figures 27 and 31. In these two seetions the deep water with tempera- 

 tures of k^ss than 3.2° is recognizably similar. Above this the inter- 

 mediate water has but slight gradients between temperatures of 3.2° 

 and 3.5°. In figure 31 there appears a poorly developed temperature 

 minimum, with temperatures of between 3.25 and 3.3, which is similar 

 to that found in the section across the Labrador Sea and it is probable 

 that it is related to the Labrador Sea minimum in its formation. In 

 the northern side of the triangle (fig. 27) such a minimum is hinted at, 

 but the temperatures here are about 0.1° higher. 



Figures 28, 30, and 32, showing the salinity distribution along the 

 three sides of the triangle, all show a minimum with salinities of less 

 than 34.90%o in the intermediate water with an underlying maximum 

 greater than 34.90°/oo in the deep water. In figures 28 and 32 this 

 maximum is connected along the continental slope with the maximum 

 associated with the Irminger Current. Here the highest observed 

 salinities were 35.055 and 35.04%o in the north and southwest 

 sections, respectively. These are of the magnitude found in the 

 section extending southwest from Cape Farewell in the prewar years 

 and not found there since 1949. 



In the hope that the concentration of total phosphorus might be 

 useful as a water-mass tracer in the vicinity of southern Greenland, 

 samples were taken from all levels at most of the stations during the 

 May survey of the Grand Banks region in 1952 and characteristic 

 phosphorus-density curves were derived from this survey for each of 

 the three water masses (Labrador Current water, mixed water, and 

 Atlantic Current water) present in that region. Samples were also 

 taken from all levels at all stations comprising the South Wolf Island- 

 Cape Farewell section in July 1952 and July 1953. The results of 

 these observations have been reported in bulletin No. 39 of this series. 

 In 1954 similar sampling was carried out during the occupation of the 

 South Wolf Island-Cape Farewell section and the Greenland triangle. 

 The results of the 1954 phosphorus determinations are tabulated at 

 the end of the usual table of oceanographic data, and the phosphorus 

 distribution has been shown graphically in figures 33 to 36. In each 

 of these figures isentropic surfaces of equal potential density ^ have 

 been shown as solid lines. In the South Wolf Island-Cape Farewell 

 section (fig. 33), the phosphorus concentration shows very little 

 variation at depths greater than 50 meters. There is a slight maxi- 

 mum at intermediate depths along the outer part of the I^abrador 

 Current and a somewhat greater maximum similarly located along 

 the offshore part of the West Greenland Current. Elsewhere the 

 range is for the most part between 1.1 and 1.3 microgram-atoms per 

 liter. Some slight instabihties are present and the course of the 1.2 



3 (Tt,, where >$ is the temperature a water particle would have if its pressure were reduced adiabatically 

 to atmospheric pressure, and where sn is 1,000 (density —1) at atmospheric pressure and temperature le. 



108 



