To the west of the Polar Front, temperatures were cold (<0°C) 

 and fairly uniform. To the east, temperatures increased to maximum 

 values and then tended to decrease slightly in some localities in 

 the vicinity of Svalbard. These reduced temperatures probably 

 reflect the influence of runoff, ice-melt, and the continuation 

 of the East Spitsbergen Current. 



The isotherms at and 10 meters were duplicated to a large extent 

 by the isohalines. Sharp horizontal salinity gradients were found 

 in the vicinity of the Polar Front with salinities tending to increase 

 with increasing temperature. The region of relatively uniform horizontal 

 temperature distribution to the west of the Polar Front also was 

 a region of fairly uniform horizontal salinity distribution. 



B. 50-meter level : Only a temperature diagram (Fig. 16) is 

 presented for the 50-meter level. The gross features are similar 

 to those found at and 10 meters; however, there are some differences. 

 Temperatures close to Svalbard were warmer, and waters to the west 

 of the Polar Front were slightly colder at the 50-meter level. In 

 the southern part of the survey region, maximum temperature gradients 

 were found farther east, and the configuration of the vortex or meander 

 indicated by the isotherms is considerably different. Near 80°N, 

 horizontal temperature gradients were not as marked at 50 meters 

 as they were at and 10 meters. 



Isotherms in the northern part of the survey region indicate 

 that a large stream of the West Spitsbergen Current turns east in 

 this region. 



Figure 16. Horizontal Temperature 



Distribution at 50 Meters, 

 Contour Interval— 1°C. 



24 



