b. Arctic Basin Surface Water , Salinities observed in what 

 has been termed "Arctic Basin Surface Water" were similar to those 

 noted in Arctic Basin Surface Water in the Laptev Sea during 1963, 

 but associated temperatures covered a much broader range during the 

 two summers of observations. Salinities measured In this water during 

 1963 were greater than 28 %„ with the exception of some surface values. 

 Very low surface salinities were noted on several stations occupied 

 in Arctic Basin Surface Water, but these probably were caused by 

 local ice melt. A large salinity increase was noted at 5 meters 

 on these stations, and salinity values below 5 meters were always 

 in excess of 28 %o • The highest salinity observed in 1963 was 33 %„ 

 at 35 meters at station 47. Salinities observed in Arctic Basin 

 Surface Water in the East Siberian Sea during 1964 were all in excess 

 of 28%o and ranged as high as 33.15 %„ at 28 meters at station 73. 



Temperatures observed in this water during August 1963 were 

 below O'C with values as low as -1.7**C measured near the bottom on 

 several stations. Considerably higher temperatures were measured 

 during September 1964, however, when surface values as high as 1.38'*C 

 were noted in the eastern East Siberian Sea. Although most temperatures 

 measured at that time were above O'C, bottom temperatures as low 

 as -1.64*'C also were observed. 



Water with salinities in excess of 32o(,p was observed at 

 all depths on most of the 41 stations occupied in Long Strait and 

 the Chukchi Sea. Temperatures observed on these stations varied 

 from colder than -1.7*'C near the bottom in Long Strait to warmer 

 than 5°C near the surface in Bering Strait. Temperature and salinity 

 distribution observed at 30 meters on these stations is shown in 

 figure 24 . 



Codlspoti (1965) suggests that some of the Pacific Water 

 which flows northward through Bering Strait enters the East Siberian 

 Sea as relatively dense bottom water. Phosphate concentrations which 

 he observed in the East Siberian Sea were similar to those generally 

 found in the North Pacific, yet those he observed in the Laptev Sea 

 were similar to those normally encountered in the North Atlantic. 

 He also noted that phosphate-nitrate relationships in the Bering 

 and Chukchi Seas were similar to the ones observed in the East Siberian 

 Sea but were markedly different from those in the Laptev Sea. Upon 

 examining several possible mechanisms for increasing East Siberian 

 Sea water phosphate concentrations over those in the Laptev Sea, 

 he concludes that the most likely method would be through mixing 

 with water from the North Pacific. 



2. Dissolved Oxygen Distribution . Dissolved oxygen supersaturation 

 relative to equilibrium sea-surface oxygen solubility was observed 

 in the East Siberian Sea during the summers of 1963 and 1964. Dissolved 

 oxygen values noted during 1964 were somewhat lower than those observed 

 in 1963, and supersaturation did not appear as prevalent. 



32 



