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 METEOROLOGY TODAY, 2nd Canadian Edition
By Ahrens, Jackson, Jackson

ENRICHED INSTRUCTOR’S MANUAL

Prepared by Mark Moscicki
University of Western Ontario

Chapter 8
Air Pressure and Winds

Contents

General Introduction .......................................................................................................... 8-2

Chapter Outline .................................................................................................................. 8-2
Focus Sections .................................................................................................................... 8-2
Key Concepts ...................................................................................................................... 8-2
Earth Systems..................................................................................................................... 8-4
Student Motivation ............................................................................................................ 8-4
Barriers to Learning ............................................................................................................ 8-4
Engagement Strategies ....................................................................................................... 8-5
Engaging Students from the Start ......................................................................................................... 8-5
Other Engagement Strategies ............................................................................................................... 8-5
Assessment Tools ............................................................................................................... 8-6
Student Projects .................................................................................................................................... 8-6
Answers to Questions for Review.......................................................................................................... 8-6
Answers to Questions for Thought ........................................................................................................ 8-8
Answers to Problems and Exercises ...................................................................................................... 8-9
Reflections on Teaching .................................................................................................... 8-10
Additional Resources ........................................................................................................ 8-10
Active Figures....................................................................................................................................... 8-11
Websites .............................................................................................................................................. 8-11
Video Clips ........................................................................................................................................... 8-11
General Introduction
This chapter provides a broad overview of how and why the wind blows. It begins by reviewing and
extending some of the basic concepts about pressure introduced earlier in the text. For example,
horizontal temperature variations are shown to produce pressure gradients that can cause the air to flow.
Instruments used to measure pressure and the most common pressure units are discussed. Examples of
meteorological charts used to display surface and upper-level pressure patterns are presented.
Newton’s laws of motion are defined, and forces that govern the horizontal movements of air are
identified. The relatively simple case of air motions above the ground is studied first. Horizontal pressure
gradients initially set the air in motion; the Coriolis force then exerts a force to the right or left of the
wind’s direction of motion. Winds at upper levels blow parallel to the contour lines on an isobaric chart.
When the contour lines are straight, the Coriolis and pressure gradient forces are equal and opposite and
the wind blows in a straight line at a constant speed; the resulting wind is referred to as geostrophic.
When the flow is curved, the resulting gradient wind forces include a centripetal component that accounts
for the changes in wind direction.
The frictional force acts to slow wind speeds at the surface with the result that winds blow across
the isobars slightly toward lower pressure. This accounts for the rising and sinking air motions found at
high and low pressure centres. Converging or diverging air motions aloft may result in surface pressure
centres strengthening or weakening.

Chapter Outline
 Atmospheric Pressure ▪ Coriolis Force
▪ Horizontal Pressure Variations ▪ Straight Flow Aloft—Geostrophic Winds
▪ Daily Pressure Variations ▪ Curved Flow Aloft—Gradient Winds
▪ Pressure Measurements ▪ Winds on Upper-Level Charts
▪ Pressure Readings ▪ Friction and Surface Winds
 Surface and Upper-Level Charts  Winds and Vertical Air Motions
 Newton’s Laws and Forces
 Forces and Horizontal Winds
▪ Pressure Gradient Force

Focus Sections
• The Atmosphere Obeys the Gas Law
• Flying from High to Low, Look Out Below
• A Mathematical Look at the Geostrophic Wind
• Watching Clouds to Estimate Wind and Pressure Patterns Aloft
• Winds Aloft in the Southern Hemisphere
• The Hydrostatic and Hypsometric Equations

Key Concepts
• Atmospheric air pressure is the pressure exerted by the mass of air above a region.

• Heating and cooling columns of air can establish horizontal variations in atmospheric pressure
above and at the surface.

• A difference in horizontal air pressure produces a horizontal pressure gradient force.

• The pressure gradient force is always directed from higher pressure toward lower pressure. It is the
pressure gradient force that causes the air to move and the wind to blow.

• Steep pressure gradients, seen as tightly packed isobars on a weather map, indicate strong pressure
gradient forces and high winds. Gentle pressure gradients, seen as widely spaced isobars on weather
maps, indicate weak pressure gradient forces and light winds.

• Above the level of surface friction, the wind blows nearly parallel to isobars. Where the wind blows
in a straight-line path and a balance exists between the pressure gradient force and the Coriolis
force, the wind is termed geostrophic. When the wind blows parallel to curved isobars, the
centripetal acceleration becomes important, and the wind is called a gradient wind.

• Once the wind starts to blow, the Coriolis force causes it to bend to the right in the northern
hemisphere and to the left of its intended path in the southern hemisphere.

• In the northern hemisphere, the wind blows clockwise around regions of high pressure and
counterclockwise around areas of low pressure. In the southern hemisphere, the opposite is true.

• Surface friction slows down the wind, thus slowing the Coriolis force. This results in the wind
blowing outward away from the centre of a high, and inward toward the centre of a low.

• Sinking air occurs above a surface high pressure area; rising air occurs above a surface low pressure
area.
Earth Systems

[[Insert Earth Systems Image from Chapter 8 (pg. 212)]]

Winds are the movement of air. They transport heat from hot regions to cold regions and carry
moisture and pollution. Air has mass, and winds redistribute it to equalize pressure. Winds operate within
the atmospheric system, but by moving air with its properties of heat, mass, moisture, and particles from
one region to another, the impacts of wind can be seen in other Earth systems. Storms, such as middle-
latitude cyclones, tornadoes, and hurricanes, are the mechanisms the atmosphere uses to accomplish this.

Student Motivation
• This chapter builds on concepts learned in previous chapters (e.g., air pressure decreases with
height). Studying winds and the circulation around pressure systems forms a basis for
understanding middle-latitude cyclones, which will be studied in later chapters.

• A common myth states that the Coriolis force causes water to drain in a different direction in the
northern hemisphere compared to the southern hemisphere. Explain why this is not actually the case
(drains are of too small a scale for the Coriolis force to work upon).

