20 FRIDTJOF NANSEN. M.-N. KI. 
IV. The Cold and Heavy Bottom-Water of 
the Barents Sea. 
Dr. N. Knipowitsch has recently given a most valuable description 
of the Physical Oceanography of the Barents Seal, based upon the ex- 
cellent Russian investigations during recent years, since 1900, and led 
by himself and by Dr. Breitfuss. This subject will not be touched 
in detail here; the reader is referred to Knipowitsch’s paper. Amund- 
sen’s series of temperatures and salinities from this sea, in April 
and May 1901, will, however, form a valuable addition to the Russian 
investigations, as they give information about the conditions in the south- 
eastern part of the sea, earlier in the season than has hitherto been 
acquired, and they demonstrate clearly the great difference between the 
conditions obtaining in winter and in summer, which has been already 
pointed out by Knipowitsch. Amundsen’s observations especially, give us 
valuable information about the formation of the cold water during the 
winter, which is found as a cold layer near the bottom in summer. 
As it is of much importance for our subject, “the origin of bottom- 
waters”, the formation of this cold bottom-water of the Barents Sea and its 
distribution will be discussed here somewhat more closely. 
In his memoir on the “North Ocean” Professor Mohn mentions the 
low bottom-temperatures of the Barents Sea, and gives a map of the 
bottom-isotherms?. As it is based on the imperfect observations of various 
previous expeditions this map cannot be expected to be correct, but still 
it gives a very characteristic feature, vz. the rapid sinking of the bottom- 
temperature towards Novaya Zemlya, where even as low temperatures as 
— 2'6 C.(!) and — 2:17 C. had been observed, as was often the case with 
the imperfect instruments of those days. 
1 N. Knipowitsch, Hydrologische Untersuchungen in Europäischen Eismeer, Annalen 
der Hydrographie und Maritimen Meteorologie, 1905. 
? H. Mohn, The North Ocean, its Depths, Temperature and Circulation. The Norwegian 
North Atlantic Expedition 1876—1878, Christiania 1887, Pl. XXV. 
