| Titre | La météorologie entre science et savoir. L'affaire Mathieu de la Drôme | |
|---|---|---|
| Auteur | Marie-France Noël-Waldteufel | |
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Revue | Etudes rurales |
| Numéro | no 118-119, 1990 Météo / Espaces péri-urbains | |
| Rubrique / Thématique | La météo. Pour une anthropologie du temps qu'il fait Savoirs, pouvoirs |
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| Page | 59-68 | |
| Résumé anglais |
Meteorology between Science and Know-How. The Mathieu de la Drôme Affair
In 1863, Mathieu de la Drôme, a politician and inventor, published his theories of weather forecasting in an almanac that became very popular in France. For his calculations, he had asked Urbain Le Verrier, an astronomer and the director of the Paris Observatory, permission to consult the Meteorology Office's records of precipitation. Le Verrier refused because Mathieu's method of calculation was not serious but especially because he did not want it to be known that the official registers had not been kept with the necessary degree of exactitude. The clash between the two men was big news from 1863 to 1865 ; politicians, journalists and scientists became involved. Mathieu de la Drôme was persuaded of the veracity of his forecasts at a time when scientific meteorology, in its infancy, could not provide sure answers to farmers' and sailors' queries about the weather. Source : Éditeur (via Persée) |
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| Article en ligne | http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/rural_0014-2182_1990_num_118_1_4671 |
