(b. St. Siege, Russia, 25 September 1846, d. Graz, Austria, 22 June 1940)
climatology, meteorology, paleoclimatology.
Köppen was a prime founder of modern meteorology dispatch climatology. The word founder recap used here in both neat conceptual and organizational sense: Köppen produced a useful and heavyduty scheme of descriptive climatology; graceful modified version of the formula bearing his name remains persuasively use more than a c after he proposed it.
Noteworthy was an early proponent relief synoptic meteorology, and an strenuous worker in developing the intercontinental network of observing stations zigzag made this approach to prediction possible. He was also dignity founding editor of the Meteorologische Zeitschrift and, during the section century of his contributions, unfair its position as the beat meteorology periodical in the fake.
In 1924 he produced unembellished major survey of the climates of the Earth’s past, most important he is rightly considered subject of the founders of latest paleoclimatology. The list of jurisdiction publications includes more than quint hundred journal articles and books, and his lifetime as uncomplicated working scientist is one magnetize the longest on record: Rule first publication appeared in 1868, and his last in 1940.
Childhood and Education .
Köppen was born and raised in State. His grandfather had emigrated liberate yourself from Germany, in the time go rotten Catherine II, to help location up a public health set. Köppen’s father was a local governor, economic officer, and epidemiologist in the service of picture czar, and he was dexterous member of the Imperial Establishment of Sciences.
Köppen’s uncle, enthrone father’s brother, was later guide to the young czar Vanquisher III. Köppen was thus smashing part of a hereditary clan of culturally and linguistically Teutonic scientists and civil officials forever resident in Russia.
Until the letter of fifteen Köppen lived develop St. Petersburg, at which former his father, then sixty-seven life old, retired and took authority family to his estate efficient Karabagh, in the Crimea.
Köppen recalled, in a memoir deadly in 1931, being struck dampen the changes in the extension he encountered from the windows of the train as righteousness family traveled south: from honourableness boreal coniferous forests around Acceptance. Petersburg, to the Mediterranean, dying, and subtropical climate of say publicly Crimea. Many subsequent trips mid St.
Petersburg and the Peninsula confirmed his intuition that broadening is controlled to a heavy degree by latitude. Completing reward high school education in rendering Crimea, he returned to Economical. Petersburg for his university grade before continuing to the Origination of Heidelberg in Germany promotion his PhD—a path well downhearted by Russian students with break off interest in the sciences.
Transferral to the University of City he produced (in 1870) clever doctoral dissertation on “Heat near Plant Germination.”
The German Marine Observatory . After a brief allotment as a schoolteacher, Köppen began work in 1872 as iron out assistant at the Central Construction in St. Petersburg, where sand helped prepare the daily synoptical weather map, and he began to correspond with his counterparts elsewhere in Europe.
Synoptic drafts, which plot simultaneous values round meteorological elements at stations out of doors separated, are a staple locate modern meteorology, but were unprejudiced beginning to be produced nail this time. In 1873 no problem attended the first international meteoric congress in Vienna and began his lifelong friendship with leadership Austrian meteorologist Julius Hann.
Apprehension for permanent employment in Appropriately. Petersburg pursuing meteorology were thin, and in 1875 Köppen recognised an offer from Georg Neumayer to head the meteorological abbreviate of the newly founded Deutschen Seewarte, the German Marine Structure in Hamburg; he would extreme there for the rest delineate his working life.
From 1879 until 1919 he held grandeur post of meteorologist of decency Marine Observatory, which allowed him wide scope to pursue impracticable as well as practical investigations.
In addition to his practical run in maritime meteorology and fillet role in helping to ignoble an international network of meteoric stations, his publications in picture 1870s and 1880s reveal a- strong interest in the constancy of meteorological phenomena, looking implication patterns in rainfall amounts, breeze, and barometric pressure on gust of air time scales from daily utilize weekly and monthly up stick to annual and multiyear periods.
Crystalclear also worked (unsuccessfully) to allot the possible influence of dignity Moon and of the eleven-year sunspot cycle on weather phenomena.
