EIGHT MILES LONG

Evening Star, Issue 20688, 10 January 1931, Page 5

EIGHT MILES LONG

SUBMARINE VALLEY Discovery of a submarine valley below the general level of the continental shelf off the New England coast, is announced by the Boston office of tho United States Coast and Geodetic Survey, states the ‘Christian Science Monitor.’

The discovery is the result of a hydrographic survey of Georges Bank, which is being made on behalf of the shipping industries of tho North Atlantic seaboard. The two vessels engaged in tho work—the Lydonia and the Oceanographer—have just returned to the Charlestown Navy Yard, having completed their work for the season.

Georges Bank is off the New England coast, located partly ,on one of tho world’s most important fishing banks and directly on the west-bound transatlantic steamship lane between Europe and the United States. The survey covers an area extending seaward "for a distance of some 200 miles, and comprising about 15,000 square miles. It is a region of strong and irregular currents, frequent storms, and is covered by fog more than half the time.

The mouth of this newly-discovered submarine valley, which is two miles in width, lies in latitude 41.20 deg. north and longitude GG.lOdeg. west, and extends in a north-north-westerly direction for a distance of about eight miles. The floor of the valley lies about GOO fathoms below the general level of the continental shelf. Forthcoming charts of this feature will provide mariners with a valuable submarine landmark, as it is ideally oriented with respect to the general trend of the continental shelf for fixing a ship’s position. Navigators to-day arc equipped with modern apparatus and accurate charts, so they are no longer required to slow down speed in such areas. The lead and sounding lines of old have mostly been replaced by mechanical sounding devices, .whereby a continuous record of the depths over which a vessel is passing is recorded in the pilot house.

With modern charts showing the configuration of the bottom, it is easy to determine the position of the ship, even in weather that would render other methods useless.