• Students begin learning how to analyze and interpret weather maps in this chapter. They have seen
weather maps and their associated features before (on television, online, etc.), and thus many of
them will likely be interested in learning about map analysis in greater detail.

• Students will be interested to know how easy it is to determine pressure level using nothing but
their own bodies (Buys Ballot’s Law).

• Students may be surprised to realize the windiest place on Earth is in the northeastern United States
not far from the Canadian border. See the video under Additional Resources on Mt. Washington.

Barriers to Learning
• Air pressure is often reported in the Canadian media in units of kPa (e.g., on the Weather Network)
but in the text it is often reported in units of hPa. Ensure that students realize the conversions.

• Figure 8.2 and Figure 8.3 illustrate an important concept that may not be grasped at first.
Emphasize why there are different low pressure and high pressure areas at the surface compared to
the air aloft, in both the air columns.

• When first learning how to read surface maps and upper-level charts, it may be overwhelming to
students due to the amount of information presented on these maps. Focus first on the main
differences between a surface map and an upper-level chart (air pressure versus height in metres of
the 500 hPa level), and then discuss clues that tell students whether they are looking at a surface
map or an upper-level chart (e.g., isobars vs. contours, colours of pressure centre labels, etc).

• The Coriolis force can be difficult to comprehend because it is an apparent force. Using the analogy
of playing catch on a spinning merry-go-round is a good way of explaining the concept.

Engagement Strategies

Engaging Students from the Start

1. A 2.5 cm square iron bar cut approximately 130 cm long weighs 32 kg. When placed on end, the
pressure at its base will be 1013 hPa, the same as that of the atmosphere at sea level. The bar can be
passed around class; the students will likely be surprised at how heavy it is, and it can be used to
motivate a discussion on the concept of density and the workings of the mercury barometer. If the
bar was constructed of mercury, it would only need to be 75 cm long. If the bar was made of water,
it would need to be just over 10 m tall. Students should understand why they are not crushed by the
weight of many “iron bars” pressing in on their bodies. One misconception that the bar might create
is that pressure exerts only a downward force. The next demonstration may help eliminate that
misconception.

2. There are a variety of “crushed-can” demonstrations. For example, put a small amount of water into
a clean, metal can; heat the can until the water boils and then tightly seal the spout. The can will be
crushed by the weight of the atmosphere as it cools. The water is not necessary, but it enhances the
effect. Use the ideal gas law to explain the pressure imbalance that was created.

3. Demonstrate the difference between force and pressure by having one student lean on another
student using his/her open palm, then repeating the process using only a fingertip. It is the same
force but different pressures.

Other Engagement Strategies

1. Show students a surface weather map without any isobars drawn on it. The students will appreciate
how difficult it is to assimilate the large quantity of data plotted on the map. It will not be apparent
at all what large-scale weather features are present or what is causing the observed weather
conditions. Then show the students the same map with a completed isobaric analysis. The positions
 of important high and low pressure centres will become clear immediately and their effect on the
weather conditions in their vicinity will be apparent.

2. A discussion involving the Coriolis force may lead to a question about whether the direction water
spins when draining out of a sink or toilet bowl is different in the southern hemisphere than it is in
the northern hemisphere. Demonstrate how water can be made to rotate in either of the two
directions as it drains from a plastic soft drink bottle.

Assessment Tools

Student Projects

1. On a simplified surface weather map, perform an isobaric analysis. Initially, to keep the map as
simple as possible, it might be best to plot only the wind and pressure data. Once the centres of high
and low pressure have been located, transfer the positions to a second map with additional data
(temperature, cloud cover, weather, and dew point). Circle regions with overcast skies or stations
that are reporting precipitation. Are the stormy regions associated with high or low pressure?

2. Plot the daily average atmospheric pressure and observed weather conditions for several weeks. Are
stormy periods well correlated with lower-than-average atmospheric pressure?

3. Determine the direction of upper-level winds by observing mid-level cloud motions. Draw the
orientation of contours that would produce the observed motions and then compare that sketch with
an actual upper-level chart.

4. Obtain examples of surface weather maps from the southern hemisphere either on the Internet or
from the international newspaper collection at the university or local library. Determine the weather
conditions at specific cities based on the locations of high pressure and low pressure centres.

5. With reference to Figure 8.23, explain why, in the northern hemisphere, an airplane’s deviation is
always to the right of its motion, regardless of the direction the plane is travelling.

Answers to Questions for Review

1. In the colder, denser air, the pressure decreases rapidly with height because we climb above large
numbers of molecules as we increase our altitude.

2. It takes a shorter column of cold, denser air to exert the same surface pressure as a taller column of
warm, less dense air. This results in the horizontal movement of air between the columns.

3. 1013.25 hPa; 29.92 in. Hg; 101.325 kPa.

4. An aneroid barometer houses a small, flexible metal box called an aneroid cell. Before the cell is
tightly sealed, air is partially removed, so that small changes in external air pressure cause the cell
to expand or contract.
A mercury barometer consists of a long glass tube open at one end and closed at the other.
Removing air from the tube and covering the open end, the lower portion of the tube is immersed
 into a dish of mercury. The column of mercury in the tube balances the weight of the air above the
dish, and hence the height of the column is a measure of atmospheric pressure.

5. Station pressure is the atmospheric pressure at the elevation of the weather station. Sea-level
pressure is the station pressure the weather station would have if the station were located at sea
level. The two would be the same if the station were located at sea level.

6. Cold air aloft is associated with low pressure. Warm air aloft is associated with high pressure.

7. Newton’s first law of motion states that an object at rest will remain at rest and an object in motion
will remain in motion (and travel at a constant velocity along a straight line) as long as no force is
exerted on the object. So, to start air moving, to speed it up, to slow it down, or even to change its
direction requires the action of an external force.
Newton’s second law states that the force exerted on an object equals its mass times the
acceleration produced. From this relationship we can see that when the mass of an object is
constant, the force acting on the object is directly related to the acceleration that is produced.

8. This is due to temperatures decreasing as we go northward (in the Northern Hemisphere).

9. The pressure gradient force.

10. (a) The Coriolis force deflects it to the right.

(b) The Coriolis force deflects it to the left.

