﻿HOW 
  DEEP 
  IS 
  THE 
  OCEAN? 
  — 
  ABBOT. 
  283 
  

  

  Beds 
  of 
  lava 
  not 
  so 
  very 
  old, 
  as 
  geology 
  counts 
  age, 
  may 
  be 
  seen 
  

   in 
  various 
  parts 
  of 
  California, 
  and 
  for 
  some 
  years 
  Mount 
  Lassen 
  

   has 
  been 
  somewhat 
  active 
  as 
  a 
  volcano. 
  Others 
  of 
  the 
  peaks 
  in 
  

   northern 
  California, 
  Oregon, 
  and 
  Washington 
  show 
  evidences 
  of 
  

   volcanic 
  origin. 
  As 
  far 
  north 
  as 
  Alaska, 
  and 
  all 
  down 
  through 
  old 
  

   Mexico 
  and 
  the 
  western 
  countries 
  of 
  South 
  America, 
  volcanoes 
  are 
  

   scattered 
  among 
  the 
  high 
  peaks 
  of 
  the 
  big 
  mountain 
  chain 
  which 
  

   forms, 
  as 
  it 
  were, 
  the 
  backbone 
  of 
  the 
  American 
  Continent. 
  

  

  Some 
  of 
  these 
  are 
  slightly 
  active 
  at 
  all 
  times, 
  and 
  occasionally 
  

   there 
  is 
  a 
  great 
  eruption, 
  as 
  for 
  instance 
  Mount 
  Katmai, 
  Alaska, 
  

   in 
  June, 
  1912. 
  So 
  tremendous 
  was 
  that 
  eruption 
  that 
  the 
  sun 
  was 
  

   obscured 
  full 
  20 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  his 
  brightness, 
  during 
  July 
  and 
  August, 
  

   1912, 
  over 
  the 
  whole 
  Northern 
  Hemisphere 
  by 
  the 
  volcanic 
  dust 
  

   thrown 
  miles 
  high 
  and 
  carried 
  around 
  the 
  world 
  by 
  the 
  winds. 
  

   Only 
  two 
  weeks 
  elapsed 
  between 
  the 
  explosion 
  and 
  the 
  first 
  appear- 
  

   ance 
  of 
  its 
  effects 
  as 
  far 
  away 
  as 
  Algeria 
  in 
  north 
  Africa. 
  

  

  Readers 
  will 
  recall 
  to 
  mind 
  not 
  only 
  the 
  San 
  Francisco 
  earth- 
  

   quake, 
  but 
  the 
  numerous 
  reports 
  of 
  earth 
  tremors 
  frequently 
  occuring 
  

   in 
  the 
  South 
  American 
  west 
  coast 
  countries. 
  Chile 
  especially 
  has 
  

   felt 
  very 
  severe 
  earthquakes. 
  A 
  notable 
  one 
  in 
  November, 
  1922, 
  ap- 
  

   parently 
  took 
  place 
  just 
  outside 
  the 
  coast 
  line 
  under 
  the 
  ocean, 
  and 
  

   its 
  tremendous 
  waves 
  caused 
  great 
  losses 
  of 
  property 
  and 
  life 
  ad- 
  

   ditional 
  to 
  those 
  caused 
  by 
  earth 
  tremors 
  themselves 
  at 
  several 
  

   Chilean 
  coast 
  cities. 
  

  

  In 
  view 
  of 
  all 
  this, 
  a 
  committee 
  was 
  formed 
  in 
  cooperation 
  be- 
  

   tween 
  many 
  scientific 
  organizations 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  and 
  else- 
  

   where 
  to 
  take 
  lip 
  this 
  pressing 
  and 
  interesting 
  problem 
  offered 
  by 
  

   the 
  west 
  coast. 
  Dr. 
  A. 
  L. 
  Day, 
  director 
  of 
  the 
  geophysical 
  labratory 
  

   of 
  the 
  Carnegie 
  Institution, 
  of 
  Washington, 
  is 
  chairman. 
  Among 
  

   the 
  exact 
  measurements 
  needed 
  to 
  base 
  studies 
  upon, 
  it 
  seems 
  very 
  

   desirable 
  to 
  sound 
  the 
  ocean 
  off 
  the 
  California 
  coast 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  be 
  able 
  

   in 
  future 
  to 
  detect 
  slips 
  under 
  sea 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  on 
  land. 
  How 
  fortunate 
  

   that 
  just 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  new 
  method 
  had 
  been 
  perfected 
  by 
  the 
  

   Navy! 
  

  

  Under 
  the 
  direction 
  of 
  the 
  Hydrographic 
  Office, 
  the 
  Navy 
  equipped 
  

   two 
  destroyers, 
  the 
  Hull 
  and 
  the 
  Corry, 
  with 
  the 
  sounding 
  apparatus 
  

   developed 
  by 
  Doctor 
  Hayes. 
  The 
  actual 
  soundings 
  began 
  on 
  Novem- 
  

   ber 
  17, 
  1922, 
  but 
  the 
  Corry 
  required 
  certain 
  improvements 
  of 
  equip- 
  

   ment 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  Hull 
  continued 
  alone 
  for 
  the 
  first 
  week, 
  sounding 
  

   the 
  area 
  between 
  the 
  Farallon 
  Islands 
  off 
  San 
  Francisco 
  and 
  

   Monterey 
  Bay. 
  Then 
  both 
  vessels 
  proceeded 
  to 
  Point 
  Descanso, 
  

   Mexico, 
  and 
  beginning 
  work 
  November 
  28 
  sounded 
  steadily 
  north- 
  

   ward 
  till 
  the 
  work 
  was 
  completed 
  December 
  21, 
  1922. 
  

  

  