赫德海关气象网络的构建与转移(1869—1882)

Construction and Transfer of Hart Customs Meteorological Network(1869—1882)

1869-1873年,海关总税务司赫德陆续提出海关气象计划,究其本质,即建立科学研究与实用价值并举的气象网络。该网络将由海关主导,一方面在中国各相关口岸建立气象站,负责观测与记录气象数据,并最终归属由京师同文馆将建的天文台进行解读、研究与发布气象信息;另一方面,海关与东亚乃至世界各主要气象机构开展合作,构成全球气象科学网络之一环。为实现该设想,赫德主要委托金登干,金氏在海外构建科学人际网络,代表中国参加第一届世界气象大会,陆续把气象仪器与人才输入中国。海关得以相继建成若干座气象站并成功运转,但因同文馆天文台迟迟未建,加之科普兰未能入华,1882年以后,以海关与徐家汇天文台气象合作制度化的确立为标志,赫德气象网络逐渐转移为由海关提供基础性数据的多方共享协作的形式,与全球气象科学网络联结。

Robert Hart,Inspector General of Chinese Maritime Customs Service(CMCS),successively proposed the Customs Meteorological Plan during 1869-1873.The essence of the plan is to establish a meteorological network with both scientific research and practical value.The network would be led by the customs,on the one hand,to establish meteorological stations at the relevant treaty ports in China,which will be responsible for observing and recording meteorological data,and would ultimately belong to the Observatory to be built by the T’ung Wen Kwan of Peking,which will interpret,research and publish meteorological news.On the other hand,Customs would cooperate with major meteorological institutions in East Asia and the rest of the world,thus forming one of the global meteorological science networks.In order to achieve this vision,Hart mainly entrusted the task to James D.Campbell.The meteorological instruments purchased from overseas,as well as the meteorological talents,were brought into China by Campbell’s extensive contacts with the scientific community overseas.Campbell even represented China at the first World Meteorological Congress.Customs was able to build and successfully operate some meteorological stations.However,due to the delay in building the T’ung Wen Kwan Observatory and the failure of Copeland to enter China,after 1882,marked by the institutionalization of meteorological cooperation between the Customs and Xujiahui Observatory,the Hart meteorological network gradually shifted to a form of collaboration with the global meteorological scientific network shared by multiple parties,with the Customs providing basic data.