11. (a) The rotation of Earth causes the Coriolis force.

(b) Increasing wind speed increases the Coriolis force.

(c) Increasing latitude increases the Coriolis force.

12. It appears as many isobars drawn closely together.

13. Closely spaced isobars indicate a strong pressure gradient and strong pressure gradients cause
strong winds. Widely spaced isobars indicate a weak pressure gradient.

14. A geostrophic wind is a wind that results from a balance between the Coriolis force and the
pressure gradient force. At the equator there is no Coriolis force, and thus there cannot be a
geostrophic wind.

15. Upper-level winds are approximately geostrophic, with higher pressures (warmer temperatures) to
the south and lower pressures (colder temperatures) to the north.

16. In the northern hemisphere: Highs have a clockwise circulation aloft and lows have a
counterclockwise circulation aloft. At the surface, the direction of the circulation is the same as
aloft but the winds tend to cross the isobars toward lower pressures.
In the southern hemisphere: Highs have a counterclockwise circulation aloft and lows have a
clockwise circulation aloft. At the surface, the direction of the circulation is the same as aloft but
the winds tend to cross the isobars toward lower pressures.

17. The pressure gradient force, Coriolis force, friction, and centripetal force.
18. The roughness of the terrain.

19. High pressure areas are associated with descending air and low pressure areas are associated with
ascending air.

20. This is because of hydrostatic balance. The downward force of gravity balances the upward vertical
pressure gradient force.

21. In the northern hemisphere, if we stand with the wind aloft to our backs, lowest pressure will be to
our left, highest pressure to our right. If we stand with the surface wind to our backs and then turn
approximately 30° clockwise, lowest pressure will be to our left and highest pressure to our right.

22. Surface friction reduces wind speed and changes the direction by causing the wind to cross the
isobars toward lower pressure at an angle of approximately 30 degrees.

23. In the northern hemisphere, air first flows southward and then northward in a trough and
temperatures tend to be cold. In a ridge, air first flows northward and then southward and
temperatures tend to be warm.

Answers to Questions for Thought

1. Assuming no corrections for altitude, the drop in pressure from the base to the top of the hill would
be detected by the barometer. The resulting reading could be lower than isobserved in most storms.

2. Inside the refrigerator, the temperature of the air inside the balloon will decrease. The Gas Law
requires that the air pressure inside the balloon must also decrease (the air density inside the balloon
will also increase slightly). When removed from the refrigerator, the air temperature inside the
balloon will increase. According to the Gas Law, when air temperature increases, air pressure must
also increase, thus inflating the balloon.

3. The air column above City T will have the highest surface pressure (dry air weighs more than moist
air at the same temperature).

4. Station pressure could exceed sea-level pressure if the station was located below sea-level. (An
example would be Death Valley, California.)

5. Higher pressures aloft are to the northwest, lower pressures are to the southeast. Since there is a
significant north–south component to the upper-level air flow, the flow is meridional.

6. High pressures and high temperatures are associated with high heights on an isobaric surface, while
low pressures and low temperatures are associated with low heights. When flying from high
pressure and warm air into a region of low pressure and cold air without changing the altimeter
setting, the altimeter (which measures pressure and indicates altitude) will indicate an altitude
higher than the aircraft is flying. Because the aircraft is flying lower than indicated, it is wise to
look out below for obstructions such as mountains and hills.

7. The altimeter will continue to indicate the same altitude because it measures pressure. The constant
pressure surface will be located at higher than standard altitude in the warmer air because pressure
decreases more slowly in warm air than in cooler air. Once it enters the warm air, the aircraft will
actually be flying at a higher altitude than that indicated by the altimeter.
8. The wind would blow directly from regions of higher pressure toward regions of lower pressure.

9. The frictional effect of the water is less. Consequently, with the same PGF the winds are stronger,
the Coriolis force is stronger, and the winds blow more nearly parallel to the isobars.

10. Assuming that this flow is in the northern hemisphere, the flow would be cyclonic (low-pressure
centre). The relative magnitude of the centripetal force would be the difference between the PGF
and Coriolis force. The centripetal force would be directed inward.

12. The surface wind would probably be from either the south or the southeast. If the upper-level low is
an elongated trough of low pressure, then the winds overhead will probably be more southwesterly,
and the middle-level clouds will be moving from southwest to northeast. The wind is changing in a
clockwise direction with increasing height. The winds aloft will be stronger than the surface winds.

13. Illustrate the wind flow patterns around a high pressure area (clockwise) and move the high from
west to east, north of your location.

14. On a frictionless surface, the winds around a surface low would blow parallel to curved isobars with
the PGF directed inward and the Coriolis force directed outward. However, friction slows the wind,
which reduces the Coriolis force. Because of the stronger PGF, the winds blow inward across the
isobars toward lower pressure, giving the appearance that the winds are being deflected to the left.
The inwardly directed force is stronger.

15. On the equator, the Coriolis force is zero. Because there is no deflecting force, the wind can blow
either clockwise or counterclockwise around an area of low pressure, depending on how the flow
initially responds to the PGF. In either case, the PGF supplies the inwardly directed force needed
for circular motion.

16. Inside the closed car the air density remains constant, however, the temperature increases. In this
case, the gas law (P = T * constant) dictates that an increase in temperature will produce an increase
in pressure. If the car is air tight, the pressure inside could become great enough to crack or “blow
out” a window.

17. The wind speed will increase due to reduced friction over the lake. The wind direction will veer
(turn in a clockwise direction) as a result of the increased Coriolis force.

18. The magnitude of the Coriolis force is very small close to the equator. Also, the slope of the tub
basin is a much more important factor in determining the direction of rotation.

Answers to Problems and Exercises

1. Assuming standard atmospheric conditions, the sea-level pressure would be 1024 hPa. On a hot
afternoon, the actual sea-level pressure would be somewhat less because atmospheric pressure
decreases less rapidly with height in warm air; thus the vertical pressure change would be slightly
less than 10 hPa per 100 m.

2. (a) The lowest possible pressure is 997 hPa and the highest is 999 hPa.

