This list, arranged by date, contains citations to articles, mostly popular press, that describe or depict radiosondes (or their predecessors, meteorographs and radiometeorographs). The titles link to either a photo of the article, or part of the article, or an illustration.
Date | Magazine Title | Article Title, Author | Page # | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|
1880 | Annual Report of The Board of Regents of The Smithsonian Institution For The Year Ending 1879 | "A Universal Meteorograph Designed for Detached Observatories" E.H. von Baumhauer, translated from the French by Clarence B. Young | 519 | Proposes a balloon-borne recording meteorograph to "float freely in the atmosphere" and be returned by a finder. |
1905 June | The Century Magazine | “Our Heralds of Storm and Flood” Gilbert H. Grosvenor | 167,168 | Clipped article contains description of balloon-borne meteorographs and charming illustration by Jay Hambridge. |
1905 March 25 | The Illustrated London News | “Weather Prophets: Ingenious Meteorological Instruments" | 429 | Meteorograph in wicker cage for aerial (kite) carriage, records temperature, pressure, humidity on smoked paper. |
1906 | Yearbook of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture | “New Problems of the Weather” Willis L. Moore, W. J. Humphreys, and O. L. Fassig | 121 | Clip of article on Mount Weather Research Station with photos of kite and balloon meteorographs. |
1907 | Scientific American | “The International Kite Ascensions” S. P. Fergusson | 97-98 | Mentions “successful introduction of the Ballon-sonde (or unmanned balloon carrying registering instruments only) in 1892 and shows Sterling Fergusson with a Jules Richard Meteorograph. |
1907 March | The Scottish Geographical Magazine | “Meteorological Researches in the High Atmosphere” H.S.H. The Prince of Monaco | 111 | Text and photos describing balloon-meteorograph—"ballons-sondes"—launch and recovery, including a two-balloon recovery on the ocean. |
1909 November 27 | Scientific American | “Sounding the Ocean of Air Above Us. Atmospheric Exploration” | 392 | Comments on double-balloons and parachutes for meteorograph descent, history of "ballons-sondes" launches, discovery of the tropopause ("isothermal stratum") and stratosphere. |
1910 December 10 & 12 | The Dartmouth | "Excellent Talk by Professor Rotch" | 1,1 | Head of Blue Hills Observatory talks of "small balloons carrying automatic recorders" as part of talk titled "The Conquest of the Air." |
1910 October 22 | Scientific American | "The Atmospheric Ocean" Prof. H. Lawrence Rotch | 324 | Text and Photos on sounding ballon meteorographs by director of the Blue Hill Meteorological Observatory |
1916 July 1 | The Mentor | “The Weather” | 6 | Photo of first ascent of a meteorograph on a sounding balloon circa 1904. |
1917 | Scientific American | “Meteorology at War” | xxxx | Notes use of pilot balloons to chart “upper air-currents” for “military aeronauts” and mentions “the investigation of the upper air.” |
1925 December | Scientific American | “Exploring the Upper Air” | 418 | Photocopy of article with photos about balloon meteorographs. |
1927 | The Children's News | "Weather Balloon" | ? | Captioned photo of tethered-balloon-borne meteorograph going aloft at Kew, London, England |
1931 May | Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada | “A Visual Signaling Meteorograph” J. Patterson | 115 | Clipped article with diagrams. |
1932 January | Short Wave Craft (Hugo Gersnback, ed.) | “How High Is That Balloon?” Capt. J. A. Code, Jr. | 248 | Short-wave transmitter tracks weather balloon height, with photos. |
1932 July | Short Wave Craft (Hugo Gernsback, ed.) | “Balloon Radioes Weather by Short Waves” Rene Leonhardt | 136 | Nicely illustrated brief article. |
