Wikipedy.com                                                                                           Online encyclopedia

   Home     Add article      About

Please, support our  project in social networks:

Ocean currents - northern hemisphere and southern

Ocean currents are great streams of water moving slowly through the world's oceans. They flow at all levels. Surface currents are caused mainly by winds; deeper currents depend on changes in temperature and other properties of the water. (see Oceans, facts about oceans for kids)

World map ocean currents - northern hemisphere and southern

The main surface currents follow the paths of the prevailing winds. The North and South Equatorial Currents flow westward parallel with the Equator. Nearer the Poles this water returns eastward as the West Wind Drift in the Southern Hemisphere and the North Atlantic and North Pacific Drifts in the Northern Hemisphere. All together there are five great circular ocean movements, clockwise in the north, anticlockwise in the south. There are two in the Pacific Ocean, two in the Atlantic Ocean, and one in the Indian Ocean (which lies mainly south of the Equator).

Old Russian map of ocean currents - northern hemisphere and southern

Currents have no definite boundaries, and a slow-moving wide current is often called a drift. Ocean currents can greatly affect the climate of the coasts near which they flow. The warm waters of the North Atlantic Drift, washing the coast of northwest Europe, warm the winds passing over them and give Norway an ice-free port well within the Arctic Circle. Yet, on the other side of the Atlantic, the cold Labrador Current, sweeping down from the Arctic, gives Labrador a mean January temperature as much as 45 F below that of Scotland on the same latitude, and freezes the coastline down to the equivalent of southern France.

Deep currents consisting of cold and denser water flow beneath the surface currents. From the North Atlantic a cold deep current flows south to the Antarctic, where it brings plant nutrients to the surface and supports a large animal population, including seals and whales. An even deeper cold current flows back towards the Equator under this Arctic current.

The surface currents of the oceans follow prevailing winds. The map of currents in January shows that they form a series of nearly closed loops, which rotate clockwise north of the Equator, and counterclockwise to the south. In July, the Indian monsoon winds blow eastward and the monsoon drift changes direction.

If you wish to add other information about interesting facts about ocean currents - northern hemisphere and southern or on any other themes, please go to the page Add article

Wikipedy.com ^@ - Online Encyclopedia