130' 



120* 



30'uii|i|i|i|i|i|iMI'|Mili| 



20" 



10° 



20' 



' i 1 1 ' 1 1 1 ' I ' 1 ' I ' r I ' I ' I ' I T ' ' ' ' ' ' '^ 



EASTROPAC 



FIRST SURVEY CRUISES j 

 FEBRUARY -MARCH 1967 _ 

 STATION POSITIONS 



-. 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ■ 1 1 1 ■ I i 1 1 1 M 1 1 1 , 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ! 1 1 1 1 , 1 . 1 1 1 1 i 1 1 1 i , 1 1 1 I.I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ■ 1 1 1 . 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ^ 



130° 



120° 



110° 



90° 



80° 



will be incorporated within the EASTROPAC data base. 



On the criterion of number of stations and number 

 of observations. EASTROPAC was a major oceano- 

 graphic effort, comparable with the International Indian 

 Ocean Expeditions, the NORPAC, and the EQUALANT 

 expeditions. 



This large number of stations has involved the 

 EASTROPAC staff in a monumental data processing 

 problem. The basic oceanographic tool around which 

 the expedition was based was the electronic STD probe 

 with its associated digital data logger; this equipment 

 was used on almost all the major cruises. To an extent, 

 this procedure has eased the problem of handling data, 

 since, althougli the number of information bits was very 

 much greater from the STD than from a Nansen cast, a 

 computer can easily handle the data. Available tech- 



niques for editing the data tapes were by no means sat- 

 isfactory and had to be developed during and after the 

 expedition, mainly by J. Jones. 



Almost 5.000 plankton samples from the expedi- 

 tions have now accumulated in the Fishery-Oceanography 

 Center and have caused another major data-acquisition 

 problem; arrangements have been made with the staff of 

 lATTC to sort out the eggs and larvae of pelagic fish from 

 these samples. W.L. Klawe of lATTC directs this sorting, 

 which is progressing very well and is expected to be com- 

 pleted by the end of 1968. Already, some data are avail- 

 able from these biological studies. 



Witli the completion of the work at sea, plans have 

 been made to produce a data atlas which will be edited 

 by CM. Love. Because of the great number of data, we 

 have decided not to produce classical data reports but to 



15 



