Paper, 'On a method of tracing periodicities in a series of observations when the periods are unknown' by Vinayek Narayeu Nene

Description

Nene writes: 'The object of this paper is to investigate a new method which will enable us to find out the period of an unknown inequality, and thence the inequality itself, from a series of observations—such as magnetical, meteorological, or astronomical—when they are of a periodic mature [...] We assume that there is some large complex period, such that the observations—which need not necessarily correspond to equidistant times, but must have the time similarly divided in each general period— will he exactly repeated after such full period; but since we have not yet found such a period, although we have observations of thirty years’ duration or more, say, of barometer, we may say that such a period is not yet completed, and we cannot, therefore, apply Bessel’s method, which is applicable to only known periods, to find subordinate periodic inequalities. Diurnal and annual periods which have already been discovered may he considered as subordinate periods of the large period which we are considering. Our aim is first to ascertain the duration of subordinate periods one by one, and then to find out the amplitude for each period.'

Annotations in pencil and ink. Includes five pages of graphs of experimental results.

Subject: Mathematics

Received 30 May 1882. Read 15 June 1882. Communicated by Charles Chambers.

A version of this paper was published in volume 36 of the Proceedings of the Royal Society as 'On a method of tracing periodicities in a series of observations when the periods are unknown'.

Reference number

PP/4/32

Earliest possible date

1884

Physical description

Ink and graphite pencil on paper

Page extent

58 pages

Format

Manuscript
Diagram