32 
A VOYAGE TO SP1TZBERGEN. 
ment of arcs in all latitudes, or by numerous pendulum 
observations. This is a point, the settlement of which 
is of considerable importance in physical science. 
Very little is known respecting the meteorology of the- 
polar region. This science is in its infancy, and 
yet it is abundantly manifest that the various pheno¬ 
mena of climate are regulated by definite laws, of' 
which only glimpses are as yet perceptible, and that, a- 
knowledge of the circumpolar climate would be an 
essential aid to the meteorologists of more temperate- 
climates towards ascertaining what those laws are. 
The peculiar condition of these regions with respect to* 
solar heat and light opens up a field of investigation 
which has as yet scarcely been touched. Within the- 
Arctic Circle, the longest day or period of constant 
light and heat varies from twenty - four hours at 
66° 30' N. to six months at the Pole. At the Pole- 
the sun would be first seen above the horizon at the- 
spring equinox, and would not again sink below it 
till the autumnal equinox. Early in the season its- 
altitude would be very low, but as time went on its 
height would steadily increase until June 21, when 
the suns declination would be 23° 28'. After this it 
would gradually sink. At a certain distance south of 
the North Pole the period of constant daylight would 
be five months, but the sun would attain a greater 
