EFFECTIVENESS OF THE COMMITTEE ON OCEANOGRAPHY 23 



be arranged. Existing world data centers will be used as repositories, and new 

 biological centers for analysis and custody of biological specimens will be estab- 

 lished in the Indian Ocean area. 



Ships participating in the expedition will devote at least half their time to work 

 according to the coordinated grid and half to independent investigations deter- 

 mined by the scientists involved. The intensity of studies in a given area will 

 depend on the nature of the phenomena anticipated; thus many more observations 

 may be expected in the boundary currents at the borders than in midocean. 

 Division of national responsibility for the various segments of the coordinated 

 plan will be negotiated at meetings in 1960 and 1961. All nations that have 

 agreed to participate have also agreed to adjust their plans to the common 

 program. 



PROBLEMS TO BE STUDIED 



Physical oceanography. — Several fundamental oceanographic problems can be 

 studied more efficiently in the Indian Ocean than elsewhere because of the reversal 

 of the winds. Understanding the oceanic processes here will contribute to a 

 knowledge of all oceans. The plan is to study basic questions such as: Hoav long 

 does it take the winds to set up a current? How rapidly does this current deepen 

 with time? What percentage of the energy required to maintain an ocean current 

 comes from the winds and what part of it comes from the horizontal density 

 gradients due to regional climatic differences? How does internal friction and 

 how does friction with the bottom influence the velocity-depth distribution? 

 What is cause and what is effect in the general circulation of the oceans? 



The Indian Ocean is a vast environmental laboratory eminently suited for the 

 investigation of these problems. It is a complete ocean system, .vet small enough 

 to be studied as a whole. Although too large for a single nation's efforts, it is ideal 

 for an international cooperative endeavor. Extending from polar through tropical 

 waters, and divided in its northern part into small oceans each subject to radical 

 seasonal reversals of wind, it offers unparalleled opportunity for a wide variety of 

 specialized investigations. 



Chemical oceanography. — The Indian Ocean is unique among the world's seas 

 in several ways. One of these, of course, is the extent of our scientific ignorance 

 about it. From this point of view, the systematic collection of physical and 

 chemical data during the survey will be very valuable, because for the first time 

 it will be possible to describe the distribution of plant nutrients and dissolved 

 organic compounds. 



Perhaps a more significant singularity of the Indian Ocean is the fact that it is 

 such a large basin closed off from exchange with other seas north of about 40° S. 

 Into this vast gulf pour quantities of drainage water from the land carrying their 

 burden of substances dissolved from the rocks and soil. Thus it is an ideal place 

 to study the effect of runoff on the composition of sea water. For example, studies 

 of elements such as copper and barium, with a relatively short residence time in the 

 sea, should show concentrations markedly higher than in the Pacific or Atlantic. 



In recent years the application of geochemical techniques to oceanic problems 

 has added much to our understanding of residence times and of the rates of 

 exchange between surface and deep waters. During the expedition samples will 

 be collected for carbon 14 dating, for analysis of carbon and oxygen isotopes, and 

 for radium assay. This geochemical survey of an entire ocean will permit a much 

 better evaluation of the circulation than has been possible where the sampling has 

 been neither so systematic nor so extensive. 



Meteorology. — The meteorological objective is to obtain increased understanding 

 of the energy exchange between sea and atmosphere, particularly near the air-sea 

 boundary. To this end, basic research will be carried out on radiation input and 

 on interaction of atmospheric pressure, winds, cloudiness, rainfall, and evaporation 

 with temperature, movement, and roughness of the sea. A SCOR working group 

 is drafting a list of desirable objectives in conjunction with various meteorological 

 organizations. 



Marine biology. — In addition to its effect on the circulation of near-surface 

 waters, the monsoonal reversal of winds is expected to have important bilogical 

 repercussions. Regions of upwelling and of high productivity should develop, 

 deca}*, and shift from place to place, so that dramatic changes in the distribution 

 and abundance of marine organisms can be anticipated. Nowhere else in the 

 world ocean is it possible to study the interaction of atmosphere and biosphere 

 on such a scale. 



Standard biological collections and measurements made systematically over the 

 whole area will define the biological "structure" of the ocean, the three-dimen- 

 sional distribution of plants and animals. Integration of these observations will 