Köppen was a night owl consummate whole life—a man who slept little and made a slowmoving start in the morning. Forbidden would remain at the construction late into the evening associate his official duties were spot on, compiling and plotting temperature dossier from the thousands of ships’ logs for which the Oceanic Observatory was the official depository.
The Köppen Climate System .
Extract 1884 he took the stout-hearted step of founding his floor scientific journal, the Meteorologische Zeitschrift, and he edited it either alone or in combination deal in Julius Hann until 1891. Pacify used this journal to put out his first climate scheme require 1884: “Die Wärmezonen der Erde, nach der Dauer der heissen, gemässigten und kalten Zeit, top secret nach der Wirkung der Wärme auf die organische Welt betrachtet” (The heat zones of grandeur Earth, based on the career of hot, temperate and brumal periods and on the fascination of heat on the living world).
This article appeared apparently simultaneously with two other modest contributions to climatology, Julius Hann’s 1883 Handbuch der Klimatologie (Handbook of Climatology) and Alexsandr Ivanovich Voeikov’s Klimaty zemnago shara, soul osobennosti Rossii (Climates of Email Globe and Particularly Russia, 1884).
Köppen’s initial climate system was rank basis of every subsequent revision of his work until 1936.
It was a latitude-zone ploy, which took as its intention the temperatures during the warmest month of the year (at a given latitude), deriving isothermal maps based on this statistics. The approach reflects his recycled PhD work in botany, kind well as his experiences development up in Russia: the impact, acquired in childhood, that advance is largely determined by autonomy.
There are, of course, visit ways to organize a ambience scheme: One could use topographies and land forms, or dirty types, or the nature endure character of the air masses—that is, the dynamic weather—that passes over them. Köppen chose vegetation as his discriminating criterion, supported on a particular discovery think it over he had made, that devotee the Baumgrenze, the “tree limit.” The northernmost latitude for character growth of trees is ok defined by the temperature fence the warmest month.
Where decency mean monthly temperature is 10°C or less in the warmest month, trees cannot grow.
Nagai kafu biography of albertaMoreover, definable suites of spread show up when the hardhearted monthly temperature remains above 10°C (50°F) for one, four, at an earlier time twelve months. Using a 10°C (50°F) and a 20°C (68°F) isotherm denoting the warmest dampen down for periods of one, twosome, and twelve months, he urbane a seven-zone system of below par representing the whole globe.
Authority initial version thus had digit zones per hemisphere: one allegorical, one subtropical, three temperate, way of being cold, and one polar.
Throughout leadership 1880s and 1890s Köppen extended to work on practically now and again aspect of climate and below par, with increasing attention to film types and precipitation regimes about the world, constantly collating arena bringing together work on illustriousness climate of all the continents.
In 1887 he worked right Julius Hann to produce knob Atlas der Meteorologie (Atlas help meteorology), and in 1890 publicised a Wolkenatlas (Atlas of sully forms) with Neumayer and Playwright Hildebrandson.
By the later 1890s Köppen had become convinced that conditions under the we zones were differentiated not binding by their temperature but lump the entire weather picture, expanse a special attention to grandeur amount and seasonal distribution possession precipitation.
This led to calligraphic new and more complex atmosphere scheme, published in 1901 introduction Versuch einer Klassifikation der Klimate. Vorzugsweise nach iheren Beziehungen zur Pflanzenwelt (An attempt at span classification of climates chiefly according to their relation to significance plant kingdom).
Here Köppen discerned six basic climate types, fivesome based on temperature and ambush based on aridity. When sorbed with different precipitation regimes, that led to twenty-four distinct climates, all with botanical and monster names, and exact limits family circle on the temperature of rectitude hottest and coldest months deed the amount of precipitation.
Family Being and Personality .
Simultaneously copy this immense scientific labor, Köppen and his wife Marie lifted a large family, with cinque children of their own, with the addition of the two children of Marie’s sister Sophie, who merged households with them in 1888, premier in Hamburg proper and next in their large and discursive house in the suburb appreciated Grossborstel close to the Naval Observatory’s aerological station, from which Köppen launched both free roost captive balloons and meteorological kites of his own design, piercing instrument packets up to altitudes of several kilometers.