(c) At Point A it would likely be southeasterly and at Point B it would likely be westerly.
 (d) Stronger winds would be at Point B due to the greater PGF there.

(e) 8 hPa/1000 km between Points 1 and 2 and 12 hPa/1000 km between Points 3 and 4.

(f) The geostrophic wind at Point A is 10.4 m/s (about 20 knots) and the geostrophic wind at Point
B is 14.3 m/sec (about 28 knots).

(g) Due to friction, the winds at Points A and B would be less than the geostrophic wind computed
in part (f).

3. (a) The pressure at the top of the column is about 500 hPa.
P = 49940.8 Pa = 499.4 hPa. 1000 hPa - 499.4 hPa = 500.6 hPa.

(b) The pressure would be less than that computed in part (a) because the air density would increase
as the column cooled and air pressure decreases more rapidly with height in cold, high-density air.

(c) If we assume the column is still 5600 m thick and the atmospheric pressure at the bottom of the
column is 1000 hPa, then the pressure at the top would be about 468 hPa.
∆P = 53233.6 Pa = 532.3 hPa. 1000 hPa – 532.3 hPa = 467.7 hPa.

4. P = 502.25 hPa; observed at about 5.5 km (from Figure 1.10).

5. (a) Density = 1.19 kg/m3

(b) Within the container, an increase in pressure must be caused by an increase in temperature. The
new temperature in the container would be 586 K.

6. The air pressure is 1009 hPa.

7. The upper-level centre of low pressure would be to the east.

Reflections on Teaching
• What topics or concepts engaged the students most?

• What topics or concepts confused the students? Why did this occur?

• Do the assessment results suggest that students understand major concepts and how the topics relate
to one another? Or do the results suggest that students are studying by just memorizing key terms?

• What do I need to change to improve student success?

• How can I receive ongoing feedback from students about my teaching?

Additional Resources
Active Figures

Active Figure 8.2: Atmospheric Pressure in Warm and Cold Air

Active Figure 8.3: Horizontal Pressure Variations

Active Figure 1 (p. 216): The Ideal Gas Law

Active Figure 8.21: Coriolis Force

Active Figure 8.24: Geostrophic Wind

The figures are found at http://www.nelson.com/student

Websites

Coriolis Force as a Function of Latitude and Wind Speed Applet

http://profhorn.aos.wisc.edu/wxwise/kinematics/coriolis.html

Current Surface Maps and Upper-Level Charts

http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca/analysis/index_e.html

Global Mean Sea Level Pressure and Surface Winds Animation

http://geography.uoregon.edu/envchange/clim_animations/flash/mslp.html

Global Current Wind Map

http://earth.nullschool.net/

Rotation and the Coriolis Force Applet

http://severewx.atmos.uiuc.edu/06/online.6.1.html

Upper-Level Charts: Make Your Own

http://vortex.plymouth.edu/myo/upa/

Wind as a Balance of Forces Applet

http://profhorn.aos.wisc.edu/wxwise/kinematics/testwind.html

Video Clips

Mt. Washington: The Windiest Place on Earth

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIaT8YfT2og&playnext=1&list=PLBFCA0BCC12D13B05

Powerful Wind
http://www.theweathernetwork.com/videos/gallery/all/video_gallery/science-behind-the-weather-
powerful-wind/sharevideo/3902129225001

Wind and Airplanes

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/videos/gallery/all/video_gallery/science-behind-the-weather-wind-
and-airplanes/sharevideo/3902089931001
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
the happy adventurers had hauled their boats, two entire planks of
the Red Eric were devoted to the kindling of a large cooking-fire, and
they enjoyed a bountiful and savage feast.
Such is an experience of Arctic life; of the hardships endured by
the heroic men who go forth to do the work of Science and
Civilization.
Returning to the seals, we may remark that, according to a
scientific authority, the angle of weedy rock on which a phoca is
accustomed to rest with his family comes to be regarded as his
property, and no other individuals of his species are entitled to lay
claim to it. Although in the water these animals congregate together
in numerous herds, and protect and courageously defend one
another, yet, when they have once emerged from their favourite
element, they regard themselves on their own space of rock as in a
sacred domicile, where no comrade has a right to intrude on their
domestic tranquillity. If any stranger approach this family centre, the
chief—or shall we call him the father?—prepares to repel by force
what he considers an unwarrantable encroachment; and a terrible
combat invariably ensues, which terminates only with the death of
the lord of the rock, or the compulsory retreat of the intruder.
But a family never seizes upon a larger tract than it absolutely
requires, and lives peaceably with neighbouring families, from which
it is seldom separated by a greater interval than forty or fifty paces. If
compelled by necessity, they will even live on amicable terms at
much closer quarters. Three or four families will share a rock, a
cavern, or an ice-floe; but each occupies the place allotted to it at the
original apportionment, and shuts himself within it, so to speak, nor
ever meddles with individuals of another family.
 THE OTARY.
Our modern naturalists divide the Phocidæ into two distinct
orders: the Phocæ properly so called, which have no external ears,
but only an auditory orifice on the surface of the head; and the
Otariæ, which are provided with external organs.
The remarks we have been making apply more particularly to the
common seal (Phoca vitulina), or small Spitzbergen seal, which
measures from four to five feet in length. The Greenland or harp seal
(Phoca Grœnlandica), to which we have already alluded, is larger
and fatter, and is distinguished by the changes of colour it undergoes
before it reaches maturity. We have also spoken of the bearded seal
(Phoca barbata), which sometimes attains a length of ten feet, and is
known, not only by its size, but its thick and strong moustaches. The
hooded seal (Stemmatopus cristatus) is distinguished by the globular
and expansible sac situated on the summit of the head of the males.
This species grows to the length of seven or eight feet, and inhabits
the waters of Newfoundland and Greenland.
The value of the seal to the Eskimo tribes will best be understood
from a description of the uses to which various parts of the animal
are applied in an Eskimo hut.
 THE HOODED SEAL.
We will suppose this hut to measure about five or five and a half
feet in height, and about ten feet in diameter. The walls are made of
stones, moss, and the bones of seals, narwhals, whales, and other
ocean-creatures. They are not arched, but recede inward gradually
from the foundation, and are capped by long oblong slabs of slate-
stone extending from side to side. We enter: the flooring consists of
thin flat stones. At the back part of the hut the floor rises about a
foot, and this breck, as the elevation is called, serves both as couch
and seat, being covered with a thick layer of dried moss and grass,
under seal-skins, dog-skins, and bear-skins. Similar elevations are
placed at the corners in front; under one of which will lie, perhaps, a
litter of pups, with their mother, and under the other a portion of
seal’s meat. In the square front of the hut, above the passage-way, a
window is inserted; the light being admitted through a square sheet
of strips of dried intestines, sewed together. The entrance is in the
floor, close to the front wall, and is covered with a piece of seal-skin.
Seal-skins are hung about the walls to dry. At the edge of the breck,
on either side, sits a woman, each busily engaged in attending to a
smoky lamp, fed with seal’s oil. These lamps are made of soapstone,
and in shape resemble a clam-shell, being about eight inches in
diameter. The cavity is filled with oil obtained from seal’s blubber;
and on the straight edge the flame burns quite vividly, the wick which
furnishes it being made of moss. The business of the women is
apparently to prevent the lamps from smoking, and to keep them
supplied with blubber, large pieces of which are placed in the cavity,
the heat drawing out the oil. About three inches above this flame
hangs, suspended from the ceiling, an oblong square pot made of
the same material as the lamp, in which a joint of seal is simmering
slowly. Above this hangs a rack, made of bare rib-bones, bound
together crosswise, on which stockings and mittens, and various
garments made of seal-skin, are laid to dry. No other fire can be
seen than that which the lamps supply, nor is any other needed. So
many persons are crowded into the confined interior that it is
insufferably hot, while the whole place reeks with the smell of seal-
flesh, seal-oil, and seal-skin!