1934 August | The Farmer’s Wife | “Will We Get Rain?” Carroll P. Streeter | 6 | Photo of early radiometeorograph. |
1936 January 1 | Les Ailes | "Les Ballons Radio-Sondes" | 4 | Article with photos and stratosphere/tropopause diagram, subtitled "A Beautiful French Invention" |
1937 August | Popular Aviation | “The Radio-Meteorograph Broadcasts its Readings” S. R. Winters | 24 | Article with photos and schematic of Bureau of Standards radio-meteorograph. |
1937 January 18 | Life | “A Radiometeorograph Goes Up 20 Miles” | 41 | Article with photos about the radiometeorograph. |
1937 June | Short Wave and Television (Hugo Gernsback, ed.) | “Short waves + Balloons = Weather News” | 71 | Article with photos. |
1938 January-March | The Signal Corps Bulletin | “The Galcit Radio-Meteorograph” Capt. O. C. Maier | 38-39 | Describes a new model of radio-meteorograph weighing “430 grams and is carried aloft by a 4-foot balloon. . . . vertical range 76,000 feet before batteries freeze.” |
1938 January-March | The Signal Corps Bulletin | “Radio-Meteorograph Station W1XFW” Dr. C. F. Brooks | 40-48 | Excellent illustrated history of Harvard’s radio-meteorograph development efforts by Director of the Blue Hill Observatory. |
1939 February 18 | Science News Letter | Upper Air Data Will Aid in Forecasting the Weather" Comdr. Francis W. Reichelderfer | 103 | Discusses the "radio-sonde" the "newest method" of upper-air soundings. Notes 6 Weather Bureau, 2 Army, and 2 Navy radiosonde stations. |
1940 | Calendar, De Laval Cream Separators | “The Radiometeorograph” | Sept-Oct | Sidebar. |
1940 April | Fortune | “The Weather” | 58 | Illustrated article on the relationship of weather to business. |
1940 March 23 | The Illustrated London News | “Radio-Balloons to Provide Secret Weather Data for the Allies” | 379 | Well photographed article of British Air Ministry B. 20 radiosonde and launch. |
1940 October | The Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society | “An Improved Radiosonde and its Performance” Harry Diamond; W. S. Hinman, Jr.; F. W. Dunmore; and E. G. Lapham | 325 | Discussion of the Diamond-Hinman Navy radiosonde. See entire paper at the National Institute of Standards and Technology archives website: http://bit.ly/1XcElAA |
1941 | Journal of the Franklin Institute | "The Radiosonde: the Stratosphere Laboratory" E. T. Clarke and S. A. Korff | 217 | Discusses technical aspects of radiosondes, pros and cons of three common systems, and non-meteorological applications. |
1941 (?) | Heft 14 (?) | “Radiosonden melden die Wetterlage aus 20 km Hohe” Von Dr. G. Loeser | 212 | Clip from WWII German magazine, with photos. |
1941 January | la Science et la Vie | “Quand la Radio Explore la Tres Haute Atmosphers: Radiosondes et Echos Radioelectriques” Louis Houllevigue | 13 | Long article in French with photos. Two Copies |
1941 September & October | Journal of the Franklin Institute | “The Radiosonde: The Stratosphere Laboratory” E. T. Clarke and S. A. Korff | – | Contemporary reprint of two companion articles with photos, diagrams, and schematics, extensive bibliography. |
1942 July | Radio-Craft (Hugo Gernsback, ed.) | “Art of Radiometeorography” | 699 | Notice of Diamond and Hinman patent. |
1942 November | World Week | “Radiosonde Going Up!” | Cover | Also an article “The Science of Weather” describing radiosondes on p. 18. |
1942 October | Radio News | “The Radio Sonde” Willard Moody | 36 | Description of the Diamond-Hinman (Bureau of Standards) Navy radiosonde. |
1942 October 16 | Current Aviation | “Clouds, Moisture, and the Upper Air” | 36 | Article with radiosonde photos. |
1943 | Capt. Ben Dix (Bendix comic book) | “Capt. Ben Dix in Action with the Invisible Crew” | 22 | Large-format, colorful depiction of the Ray Sonde [sic] in action. (2) |
