Norwegian North Polar Expedition 1893-1896: Oceanographic Data

Summary:

This data set contains water depth, temperature, specific gravity, salinity, and density measurements from the North Polar Basin and the Barents Sea, gathered by Nansen and crew on the Norwegian North Polar Expedition from 1893-1896.

Norwegian researcher and explorer Fridtjof Nansen originated the idea of using a ship, beset in ice and drifting, as a research station after pieces of wreckage from the USS Jeannette, crushed in the ice of the Laptev Sea, washed up on the southwest coast of Greenland after three years. To Nansen, this event suggested the existence of a trans-Arctic current. The Fram, designed specifically for the expedition by naval architect Colin Archer, drifted from a starting point in ice north of the New Siberian Islands to Svalbard in what was later named the Transpolar Drift Stream.

Data are available as a Microsoft Excel file via FTP.

Citing These Data:

National Snow and Ice Data Center. 2002. Norwegian north polar expedition 1893-1896: oceanographic data. Compiled by Fridtjof Nansen. Boulder, CO: National Snow and Ice Data Center. http://dx.doi.org/10.7265/N57H1GGG

Overview Table:

Category	Description
data format	Microsoft Excel
spatial coverage	The ship's track ranged from 85.87 N to 69.42 N, and 137.83 E to 12.43 E
temporal coverage and resolution	Data were collected daily between July 22, 1893 and April 15, 1896
file size	72 Kb
parameter(s)	Variables measured were water temperature, density, salinity, depth, and specific gravity
Metadata access	View metadata
Data access	Data are available via FTP

Table of Contents:

1. Contacts
2. Detailed Data Description
3. Data Access and Tools
4. Data Acquisition and Processing
5. References and Related Publications
6. Document Information

1. Contacts:

Investigator(s) Name and Title:

Fridtjof Nansen, 1861-1930
Explorer, Oceanographer, Ambassador to Norway, (1906-1908), 1922 Nobel Peace Prize recipient

Technical Contact:

NSIDC User Services
National Snow and Ice Data Center
CIRES, 449 UCB
University of Colorado
Boulder, CO 80309-0449  USA
phone: +1 303.492.6199
fax: +1 303.492.2468
form: Contact NSIDC User Services
e-mail: nsidc@nsidc.org

2. Detailed Data Description:

NSIDC staff keyed the data in this data set from the print version of the final values table (pages 243-256) in The Norwegian North Polar Expedition, 1893-1896, Scientific Results, Volume III, reprint. The Microsoft Excel file exactly replicates the data in the table from the publication, except the Excel file includes corrections made from Nansen's Errata and Addenda (pages VI-VII).

Meteorological data from the Nansen expedition can be found in the Enviromental Working Group (EWG) Arctic Meteorology and Climate Atlas.

Format:

The data are in Microsoft Excel format.

File Size:

72 Kb

Spatial Coverage:

The Norwegian North Polar Expedition, onboard the Fram, drifted from a starting point in ice north of the New Siberian Islands at approximately 78°50N, 0°00E to the west coast of Svalbard, at approximately 78°00N, 20°00E.

Spatial Coverage Map:

Temporal Coverage:

The data span ranges from July 1893 to April 1896.

Temporal Resolution:

Data were collected daily.

Parameter or Variable:

Parameter Description:

Variables measured were water temperature, density, salinity, depth, and specific gravity.

Sample Data Record:

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
1	1893	July 22	70 43	39 20	0	5.80	1.02593	34.10	1.02678
					20	3.92	1.02664	35.03	1.02772
					40	3.58	1.02664	35.03	1.02775
					60	1.58	1.02662	35.01	1.02789
					80	1.01	1.02661	34.99	1.02792
					100	0.65	1.02661	34.99	1.02795
					150	-0.61	1.02752
					200	-1.14	1.02674	35.16	1.02817

Column Titles Key:
Column 1: Distinguishing Number
Column 2: Year
Column 3: Month and Day
Column 4: Latitude Degrees (N) and Minutes
Column 5: Longitude Degrees (E) and Minutes
Column 6: Depth (meters)
Column 7: Temperature (°C)
Column 8: Specific Gravity
Column 9: Salinity (0/00)
Column 10: Density

3. Data Access and Tools:

Data Access:

Data are available via FTP.

Related Data Collections:

• Environmental Working Group Arctic Meteorology and Climate Atlas.

4. Data Acquisition and Processing:

Sensor or Instrument Description:

Temperature - Various types of thermometers were used to measure temperatures in water samples collected with Pettersson's insulated water bottles with non-conducting water jackets.

Specific gravity and salinity - floating hydrometers of constant weight and Tornoe's Apparatus were used to measure specific gravity and salinity in water samples collected with Pettersson's insulated water bottles with non-conducting water jackets, Ekman's insulated water bottle, and Blessing's water bottle. Please refer to The Norwegian North Polar Expedition, 1893-1896, Scientific Results, Volume III, reprint (see the References and Related Publications section of this document) for more specific information on instruments and sampling procedures.

Data Source:

Density and specific gravity values were calculated.

The Fram. Photo by James S. Aber, Dept. Earth Science, Emporia State University. Copyright James S. Aber.

5. References and Related Publications:

Arctic Climatology Project. 2000. Environmental Working Group Arctic Meteorology and Climate Atlas. Edited by F. Fetterer and V. Radionov. Boulder, CO: National Snow and Ice Data Center. CD-ROM.

Fridtjof, Nansen, ed. 1902. The Norwegian North Polar Expedition, 1893-1896, Scientific Results, Volume III. Christiania: Jacob Dybwad; London, New York, Bombay: Longmans, Green, and Co.; Leipzig: F.A. Brockhaus.

Fridtjof, Nansen, ed. 1902. The Norwegian North Polar Expedition, 1893-1896, Volumes I-VI. Christiania: Jacob Dybwad; London, New York, Bombay: Longmans, Green, and Co.; Leipzig: F.A. Brockhaus.

Fridtjof, Nansen, ed. 1969. The Norwegian North Polar Expedition, 1893-1896, Scientific Results, Volume III. New York, NY: Greenwood Press. Reprint.

6. Document Information:

Document Creation Date:

1 October 2002

Document Revision Date:

Document Review Date:

Document URL:

http://nsidc.org/data/g02120.html