Document Type: Book (Technical Reference).

Purpose: Authoritative reference.

Authority: Author Expertise.

Scope: Technical book written by Thomas C. Gillmer, Department of Marine Engineering, U.S. Naval Academy and H. Erich Nietsch, Aeronautical Engineer.

From the Preface: "It is possible to approach the subject of weather from many sides and to study it in many ways and for many purposes. Those who think of it in terms of meteorology often consider only its relationship to aviation. This however is an incomplete viewpoint for there are hardly any among us whose life is not affected in some manner and to some degree by the weather.

The difference in the terms meteorology and weather should be clearly understood at the outset. Meteorology is the science of the earth's atmosphere; weather is the general condition of the atmosphere at a given time and place in regard to wind, moisture, clouds and climatic conditions. The former is strictly a professional subject and one that is highly specialized and involved; but from this science we can deduce a body of information of great interest and value in pursuit of a fuller understanding of the more common term weather.

This book is in no sense a formal text on meteorology. It is a summary of selected deductions from meteorological science that leads to a wider knowledge of weather conditions. Recognizing the vital importance of weather to flight, we can approach the study in a world of three dimensions; that is, weather in the upper levels of the atmosphere as well as upon the surface of the earth. Without a knowledge of the weather aloft, it is quite impossible to understand adequately the weather below.

The contents of the book represent a development of the basic physical laws of the atmosphere into the principles of air mass analysis and forecasting. A study of clouds viewed from above as well as below is included in order to give the reader a scientific correlation for meteorological changes and to further the knowledge of everyday weathercasting. The resulting effect of the weather as applied to flying conditions, creation of weather hazards, and the art of flight without power is covered in detail on the following pages.

The authors have prepared this book for the Ayer and for the layman whose interest lies not in becoming a meteorologist but in gaining a better appreciation and understanding of the weather. This study may be a professional interest or it may be an endeavor to advance vocational or avocational activities; it may well be for pure enjoyment. The authors hope that the book will be enlightening and interesting to those who wish this informal study.

The authors wish to acknowledge their gratitude for the helpful cooperation of the following agencies: the Bureau of Aeronautics, U.S. Navy; the War Department; the Civil Aeronautics Administration; and the Society for Visual Education. The authors are particularly indebted to the following persons whose interest in the book has rendered great assistance; Dr. Lothar Nietsch for his inspiring aid relative to weather hazards, soaring the lightplane, and the itinerant flyer's weather problem; Mr. F. Townsend Morgan for his accurate and artistic interpretations of clouds viewed from above as well as below; Mr. E. E. Fitzgerald, Mr. Alver Ives, and Miss Helen Lippincott for their excellent line drawings and sketches.

Annapolis, Md. October, 1944

Contents (from Table of Contents): "PREFACE

CHAPTER 1. WEATHER AND THE ATMOSPHERE - THE PROBLEM OF THE WEATHER - ATMOSPHERIC STRUCTURE - A FEW FACTS ABOUT THE AIR

PART I. THE WEATHER

2. CLOUDS - CLOUD FORMATION - CLOUD NAMES - TYPES OF CLOUDS

3. TEMPERATURE VARIATION AND ITS EFFECT - LAPSE RATE - ADIABATIC LAPSE RATE - ADIABATIC SATURATION - ATMOSPHERIC EQUILIBRIUM - STABILITY - INSTABILITY - HEAT TRANSFER - LAYER INSTABILITY - INVERSIONS - SUBSIDENCE

4. ATMOSPHERIC CIRCULATION: WIND AND FLIGHT - ADVANTAGES FOR FLIGHT - WORLD WIND PATTERN - GENERAL CIRCULATION - LOCAL CIRCULATION

5. AIR MASSES - INFLUENCING FACTORS - CLASSIFICATION AND DESIGNATION - MODIFICATIONS - BERGERON CLASSIFICATION - NORTH AMERICAN MASSES - LOCAL CLASSIFICATIONS - AIR MASS WEATHER

6. FRONTS AND FRONTAL CLOUDS - WARM FRONTS - COLD FRONTS - STATIONARY FRONTS - ATMOSPHERIC WAVES - LIFE HISTORY OF A WAVE CYCLONE - OCCLUDED FRONTS

PART II. FLIGHT AND THE WEATHER

7. WEATHER MAPS AND HOW TO READ THEM - WEATHER OBSERVATIONS - TELETYPE SEQUENCE REPORTS - PILOT BALLOON AND RADIOSONDE REPORTS - SYNOPTIC CHARTS - SUPPLEMENTARY CHARTS - READING THE SYNOPTIC CHART

8. FORECASTING FOR FLIGHT - THE AIRMAN'S PLACE IN FORECASTING - GENERAL NOTES ON FORECASTING - FRONT ANALYSIS - WIND FORECASTS - FLIGHT PLANNING - ALTIMETER SETTING

9. WEATHER HAZARDS IN FLIGHT - FOG AND STRATUS CLOUDS - THUNDER STORMS - HAIL - TROPICAL CYCLONES (HURRICANES) - TORNADOES - FORMATION OF ICE ON AIRCRAFT - THE ITINERANT FLYERS WEATHER PROBLEM

PART III. FLIGHT

10. FLIGHT WITHOUT POWER: GLIDING AND SOARING - IMPORTANCE OF TEMPERATURE - SEVEN CONDITIONS - DRY THERMALS - CONVECTIVE VERTICAL AIRCURRENTS WITH CUMULUS FORMATION - FRONTAL THUNDERSTORMS - SOARING IN THUNDERHEADS - CLOUD STREETS - RIDGE OR SLOPE UPDRAFTS - THE MOAZAGOTL CONDITION - DYNAMIC SOARING - SOARING THE LIGHTPLANE

GLOSSARY OF METEOROLOGICAL TERMS

APPENDIX - INSTRUMENTS FOR WEATHER OBSERVATION - SAMPLE WEATHER MAPS (SYNOPTIC CHARTS) - COMBINED WEATHER CODE TABLES, U.S. DEPT. OF COMMERCE WEATHER BUREAU"