BATHYMETRY OF THE BEAUFORT SEA,
Abstract
Oceanographic studies of the Beaufort Sea were made from ice-breakers during the summers of 1951, 1957, and 1958. Numerous echo-sounding lines were made across the shelf and slope, and into the deep Canada Basin. Between the Colville and Mackenzie River deltas, the shelf has a width of about forty nautical miles with a shelf edge as shallow as thirty-five fm. The upper slope is relatively steep; on the lower slope the inclination decreases as depth increases. The floor of the Canada Basin near the continental slope is flat and featureless. East of Barter Island, the slope character changes because of the presence of the Mackenzie River and the Mackenzie Sea valley. Still further east lies Amundsen Trough at the outer end of Amundsen Gulf. This trough is a feature of glacial origin and the westernmost unfilled trough of the Canadian Archipelago. Sea-floor photographs on the slope and in the deep basin show a flat, featureless bottom without evidence of ice-rafted pebbles. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1959
- Accession Number
- AD0613725
Entities
People
- A. J. Carsola
- C. J. Shipek
- George Shumway
- R. L. Fisher
Organizations
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography