After a storm that destroyed a large part of the French fleet off the coast of Crimea, Napoléon III asked Le Verrier if it would be possible to predict storms. Le Verrier’s affirmative answer led him to set up a system such that meteorological observations would be sent every morning to the Observatory using the electric telegraph, initially from France, and subsequently from all of Europe. Meteorological maps were drawn up and sent out daily, together with simple predictions. This service evolved during the entire reign of Le Verrier, then would be detached from the Observatory after his death. It is the ancestor of Météo-France.

caption : Meteorological map of the 16th of January 1865 - credits : Observatoire de Paris