Frank Hagar Bigelow

Frank Hagar Bigelow (August 28, 1851 – March 2, 1924) was an American scientist and Episcopal priest.

Biography Frank Hagar Bigelow was born in Concord, Massachusetts on August 28, 1851. His mother took an interest in astronomy, and her involvement caught his interest.

Work Bigelow's name is especially associated with an instrument for the photographic record of the transit of stars and with some novel studies by which the solar corona, the aurora, and terrestrial magnetism are shown to be associated. The theories met with a favorable reception in scientific circles.

Tornadic formula

In 1901 and later again in 1906, Bigelow, as chief of the United States Weather Bureau, calculated and published formulas to find the rotational speed of a tornado based on the height above sea level. In his study, Bigelow studied a waterspout off the coast of Cottage City, Massachusetts. Bigelow's formula went on to help Alfred Wegener, a leading geophysicist, atmospheric scientist, and an Arctic explorer, develop the hypothesis that tornadoes can form off of a gust front.

+ Bigelow's Formula Height above sea level (ft) Diameter of tube (ft) Radial velocity outward (mph) Rotational velocity (mph) Vertical velocity upwards (mph)

Writing Bigelow edited the Monthly Weather Review (1909–10). He published many articles on the subjects of his work and a monograph on the “Solar Corona,” published by the Smithsonian Institution (1889). His later writings were devoted to an isolated effort to reform meteorology through his publications. This bore little or no fruit.