276 Alf Trolle. 



of less salinity than the Gulf Stream as also very much colder owing 

 to its ice-masses and northern origin. 



The conditions in the northernmost part of the Greenland Sea 

 off the North-East coast of Greenland were still unknown, however, 

 as no hydrographical investigations had been made during the »'inter 

 north of Ryder's winter station in Scoresby Sound (ca. 72° N. lat.). 



The Danmark Expedition has succeeded in obtaining a hydro- 

 graphical section with stations at ca. 76° N. lat. from 3° W. long, in 

 towards land and succeeded, further, in carrying out investigations in 

 hitherto unknown fjords in North-East Greenland and on the coast 

 at different seasons of the year. 



A work has been published recently (Due d'ORLEANS : Croisière 

 océanographique) which shows, that on the Expedition of the Duke 

 of Orleans with the "Belgica" in 1905 E. Koefoed carried out a 

 very extensive series of oceanographical investigations in the same 

 region of Greenland as the Danmark Expedition. 



The "Belgica" did not stay the winter there, and therefore can 

 give us no material for comparison with the investigations of the 

 Danmark Expedition during this season. 



Hydrographical investigations made on the Danmark Expedition 

 to the North-East coast of Greenland in 1906—1908. 



Brief account of the route follo^ved and of the position of the hydro- 

 graphical stations (see PI. XI and XIII). 



On June 24th 1906 the "Danmark" left Copenhagen and on 

 July 22nd sailed out of Eskefjord on East Iceland. On the same 

 day the first hydrographical investigations were made in the East 

 Icelandic Polar Current (Series I and II). 



Thereafter the course was set north-eastwards round Jan Mayen, 

 keeping steadily eastwards so as not to enter the ice in a fog south 

 of the latitude (75°N. lat.) which I considered the best, if we were 

 to reach into land at about 76° N. lat. On the way surface observa- 

 tions were constantly made and current-bottles thrown overboard. 



On July 30th we sighted the first, very scattered ice at about 

 74° 18' N. lat., 2°46' W. long. ; on the same day we made a series of 

 hydrographical investigations (Series III) (sounding 2080 m., no bot- 

 tom), then stood in through the edge of the ice on July 31st at 

 about 75°14'N.lat., 4°34'W. long, and passed a belt of drift-ice — 

 called by the Norwegian whalers "ispakke", that is, an isolated pack 

 of drift-ice, which had been blown out to sea from the land. 



We then sailed in water almost free of ice as far as ca. là^U° 

 N. lat., 8^/4° W. long., where we came close to the edge of dense ice 

 on August 1st and sailed along this backwards and forwards from 



