Mikhail Somov'senforced drift in the area of the Ross Gyral during the antarctic winter provided a unique opportunity to compare the winter situation with regard to hydrological characteristics with those derived previously from a number of summer voyages. In general the winter situation is identical to that in summer, with the exception of the antarctic surface waters, which display a uniform thermohaline structure in winter but develop a two‐layered structure in summer. The reorganization from the summer to the winter situation lasts almost four months and is not completed until the end of June. In terms of volumes of water involved, the westward transfer in the Antarctic Coastal Current amounts to some 15 Sv.; approximately the same amount of water flows back east in the northern half of the gyral.