HC Deb 12 April 1961 vol 638 c235
32. Mr. Hector Hughes

asked the Civil Lord of the Admiralty if he will state the scientific discoveries which have resulted from the recent experimental missions beneath the Arctic ice cap by Royal Navy submarines and aeroplanes, indicating the nature and extent of under-water surveys made then or since as a result of those surveys.

Mr. C. Ian Orr-Ewing

Her Majesty's submarines "Finwhale" and "Amphion" and aircraft of R.A.F. Coastal Command recently took part in trials designed to gain experience of operating under the ice. The object was to test items of equipment associated with such operations and to obtain operational experience. It would not be in the national interest to give further details.

Mr. Hughes

Can the hon. Gentleman say why the water under the North Pole does not freeze while the water on the surface of the North Pole does freeze? What practical result follows from the scientific experiments referred to in the Question? Is the water under the ice kept warm by the heat generated from the centre of the earth?

Mr. Orr-Ewing

In view of the hon. and learned Gentleman's interest in bathing, I can understand his anxiety about where the ice forms. If he studies the physical tables, he will find that the water is most dense at 4 degrees centigrade and rises to the surface when it reaches 0 degrees centigrade and starts to freeze.