the ATKA's course took her through open and scattered ice from 3 to 9 

 feet in thickness, with considerable rafting evident. Finally at about 

 0600 L5T on 13 February, the ATKA reached open water which was fairly 

 rough and caused considerable rolling. The covirse was shifted to the 

 southeast (160° T.) on a direct line for Cape Norvegia. Open water 

 continued until the cape was sighted at noon on lli Febrxoary. Along 

 the coastal ice shelf front, the water contained scattered brash and 

 block with numerous growlers and bergs from Cape Norvegia westward past 

 Seal Bay and on into the Weddell Sea, The ATKA's farthest point of 

 south and west penetration in this area was reached early on the 

 morning of 1$ February when a small bay was entered, with a limited 

 amoimt of what appeared to be thin fast ice at its head. This bay was 

 located at 72°ii2 ' S. 17°35' W, The ship then retraced its path to 

 Cape Norvegia, 



From Norsel Bay eastward along the Princess Martha Coast of 

 Queen Maud Land, scattered brash and block with numerous bergs and 

 growlers continued to Atka Bay and eastward to a large ice tongue 

 extending out from the coast at the 0° meridian, between latitudes 

 i>9^ and 70O S, Atka Bay was free of fast ice, and the ice front of 

 the shelf ice was between 15 and 35 feet high. At the base of the 

 ice tongue (provisionally named Observers Ice Tongue), a deep bay 

 was entered but not surveyed. A bay some 1^ miles farther to the 

 north (later provisionally named Admiral ^yrd Bay) was entered and 

 the ship brought up to the fast ice at the head of the bay, some h 

 miles from the entrance. Leaving Admiral Byrd Bay on the evening of 

 18 February, the ATKA steamed north along the ice tongue through 

 scattered pack to a point just above 69° S, where close pack was 

 encountered, which forced the ship to retrace her path to Admiral 

 Byrd Bay, 



Admiral Byrd Bay was entered again in the early morning of 19 

 February, and the ship was tied up ^t the edge of the fast ice at 

 the head of the bay. Open water, with several bergs near the 

 entrance, was found in the bay. The fast ice was estimated to be 

 between 15 and 20 feet in thickness and appeared, from the acciimula- 

 tion of snow and nevd", to be of considerable age. Slopes leading 

 down to the fast ice from the surrounding shelf ice were covered 

 with snow and n^ve, indicating that the fast ice had been in place 

 for a long period of time. Leaving the bay on the evening of 19 

 February, a course was set almost due west through scattered pack 

 with numerous bergs and growlers to near U° W, Here, the ship 

 headed due north and soon was out of the pack except for bergs and 

 occasional block ice and growlers. The pack vras left at approximately 

 68°30' S, 3°50* W, on 20 February and was never encountered again. 



Near 66° S, , the course was shifted to northwest and was followed 

 in this general direction to the South Sandi^rLch and South C^eorgia 



30 



