THE INTERNATIONAL ICE PATROL, 1938 



The ice-patrol season of 1938 was the longest on record. Contin- 

 uous patrol of the ice area extended from March 9 to July 22 and in 

 addition an ice-observation cruise of 15 days was made in February. 

 Other peculiarities were a greater percentage of large, massive bergs, 

 larger amount of true Arctic pack ice and finally, a delay in the move- 

 ment of the bergs south of Tail of Banks until June. This last was, 

 of course, the direct cause of the long season. On the whole, however, 

 the 1938 season must be considered a fairly normal ice year. The 

 field ice was distributed generally over the northern edge of the Banks 

 with no concentration in any particular area and the bergs followed 

 what have come to be considered normal paths. In the last analysis 

 sea ice and bergs are important mainly to the Ice Patrol because they 

 do, or do not, form a menace to trans-Atlantic shipping. Viewed in 

 this manner the general results, or effect, of ice this year are summed 

 up very briefly by the following statements. Field ice obstructed 

 track F (Cape Race route) from February 15 to April 15 and made 

 track E dangerous from March 13 to about April 1. Bergs formed 

 a danger along tracks E and F from March 15 to July 1 and men- 

 aced track D and United States-European tracks A, B, and C from 

 March 21 to July 19. Ice from the Gulf of St. Lawrence blocked 

 routes running north of Sable Island (tracks E and F) from February 

 20 to April 1. The Gulf of St. Lawrence route opened for traffic April 

 8 but the heavy floes did not disappear from the Gulf until May 10. 



The organization of the Ice Patrol and the manner of carrying out 

 its duties were the same as in the last 4 years. The Patrol vessels 

 for the season of 1938 were the United States Coast Guard cutters 

 Tahoe and Pontchartrain. The oceanographic vessel was the United 

 States Coast Guard patrol boat General Greene. The commander of 

 the International Ice Patrol force was Commander C. H. Dench, who 

 was also commanding officer of the Tahoe. The commanding officer 

 of the Pontchartrain was Commander E. G. Rose. On the General 

 Greene were Chief Boatswain Thomas Noland, commanding, and 

 senior physical oceanographer, United States Coast Guard, Floyd M. 

 Soule, and his four assistants. The ice-observation officer, technical 

 advisor to commander, International Ice Patrol Force, was Lt. G. Van 

 A. Graves, who remained at sea with two assistants throughout the 

 ice-patrol season. The two patrol vessels based on Halifax, Nova 

 Scotia, during the ice season, making alternate patrols of approxi- 

 mately 2 weeks duration, exclusive of time spent steaming to and 



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