54 BJØRN HKKI.ANn-HANSEN AND FRIOTJOF NANSEN. M.-N. Kl. 



Wc mav tluis 5;ct an explanation of the generally low salinities of the 

 deepest and coldest water at the Isachsen stations. 



I'ig- 39 gives the observations in 2000 metres at the Isachsen and the 

 Amundsen stations, ami in 1800 metres at the Belgica stations. There 

 is here a central region with salinities less than 34.90 ^/00. This may be 

 accidental, but it may also indicate some reality. It was mentioned above 

 that the Isachsen stations 23 and 24 were in or near the central cold area 

 of this sea, where the cold bottom-water is formed by emission of heat 

 trom the surface during the winter. It might therefore seem probable that 

 the bottom-water has somewhat lower salinities and also somewhat lower 

 temperatures in this region than farther away from it. On the other hand 

 it is also probable, according to what was mentioned above, that in 2000 

 metres at Isachsen's Stat. 27, near the isobath of 2000 metres on the 

 Spitsbergen side, die salinity would be comparatively low, because this 

 water was near the bottom. The same is also the case at the Belgica 

 Station 16 in the north, near 80" N. Lat., where the salinities were 

 34.90 %o- 



tig. 40 gi\'es the observations in 1200 metres, at the Isachsen and 

 the Amundsen stations and the Belgica stations. These observations also 

 agree iairly well in indicating a central region with low temperatures 

 (below — i.o*' C.) and low salinities (below 34.90^00). It therefore seems 

 probable that this is a really existing feature, and is not merely due to 

 errors of observation. 



The Ice Fjord. 



The observations at Stat. 41 [ol' Sept. 6, 191 o) at the mouth of the 

 Ice Fjord seem to prove that there is no high sill or threshold at the en- 

 trance of this fjord, similar to those of the deep Norwegian fjords;^ for 

 there is no deep layer of homogeneous water below an}' certain level, and 

 the density is continually increasing with the depth. At 400 metres, near 

 the bottom, there is a maximum of temperature (2.71'^ C.) as also of sa- 

 linity (34.96*^00). This water has obviously come from the current run- 

 ning northwards along the coast outside the tjord. At Stats. 30 and 31 

 outside its entrance, water with similar temperatures and salinities occurs 

 at 200, 220 and 240 metres (PI. VI, Sect. IV a). At Stat. 31 the tempe- 

 rature was 2.73^ C. and the salinity 34.965*^/00 at 220 metres on Sep- 

 tember 6th, 1910. This is practically the same; and at Stats. 31 and 



^ The Ice Fjord bears in its contiguration more resemblance to the Finmarken fjords 

 and the Iceland fjords than to the typical Norwegian fjords, which are compara 

 tively narrower with deeper troughs and higher sills, [cf. N.\nsi:n' 1904, p. 170] 



