Littell's Living Age/Volume 130/Issue 1674/Norwegian Deep-Sea Explorations

From The Academy.

NORWEGIAN DEEP-SEA EXPLORATIONS.

A Norwegian deep-sea exploring expedition, equipped after the manner of the "Challenger," for a cruise of three summers, is about to set out from Bergen, the object being to examine the region of the sea-bed bounded by Norway, the Shetlands, Faroes, Iceland, the ice of east Greenland, Jan Mayen, and Spitzbergen. When Prof. Mohn, director of the Meteorological Institute of Norway, was studying the temperature of these seas he became very conscious of the deficiency of knowledge of this great area, though its borders had to some extent been investigated by British, Swedish, German, and French expeditions. His colleague at the University of Christiania, Prof. Sars, had an equally strong conviction of the importance of biological research in this region, not only in the interests of science, but for the welfare of the country, so many of whose inhabitants earn their livelihood in these seas. Accordingly, both together presented a memoir to the minister of the interior in 1874, requesting the organization of an exploring expedition of the seas west of Norway. The proposal was warmly received by the minister, M. Vogt, and resulted in the voting of a sufficient sum for the outfit of the expedition by the Storthing of 1875, and a second vote by that of 1876 for its maintenance during the succeeding year. Captain C. Wille, of the Norwegian navy, was sent to England to consult with Captain Nares (whom he had the good fortune to see the day before the Arctic expedition sailed), to procure instruments, and to arrange with the authorities of the Admiralty for co-operation, in the matter of simultaneous observations, with the Arctic expedition. Later in the season Captain Wille returned to Bergen to find a suitable ship for the voyage, and on his recommendation the government hired the steamer "Voringen," of four hundred tons' burthen. During the past winter and spring the preparations for the voyage have been carried out so that the ship might sail on June 1. The scientific staff of the expedition is as follows, and sufficiently indicates the objects of the voyage: Prof. Sars, Dr. Danielson, and M. Fride (biology); Captain Wille (soundings, deep-sea temperatures, magnetic observations); M. Svendsen (chemistry); and Prof. Mohn (physics, sea-temperature, meteorology, and magnetism). Capt. Wille is in command of the ship; Lieut. M. Peterson is first-lieutenant, and Capt. Greig (the master) is second-lieutenant. The expedition will first call at Utvoer, a group of small islands at the mouth of the Sogne Fiord, where the locality is free from local attraction, in order to make the necessary magnetical base-observations; then, after testing the deep-sea gear in the calm water of the fiord, will put to sea and run along the deep coast channel extending from the Skagerrack, in order to find the mode in which this channel goes northward, and to explore the banks off the coast of Romsdal. She will then call at Christiansund to fill up with coal, and thence will steam westward to the "Lightning" channel between Shetland and the Faroes where the work of the "Porcupine" expedition will be extended in a north-westerly direction. After calling at Thorshavn she will proceed to examine the bank between Faroe and Iceland. At Reykjavik magnetic base-observations will again be made, and thence it is proposed to go west and northward of Iceland, and to run a line of soundings to the Norwegian coast north of Drontheim.