The Microbiology of the Upper Air. II

Abstract

The collection of micro-organisms from the air at various altitudes has interested observers for a considerable time. Pasteur, one of the first workers in this field, made investigations by climbing the Alps to obtain his samples. More recently the airplane has made it possible for others to make studies on the micro-organisms found in the upper air which occur in various regions. Stakman, Henry, Curran, and Christopher found numerous spores in airplane flights in Texas, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Wyoming.1 Mischustin reported results obtained over the Moscow experimental flying field.2 Craigie and Popp have used airplanes in collecting rust spores from the upper air in Canada.3 Brown made collections of living micro-organisms in the air of the arid section in southwestern United States.4 Meier, Stevenson and Charles have identified fungus spores collected on flights over eastern United States in 1932.5 The establishment in 1931 of a daily airplane flight service by the Division of Meteorology of the Department of Aeronautical Engi neering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology suggested an opportunity to study the microbiology of the upper strata in the vicinity of Boston. The first flight on which studies of a biological nature were undertaken was on February 23, 1932. Through the courtesy and cooperation of the staff of the Division of Meteorology it has been possible to collect a considerable number of biological samples which were immediately taken to the laboratories of the Department of Biology and Public Health for biological examination.