SiS GREENLAND OR POLAR IGE. 



tracted channels, amidst compact and formidable 

 ice. And, further, that in less than a fortnight, 

 while at rest with regard to the ice, our drift, as 

 ascertained by astronomical observations, had 

 been 60 or 70 miles to the south, and a distance 

 equally as great to the west. 



Effects of the Ice on the Sea and th<£ Jtmosphere, 



The profusion of ice in the polar regions, pro- 

 duces peculiar and marked effects on the sur- 

 rounding elements. The sea, in consequence, ex- 

 hibits some interesting characters, and the atr 

 mosphere, some striking "^phenomena. Of these, 

 the power the ice exerts on the wind, — ^on aqueous 

 vapour, — on the colour of the sky, — and on the 

 temperature of the air, are the most prominent ; 

 and of those, accordingly as the ice or swell 

 has the ascendancy, the results are varied and re- 

 markable. 



1. When the wind blows forcibly across a solid 

 pack or field of ice, its power is much diminished 

 ere it traverses many miles : Insomuch, that a 

 storm will frequently blow for several hours on 

 one side of a field, before it be perceptible oa the 

 other ; and, while a storm prevails in open water, 

 ships beset within sight, will not experience one- 

 half of its severity. 



It is not uncommon for the ice to produce the 

 effect of repulsing and balancing an assaihng wind. 



