23 



The berg of the 17th and 18th, being the southernmost ice remain- 

 ing, was closely watched from the 24th to the 26th. On the afternoon 

 of the 24th it calved heavily. On the 26th a few growlers were all that 

 remained of the berg and these melted entirely shortly after dark. 



The 27th and 28th were spent searching to the north for the new 

 southern limit of the ice. The area between the forty-ninth and 

 fifty-first meridians was covered as far as the forty-third parallel by 

 nightfall on the 28th, but no ice was seen. The 29th, 30th, and 31st, 

 days of dense fog, were spent just off the eastern edge of the Banks 

 in a position to continue search northward up the cold current should 

 good seeing weather return. 



August 1 was spent running to the westward toward the Tampa. 

 As soon as the warm water west of the 50-fathom curve of the Banks 

 was reached the fog was left behind. The Tarnpa was met at 2 a. m. 

 on August 2 in 43° 00' N., 51° 30' W., where the relief of patrol was 

 effected. 



Ten stations were taken during the eighth cruise. As there 

 remained no means for determining sea-water salinity on board, the 

 water samples were saved for analysis on the Tampa. Sustained 

 winds of gale force and strong breezes were absent during the eighth 

 cruise, which was marked by fine moderate weather. There were some 

 sharp rain squalls, with lightning and wind, over the warm water 

 and much fog over the cool water farther north. Fog was experi- 

 enced 34 per cent of the time and visibility was less than 4 miles 

 46 per cent of the time. 



During the eighth criuse 67 ice reports were received from ship and 

 shore stations. Seven vessels were sent special ice information on 

 request. Eighty -nine different cooperating vessels sent in 651 sea- 

 water temperature reports. The isotherm chart based on these 

 values and those obtained by the Modoc shows continued slow general 

 solar warming of the surface layers. In the vicinity of 41° 00' N., 

 49° 00' W., there was a push of cold water farther south than during 

 the last cniise, but upon the melting of the southernmost bergs the 

 possible supply of ice for this area was cut oft'. 



During the eighth cruise the 1929 ice menace to the Europe-United 

 States "B" tracks definitely appeared to end. After the melting 

 of the four bergs that were south of the forty-second parallel during 

 the first half of the cruise the ice limits retreated steadily northward. 

 As berg after berg of the southernmost ones melted in the summer 

 air and sea temperatures prevailing, they failed to be replaced from 

 the north due to lack of supply in that quarter and to probable weak- 

 ening and narrowing of the Labrador Current. Persistent fog over 

 the cold water blocked effective searching during much of the latter 

 part of the eighth patrol period, however, and prevented a thorough 

 clearing up of the ice situation or a definite recommendation regarding 

 the discontinuance of the patrol. 



