GEOPHYSICAL AND OCEANOGRAPHIC RESEARCH IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN

• Main Author: HUNKINS, KENNETH
• Other Authors: LAMONT GEOLOGICAL OBSERVATORY PALISADES NY
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1960
• Subjects: *ICE; *OCEANOGRAPHIC DATA; *OCEANOGRAPHY; *SEISMIC WAVES; *WEATHER STATIONS; FLOATING BODIES; GEOPHYSICS; INSTRUMENTATION; OCEAN BOTTOM; OCEANS; POLAR REGIONS; PROPAGATION; SEA WATER; SOUND TRANSMISSION; UNDERWATER SOUND; WAVE PROPAGATION; Arctic; Arctic Ocean; Chukchi Rise; Water Sound; Chukchi
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/AD0253807; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=AD0253807

The use of stations on drifting pack ice for geophysical and oceanographic studies of the Arctic Ocean proved highly successful. The investigations by Lamont Geological Observatory from Drifting Stations Alpha, Bravo and Charlie provided new information about the environment of the Arctic Ocean. A prominent topographic feature, the Alpha Rise, was delineated and mapped from Station Alpha. The floor of the Arctic Ocean was observed directly for the first time in submarine bottom photographs. Unique deposits of gravel were found on the ocean floor and found to have been ice-rafted from a glacial shore area. Acoustic wave propagation in the ice revealed large seasonal changes in velocity. The Chukchi Rise was delineated in detail with fathograms produced by a precision depth recorder on Station Charlie. Long range deep-water underwater sound transmission was also observed from this station and the results interpreted in terms of normal mode theory. Finally, at Station Bravo, shallow-water underwater sound transmission was observed and found to agree with theory for normal modes propagating in an ice-water-sediment system. (Author)