RAIN GAUGE

Rain gauge (also known as an udometer, pluviometer, or an ombrometer) is an

instrument used by meteorologists and hydrologists to gather and measure the
amount of liquid precipitation over an area in a predefined period of time.

HISTORY.

The first known rainfall records were kept by the Ancient Greeks, about 500 B.C.
People living in India began to record rainfall in 400 B.C.

The readings were correlated against expected growth.

In the Arthashastra, used for example in Magadha, precise standards were set as
to grain production. Each of the state storehouses were equipped with a rain
gauge to classify land for taxation purposes. In 1247, the Song Chinese
mathematician and inventor Qin Jiushao invented Tianchi basin rain and snow
gauges to reference rain, snowfall measurements, as well as other forms of
meteorological data.

In1441, the Cheugugi was invented during the reign of Sejong the Great of the
Joseon Dynasty of Korea as the first standardized rain gauge. In 1662,
Christopher Wren created the first tipping-bucket rain gauge in Britain in
collaboration with Robert Hooke. Hooke also designed a manual gauge with a
funnel that made measurements throughout 1695.

It was Richard Towneley who was the first to make systematic rainfall
measurements over a period of 15 years from 1677 to 1694, publishing his
records in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. Towneley called
for more measurements elsewhere in the country to compare the rainfall in
different regions, although only William Derham appears to have taken up
Towneley's challenge. They jointly published the rainfall measurements for
Towneley Park and Upminster in Essex for the years 1697 to 1704.

The naturalist Gilbert White took measurements to determine the mean rainfall
from 1779 to 1786, although it was his brother-in-law, Thomas Barker, who made
regular and meticulous measurements for 59 years, recording temperature, wind,
barometric pressure, rainfall and clouds. His meteorological records are a
valuable resource for knowledge of the 18th century British climate. He was able
to demonstrate that the average rainfall varied greatly from year to year with
little discernible pattern.