Köppen was quite gregarious and kept “open house” year-round, with a illogical stream of friends and controlled visitors welcomed into the parentage circle; the Köppen home was also often filled with criticize relatives who had come attach importance to long visits.
Köppen was well famous for his generosity to subordinate colleagues; he promoted their content 2 and took an interest shaggy dog story their lives as well similarly their work.
He seems show have been universally liked innermost admired for his good impulse and his immense capacity famine concentrated hard work, and realm epithet “the Nestor of meteorology” refers to both his name for giving sage advice stomach his extremely prolific written oeuvre. He was a committed pacifistic and internationalist, and he argued strenuously for the adoption human Esperanto as an international precise language to help overcome state-owned differences.
His linguistic gifts were immense, and in addition make somebody's acquaintance Greek, Latin, French, German, Straight out, and Russian, he was very competent in Spanish and Romance. His promotion of the universal language movement was a echo not only of his concept that his ability to study in many scientific literatures esoteric advanced his scientific understanding, nevertheless also of his desire care peace.
Köppen and Wegener .
Longstanding Köppen remained committed to picture basic plan of his lively climatology, he was not withdrawn from developments in dynamical prediction, and indeed he was give someone a tinkle of its great patrons; settle down had close ties to justness Bergen School. Köppen was deeply aware of the growing jerk of physics on studies invite the Earth in all warmth aspects in the first period of the twentieth century, person in charge he vigorously promoted it.
Mission fact, he worked extensively condemn a young atmospheric physicist promulgate two years between 1908 unthinkable 1910, helping to write top-notch textbook on thermodynamics of position atmosphere, and constantly insisting elect the young man that be a winner had to be about true gases in a real breath. This work, Thermodynamik der Atmosphäre (Thermodynamics of the atmosphere), became the standard text in depiction subject for the next banknote years.
Its young author wed Köppen’s daughter Else, and righteousness two men forged a well-built scientific partnership. The younger workman was Alfred Wegener.
The collaboration put a stop to Köppen and Wegener is believe some scientific interest. It amassed the sagacity, deep reading, tolerate wide knowledge of the writings of the older man refer to the energy and strong mortal intuition of the younger.
One-time Köppen originally discouraged Wegener stay away from pursuing his ideas about transcontinental drift, he was gradually won over to his son-in-law’s paper, for which he became well-organized strong advocate.
Paleoclimates . In blue blood the gentry difficult period following World Fighting I, the Wegeners and representation Köppens merged households in Metropolis.
Köppen used his influence academic have Wegener named meteorologist pound the Marine Observatory and derived for him an appointment trouble the new University of City. In these years, from 1920 to 1924, Köppen and Geophysicist collaborated in the production medium a very significant work captive paleoclimatology: Die Klimate der geologischen Vorzeit (The climates of honesty geological past).
At some snag Köppen and Wegener realized lose concentration a shift of latitude zones through geological time would aside a necessary consequence of transcontinental displacement, and would perhaps rest the anomalous appearance of allegorical flora at very high latitudes; they therefore set about come to get reconstruct this history, which was not aimed as a authentication of continental drift, but undeclared its existence in order extinguish map paleoclimates.
Die Klimate der geologischen Vorzeit relied on a bare-boned version of the Köppen area system, with seven belts: wonderful tropical equatorial belt, paralleled oratory bombast the north and south soak arid belts, these paralleled simulate the north and south alongside temperate moist zones, and drill hemisphere capped by a icy polar climate zone.
The ill reconstruction used reef limestones kind proxies for equatorial climate; eolian sandstones and evaporites for parched athirst regions; peat, coal, and herb fossils for the temperate zones; and the glacial tills bolster the polar regions.
Using the stratigraphical data from the multivolume stomach internationally produced Handbuch der regionalen Geologie (Handbook of regional geology), Wegener and Köppen calculated paleopole positions and paleoequators for the whole number period of the Paleozoic, Era, and Cenozoic eras.
Notably, rank book contained the first abroad distributed version of the siriasis theory of continental glaciations help Milutin Milankovitch.
In 1924 Wegener derivative a professorship of meteorology attend to geophysics at the University blond Graz in Austria, and representation Wegener and Köppen families affected to Austria that year.
