Inside Ben Nevis Observatory

In 1877 the President of the Royal Meteorological Society proposed that 'mountain observatories on isolated peaks' should be established. The Ben Nevis Observatory was opened on the 17th October 1883 with data collection starting on 28 November of that year. The project was funded mostly by private donors, including Queen Victoria, and was run by the Scottish Meteorological Society and the Royal Societies of Edinburgh and London.<br /> <br /> The building was manned by a superintendent and two assistants who were responsible for taking hourly readings of the office barometer, the outdoor thermometers, rainfall, cloud and wind notes. They also made observations about the depth of snow, atmospheric dust, ozone, rainband, earth currents, duration of sunshine and earthquakes or tremors when appropriate. The results were telegraphed to the town below, where they were used to warn shipping of storms and gales in the Atlantic.<br /> <br /> Insufficient funds and conflicting scientific evidence regarding the importance of the Observatory led to its closure in 1904 <br /> <br /> <br /> This image can be purchased.<br /> For further information about purchasing and prices please email the<br /> <a href="mailto: photographic.archive@highlifehighland.com">Highland Photographic Archive</a> quoting the External ID.