OCEANOGRAPHIC INFORMATION FOR SUBMARINE CABLES 1093 



occur, and in some cases to outline areas where they occur at frequent 

 intervals. If, after the completion of such a study, it is decided to take 

 the risk of laying a cable across a dangerous area and at a later date 

 a turbidity current does occur, it will be possible to predict the length 

 of cable to be replaced under various conditions. 



VI. CONCLUSIONS 



The application of the rapidly developing science of oceanograph}- to 

 the development and engineering of submarine cable systems will per- 

 mit refinements in design, cable placing techniques, route selection, and 

 repair operations. Existing knowledge, when evaluated and codified, pro- 

 vides many useful data for immediate application. Continuing study of 

 topography, the nature of the bottom, causes of cable failures, and deep 

 sea circulation will permit further advances in the engineering of sub- 

 marine cable systems. It is to be expected that the value and usefulness 

 of submarine cable oceanographic studies will be substantially extended 

 as geologic and oceanographic researchers broaden the understanding of 

 the natural laws and processes which govern and produce the ocean- 

 bottom environment. Through such knowledge, the data of many fields 

 can be coordinated, permitting better explanation of past events and 

 more accurate prediction of future conditions. 



ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 



The authors wish to acknowledge the contributions of Marie Tharp, 

 W. Fedukowicz, and H. Foster of Lamont Geological Observatory, and 

 A. L. Hale and H. W. Anson of Bell Telephone Laboratories. The en- 

 couragement and guidance of Dr. Maurice Ewing has been of great 

 value. 



REFERENCES 



1. E. E. Zajac, Dynamics and Kinematics of Laving and Recovery of Submarine 



Cable, pp. 1129-1208, this issue._ 



2. L. R. Snoke, Resistance of Organic Materials and Cable Structure to Marine 



Biological Attack, pp. 1095-1128, this issue. 



3. B. Luskin, B. C. Heezen, M. Ewing, and M. Landisman, Precision Measurement 



of Ocean Depth, Deep-Sea Research, 1, pp. 131-140, April, 1954. 



4. D.J. Matthews, Tables of the Velocity of Sound in Pure Water and Sea Water for 



Use in Echo Sounding and Sound Ranging. Admiralty, London, 1939. 



5. C. S. Lawton, The Submarine Cable Plow, A.LE.E. trans., 58, p. 685, 1939. 



6. B. C. Heezen and M. Ewing, Turbidity Currents and Submarine Slumps, and 



the 1929 Grand Banks Earthquake, American Journal of Science, 250, pp. 

 849-873, Dec, 1952. 



7. B. C. Heezen and AL Ewing, Orleansville Earthquake and Turbidity Currents, 



Bull. Am. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists, 39, pp. 2505-2514, Dec, 1955. 



