DAVIS STRAIT AND LABRADOR SEA 



49 



jight Irminger-Atlantic water. The more vertical part of the curves 

 from the upper inflection point downward is indicative of the deep- 

 est water embraced in the observations. This lower point may be 

 regarded as a third component of the West Greenland Current, the 

 mixing between the Irminger-Atlantic water and this deep water 

 being mdicated by the curves. Corroboration of the loss of heat from 

 the warm core of the West Greenland Current with northward pro- 

 gress is furnished by the continually lower inflection points on the 

 correlation curves, A to E (fig. 23). A similar progression of the 

 curves at the point of greatest salinity indicates a continual freshening 

 of the Irminger-Atlantic water. The resulting density as indicated 

 by the inflection points representative of Irminger-Atlantic water, 

 curves A to E (fig. 23) increased approximately 0.04, Cape Farewell 

 to Holsteinsborg. The mixing and cabbeling of the current as a 

 whole is further discussed in chapter VIII, p. 175. 



As a final analysis of the slope band of the West Greenland Cur- 

 rent, the average temperature and the rate of heat transfer at the 

 eight sections, A to G, are given in the table below, and expressed 

 in million cubic meter degrees centigrade per second. The method 

 of obtaining these values is explained in chapter II, page 24. 



West Greenland Current 



The table shows that the average temperature progressively de- 

 creased as the West Greenland Current flowed northward, except in 

 the offing of Ivigtut and Disko Bay. The swelling of the current at 

 Ivigtut, and the consequent increase in heat transfer, has been 

 previously explained. The higher average temperature in the Disko 

 Bay section is attributed directly to solar warming of that shallower- 

 water locality. 



The marked reduction in the rate of heat transfer to be noted in 

 the last four sections of the above table is attributed to the great 

 proportion of the current which left the Greenland slope near God- 

 thaab (see p. 33) and carried its heat toward American shores. 



The slope band of the West Greenland Current with a maximum 

 of 44.4 million cubic meter degrees centigrade, per second at Ivigtut 

 transported 0.5° C. mVsXlO" or only about 1 percent of its heat 

 into Baffin Bay. The heat transported into Baffin Bay based on 

 the GodthaaVs observations (p. 53) was 1.4 million cubic meter de- 

 grees centigrade per second. This higher value is due to the higher 

 average temperature, the GodthaaVs stations being located in deeper 

 and warmer water than those of the Marion. An average tem- 

 perature of 1.0° C. and a heat transport of 1.0 million cubic meter 

 degrees centigrade per second is considered representative of the 

 \Vest Greenland Current entering Baffin Bay. 



