Is the Gulf Stream, El Niño, Kuroshio. What other currents exist? Why are they called warm? Read more about it.

Where do currents come from?

Currents are directed flows of water masses. They can have different widths and depths - from a few meters to hundreds of kilometers. Their speed can reach up to 9 km / h. The direction of water flows determines the force of rotation of our planet. Thanks to her, in the Southern Hemisphere, the currents deviate to the right, and in the Northern Hemisphere - to the left.

Many conditions influence the formation and nature of currents. The reason for their appearance may be the wind, the tidal forces of the Moon and the Sun, different density and temperature, the level of the waters of the oceans. Most often, several factors contribute to the formation of currents at once.

There is a neutral, in the ocean. They are determined as such not because of the temperature of their own water masses, but because of the difference with the temperature of the surrounding waters. This means that the current can be warm, even if its waters are considered cold by many indicators. For example, the Gulf Stream is warm, although its temperature ranges from 4 to 6 degrees, and the temperature of the cold is up to 20 degrees.

A warm current is one that forms near the equator. They form in warm waters and migrate to colder ones. In turn, they move towards the equator. Neutral currents are those that do not differ in temperature from the surrounding waters.

warm currents

Currents affect the climate of coastal areas. Warm water currents warm the waters of the ocean. They contribute to a mild climate, high humidity and high rainfall. On the shores, next to which warm waters flow, forests form. There are such warm currents of the World Ocean:

Pacific Basin

• East Australian.
• Alaskan.
• Kuroshio.
• El Nino.

Indian Ocean basin

• Agulhas.

Atlantic Ocean basin

• Irminger.
• Brazilian.
• Guiana.
• Gulfstream.
• North Atlantic.

Arctic Ocean Basin

• West Spitsbergen.
• Norwegian.
• West Greenland.

Gulfstream

The warm Atlantic current, one of the largest in the Northern Hemisphere, is the Gulf Stream. It starts in but falls into the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and moves in a northeasterly direction.

The current carries a lot of floating algae and various fish. Its width reaches up to 90 kilometers, and the temperature is 4-6 degrees Celsius. The waters of the Gulf Stream have a bluish tint, contrasting with the surrounding greenish ocean water. It is not homogeneous, and consists of several streams, which can be separated from the general flow.

The Gulf Stream is a warm current. Meeting with the cold Labrador current in the Newfoundland area, it contributes to the frequent formation of fogs on the coast. In the very center of the North Atlantic, the Gulf Stream separates, forming the Canary and North Atlantic currents.

El Niño

El Niño is also a warm current - the most powerful current. It is not constant and occurs every few years. Its appearance is accompanied by a sharp increase in water temperature in the surface layers of the ocean. But this is not the only sign of the current El Niño.

Other warm currents of the World Ocean can hardly be compared with the power of influence of this “baby” (as the name of the current is translated). Along with warm waters, the current brings with it heavy winds and hurricanes, fires, droughts, and prolonged rains. Residents of coastal areas are suffering from the damage caused by El Niño. Huge areas are flooded, which leads to the death of crops and livestock.

The current is formed in the Pacific Ocean, in its equatorial part. It stretches along the coasts of Peru and Chile, replacing the cold Humboldt Current. When El Niño occurs, fishermen also suffer. Its warm waters trap cold waters (which are rich in plankton) and prevent them from rising to the surface. In this case, the fish does not come to these areas to feed themselves, leaving the fishermen without a catch.

Kuroshio

In the Pacific Ocean, another warm current is the Kuroshio. It flows near the eastern and southern coasts of Japan. Often the current is defined as a continuation of the Northern Trade Wind. The main reason for its formation is the difference in levels between the ocean and the East China Sea.

Flowing between the straits of Ryukkyu Island, Kuroshio becomes the North Pacific Current, which passes into the Alaska Current off the coast of America.

It has similar features to the Gulf Stream. It forms a whole system of warm currents in the Pacific Ocean, like the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic. Due to this, Kuroshio is an important climate-forming factor, softening the climate of coastal areas. The current also has a strong influence on the water area, being an important hydrobiological factor.

