IGY Bulletin, Number 4, October 1957 - IGY Antarctic Weather Central

A major accomplishment of the IGY was the establishment of a network of weather stations in the Antarctic. These stations provided regular data that allowed the compilation of synoptic charts and the prediction of weather, as well as a better understanding of atmospheric circulation in the Southern Hemisphere. 

Let's start with a contemporary and local (for me) context. There is a National Weather Service Station here in Lancaster, Pennsylvania: KLNS. As I write, current conditions at the station include:

• general conditions - rain
• temperature - 53°F (12°C)
  
• humidity - 77%
  
• wind speed - NW 18 G 28 mph
  
• barometric pressure - 29.51 inches mercury (999.1 millibars)

These data can be summarized in a station plot. The results from

different stations can be used to compile a regional synoptic chart (i.e., a weather map derived from variables measured at the same time over a region - a snapshot of weather conditions). These charts show multiple weather features such as fronts and pressure systems on one map, with or without the station plot information. Then weather forecasts can be made for the region. And, of course, simpler maps can show single variables of interest, like temperatures. All of this depends on having a dense enough array of weather measurements in both time and space.

The Royal Meteorological Society provides a tutorial on weather maps.

The IGY focused specifically on synoptic data showing variability over space during a moment of time. Time series, which shows how variables change over time at one or more places, are also important in studying weather and climate patterns.

Anyway, before the IGY, none of this was possible for the continent of Antarctica. There just weren't (hardly) any measurements. You might think, who cares, no one lived there except penguins. But such weather information is also critical in understanding larger-scale atmospheric dynamics. Multiple stations are needed because the weather is highly variable across Antarctica,

depending on proximity to the moderating influence of the ocean, and on the elevation. Now there are enough Antarctic weather stations to generate weather maps for the coldest and driest continent.

Ok, on to some specifics of the Bulletin article. One important aspect of the IGY Antarctic weather program was establishing an Antarctic Weather Central to collect and disseminate Southern Hemisphere information, especially for the Antarctic. This was, of course, pre-internet, and pre- many other communications and data technologies we now take for granted.

The Weather Central was tasked with:

• receiving and recording weather data from many sources
• preparation and analysis of meteorological charts, maps, and graphs (mostly synoptic)
• broadcasting current weather information and forecasts.

At the time of the article, Weather Central at the Little America Station was staffed by four Americans and one person each from Australia and the USSR. Additional staff members were anticipated from Australia, France, Belgium, and South Africa.

The data sent to Weather Central derived from standard surface observations as well as upper atmosphere results which were collected by: 

• radiosondes (instrumented weather balloons that telemetered data from the atmosphere back to the ground)
• rawinsondes (radiosondes with positions tracked as they ascended, to yield wind speed and direction, i.e., a radar wind sonde)
• and pilot balloons (not with a pilot in it, but that is passively observed from the ground to determine cloud height as it fades from view into the clouds).

The United Nations issued two lovely stamps early in 1957 to honor the 10th anniversary of the founding of the World Meteorological Organization, depicting weather balloons. The scans below are of panes from my collection. The WMO and IGY had overlapping interests in meteorological data collection and dissemination. United Nations stamps are used on official mail of the UN, and can also be used on private correspondence sent through UN post offices.

United Nations 3¢ and 8¢ stamps (Scott catalog #s UN 49, 50) 

Most data arriving at Weather Central were received using CW radio communication by Morse code at Williams Air Operations Facility, McMurdo Sound, and then transmitted 400 miles to Little America by radioteletype. In return, Weather Central provided "outlooks" that were used by meteorologists at the various Antarctic stations for forecasting.

All Weather Central scientific data and records were microfilmed to make for a compact and permanent archive. 

Data storage, oh my! In my teaching, I used to have my geophysics students analyze data from earthquakes. In the 1980s I was still using a set of microfiche  seismograms from the 1964 Alaskan earthquake, and also had the students look up newspaper reports on microfiche in the main library. In the 1990s and early 2000s, I used seismograms compiled on CD-roms by the National Earthquake Information Center. And then, seismograms became widely available over the internet through various agencies and universities. Oh yeah, we also used books, printed documents, and ink-on-paper (and later digital) seismograms from our own seismographs.