Through a glass brightly: Some new light on the Campbell–Stokes sunshine recorder

Although it is now 150 years since the first measurements of sunshine were made using the burning glass method, a number of questions concerning these observations remain open and are considered in this article. The first is historical and concerns the name of this type of sunshine recorder: Who was...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Weather 2003-01, Vol.58 (1), p.3-11
Main Author: Stanhill, G.
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:Although it is now 150 years since the first measurements of sunshine were made using the burning glass method, a number of questions concerning these observations remain open and are considered in this article. The first is historical and concerns the name of this type of sunshine recorder: Who was responsible for developing the instrument into its present form? A second question concerns the working of this instrument: What does it measure and what are the factors responsible for the changes in sunshine that have been recorded? Finally: What have sunshine measurements contributed to our understanding of climate and climate change and is it necessary to continue taking them?.
ISSN:0043-1656
1477-8696
DOI:10.1256/wea.278.01