The South Pole; an account of the Norwegian Antarctic expedition in the "Fram," 1910-12 — Volume 1 and Volume 2 eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 790 pages of information about The South Pole; an account of the Norwegian Antarctic expedition in the "Fram," 1910-12 — Volume 1 and Volume 2.

The South Pole; an account of the Norwegian Antarctic expedition in the "Fram," 1910-12 — Volume 1 and Volume 2 eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 790 pages of information about The South Pole; an account of the Norwegian Antarctic expedition in the "Fram," 1910-12 — Volume 1 and Volume 2.
to less pressure, and consequently a cubic metre there contains less air than at the sea-level.  But it is not a depth of 1 metre of the Gulf Stream that has been cooled 1deg. between these two sections; it is a depth of about 500 metres or more, and it has been cooled between 1deg. and 2deg.  C. It will thus be easily understood that this loss of warmth from the Gulf Stream must have a profound influence on the temperature of the air over a wide area; we see how it comes about that warm currents like this are capable of rendering the climate of countries so much milder, as is the case in Europe; and we see further how comparatively slight variations in the temperature of the current from year to year must bring about considerable variations in the climate; and how we must be in a position to predict these latter changes when the temperature of the currents becomes the object of extensive and continuous investigation.  It may be hoped that this is enough to show that far-reaching problems are here in question.

The salinity of the Gulf Stream water decreases considerably between the Fram’s southern and northern sections.  While in the former it was in great part between 35.4 and 35.5 per mille, in the latter it is throughout not much more than 35.3 per mille.  In this section, also, the waters of the Gulf Stream are divided by an accumulation of less salt and somewhat colder bank water, which here lies over the Rockall Bank (Station 16).  On the west side of this bank there is again (Station 15) salter and warmer Gulf Stream water, though not quite so warm as on the east.  From the Frithjof section, a little farther south, it appears that this western volume of Gulf Stream water is comparatively small.  The investigations of the Fram and the Frithjof show that the part of the Gulf Stream which penetrates into the Norwegian Sea comes in the main through the Rockall Channel, between the Rockall Bank and the bank to the west of the British Isles; its width in this region is thus considerably less than was usually supposed.  Evidently this is largely due to the influence of the earth’s rotation, whereby currents in the northern hemisphere are deflected to the right, to a greater degree the farther north they run.  In this way the ocean currents, especially in northern latitudes, are forced against banks and coasts lying to the right of them, and frequently follow the edges, where the coast banks slope down to the deep.  The conclusion given above, that the Gulf Stream comes through the Rockall Channel, is of importance to future investigations; it shows that an annual investigation of the water of this channel would certainly contribute in a valuable way to the understanding of the variations of the climate of Western Europe.

We shall not dwell at greater length here on the results of the Fram’s oceanographical investigations in 1910.  Only when the observations then collected, as well as those of the Frithjof’s and Michael Sars’s voyages, have been fully worked out shall we be able to make a complete survey of what has been accomplished.

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The South Pole; an account of the Norwegian Antarctic expedition in the "Fram," 1910-12 — Volume 1 and Volume 2 from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.