It is natural enough that we should here introduce an account of

the Eskimo mode of catching seals. The great season of the seal-
hunt is the spring, when the inoffensive phocæ gambol and sport in
the open water-ways near the coasts, or clamber on the ice-floes to
enjoy the rays of the tardy sun. They are of a wary and timid
disposition, and we may suppose that their traditions have taught
them to be on their guard against man; but as all their habits and
ways are well known to the Eskimo, they do not succeed in eluding
his dexterous perseverance. Sometimes the hunter attires himself in
a seal-skin, and so exactly imitates their appearance and
movements that he approaches within spear-range of them before
the disguise is detected; or else he creeps into their haunts behind a
white screen, which is propelled in front of him by means of a sledge.
As the season verges upon midsummer less precaution becomes
necessary; the eyes of the seals being so congested by the fierce
radiance of the sun that they are often nearly blind. In winter they are
assailed while labouring at their breathing-holes, or when they rise
for the purpose of respiration.
If an Eskimo satisfies himself that a seal is working away beneath
the ice, he takes up his station at the suspected point, and seldom
quits it, however severe the weather, until he has captured the
animal. To protect himself from the freezing blast, he throws up a
snow-wall four feet in height, and seating himself in its shade, he
rests his spears, lines, and other appliances on a number of little
forked sticks inserted into the snow, in order that he may move them,
when wanted, without making the slightest noise. He carries his
caution to such an excess, that he even ties his own knees together
with a thong to prevent his garments from rustling! about
 AN ESKIMO SEAL-HUNTER.
To discover whether the seal is still gnawing at the ice, our patient
watcher makes use of his keep-kuttuk; a slender rod of bone, no
thicker than ordinary bell-wire, cleverly rounded, with a knob at one
end and a sharp point at the other.
This implement he thrusts into the ice, and the knob, which
remains above the surface, informs him by its motion whether the
animal is still engaged in making his hole; if it does not move, the
attempt is given up in that place, and the hunter betakes himself
elsewhere. When he supposes the hole to be nearly completed, he
stealthily raises his spear, and as soon as he can hear the blowing of
the seal, and knows therefore that the ice-crust is very thin, he drives
it into the unsuspecting animal with all his might; and then hacks
away with his sharp-edged knife, or panna, the intervening ice, so as
to repeat his blows, and secure his victim. The neituk, or Phoca
hispida, being the smallest seal, is held while struggling, either by
the hand, or by a line one end of which is twisted round a spear
driven into the ice. In the case of the bearded seal, or oguka, the line
is coiled round the hunter’s leg or arm; for a walrus, round his body,
the feet being at the same time firmly planted against a hummock of
ice, so as to increase the capability of resistance. A boy of fifteen
can kill a neituk, but the larger animals can be mastered only by a
robust and experienced adult.
We come now to speak of the Whale, which, in size, is the
sovereign of the Arctic seas, and the grandest type of marine life.
Whales (Cetacea) are, as most persons now-a-days know, an
order of aquatic mammals, distinguished by their fin-like anterior
extremities, and by the peculiarity that the place of the posterior
extremities is supplied by a large horizontal caudal fin, or tail; while
the cervical bones are so compressed that the animal, externally at
least, seems to have no neck.
The general form of the whale, notwithstanding its position
among the Mammalia, is similar to that of the fishes, and the
horizontal elongation of the body, the smooth and rounded surface,
the gradual attenuation of the extremities of the trunk, and the
magnitude of the fins and tail, are specially adapted to easy and swift
motion in the water. The arrangement of the bones composing the
anterior limb is very curious. The whole of the fin consists of exactly
the same parts as those which we find in the human hand and arm;
but they are so concealed beneath the thick cutaneous or
integumentary envelope, that not a trace of bone is visible. In this
respect an intermediate organization is shown by the fore limbs of
the seal.
The posterior extremity, in all the Cetacea, is either absolutely
deficient, or else rudimentary. If rudimentary, its sole vestige consists
of certain small bones, the imperfect representation of a pelvis,
suspended, as it were, in the flesh, and unconnected with the spinal
column. Here we may observe a remarkable difference between the
whale and the seal: in the latter, as we have seen, there is a short
tail, and the posterior extremities perform the office of a true caudal
fin; in the former this important organ of progression consists, to use
Mr. Bell’s words, of “an extremely broad and powerful horizontal disc,
varying in figure in the different genera, but in all constituting the
principal instrument of locomotion.” In fishes the tail is set vertically,
but in whales horizontally; and it has been well said that the
admirable adaptation of such a peculiarity in its position to the
requirements of the animal forms a fresh and beautiful illustration of
the infinite resource and foresight of the Creative Wisdom.
Thus: the fishes, respiring only the air contained in the dense
liquid medium in which they live, require no access to the
atmosphere; and, therefore, their progression is chiefly confined to
the same region. But the whales, breathing atmospheric air, must
necessarily come to the surface for each respiration; and hence they
need a powerful instrument or lever, the position of which shall apply
its impulse in a vertical direction, so as to impel their colossal bulk
from the lowest depths of ocean to the surface every time the lungs
require to receive a fresh supply of atmospheric air. The greatest
rapidity of motion is effected by alternate strokes of the tail against
the water, upwards and downwards; but the usual progression is
accomplished by an oblique lateral and downward impulse, first on
one side and then on the other, just as a boat is propelled by a man
with a single oar in the art of “sculling.” The extent of the tail in some
of the larger species is really immense; the superficies being no less
than about a hundred square feet, and its breadth considerably
exceeding twenty feet.
The common, right, or Greenland whale (Balæna mysticetus) has
been, for centuries, the object of man’s systematic pursuit, on
account of its valuable oil and scarcely less valuable baleen.
 THE GREENLAND WHALE.
This whale seldom exceeds fifty to sixty feet in length, or thirty to
forty in girth, and, therefore, is by no means the head of its family. As
in other species, the body is thick and bulky forwards, largest about
