The concentrations of Mg**, Ca-'*, and K+, in 

 interstitial waters are given in relation to Na* 

 to eliminate the effects of evaporation which 

 may give relatively higher absolute measured 

 values. From Figures 8 and 9 it is apparent 

 that Na+ and K* generally increase with depth 

 while Mg^ and Ca** decrease with depth. 

 Among the trace elements analysed, Mn was 

 found enriched in the top sections of the cores 

 while iron varies irregularly throughout the 

 section. 



The influence of texture of sediments on the 

 Na* concentration is apparent. Increased per- 

 centage of clay in the cores invariably de- 

 pressed the Na* concentration. 



Variations in temperature and pH of sedi- 

 ments are presented in figures 8 and 9. The pH 

 varied within a narrow range; however, the 

 temperatures of sediments varied significantly. 

 These measurements should be considered as 

 approximations rather than the true values in 

 view of the fact that during retrieval changes 

 in temperature and pressure were unavoidable. 

 The decrease in hydrostatic pressure will in- 

 evitably lead to escape of carbon dioxide and 

 an increase in pH. Exposure to air will sim- 

 ilarly result in rise or fall of sediment tem- 

 perature causing an increase or decrease in pH. 



Trace-metal Analysis of Sea Water 



Table 1 gives the concentrations of Cu, Co, 

 Ni, Fe, Zn, and Pb in six samples of water 

 collected at two stations. The concentrations of 

 Cu (avg. 7.2 ppb) and Co (avg. 0.7 ppb) in 

 eastern central Chukchi Sea waters were 

 slightly higher than the average concentrations 

 of Cu (avg. 3 ppb) and Co (avg. 0.1 ppb) 

 cited for the world ocean waters (Goldberg, 

 1965). Possibly this slight enrichment in Cu 

 and Co in the nearshore waters of the Chukchi 

 Sea is caused by the local introduction from 

 the adjacent hinterland which is rich in ore 

 deposits of these two metals. The concentra- 

 tions of Ni (avg. 1.470 ppb), Fe (avg. 5.498 

 ppb) and Zn (avg. 3.528 ppb) in the eastern 

 central Chukchi Sea water are relatively lower 

 than those generally observed in sea water. 

 Within the area investigated no systematic 

 vertical variations were observed in the con- 

 centrations of any of the six metals analyzed. 



Table 1. — Concentrations of some trace transition 

 metals in the waters of the eastern central Chukchi 

 Sea. AH values are expressed as ppb. 



Benthic Faunal Analysis 



A list by station of the benthic faunal species 

 collected on each station is included in this 

 report (table IV, appendix A). Data at each 

 station are often incomplete and are not quan- 

 titative. However, they give an indication of 

 the types of Coelenterata, Mollusca, Polychaeta, 

 Bryozoa, Chordata, Porifera, Annelida, Ar- 

 thropoda, Brachiopoda, Echinodermata, and 

 organisms of other phyla inhabitating the near- 

 shore environment of the eastern central 

 Chukchi Sea. 



DISCUSSION 



At the present stage of analysis no definite 

 conclusions can be drawn regarding any aspect 

 of the research carried out. Several sediment 

 samples are yet to be analyzed for the para- 

 meters already mentioned here and for some 

 additional ones. Therefore, the discussion that 

 follows must be considered tentative. 



The bi- to polymodal size distributions of 

 the barrier beach sediments suggest that these 

 sediments have had a complex depositional his- 

 tory. Presumably, their size distribution is a 

 complex resultant of the eff"ects of periodic 

 storm-induced waves and shorefast ice on de- 

 posits laid down normally by the swash and 

 backwash of waves under relatively calm con- 

 ditions. The possibility that some of the gravels 

 in these barrier beaches may be derived from 

 a relict deposit is not ruled out and if true, this 

 would further complicate the issue. The action 

 of ice on the transport and deposition of sedi- 

 ments in the polar beaches has been speculated 

 on by several investigators but no quantitative 

 data have ever been presented. Present studies 

 on Point Lay sediments and those carried out 

 under another investigation on the North Slope 



176 



