1872.] 



Temperature of the Arctic Sea. 



93 



even by ships which have been beset by ice in the highest latitudes. Ice- 

 bergs, it is well known, waste more rapidly below the surface than in the 

 air, causing them to topple over frequently, obviously the effect of the 

 warm current. 



The question, then, is, from whence do the warm waters come ? and 

 how do they acquire their heat ? And this is one of the questions which 

 a polar voyage by way of Spitzbergen would almost certainly elucidate. 

 Another important subject of investigation would be the conditions under 

 which the prevalent north winds of high latitudes originate. There is 

 one argument bearing upon the temperature of the circumpolar seas which 

 should not be overlooked. During six months of the year the sun is above 

 the horizon ; and although the rays may be oblique, still the waters may 

 acquire a higher temperature than under similar conditions further south, 

 owing to there being little or no cooling from nocturnal radiation, and 

 probably to the constant dryness of the air allowing the sun to strike 

 with full power. During the winter these causes would intensify the cold. 



The occurrence of warm water is by no means confined to the sea around 

 Spitzbergen ; but, before referring to other regions, we may mention that 

 a set of instruments for taking soundings and deep-sea temperatures was 

 supplied this year by Mr. Smith to Capt. David Grey, of the whaler ' Eclipse,' 

 whose father, in the year 1855, supplied the valuable information and 

 survey of the extension of Pond's Bay, now called Eclipse Sound. His 

 observations were made in the middle of the sea, between Greenland and 

 Norway, and along a line ranning north-easterly from Iceland. They 

 coincide with Dr. Carpenter's observations, proving the termination of the 

 Gulf-stream. In June 1854 Morton advanced beyond Kennedy Channel, 

 and saw open water as far as the horizon, visible from a hill 500 feet high. 

 The wind was from the north-west, and a rain-cloud was seen in the 

 distance above the open sea. The water was setting in a strong current 

 south, and the ice along the shores was in a rapid state of dissolution. 

 The water was found in the several places tried to be well above the 

 freezing-point ; and in one place, some distance from the ice-foot, and at a 

 depth of 5 feet, the temperature was 40° E. There was a strong tide 

 from the north. Kane's vessel wintered in Eenselaer Harbour ; the strait 

 was bridged across by ice, with a current riuining south flowing beneath 

 it. Although the open waters above alluded to may not be direct evidence 

 of a comparatively mild circumpolar region, yet the stream of warm water 

 coming from the north seems to indicate it. 



Where can this water acquire its warmth ? Sir J ohn Richardson sug- 

 gests that it is derived from the warm area near Spitzbergen ; but this is 

 not supported by evidence, which indicates that in both areas the water 

 comes from the north. It has been suggested that it is a continuation of 

 the Gulf-stream, apparently because it is supposed to supply all the warm 

 water in the Arctic seas ; but if there is no reason for believing that the 

 warm sea around Spitzbergen derives its heat from this source, it is still 