The waters of the Japanese current are characterized by a dark blue color, hence its name "Kuroshio", which translates as "black current" or "dark water". The current reaches a width of 170 kilometers, and its depth is about 700 meters. Kuroshio's speed ranges from 1 to 6 km/h. The water temperature of the current is 25 -28 degrees in the south and about 15 degrees in the north.

Conclusion

The formation of currents is influenced by many factors, and sometimes their combination. A warm current is one whose temperature exceeds the temperature of the surrounding waters. In this case, the water during the course can be quite cold. The most famous warm currents are the Gulf Stream, which flows in the Atlantic Ocean, as well as the Pacific Currents Kuroshio and El Niño. The latter occurs periodically, bringing with it a chain of environmental disasters.

The content of the article

GROUND BUILDING. The planet Earth is made up of a thin, hard shell (crust) 10–100 km thick), surrounded by a powerful water hydrosphere and dense atmosphere. The bowels of the Earth are divided into three main areas: the crust, mantle and core. The crust of the Earth is the upper part of the solid shell of the Earth with a thickness from one (under the oceans) to several tens of kilometers. (under the continents). It consists of sedimentary layers and well-known minerals and rocks. Its deeper layers consist of various basalts. Beneath the crust is a hard silicate layer (presumably made of olivine) called the mantle, 1–3 thousand km thick, it surrounds the liquid part of the core, the central part of which is solid, about 2000 km in diameter.

Atmosphere.

The Earth, like most other planets, is surrounded by a gaseous shell - an atmosphere that consists mainly of nitrogen and oxygen. No other planet has an atmosphere with the chemical composition of Earth. It is believed that it arose as a result of a long chemical and biological evolution. The Earth's atmosphere is divided into several areas in accordance with changes in temperature, chemical composition, physical state and the degree of ionization of air molecules and atoms. Dense, breathable layers of the earth's atmosphere have a thickness of no more than 4–5 km. Above, the atmosphere is very rarefied: its density decreases by about a factor of three for every 8 km of ascent. At the same time, the air temperature first in the troposphere decreases to 220 K, however, at an altitude of several tens of kilometers in the stratosphere, it begins to rise to 270 K at an altitude of about 50 km, where the boundary with the next layer of the atmosphere passes - mesosphere(medium atmosphere). The rise in temperature in the upper stratosphere is due to the heating effect of the ultraviolet and X-ray solar radiation absorbed here, which does not penetrate into the lower layers of the atmosphere. In the mesosphere, the temperature again decreases to almost 180 K, after which it is above 180 km in thermosphere its very strong growth begins to values ​​of more than 1000 K. At altitudes above 1000 km, the thermosphere passes into the exosphere , from which atmospheric gases dissipate into interplanetary space. With an increase in temperature, the ionization of atmospheric gases is associated - the emergence of electrically conductive layers, which are generally called the earth's ionosphere.

Hydrosphere.

An important feature of the Earth is a large amount of water, which is constantly in different proportions in all three states of aggregation - gaseous (water vapor in the atmosphere), liquid (rivers, lakes, seas, oceans and, to a lesser extent, the atmosphere) and solid (snow and ice). , mainly in the glacier X). Thanks to the water balance, the total amount of water on Earth should be conserved. The World Ocean occupies most of the Earth's surface (361.1 million km 2 or 70.8% of the Earth's surface area), its average depth is about 3800 m, the greatest is 11,022 m (Marian Trench in the Pacific Ocean), the volume of water is 1370 million km 3 , average salinity 35 g/l. The area of ​​modern glaciers is about 11% of the land surface, which is 149.1 million km 2 (» 29.2%). The land rises above the level of the World Ocean by an average of 875 m (the highest height is 8848 m - the peak of Chomolungma in the Himalayas). It is believed that the existence of sedimentary rocks, whose age (according to radioisotope analysis) exceeds 3.7 billion years, serves as evidence of the existence of vast reservoirs on Earth already in that distant era when, presumably, the first living organisms appeared.

World Ocean.