the middle, and tapers suddenly towards the tail. The head is
colossal; broad, flat, and rounded beneath, and narrow above; it
forms about a third of the animal’s entire length, and is about ten or
twelve feet broad. Its lips—such lips!—are five or six feet thick. They
do not cover any teeth, but they protect a pair of very formidable
jaws. The cavernous interior of the mouth is filled up with two series
of whalebone laminæ, about three hundred in each, which require
particular description. The whalebone, or baleen, as it is called,
consists of numerous parallel plates, layers, or laminæ, each of
which is formed of a central coarse fibrous layer lying between two
that are compact and externally polished. But this outer part does not
completely cover the inner; a kind of edge is exposed, and this edge
terminates in a loose fringed or fibrous extremity. Moreover, at the
base of each plate of baleen lies a conical cavity, covering a pulp
which corresponds with it; and this pulp is sunk within the substance
of the gum or buccal membrane stretched over the palate and upper
jaw.
The compact outer layers of the baleen plate are continuous with
a white horny layer of the gum, which passes on to the surface of
each plate; and the pulp may be regarded, therefore, as the
secreting organ of the internal coarse structure only. The filaments of
the fringe are exceedingly numerous, and so fill up the mouth-cavity
as to form a very efficient and ingenious sieve or strainer; and as the
esophagus, or “swallow,” of the whale is so confined as to be unable
to admit of the passage even of the smaller fish, and the food of the
whale consequently is limited to minute organisms, such as the
medusæ, this skilfully devised construction is absolutely requisite in
order to retain the whole of those which are taken into the mouth.
The mode in which the whale feeds may be thus described:—
The broad waters of the Arctic seas teem with innumerable
shoals of molluscous, radiate, and crustaceous animals, and these
are frequently so numerous as absolutely to colour the wave-
surface.
When a whale, therefore, desires food, it opens its colossal
mouth, and a host of these organisms is, as it were, swept up by the
great expanse of the lower jaw: as the mouth closes, the water is
ejected, and the life it contained is imprisoned by the appliance we
have attempted to describe.
If we consider the number of whales found in the Northern seas,
and the mighty bulk of each individual, our imagination entirely fails
to appreciate the countless myriads of minute organisms which must
be sacrificed to their due nourishment.
One of the principal products of the Greenland whale is its
baleen, or whalebone, with the domestic uses of which our readers
will be familiar; but the large quantities of oil which it yields are still
more valuable. A whale sixty feet in length will supply fully twenty
tons of pure oil.
Besides the common whale, our hunters find in the seas of the
North the razor-backed whale, or northern rorqual (Balænoptera
physalis), characterized by the prominent ridge which extends along
its mighty back. This monster of the deep attains a length, it is said,
of one hundred feet, and measures from thirty to thirty-five feet in
circumference. But its yield of oil and baleen is less than that of the
right or Greenland whale, and as its capture is a task of difficulty and
danger, the whalers seldom attack it. In its movements it is more
rapid and restless, and when harpooned it frequently plunges
downward with such force and velocity as to break the line. In
several respects it differs from the Greenland species; and
particularly in the nature of its food, for it feeds upon fishes of
considerable size.
Some of our naturalists affirm that several species of rorquals
exist in the Arctic seas; and the pike whale, so called from the
resemblance of its mouth to that of a pike, is frequently described as
an independent species. Others, however, are of opinion that the
pike is simply the young of the monster we have been describing.
The rorqual is very voracious, and preys extensively upon fishes; as
many as six hundred cod, to say nothing of smaller “fry,” having been
found in the stomach of a single individual.
While the Greenland whale is being rapidly driven back into the
icy wildernesses beyond Behring Strait, on the west, and the creeks
and gulfs beyond Baffin Bay, on the east, the rorquals, including the
Balænoptera rostratus (or beaked whale), Balænoptera musculus,
and Balænoptera boöps, still frequent the open waters,—their pursuit
being, as we have shown, more difficult and less profitable. They are
generally found in attendance on the herring-shoals, of which they
are the assiduous and destructive enemies. Off Greenland,
Spitzbergen, and Novaia Zemlaia they are found in considerable
numbers.
Our whalers go forth every year in well-provided ships, and
supplied with the best and most formidable weapons which scientific
ingenuity can devise. Still they find the enterprise one of peril and
hardship, and it is universally recognized as requiring in those who
embark in it no ordinary powers of endurance, as well as courage,
patience, and perseverance. Yet the Asiatic and American tribes do
not fear to confront the ocean-leviathan with the simplest of arms.
The Aleüt embarks in his little skiff, or baidar, and catching sight of
his prey, stealthily approaches it from behind until he nearly reaches
the monster’s head. Then he suddenly and dexterously drives his
short spear into the huge flank, just under the fore fin, and retreats
as swiftly as his well-plied oars can carry him. If the spear has sunk
into the flesh, the whale is doomed; within the next two or three days
it will perish, and the currents and the waves will hurl the vast bulk
on the nearest shore, to be claimed by its gallant conqueror. And as
each spear bears its owner’s peculiar mark, the claim is never
disputed.
Occasionally the baidar does not escape in time, and the
exasperated leviathan, furiously lashing the waters with its tail, hurls
the frail boat high up into the air, as if it were a reed, or sinks it with
one crushing blow. No wonder that those of their race who undertake
so hazardous a calling are held in high repute among the Aleüts. To
sally forth alone, and encounter the whale in the icy waters of the
Polar Sea, is a task demanding the utmost intrepidity and the utmost
tranquillity of nerve.
Many of the whales thus daringly harpooned are lost. It is on
record that, in the summer of 1831, one hundred and eighteen
whales were struck near Kadjack, and of these only forty-three were
found. The others either drifted to far-off shores and lonely unknown
isles, or became the prey of sharks and ocean-birds. Wrangell states
that of late years the Russians have introduced the use of the
harpoon, and engaged some English harpooneers to teach the
Aleüts the secret of their craft; and, therefore, the older and more
hazardous method, which the Aleüts had learned from their
forefathers, will soon be a thing of the past.

