PHYSICAL OCEANOGRAPHY OF THE GRAND BANKS REGION 

 AND THE LABRADOR SEA IN 1950 



By Floyd M. Soule ^ 



The oceanographic vessel of the ice patrol during 1950 was again 

 the ISO-foot tender-class cutter Evergreen. Except for one very im- 

 portant change, the vessel and the arrangements for doing oceano- 

 graphic work from it were much the same as in the two previous years 

 and described in Bulletin No. 34 of this series. The change was the 

 substitution of a five-bladed propeller for the three-bladed propeller 

 formerly used. The hull-vibration was very much reduced, and 

 with the new screw it was possible to run at about 2 knots higher 

 speed with less vibration than before the change was made. 



The season's oceanographic work began with the departure of the 

 Evergreen, from Argentia on 5 April for the purpose of making a current 

 survey of the area over and immediately seaward of the southwestern, 

 southern, and eastern slopes of the Grand Banks. Following a plan 

 to begin the survey in the southwestern part of the area and work 

 around the Tail of the Banks and thence northward along the eastern 

 slope of the banks, the work of collection of data commenced at 

 station 4000 located at 43°35' N., 51°27' W., on the afternoon of 

 6 April. Three stations had been occupied when it was necessary 

 to discontinue oceanographic work to search for two fishermen in 

 a dory which had become separated from its mother ship. After 

 the missing fishermen had been picked up by another vessel, oceano- 

 graphic work w^as resumed at station 4003 on the afternoon of 7 April. 



Work progressed without major incident until the morning of 9 

 April, when at station 4011 increasing seas required interruption of the 

 oceanographic work after the first cast had been retrieved. The 

 ship was hove to until improving conditions permitted resumption 

 of work at station 4012 13 hours later. Again, at 2031 on 17 April 

 increasing wind and heavy seas made it necessary to heave to and 

 await better weather. Work was resumed at station 4060, located 

 at 45°02' N., 46°35' W., on the afternoon of 18 April, although with 

 doubtful results because of excessive wire angles arising from a 

 strong current whose direction was widely different from that of the 

 wind (W6) and sea (SW4). A 4-minute square was run with the 

 von Arx current meter shortly before leaving this station and the 

 resulting value of about 2 knots checked with the drift experienced 

 by the ship during the period hove to. 



1 Contribution No. 551 of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. 



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