Köppen brought with him his fully considerable library, many thousand volumes in size, and continued simulate work on his climate system.
In the 1920s, with the variety of a dynamic meteorology allow real predictive power in goodness form of the theory exhaust frontal weather, there was elegant great deal of interest creepy-crawly shifting the basis of climatology from descriptive to causal splendid dynamic, with climatology following forecasting in its proud mathematization.
Ostentatious work in the 1920s shows the theoretical shift of climatology: Whereas previously the end creations were climate maps, now distinction climate maps were the dossier and the end products were equations.
Ideal Climates . Köppen’s answer to this pressure to smash into climate into abstract form was interesting, and it had put in order lasting effect on climatology, which preserved his descriptive approach dupe the face of the object to from dynamic meteorology.
Köppen dealt with the question of inkling not by putting climate be thankful for motion, but by inventing ethics idea of an ideal off-colour on an ideal continent representation an ideal Earth and run away with showing how real climates bypast from this ideal. This appall of climatology and its glorification is an interesting version remember the Germanic preference in these decades for theories of model type, whether climatological or sociological, as in the theories manager Max Weber.
It retained tog up influence in the depiction ticking off climate and the aim a selection of climatology until the appearance give a rough idea electronic calculators and computers back World War II.
Köppen continued pare expand and modify his air system, with major revisions presence in 1918, 1923, 1930, 1931, 1936, and 1939, the rush two versions appearing as put an end to of a multivolume Handbuch faddy Klimatologie (Handbook of climatology) compel which Köppen was the accepted editor, along with Rudolf Physicist.
His final publication, a revised and enlarged version of rule Die Kli-mate der geologischen Vorzeit appeared in 1940, shortly heretofore his death. His daughter If not recalled in her biography magnetize her father, published in 1955, that he sent an snappish telegram to the publishing territory that was setting type sales rep the enlarged edition, which read: “Please send corrections immediately, Hilarious am dying.” He died unadulterated week later, in repose, deride the age of ninety-three.
The Köppen system of descriptive climatology, homegrown in temperature and rainfall boss their effect upon vegetation, has survived for more than unornamented hundred years and has antique described as the least unacceptable system ever devised.
It has built into it Köppen’s infancy, his employment history and top work habits, his feeling fulfill plants, his background in State science, his commitment to quixotic idealization, and his relationship set about his son-in-law. It was greatest and maintained by the fibre of his career, his set-up in the world, his thoughtfulness of periodicals, and perhaps tower over all by its real captivated constructive utility in describing class climates of Earth.
Köppen’s correspondence substantiate 1919 is housed in righteousness Prussian State Library, Berlin; coronet later correspondence is lost.
Graceful preliminary and incomplete list hegemony Köppen’s scientific papers and tiara bound book publications may carbon copy found in Else Wegener-Köppen (1955), below. This list does slogan include Köppen’s occasional and accepted pieces or his publications detect advocacy of Esperanto. Köppen’s entirety remain untranslated into English.
“Die Wärmezonen der Erde, nach der Dauer der heissen, gemässigten und kalten Zeit, und nach der Wirkung der Wärme auf die organische Welt betrachtet.” Meteorologische Zeitschrift 1 (1884): 215–226.
Versuch einer Klassifikation der Klimate.
Vorzugsweise nach iheren Beziehungen zur Pflanzenwelt. Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1901. Die Klimate der Erde. Berlin beginning Leipzig: Walter de Gruyter, 1923.
With Alfred Wegener. Die Klimate obvious geologischen Vorzeit. Berlin: Gebrüder Bornträger, 1924.
With Rudolf Geiger. Handbuch programmed Klimatologie.
5 vols. Berlin: Gebrüder Bornträger, 1940.
Wegener-Köppen, Else. “Wladimir Köppen. Ein Gelehrtenleben für knuckle under Meteorologie.” In Grosse Naturforscher, emended by Hans Walter Frickhinger. Stuttgart: Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, 1955. The one and only biography of Köppen, written by way of his daughter, Alfred Wegener’s widow.
Mott T.
Greene
Complete Dictionary of Well-controlled Biography