rent in the Faroe -Shetland channel, but a portion Of them unites with the Norwegian current. A 

 certain proportion of the Atlantic water, rounding the Shetlands on the northern side, flows in the 

 direction of the North Sea. In the area of the South Norwegian channel, the Atlantic waters des- 

 cend below the less dense water of the Baltic current, which travels in a northerly direction along 

 the Norwegian coast. The Norwegian current, further to the west, follows in the same direction. 

 It begins to split up into separate branches under the influence of the peculiarities of the bottom 

 contours in the area of the Norwegian Plateau. A part of the Atlantic water, crossing the Helgo- 

 land Ridge, forms an eastern branch of the Norwegian current, whilst the rest, rounding the 

 Helgoland Ridge to the west, forms its western branch. The western branch travels north and in 

 turn throws off a number of streams, some of which form an eddy upon meeting the East Icelandic 

 current. The stream which flows to the area of Jan Mayen is an offshoot of the western branch. 

 The extremely complex relief of Mohn's Threshold contributes towards the formation of a large 

 number of eddies, in which intensive intermingling of the Atlantic and polar waters takes place. 

 At the same time, the western sector of Mohn's Threshold serves to some extent as a natural 

 barrier to the northerly movement of the Atlantic waters and to the southerly movement of the 

 polar waters. The general movement of water in this area turns east and north-east along Mohn's 

 Threshold and then north, reinforcing the western branch. 



The eastern branch of the Norwegian current travels along the continental slope between 

 the Norwegian shoal water and the Foringen Plateau. At approximately 68°N a stream of Atlantic 

 water breaks away from the eastern branch and has been named the "central branch of the Nor- 

 wegian current". The central branch enters the Greenland Sea between longitudes 10° and 11 E. 

 Off the southern Lofoten Islands, the eastern branch again divides into two currents, one of which 

 runs northward along the continental shelf, whilst the other - which is known as the North Cape 

 current - enters the Barents Sea . At the latitude of Spitsbergen the eastern, central and western 

 branches unite to form the Spitsbergen current . 



The space between the Spitsbergen and the East Greenland currents is where the Atlantic 

 and polar waters intermix - with intensive development of eddies, mainly of a cyclonic nature. In 

 the area of northern Spitsbergen, some of the Atlantic water turns west and then south. Owing to 

 its greater density, this water descends and, together with the East Greenland current, travels 

 southwards, remaining below this current throughout its length. Most of the water of the Spits- 

 bergen current enters the Polar Basin sinking below the less dense polar waters . 



The cold currents of the Norwegian and Greenland Seas consist of the East Greenland cur- 

 rent and its Jan Mayen branch, the East Icelandic current and the Bear Island and East Spitsbergen 

 currents . 



The Bear Island current is due to the movement of ice and cold water of low salinity from 

 the Barents Sea into the Norwegian Sea. This current thrusts to the south and south-west of Bear 

 Island in the form of a tongue . 



The East Spitsbergen current also comes from the Barents Sea, rounding the southern ex- 

 tremity of West Spitsbergen Island, along which it travels in a northerly direction. 



The East Icelandic current enters the Norwegian Sea between Jan Mayen and Iceland. The 

 surface layers of this current extend to the area of the Faroes, whilst the bottom layers even enter 

 the Faroe -Shetland channel, running into the gap between the counter-moving currents of Atlantic 

 water . 



The East Icelandic current obstructs the entry of the warm waters of the northern branch of 

 the Irminger current into the Norwegian Sea, and its temperature and salinity are somewhat in- 



74 



