Hugo Hergesell

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Hugo Hergesell (1859–1938) was director of the Strassburg meteorological observatory (Kaiserlich Meteorologische Landesanstalt) and president of the International Commission for Scientific Aeronautics. He directed the Prussian Aeronautical Observatory and in the war worked for the National Weather Service. He received financial backing from Count Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin and the Prince of Monaco as well as the Emperor of Germany.[1]

He used kites and captive balloons to measure the atmosphere at different altitudes. Major experiments were conducted at Lake Constance in 1900 and over the Mediterranean in 1904.[2]

Before the war, Hergesell was pursuing an arctic exploration mission with von Zeppelin. The two traveled to Spitzbergen (Svalbard archipelago) in 1910, along with Prince Heinrich, the emperor's brother, and a team of other scientists. On 3 August 1910, Hergesell and Zeppelin reached the northernmost point of their journey, ascended to 1000m in a captive balloon, and took measurements of atmospheric temperature, humidity, and pressure. Smaller balloons were deployed to altitudes up to 15,000 meters.[3] These balloons confirmed the existence of an isothermal layer of atmosphere at -60°C starting at about 10,000 meters (and increasing to -54°C by 12,000 meters).[4] Plans for arctic exploration were described in a subsequent book, "With Zeppelin to Spitzbergen" (Mit Zeppelin nach Spitsbergen).[5]


Publications by or about Hugo Hergesell or H. Hergesell or Hergesell

Hugo Hergesell (or H. Hergesell or Hergesell) participated in these events:

References

  1. Willi Hager, Hydraulicians in Europe 1800-2000, Volume 2; CRC Press, 2009; p. 1086.
  2. Hans Fabian, "Aeronautical Research Comes Into Being During the Time of the Empire", in Aeronautical Research in Germany: From Lilienthal until Today, ed. Ernst Heinrich Hirschel, Horst Prem, & Gero Madelung; Springer, 2012; p. 37.
  3. Michael Belafi, The Zeppelin; Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Pen & Sword, 2015; p. 106.
  4. Nathan Haskell Dole, America in Spitsbergen: Romance of an Arctic Coal Mine; Boston: Marshall Jones Company, 1922; p. 146.
  5. Guillaume de Syon, Zeppelin!: Germany and the Airship, 1900–1939; Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002; p. 151.