The Eskimos devote the month of August to the whale-fishery,

and for this purpose they assemble in companies, and plant a colony
of huts on some bold headland of the Polar coast, where the water is
of depth sufficient to float their destined victim.
 As soon as a whale’s colossal bulk is seen outstretched on the
water, a dozen kayaks or more cautiously paddle up in the rear, until
one of them, shooting ahead, comes near enough on one side for
the men to drive the spear into its flesh with all the force of both
arms. To the spear are attached an inflated seal-skin and a long coil
of thong. The whale dives immediately it is stricken. After awhile it
reappears, and the signal being given by the floating seal-skin buoy,
all the canoes again paddle towards their prey. Again the opportunity
is seized for launching the fatal spears; and this process is repeated
until the exhausted whale rises more and more frequently to the
surface, is finally killed, and towed ashore.
Captain M’Clure fell in with an Eskimo tribe off Cape Bathurst
which hunted the whale in this primitive fashion, but the females, as
well as the men, engaged in the pursuit. An omaiak, or woman’s
boat, he says, is “manned by ladies,” having as harpooneer a
chosen man of the tribe; and a shoal of small fry, in the form of
kayaks, or single-men canoes, are in attendance. The harpooneer
singles out “a fish,” drives into its flesh his weapon, to which an
inflated seal-skin is attached by means of a walrus-hide thong. The
wounded fish is then incessantly harassed by the men in the
kayacks with weapons of a similar description; and a number of
these, driven into the unfortunate whale, baffle its efforts to escape,
and wear out its strength, until, in the course of a day, it dies from
exhaustion and loss of blood.
Sherard Osborn tells us that the harpooneer, when successful,
becomes a very great personage indeed, and is invariably decorated
with the Eskimo order of the Blue Ribbon; that is, a blue line is drawn
across his face over the bridge of his nose. This is the highest
honour known to the heroes of Cape Bathurst; but it carries along
with it the privilege of the decorated individual being allowed to take
unto himself a second wife!

In the waters of Novaia Zemlaia, Greenland, and Spitzbergen is

found the narwhal, or sea unicorn (Monodon monoceros), which was
at one time the theme of so many extravagant legends. It belongs to
the Cetacea, but differs from the whale in having no teeth, properly
so called, and in being armed with a formidable horn, projecting
straight forward from the upper jaw, in a direct line with the body.
This horn, or tusk, the use of which has not been satisfactorily
ascertained, is harder and whiter than ivory, spirally striated from
base to point, tapers throughout, and measures from six to ten feet
in length. Mr. Bell remarks that it would be a strange anomaly if the
apparent singleness of this weapon were real. In truth, both teeth are
invariably found in the jaw, not only of the male, but of the female
also; but in ordinary (though not in all) cases one only, and this in the
male, is fully developed, the other remaining in a rudimentary
condition—even as both do in the female.

NARWHALS, MALE AND FEMALE.

The narwhal, from mouth to tail, is about twenty feet long, though
individuals measuring thirty feet are sometimes met with. Its head is
short, and the upper part convex; its mouth small; its spiracle, or
respiratory vent, duplicate within; its tongue long; the pectoral fins
small. The back, which is convex and rather wide, has no fins, and
sharpens gradually towards the tail, which, as in other Cetacea, is
horizontal. The food of the narwhal, whose habits are remarkably
pacific, consists of medusæ, the smaller kinds of flat fish, and other
marine animals.

A striking spectacle which frequently greets the eye of the

voyager in the Arctic seas is that of a shoal of dolphins gambolling
and leaping, as if in the very heyday of enjoyment. The beluga,
sometimes called the white whale (Delphinus leucos), attracts
attention by the dazzling whiteness of its body and the swiftness of
its movements. It frequents the estuaries of the Obi and the Irtish,
the Mackenzie and the Coppermine, which it sometimes ascends to
a considerable distance in pursuit of the salmon. Its length varies
from twelve to twenty feet; it has no dorsal fin; and its head is round,
with a broad truncated snout.

A SHOAL OF DOLPHINS.
 The black dolphin (Globicephalus globiceps) is also an inhabitant
of the Polar seas, both beyond Behring Strait, and between
Greenland and Spitzbergen. It is, however, frequently met with in
waters further south. Its length averages about twenty-four feet, and
its circumference ten feet. Its smooth oily skin is bluish-black on the
upper, and an obscure white on the lower, parts of the body. Twenty-
two or twenty-four strong interlocking teeth in each jaw form its
formidable apparatus of offence and defence; its dorsal fin is about
fifteen inches high; its tail five feet broad; the pectoral fins are long
and narrow, and well adapted to assist their owner in its rapid
movements. It consorts with its kind in herds of several hundreds,
under the guidance of some old and wary males, whom the rest
follow as docilely as a flock of sheep their bell-wether; hence the
Shetlanders term it the “ca’ing whale.” Large shoals are frequently
stranded on the shores of Norway, Iceland, and the Orkney, Faroe,
and Shetland Isles, furnishing the inhabitants with a welcome booty.

