advances in meteorology and wrote specialized articles. In 1927 he arrived at Doporto Igeldo at work after overcoming the oppositions. With it came the time of professional meteorologists, which allowed Igeldo to enter the World Observation Network.

Weather observations were daily and quality, and weather forecasts were made with local and World Observation Network data.

To measure the strength and direction of the wind, among others, is this anemometer in the tower of the observatory of Igeldo.
G. Roa

Since then, political vicissitudes have been numerous: changes in government, wars... and yet the observatory has remained. And most importantly: Data are kept from 1928 until today.

Time has not passed in vain

In this long century, the observatory has been chaired by Carlos Santamaría and Usabiaga, among others. The observatory is currently run by Margarita Martín. Eleven people have passed, eleven meteorologists and observers. Progress has been made, but work is largely done like a hundred years ago. Currently, observers receive the data rigorously and orderly every three hours -- from now on they will receive it every hour.

The data collected by observers is very useful for predicting weather, as well as analysing global climate variations. The climate series from 1928 to today is a real treasure for climatologists. In short, it is a very reliable series: since then the same tools have been used to make measurements, and the environment has hardly changed (many observatories have eaten the urban centers and the series is not useful), the residence of Igeldo continues in the same place, in the rural environment, as a hundred years ago.

Therefore, Igeldo is part of the International Basic Network and, according to Margarita Martín, "is undoubtedly one of the most important observatories of the World Meteorological Organization". But it is a little deteriorated: the building has a great humidity and it is necessary to renew it. In addition, its scientific heritage and historical heritage are unique and, therefore, it is a privileged place to open a museum dedicated to meteorology. There is no lack of intentions and desire.

Other
Born to see everything
It has been a hundred years, more than 36,500 days, collecting weather data at the Igeldo observatory. The observatory has seen countless lights, rains, suction cups, no wind... The ephemeris of the Igeldo Observatory are:
The warmest day
We will not immediately forget the summer of 2003. The months of July and August were warmer and on August 4 the Igeldo thermometer measured 38.6 °C. When it did not melt!
The coldest day
(Photo: Igeldo weather observatory)
February is very cold, often ice is thrown. Well, in 1956, the February average did not exceed zero degrees throughout the Basque coast. The lowest temperature was measured on 3 February: -12.1°C.
Rainier storm
On 1 July 1997 there was a flood that is not surprising, as it rained all day. Igeldo's rain gauge collected 193 l/m 2 in two hours, 104 liters in an hour.
Strong wind
Probably the strongest wind in Igeldo was on November 6, 1982, but upon registration the needle came out of the chart and was not recorded. By then the device had a measured speed of 184 km/h. Therefore, officially on January 15, 1975 is the biggest wind blow recorded in Igeldo: 187 km/h.
Father Orkolaga (1864-1914)
Orkolaga was a peasant family, self-taught in meteorology. Born in Hernani, Juan Miguel Orkolaga was vicar of Zarautz.
We know that the first successful announcement was made in 1900, on November 15. Probably it was not the first, but it was the first one that was extended by telegraph to the Diputaciones of Gipuzkoa and Bizkaia. By then Orkolaga worked in Igeldo, but not in the current observatory headquarters. Until 1905 did not arrive the money of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa to acquire the residence and the official opening was made on November 8.
In fact, until then Orkolaga was subsidized by both deputies: From Gipuzkoa and Bizkaia. But he rejected the offer to build an observatory on Cape Matxitxako and the Provincial Council of Bizkaia took his aid.
An enbaton warning system was launched at the new Igeldo observatory. Unfortunately he could not avoid a tragedy: On August 12, 1912, the storm dragged 145 fishermen (115 of them in Bermeo), all dead in Bizkaia. Orkolaga made the announcement correctly and from Galicia to Bordeaux had sent notice of an enba to all ports.
(Photo: Igeldo weather observatory)
Forced meteorologist without studies
Orkolaga was clear that to predict time it was necessary to make long observations: the predictor of time should know the peculiarities of a certain place. According to Orkolaga himself, "in meteorology geniuses are necessary inventors who discover for themselves what teachers cannot teach."
On the other hand, the weather forecasts were broadcast in the daily press and radio of Donostia. Until then there were similar sessions, but it seems that predictions based on science were the first time they were broadcast in press in the Spanish state and one of the first by radio. Thus, thanks to Orkolaga meteorological terms began to be common, such as the borrasca, the vortex... --the word front spread later -.
According to Margarita Martín, current director of the observatory, Orkolaga had the characteristics of a good meteorologist: "capacity for observation, capacity for relational analysis, critical capacity and decision-making capacity."
Rementeria Argote, Nagore
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