The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-01-19
ON GREENLAND'S ICE CAP.
INTERFERING DIscoTERIES OF Two
DANISH EXPLORERS

Thsp Croes The Inlsna Fee Near Its sauth-
sr- Lisit-Nsv Light Upo- the E-sr-
-sss Evspor.tieu Durins the su-,-sr
no-ths % the Surface OF ths Zee FIeid-
Nc Nountsiss where eeosrnPhers
Thousht Mo-utsI-s wo-Ia Ne Founa.
The coasts Of our country are as we'll map
ped 80 those OF any part the world. butt will
be many years before our surveys are 90 far
advanced that the best possible maps can be
produced Of the interior OF our land. II seems
almost an anomaly that more detailed and ao-
curate maps of the coasts Of Danish Green
land are now produced than can possibly be
made Of most Of our own country In the pres
emit stage Of our survey work. For years
the Danes have been busy making de-
tailed surveys OF the intricate and deep
" indented Greenland coasts, and they
show us In maps fine and accurate
the position and shape OF hundreds OF little
islands along the shores. the wipdlnRs Of
scores OF narrow 1ords that penetrate many
miles into the island. and the position OF the
glacial basins that feed the ice streams They
have also studied the sea bed as far north as
Disco Island. and have traced and mapped its
comparatively uniform slope for about eighty
miles away from the coasts. They are mean
while keeping UP their investigations relating
TO the inland Ice and the glaciers. and are thus
supplying Information that may help us some
day to read Alright the indications left for our
study by the great ice sheet that ages ago COW
cred the northern half Of this continent
Last summer the Danish Commission on
Greenland Explorations sent another party
out on tho inland Ice OF south Greenland.
hansen and Peary are the only explorers who
have as yet made extensive journeys on the
Ice cap that bures deep under snow and Ice
all bat a very small part OF the island. The
Danes are DESTROYS to acquire all the iniorma-
ton OF scientific value they can derive from
further studies and journeys on the inland Ice
The expedition last summer was composed OF
Lieut.. Garde. Ensign Motke. and an Eskimo.
The little party was very successiui, hn d.
though the details Of its scientific work hayo
may be given abo ut the journey.
The party attack ed the inland ice atthe head
lsS 0n tnn. fS mace 2aBd
march, In q little over eleven days they trav-
slled 2So miles. or more than twenty miles les q
on his honeward Journey from Independenee
Bay. We are, counting only days actually
OF about twenty-one miles day. hansen DC;
S1Rted thirty,siy days In crossing Greenland
average Of about ten miles.
Lieut. Garde last summer almost com oleteiy
south Of Nanssn's, route. He did not Quite
reach the east coast. but he pushed westward
700 feet high which Is not far from the east east.
ern edge OF the ice cap. He attained the cul-
height Of about S.iS1 feet. which au is "a about
LOCO feet lower than the summit ridge OF the
G"rSc hst t6s dVs 10 ths ps
coast. but IN north Greenland It is far nearer
Ike Pear. he found that the hes: work
sSSu , BE- done s BY trsvelilng IN the night time
Nj shsn The su,issS crt sSg.
In ha. av Ina tha ftan
rose "a their tent to 25' and 30 above the
The patty added some interesting facts to
evaporation and abation on the surface OF
the erroneous Idea that most OF the
%sans essioPs s'D r.nq S t the sea
q IT: r.a or :Sev Ga Is anal q tho
X tni, T ,S larger part reaches the sea
that How under the Ciacisrs or along thsm M
But Gy far the greater part Of the moisture Is
cap during tho month when the sun is never YER
below the horizon. Lieut.. Gsrde mentions
the following curious fact: .,
tent the level of the snow that formed It's floor
was soon packed by the going and coming of
below the level Of the snow outside. At mid
ntEht. when they struck their tcnt 10 renew
under he tent which had Seen I proteeted by
the canvas from the air and the solar rays.
was several contimetres higher than the sur
rounding surface.
This shows the remarkable rapidity with
which the snow that crowns the ice cap melts
during the summer months. IL also throws
light not only upon the removal OF precipita-
ton by EVAPORATION, bpt also upon another
very Interesting question.
OF course only q part Of this snow water Is
vaporZed and carried away. The rest OF IL sinks
through the snow surface until II rests on tho
solid ice and Is finally added to the great ice
mass OF the island. Gards has thus been able
TO give important testimony as to the removal
BIZ evaporation OF q large part OF the precipi-
tstion. and AZ TO the alimsntation Of the lee
mass. Dot by pressure OF the superincuinbent
.now, which may, indeed. be an important
fa'tor nut ny the melting OF the snow sur
lace and the percolation OF a part OF the water
through to the so!ill ice.
The explorer made another very interesting
discovery. His Journey was made across tina |
the extreme southern part Of the leo cap. lie |
found that this region instead OF being cut up
By wild and lofty mountains. as has been |
Eepresentol 10y many geogra phicAl authorities,
70 completely covered by the smooth and I'M
broken leo field. He was much surprised not
TO ind single NunAtak. which Is the Eskimo |
name for mountain features that rise above
the Ice cap
CAUGHT HIN AFTER FIVE YEARS.