To the same latitudes belong the ferocious orc or grampus

(Delphinus orca), the tiger of the seas, which not only attacks the
porpoise and dolphin, but even the colossal whale. Its broad deep
body is black above and white beneath; the sides are marbled with
black and white. There are thirty teeth in each jaw, those in front
being blunt, round, and slender, while those behind are sharp and
thick; and between each is a space fitted to receive those of the
opposite jaw when the mouth is closed. The back fin of the grampus
is of great size; sometimes measuring as much as six feet in length,
from the base to the tip. The grampus generally voyages in small
squadrons of four or five individuals, following each other in single
file, and alternately rising and sinking in such a manner as to
resemble the undulatory motions of a huge kraken or sea-serpent.
 Among the inhabitants of the Polar Ocean must certainly be
included the Polar bear (Thalassarctos maritimus), since it swims
and dives with great dexterity, and, moreover, is often found on the
drifting ice-floes at a distance of eighty to one hundred miles from
land. It is a creature of great strength, great fierceness, and great
courage, though we may not accept the exaggerated accounts of it
which enliven the narratives of the earlier voyagers.

POLAR BEARS.
A noble creature is the Polar bear, says Sherard Osborn, whether
we speak of him by the learned titles of “Ursus maritimus,”
“Thalassarctos maritimus,” or the sailors’ more expressive
nomenclature of “Jack Rough!” With all her many wonders,
continues this lively writer, never did Nature create a creature more
admirably adapted to the life it has to lead. Half flesh, half fish, the
seaman wandering in the inhospitable regions of the North cannot
but be struck with the appearance of latent energy and power its
every action attests, as it rolls in a lithe and swaggering way over the
rough surface of the frozen sea; or, during the brief Arctic summer,
haunts the broken and treacherous “pack” in search of its prey.
 When not too loaded with fat—and it seems to fatten readily—the
pace of the bear is leisurely and easy, yet at its slowest it is equal to
that of a good pedestrian; and when alarmed or irritated, its speed is
surprising, though not graceful. On level ice, it flings itself ahead, as
it were, by a violent jerking motion of the powerful fore paws, in what
has been described as an “ungainly gallop;” but it always makes,
when it can, for rough ice, where its strength and agility are best
displayed, and where neither man nor dog can overtake it. In the
Queen’s Channel, during Captain M’Clure’s expedition, more than
one bear was seen making its way over broken-up ice, rugged and
precipitous as the mind can picture, with a truly wonderful facility;
their powerful fore paws and hind legs enabling them to spring from
piece to piece, scaling one fragment and sliding down another with
the activity of a huge quadrumane rather than that of a quadruped.
Evidently it is conscious of its superiority in such rough and perilous
ground, and is generally found at the edge of the belts of hummocks
or broken ice which intersect most ice-fields, or else amongst the
frozen pack-ice of channels such as Barrow’s and the Queen’s.
There is, however, another reason why bears keep among
hummocks and pack-ice—namely, that near such spots water
usually first makes its appearance in the summer. Seals,
consequently, are most numerous there; while the inequalities of the
floe afford shelter to the bears in approaching their prey. During
summer the colour of the Polar bear is of a dull yellowish hue,
closely resembling that of decaying snow or ice. The fur is then thin,
and the hair on the soles of their feet almost wholly rubbed off, as
with the other animals of Arctic climes; but in the autumn, when the
body has recovered from the privations of the previous winter, and a
thick coating of blubber overlays his carcass to meet the exigencies
of another season of scanty fare, the feet, as the season advances,
are beautifully incased and feathered with hair, and the animal’s
colour usually turns to a very pale straw, which, from particular points
of view, as the light strikes it, looks white, or nearly so. The nose and
lips are of a jetty black; the eyes vary in colour. Brown is common,
but some have been seen with eyes of a pale gray. Their sense of
smell is peculiarly acute, facilitated no doubt by the peculiar manner
in which the pure keen air of the North carries scent to very
considerable distances.
Sherard Osborn states that bears have been seen to follow up a
scent, exactly as dogs would do; and the floes about Lowther Island,
in 1851, looked as if the bears had quartered there in search of
seals, after the fashion of a pointer in the green fields of England.
The snorting noise which they make as they approach near indicates
how much more confidence they place in their scent than in their
vision; though both, when the hunter is concerned, are apt to
deceive them.
The Polar bear attains to very formidable proportions; but when
seamen speak of monsters fifteen feet in length, their auditors may
be excused for withholding their belief. Ten feet would seem to be a
maximum; and the bear need be large, strong, and muscular to
master the large Arctic seal, especially the saddle-back and bladder-
nose species. For though it swims well and dives well, it neither
swims nor dives as well as the seal, and would therefore have but
little chance of obtaining a sufficient livelihood if it could not attack
and capture its victim on the ice-floes.
The seal, on the other hand, fully aware of its danger, and of the
only means of escaping from it, always keeps close to the water,
whether it be the hole it has gnawed and broken through the ice, or
the open sea at the floe edge.
And when it lies basking on the floating ice, and apparently
apathetic and lethargic, nothing can exceed its vigilance. With its
magnificent eyes it is able to sweep a wide range of the horizon,
however slightly it turns its head; its keenness of hearing adds to its
security. There is something peculiarly striking in its continuous
watchfulness. Now it raises its head and looks around; now it is
intent on the slightest sound that travels over the crisp surface of the
ice; now it gazes and listens down its hole, a needful precaution
against so subtle a hunter as old Bruin! It would seem impossible to
surprise an animal so vigilant and so wary; and, indeed, in
circumventing its prey the bear exhibits an astuteness and a skill