1943 January | Electronics | “Radio Sounding in the United States” C. B. Pear, Jr. | Radio sounding overview article with photos, maps, and diagrams. | |
1943 May | Electrical World | “Linemen Cautioned About Disengaging Radiosondes” | 62 | Relates details of a fatality caused by a radiosonde entangled in power lines. |
1943 May | Air Tech | “The Raysonde” Alfred H. Sinks | 26-27, 68 | Details of the “balloon-borne spy” with photos and circuit diagram |
1943 August | Electronic Industries | “Tubes in Meteorology” G. Sonbergh | 62 | Color cover shot of radiosonde launch, couple of photos, little text about radiosondes. |
1943 August | Frieze Weathervane News | Eleven Year Old Gives Prized Tresses to War Effort | 4 | On blonde hairs being preferred for Raysonde hair hygrometers |
1943 September 13 | Life | “Meteorology” | 102 | Article with photos about radiosondes. |
1944? | Capt. Ben Dix (Bendix comic book) | “Secrets of the Invisible Crew” | 207 | Standard comic format, description of Raysonde and recorder. |
1944 April | Radio-Craft (Hugo Gernsback, ed.) | “Raysonde—Sky Radio” Vernon D. Hauck | 396 | Article with photos and schematic of Freize Raysonde. |
1944 February | Radio News | “Radiosonde” | 207 | Article with photos (notes advantage of blonde hairs in hygrometers). |
1944 July 1 | Aero Digest | “New Radiosonde Hygrometer” | 102 | Article on Raysonde’s replacement for the human hair hygrometer. |
1944 June 10 | The State (North Carolina) | “They Give the News About Weather” | 1 | Article about Army Air Forces Weather Wing with photo of WAC tracking radiosonde. |
1944 May 8-12 | Current Aviation | “Raysonde: Electronic Weather Eye” | 256 | Article with photos and schematic on Bendix/Frieze Raysonde. |
1946 February | Popular Mechanics Magazine | “Science Pins Down the Weather” Andrew J. Hamilton | 40 | Article with photos. |
1946 January | Boy’s Own Paper | “Forecasting the Weather” R. M. Lester | 24 | Photograph and functional description of radiosondes |
1946 May | Electronics | “Radiosonde Telemetering System”Hauck, Cosby, Dember | 120 | Article with photos. |
1946 November | Proceedings of the Institute of Radio Engineers and Waves and Electrons | “Ultra-High Frequency Radio Direction Finding” Luke Chia-Liu Yuan | 852 | Direction finder operating at 183 megacycles for observing meteorological balloon flights. |
1947 | Al-Mussawar | “King Farouk of Egypt and Radiosonde” | ? | Photo spread of King Farouk with balloon, radiosonde, and recorder. |
1947 | Nature Magazine | “What Is New in Meteorology?” Edna Hoffman Evans | 470-472, 498 | Describes WWII addition of radar tracking capability for radiosondes to create rawinsondes. |
1948 April | Weather | The Applications of Radiosondes to Meteorology" O. M. Ashford | 103 | Discussion of accuracy of radiosondes and improvements in design. |
1948 August | Journal of Meteorology | “Controlled-Altitude Free Balloons” Athelstan F. Spilhaus, C. S. Schneider, and C. B. Moore | 130 | With photos, sketches, and graphs of proposed methods. |
1948 February | Journal of Meteorology | “Meteorological Radio Direction Finding for Measurement of Upper Winds ” Robert A. Kirkman & John M. Lebedda | 28 | With photos and block diagrams of various radar systems. |
1948 May | Popular Science | "New Balloons Explore Roof of the Airways" | 98 | Photos and discussion of high-altitude balloon research and radiosondes |
1949 August | Science and Mechanics | “Fan Radiosonde” | 73 | Short piece on radiosonde with paper fan from India. |
1949 October | Journal of Meteorology | “A New Code Transmitting Radiosonde” H. D. Brailsford | 360 | Photos and diagrams of a Morse Code “Codesonde” device. |
1950 | The Aeroplane | “Exploring the Upper Air” | 187 | Describes a new Navy balloon developed by General Mills Aeronautical Research Laboratories for very-high-altitude meteorological observations. |
