EFFECTIVENESS OF THE COMMITTEE ON OCEANOGRAPHY 175 



that it was Nansen who discovered for us the great depths of the Arctic Ocean. Thanks to him we 

 knew the oceanographical characteristics of this Ocean, the movement of its ice floes, its inter- 

 change with the Atlantic Ocean, etc. 



Apart from its geographical and regional importance, the work of that expedition had also a 

 theoretical significance concerning the ice drift. Nansen established that the speed of the ice 

 drift was approximately l/50th of the wind speed and the direction of the drift was about 30 degrees 

 to the right of the wind. Several years ago these rules were supplemented by Professor Zubov 

 (USSR) who showed that the ice was drifting along isobars (lines of equal atmospheric pressure) 

 and that the speed of the drift was proportional to the pressure gradient. 



The fact that the drift did not coincide with the direction of the wind forced Nansen to con- 

 sider that this was in effect caused by the earth's rotation (Coriolis force). He also correctly 

 came to the conclusion that this force should influence the development of currents. On the basis 

 of this suggestion the young Swedish scientist Wilfrid Ekman, to whom Nansen proposed the 

 mathematical solution of this problem, created an elegant theory of wind-driven currents. This 

 theory is still important and is being developed and generalized by present-day scientists. 



The scientific results of the "Fram" expedition are published in five volumes, of which 

 Volume 3 - Oceanography (1902) is especially interesting. I am sure that every oceanographer of 

 our time will find there many interesting and fresh thoughts. As well, it is an excellent example 

 of clarity and logic of expression which may serve as a model to both young and old in the scienti- 

 fic world. 



One of the questions studied by Nansen on the basis of "Fram's" observations, was the ques- 

 tion of water exchange between the Central Arctic Basin and the Greenland Sea, but there was not 

 enough data for solving this problem at the time. Therefore Nansen undertook a new journey to 

 the Spitzbergen region on the small schooner "Veslamo" (1913). This was, one might say, a 

 family affair. Aboard, together with Nansen, were his son and daughter. From this expedition 

 came very interesting material for clarifying the problem of water exchange and also for the study 

 of mixing processes (especially of winter convection and tidal currents). After this expedition, 

 he wrote the book "Spitzbergen Waters" which even today has not lost its interest. 



Later, Nansen, together with another Norwegian scientist Helland Hansen, conducted several 

 expeditions in the northern part of the Atlantic on the small vessel "Armauer Hansen" . The 

 results of these studies, published in 1925 jointly by both scientists, are of exceptional interest. 

 The authors examined extensive material and showed many features pertaining to the hydrology 

 of this part of the World Ocean. Here, by the way, was first successfully applied the method of 

 T-S analysis for the characterization of water masses. In this region were also found great 

 internal waves with amplitudes up to 100 metres. At about the same time, Nansen became 

 especially interested in the possibilities of studying the Arctic from the air. He had an excellent 

 sense of reality and a gift for seeing into the future. He was able to see in aviation, then very 

 weak, a powerful means of future investigation. He was the first Chairman of the International 

 Aero-Arctic Society and his foresight has since been justified. Recent aircraft expeditions to the 

 Central Arctic Basin conducted by the U.S.A. , Canada and especially the USSR, have permitted 

 the collection of extremely interesting and important data. I think that the underwater Lomonosov 

 Ridge, extending from the New Siberian Islands to Greenland and discovered by Soviet expeditions 

 landed on ice floes, represents so far the greatest geographical discovery of the second half of 

 this century. 



Another fascinating example of Nansen' s ability to look into the future, is his book "To the 

 Land of the Future" which he wrote after journeying across Siberia. On the ship "Correct" he 

 went through the Barents and Kara Seas into the Gulf of Yenisei, and then up along the river by 

 mainland. Now we can quite distinctly see the contours of this "land of the future": the most 

 powerful hydroelectric power station in Bratsk, the longest electric railroad from Moscow to 

 Baikal, the vast expanse of newly cultivated land, .numerous industrial centres, the new scientific 

 centre in Novosibirsk, etc. What was to Nansen merely a dream of the future has become for us 

 a reality. 



