THE INTERNATIONAL ICE PATROL 1936 



The patrol vessels for the season of 1936 were the United States 

 Coast Guard cutters Pontchartrain and Champlain. The oceano- 

 graphic vessel was the United States Coast Guard patrol boat General 

 Greene. The commander of the International Ice-Patrol force was 

 Commander R. L. Lucas, who was also the commanding officer of 

 the Pontchartrain. The commanding officer of the Champlain was 

 Commander G. W. MacLane. On board the General Greene were 

 Boatswain A. L. Cunningham, commanding, and senior physical 

 oceanographer, Floyd M. Soule, and his four assistants. The ice- 

 observation officer, technical advisor to the commander of the Inter- 

 national Ice-Patrol force, was Lt. G. Van A. Graves, who remained at 

 sea with two assistants throughout the Ice-Patrol season. 



The first ice reported in 1936 was heavy field ice sighted on March 

 4 by a steamer using Canadian track F. Succeeding reports indicated 

 a progressive movement of this ice to the southeast. Therefore, on 

 March 23, 1936, the Ice-Patrol cutter Pc ntchartrain sailed from Boston, 

 Mass., for the ice-patrol area to survey ice conditions in that region. 

 The Pontchartrain arrived in the Grand Banks area on March 27. 

 In order to locate the ice already reported, and any other southward 

 moving ice, the Pontchartrain scouted out the cold current from the 

 Tail of the Banks (latitude 43° N.) to latitude 49°15' N. This current 

 lies, in general, between the 100 and 1,000 fathom curves along the 

 east and northeastern edges of the Grand Banks. No areas of field 

 ice and no icebergs were seen. Only three small growlers were 

 sighted in this usually ice-infested area. It is interesting to note 

 two facts made apparent by reading the section on Ice Conditions, 

 North Atlantic Ocean, 1936 (p. 4) and the Table of Ice Reports 

 (p. 27). First, no icebergs at all were reported in March, and second, 

 the last report of field ice for the season (in the Ice-Patrol area) came 

 on March 29. Such an early disappearance of field ice and total 

 absence of bergs in March, even in light ice years, is very unusual. 

 It gave an early indication of what proved to be a very light ice year 

 and a short Ice-Patrol season. 



Not since 1931 have the steamer lanes been so free of field ice and 

 bergs. Canadian tracks D and E were passable at all times and even 

 track F (Cape Race route) was in use and passable throughout the 

 season although field ice existed along this route in March and bergs 

 in April and May. No menace to the United States-European lane 

 routes existed this year at all. Although the large annual variation 

 in the number of icebergs south of latitude 48° N., and the amount 



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