Preliminary observations on the temperature gradients and light penetration in the upper 200 feet of water of the Bay of Bengal

Abstract

It is a common experience in the sea in low latitudes that insolation warms the upper layers, and that below a depth of about 100 meters there is usually a rapid fall in temperature. This lower layer of water with rapidly increasing density is known as the thermocline or discontinuity layer. The presence Of otherwise of a thermocline has far reaching effects on the organic produce. tion and the distribution of planktonic organisms.