500 MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW NOVEMBER,1927 NOTES AND ABSTRACTS DAMAQINQ GAS EXPLOSION AT PITTSBURGH, PA. Philadelphia has been the scene of experiments in dis- sipating fog by means of electrified sprays. No tangible By W. S. BROTZMAN re,sults have been announced. [Westher Bureau Offiw, Plttaburgh, Pa ] Schemes for draining off the fog-laden air from flying fields and also for warming the air over such places and On Monday, November 14, 1927, at 8:43 a. m., an thus causing the fog to evaporate have been investigated explosion of natural gas occurred in Pittsburgh which and pronounced impractica,ble. produced tremors throughout the city such as might On a small scale and in favorable circumstances fog have been caused by a severe earthquake. The explo- can be dispelled, but all known methods are too costly sion caused the death of 28 persons, the injury of more for ordinary conimerc,ial use. Thus the matter now than 400, and a propert loss of about $5,000,000. stands. The scene of the expiy osion was about 1 mile west of the Weather Bureau office. The loud report and the jolt experienced at that office turned attention in the METEOROLOGICAL SUMMARY FOR SOUTHERN SOUTH direction of its source. The first view showed what AMERICA, OCTOBER, 1927 seemed to be a dense mass of dust and smoke rising from By J. BUSTOSNAVARRETE tbe ruins. An instant later the mass burst into flsnies and a ball of fire apparently 100 feet in diameter sep- [Observatorio del Salto, Santlago, Chile] arated from the dense mass and began to rise. It rose The many atmospheric depressions of considerable rapidly, the volume growing smaller with nscent until importance charted off central Chile caused much finally it burned out at an estimated height of 1,000 feet. cloudiness, frequent fog, and early morning mists and In the immediate vicinity of the explosioii buildings light rains, especially along the coast. Precipitation was were leveled with but few exceptions. Within a radius generally scant or deficient; at Santiago, in the middle of half a mile most of the buildi~igswere badly damaged of the central region, the total for the month was on1 and many persons were injnred. Estencling the radius 7.6 millimeters (0.30 inch), and at Vddivia, in the midd e to 1 mile there WAS damage to plate-glass windows in 9 of the southern region, it WIS 85.3 millimeters (3.30 Pittsburgh amounting to $50,000, and damage such as inches). broken windows, the falling of plaster, etc., was noted as The principal depressions appeared on the lst-2d, far as 6 miles in all directions. Gth-Sth, llth-l4th, 20th, 23d-%th, and 2Gth, and the The sound of the explosion was heard throughout a principal anticyclones on the Zd-Gth, lOth-l8th, 21st- radius of 15 to 20 miles. Zsth, and 27 th-3 1st. The barograph in the Weather Bureau ofice rose nbout - 0.035 inch at the time of explosion nnd immediately dropped back to the original pressure. A microbaro- METEOROLOQICAL SUMMARY FOR BRAZIL, OCTOBER, graph in the Taylor Instrument Co.’s ofice, three floors 1927 below the Westher Bureau office, recorded an increase By J. DE SAUPAIo FERRAZ,Director of 0.050 inch and immediately thereafter showed a reaction of 0.015 inch below the original pressure at the (Directorla de Meteorologia, Rlo de Janelro) time of the explosion. Southern and central regions of the country were sub- ject to remarkably active general circulation. As many ATTEMPTS TO DISPEL FOG as eight anticyclones crossed the continent, mostly in 1 the normal tracks for the season. These high-pressure By C. FITZHUCHTALMAN areas moved swjftly and were followed by depressions [Reprinted from “Why the Weather?”, Science Servlce (Inc.), Washington] with more definite action than usual. Consequently general weather conditions in the regions referred to were The problem of dispelling fog by artificial means is particularly changeful, with several moderate gales. In perennial. Years ago we heard that Sir Oliver Lodge the first and last decades low-pressure areas were ex- had solved it by the use of an electrical contrivance ceptionally active, with the formation of secondaries and erected on his house in Liverpool-but the city on the high winds. A destructive whirlwind swept over Ponta Mersey is still afflicted with fogs. Then the London Grossa, in Parana, with tornado effects, which fact is of County Council was approached with a sche,me for clear- very rare occurrence in Brazil. ing away the celebrated “London particular” by the Rainfall was very scarce in the north and center, but use of explosives. The promoter of this scheme proposed generally plentiful in the south, principally in the higher to utilize a quantity of mortars which had been designed latitudes. for the purpose of dispelling hailstorms in Italy but had Cane, cotton, and cocoa harvesting .generally satisfac- failed to produce the desired effects. The county tory, except cocoa in Bahia, where It is smaller than authorities refused to provide funds for this experiment expected. Coffee in Sao Paulo in excellent condition and the project was abandoned. with intense flowering. Wheat in the south also very Just before the World War the city of Lyons voted promising. Other small grain and vegetables generally money for experiments in preventing the formation of in good condition. fog in that city by coating the rivers Rhone and Saone Weather in Rio de Janeiro was very unsettled, tempera- with oil. About the same period the Cottrell process of ture was also very variable. On the 16th the thermo- electrical precipitation, which is so successfully applied meter rose to 36.8O centigrade (98.2’ F.) with unexpected in treating industrial dusts and fumes, was tried on the heat. The city was visited by five moderate gales. fogs of the California coast, but nothing seems to have Pressure and temperature on the average were, however, resulted. Quite recently the naval aircraft factory at normal.

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