Page:A Voyage of Discovery and Research in the Southern and Antarctic Regions Vol 1.djvu/406

1841

Balleny Islands; for although at a distance it seemed to be a compact solid-looking mass, still on closer inspection we could make out that it also was composed of heavy loose pieces, amongst which the undulations of the ocean could be perceived, as far as we could discern from the mast-head; and the rolling motion of the larger pieces clearly showed that the frost had not yet been sufficiently severe to perfectly bind them together into an unbroken field: we continued to run to the westward, as close along the edge of the pack as the strong pancake ice permitted, until dark, when we hauled off into clearer water for the night. The Aurora Australis was seen for about a quarter of an hour, about 11 p.m. bearing west by compass, shooting up bright coruscations to the altitude of forty-five degrees: in some parts it appeared in a diffused light along the edges of the clouds.

March 18.Being calm at noon, when in lat. 63° 51′ S., long. 151° 47′ E., we tried for soundings, but could not reach the ground with six hundred fathoms. The temperature at that depth, 39.2; at 450 fathoms 38.5; at 300 fathoms 37.5; at 150 fathoms, 35.5; at the surface 30.4; and the specific gravity of the water throughout 1.0272 at the temperature of the freezing point. With a moderate breeze from the north-east, we made good way to the westward during the afternoon and evening; and although it became thick with snow towards midnight, we continued our course through the night under moderate sail, and by keeping a vigilant look-out