徐家汇观象台与近代中国气象学

The Observatory of Zikawei and Meteorology in Modern China

耶稣会通过创办徐家汇观象台将气象学引入中国。外人主导下的海关、电政和海舶等机构在制度上的配合保证了徐家汇观象台在观测和研究方面享有国际声望。与此形成对照的是,徐家汇观象台的示范长期未能引起中国社会的反应,它也未能改变人们对气象的传统观念。中国本土气象学的骨干是由海外留学生构成,他们与徐家汇观象台并无直接的渊源,但在学术和制度上对徐家汇观象台借鉴颇多。在行政力量的推动下,本土学术团体逐步收回了中国气象事业的主导权,而中外形势的变动则彻底结束了这一教会科学机构的命运。这一曲折的历程深刻地反映了思潮变动、学术转型、观念变迁、以及中外势力消长之间的微妙关系和复杂动态。

The Jesuits introduced modern science of meteorology into China mainly by setting up the observatory of Zikawei. With the supports of many institutions in the foreign concessions in Shanghai, such as the Customs, the Telegraph companies and maritime agencies, the observatory had gained a worldwide fame both in weather forecasting and in meteorology researches. By contrast, the Chinese society had little substantial response to this exemplary scientific institution, the folk ideas of weather and climate remained unaffected in quite a long time. New intellectuals who had received systematical training of science abroad grew to be the backbone of indigenous meteorology elites, they had no close correlation with the observatory of Zikawei, howcvcr, they benefited a lot from the observatory of Zikawei both in scholarship and in institutional aspects. With the development of national powers, Chinese meteorology elites gained their advantage over the Jesuit scientists. After the Sino-Japanese war, foreign concessions were abolished and the observatory of Zikawei lost its necessary existing space and finally was confiscated.