Annual report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution . STITUTION, 1909. It is of an entirely different nature from the polar ice which is metwith in the offing of east Greenland. This is formed of laminaemuch thicker, more compressed, and contorted, and originates nearthe Pole. While the bay ice, relatively stagnant, forms and disap-pears in the Greenlandic Ocean, the polar ice is carried along by aconstant current. It results that the region of the bay ice is rela-tively navigable, while that of the polar ice constitutes a dangerousbarrier. During the greater part of the voyag
Annual report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution . STITUTION, 1909. It is of an entirely different nature from the polar ice which is metwith in the offing of east Greenland. This is formed of laminaemuch thicker, more compressed, and contorted, and originates nearthe Pole. While the bay ice, relatively stagnant, forms and disap-pears in the Greenlandic Ocean, the polar ice is carried along by aconstant current. It results that the region of the bay ice is rela-tively navigable, while that of the polar ice constitutes a dangerousbarrier. During the greater part of the voyage the Belgica pene-trated as far aspossible into thepack ice (ban-quise) so that ithad polar ice onthe starboard andbay ice on the lar-board side. TheBelgica twicecrossed the polarice, and each timewith the greatestdifficulty. Thanksto a combinationof happy circum-stances, it was en-abled to reach thecoast of Green-land. On the other sideof the zone ofpolar ice the Bel-gica found theland ice formed inwinter in the fiordsand the neighbor-hood of the Green-coast. Even. Fi(!. 2. MteP continuous back-; Icincf-/cG. ••*• SoUoT pa J/i-zc e Map showing the distribution of ice in Greenland ^i„»^,iSea in July, 1905. wanu in July this iceonly partially disappears. It remains in the neighborhood of thelocality where it is formed, and the only movements manifested aredue, according to the observations of Commander de Gerlache, tothe action of the tides. Between the land ice and the polar ice thereexists a zone less encumbered, through the favor of which the expedi-tion was able to ascend as far as the Belgica bank. These three kinds of ice are very different in origin, distribution,and movement. Thanks to the numerous observations of the Belgica Smithsonian Report, 1909.—Damas. Plate 1,
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