1951 | The Polar Record Vol. 6 No. 42 | “German Meteorological Activities in the Arctic, 1940-45" J. D. M. Blyth | 185-226 | Forty-one-page article notes logistical difficulties of “radio-sonde” observations. |
1951 April | “Electronics” | “Cosmic-Ray Radiosondes and Telemetering System,” Martin A. Pomerantz | 88 | Photographs and schematics of cosmic-ray exploration project. |
1951 December | Scientific American | “Weather Instruments” David I. Blumenstock | 64-70 | Summary history of instruments used to measure temperature, pressure, humidity, and air movement—selected pages. |
1951 January | Nation’s Business | Cover | Cover | Nice Robert Riggs painting of a USWB pilot balloon launch. Description on p. 8. |
1952 January 13-15 | Chicago Tribune | "Smilin' Jack" Zack Mosley | ? | A radiosonde saves the day for Jack and Kameeleon. See also 1972 entry below. |
1954 June | Scientific American | “Hurricanes” R. H. Simpson | 32 | Color cover shot of radiosonde, brief description of radiosondes on p. 24. |
1956 Summer | The [London] Times, Science Review | “Weather Balloon Ascents” R.C. Sutcliffe | 5 | Survey of weather balloon usage including U.S. "Skyhooks." |
1958 August & July | The Royal Society | “UK Antarctic Report for the International Geophysical Year” (excerpts) | 4, 7; 4, 6, 10 | Report, with photos of Brewer ozonesonde experiments. |
1959 November | Journal of Geophysical Research | “ Application of Meteorological Rocket Systems,” Willis L. Webb and Kenneth R. Jenkins | 1855 | Examines issues associated with the use of rockets to obtain real-time meteorological data at altitudes from the surface to 200,000 feet. |
1963 September 20 | Rocketeer, NOTS, China Lake | "Ozone Device In Record Balloon Hop — 142,000 Ft." Fred Richards | 1 | Article on development of a rocket-borne ozonesonde (ROCOZ) with photos |
1967 Summer | NCAR Quarterly | Horizontal Sounding Balloons" and "Balloons Against Ice," staff | 1 | Tracing large-scale air movements by horizontal soundings; includes Global Horizontal Sounding Technique (GHOST) balloons, cannibal-loons, Transosonde balloons, Sky-anchors, etc. |
1971 | Flash (DC Comics) | Flash Facts | 30 | 1971 reprint of 1959 1st series DC. |
1971 January 4 | FF Dabei | “Und taglich: Der Wetterbericht aus Potsdam” | 4 | Article in German with color photos. |
1972 July 31-August 4 | Chicago Tribune | "Smilin' Jack" Zack Mosley | ? | A radiosonde saves the day for Jack and Sizzle. See also 1952 entry above. |
1973 (Vol. 3) | Promet Meteorologische Fortbildung | "Prüffeld und mebobjekt für radiosonden" M. Hinzpeter | 10 | In German, technical article with diagrams and equations. |
1978 December | Popular Science | “Atmospheric Snooper” | 18 | Brief article with photos of AIR Inc. Airsonde. |
1989 May | Airline Pilot | "Radiosondes Tell Tall Tales” L. W. “Buzz” Elias | 26-29 | Illustrated summary of radiosondes and their use, distinguishing “up-sondes” from “down-sondes.” |
1994 | Rittenhouse | "Julien P. Friez: An Important American Meteorlogical Instrument Maker" | Ten-Page article on Friez, father of Julien M., discussing, inter alia, his early hydrographs. | |
1995 December | Short Wave Magazine | “Radiosondes” Philip C. Mitchell | 32 | Article with photos and diagrams focusing on the Vaisala RS 80-15N. |
1999 February/March. | Air & Space Smithsonian | “How’s the Weather Up There?” Phil Scott | 74 | Illustrated article on the current use of radiosondes. |
2005 July | The AWA Journal | “World War II Radiosonde Systems” Leon Hillman | 41 | Article with photos. |
2013 July-August | Weatherwise | “The Ubiquitous Radiosonde” Jan Null | 20-25 | Excellent illustrated history and discussion of current use of radiosondes |
2015 Sept-Dec | Break-In | “Early Radiosondes in New Zealand” Gordon Cooper | 4-5, 4-6 | Illustrated (two photos from RAMONA) early history of Kiwi radiosondes |