KONGL. SV. VET. AKADEMIENS HANDLINGAR. BAND 24. N:0 II. 155 



The chief part of the water of 35 7oo saltness, excepting the bottom-layers, has a 

 temperature above 6° C. 



The isosalinic line 34 "/„(, is enclosecl between the isotherras 6° and 5°. 

 » » » 33 °/o(, foUows the isotherm of 4°. 



» >; »32 %„ » » » » 3°. 



This, with very little modification, will also be found to hold good for the foUoAv- 

 ing section 9 on plate V. Thus a certain amount of saltness in every stratum of water 

 corresponds to a certain temperature in winter time. This suggests the idea that the wa- 

 ters which uieet and overlap each other in the Skagerack and which we have i-epresented 

 by blue, green etc. may have their origin in different parts of the sea. This is in fact 

 the case, as we have proved hj a number of facts. 



We distinguish in the first place between waters entering and tiowing out from the 

 Skagerack. We consider all kinds of water with a saltness exceeding 32 "/„„ to belong to 

 the first class. Waters of less salinity than 30 "/q^ (yellow in the maps) or containing 

 between 30 and 32 %(, (greenish-yellow in plate II, IX, X) belong to the Baltic current 

 which as a coast-stream on the easteni side of the Skagerack attains (in the winter) a ma-- 

 ximum salinity of 29 — 30 "/og, but increases to as much as 31 or 32 "/oq on its course 

 along the northern and western coasts of the Skagerack. In section 1 on plate III the 

 thin strata at the right side (Skagen) of the fiigure represent the waters of the outflowing 

 Baltic current, ^vhich, as is shewn in plate II despatches a part of its water in a westerly 

 direction after having passed the point of the Skaw, while the water-stratum at the sur- 

 face of less than 32 "/qq salinity next to the Norwegian coast represents the Baltic cur- 

 rent as it is about to leave the region of the Skagerack under the nanie of the Norwegian 

 current. All the other Avaters represented in fig. 4 on plate IX by blue and green come 

 from without and flow into the Skagerack. We are justified in making the distinction 

 between inflowing and outflowing waters at the limit of 32 %„ salt (in the winter), be- 

 cause the observations made on board the lightship outside the shoals at the point of the 

 Skaw during the first part of the month of February 1890 show an amount of saltness 

 exceeding 30 °/(,o in connection with inflowing and less than 29 — 30 °/oo in connection with 

 outflowing currents. Beside we found the water at the surface at stations Six and Sx, 

 which was in rapid movement towards the SW., to contain between 30 and 32 ''/(,„ salt. 



We will first consider the outflowing waters, which we denote by the name of the 

 Baltic stream, because it has its origin in the Baltic Sea. We have tried to trace its 

 course along the Scandinavian coast in summer on plate IX and in winter (February) in 

 plate X after observations actually made. 



As may be expected it reaches much farther northwards and carries a far greater 

 mäss of water in summer than in winter. Besides these changes, which are occasioned 

 by the alteration of the seasons, it is probably liable to periodic variations caused by 

 years of greater or less rainfall in northern Europé. In the summer the whole surface 

 of the Skagerack is covered by its waters (see plate IX); in the winter it is reduced chiefly 

 to a coaststream along the Swedish and Norwegian coast, which however at some places, 

 especially where the contour of the shore obliges the stream to alter its direction, shows 

 a marked tendency to split up in two parts and send off side currents in a westerly di- 



