38 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. /O 



cold, much colder than in previous years, with the exception of 1899. 

 The already low temperature sank considerably lower in March and 

 April over the whole region from 60° west, eastward to about 10° 

 west. To be sure there was during this time, as we have remarked, 

 a strong" increase of temperature anomalies ( fro'm +0.3° C, to 

 + 1.7° C.) in the most western fields between 60° and 70° west. 

 But this cannot easily be explained by any intensification of the 

 Gulf Stream, for if that had been the case the neighboring fields, 

 between 50° and 60° west, would have felt the influence, and in 

 these there were abnormally low temperatures and a depression in 

 the anomalies from — 1.8° C. in February to — 2.1° C. in March- 

 April. 



Dr. Wilhelm Brennecke has investigated the " Relations between 

 air pressure distribution and the ice conditions of the ocean east- 

 ward of Greenland " for the year 1904. Prof. G. Schott has 

 treated of " The boundaries of the drift ice near the Newfoundland 

 Banks " in 1904, and finally Dr. L. Mecking has studied " The 

 ice drift from the region of Baffins Bay as controlled by current 

 and weather" (1905), "The drift ice phenomena near Newfound- 

 land and their dependence on climatic relations" (1907). The 

 principal results of these dififerent investigations are as follows : 



1. The variations in the ice drift as well in the east Greenland 

 polar current as in the Labrador current depend upon variations 

 in the distribution of air pressure. 



2. On these grounds the variations from year to year in the 

 ice conditions near Newfoundland and Iceland usually go in op- 

 posite senses. That is to say, a strong ice drift near Newfound- 

 land is attended by simultaneous weak ice drift near Iceland and 

 vice versa. 



3. The melted ice water near Newfoundland has no apparent 

 direct influence on the temperature of the ocean near the western 

 European coast. 



4. In years of very great quantities of ice in the east Greenland 

 sea there appears to be a diminution as well of the surface tempera- 

 ture of this sea as also of the air temperature in March up to May 

 in Iceland and in the northern parts of Europe, as shown at Bodo 

 on the Norwegian coast and in a less degree at Copenhagen. In 

 years of little ice the temperature is always higher than in normal 

 vears. In years of extraordinarily great quantities of ice in the 

 east Greenland sea there is also a low surface temperature in 

 the sea near the east coast of Iceland (Papey), near the Faroe 