The world ocean is conditionally divided into four oceans. The largest and deepest of them is the Pacific Ocean. On an area of ​​178.62 million km 2, it occupies half of the entire water surface of the Earth. Its average depth (3980 m) is greater than the average depth of the World Ocean (3700 m). Within its limits is also the deepest depression - the Mariana Trench (11,022 m). More than half of the volume of water in the World Ocean is concentrated in the Pacific Ocean (710.4 out of 1341 million km 3). The second largest Atlantic Ocean. Its area is 91.6 million km 2, the average depth is 3600 m, the largest is 8742 m (in the Puerto Rico region), the volume is 329.7 million km 3. Next in size is the Indian Ocean, which covers an area of ​​76.2 million km 2, an average depth of 3710 m, the largest 7729 m (near the Sunda Islands), a water volume of 282.6 million km 3. The smallest and coldest Arctic Ocean, with an area of ​​​​only 14.8 million km 2. It occupies 4% of the World Ocean), has an average depth of 1220 m (the largest is 5527 m), a water volume of 18.1 million km 3. Sometimes they distinguish the so-called. Southern Ocean (conditional name of the southern parts of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans adjacent to the Antarctic continent). The oceans are divided into seas. For the life of the Earth, a huge role is played by the constantly occurring water cycle (moisture cycle). This is a continuous closed process of water movement in the atmosphere, hydrosphere and the earth's crust, consisting of evaporation, water vapor transport in the atmosphere, steam condensation, precipitation and water runoff into the World Ocean. In this single process, there is a continuous transition of water from the earth's surface to the atmosphere and vice versa.

Gulfstream(Eng. Gulf Stream) - a system of warm currents in the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean, extending for 10 thousand km from the coast of the Florida peninsula to the islands of Svalbard and Novaya Zemlya. Speed ​​from 6–10 km/h in the Strait of Florida to 3–4 km/h in the area of ​​the Greater Newfoundland Bank, surface water temperature, respectively, from 24–28 to 10–20°C. The average water discharge in the Strait of Florida is 25 million m 3 /s (20 times the total water flow of all the rivers of the globe). The Gulf Stream passes into the North Atlantic Current (40° W), which, under the influence of western and southwestern winds, follows the shores of the Scandinavian Peninsula, influencing the climate of Europe.

Elninho- a warm Pacific equatorial current that occurs every few years. Over the past 20 years, five active Elninho cycles have been noted: 1982–1983, 1986–1987, 1991–1993, 1994–1995 and 1997–1998, i.e. on average every 3-4 years.

In years when El Nino is absent, along the entire Pacific coast of South America, due to the coastal rise of cold deep waters caused by the surface cold Peruvian current, the surface temperature of the ocean fluctuates in a narrow seasonal range - from 15 ° C to 19 ° C. During the El Niño period, the temperature the surface of the ocean in the coastal zone rises by 6–10 ° C. During El Nino in the equator region, this current warms up more than usual. Therefore, the trade winds weaken or do not blow at all. The heated water, spreading to the sides, goes back to the American coast. An anomalous convection zone appears, and rains and hurricanes fall on Central and South America. Global warming in the near future can lead to catastrophic consequences. Entire species of animals and plants that do not have time to adapt to climate change are dying out. Due to the melting of the polar ice, the sea level could rise by a meter, and there would be fewer islands. Over a century, warming can reach 8 degrees.

Abnormal weather conditions on the globe during the Elninho years. In the tropics, precipitation increases over areas east of the central Pacific and decreases in northern Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines. In December-February, more than normal precipitation is observed on the coast of Ecuador, in northwestern Peru, over southern Brazil, central Argentina and over the equatorial, eastern part of Africa, and during June-August - in the western United States and over the central part of Chile.

Elninho occurrences are also responsible for large-scale air temperature anomalies around the world. During these years, there are outstanding temperature rises. Warmer than normal conditions in December-February were over southeast Asia, over Primorye, Japan, the Sea of ​​Japan, over southeast Africa and Brazil, in southeast Australia. Above-normal temperatures are also seen in June-August on the west coast of South America and over southeastern Brazil. Colder winters (December-February) occur on the southwest coast of the United States.

Laninho. Laninho - in contrast to Elninho, manifests itself as a decrease in surface water temperature in the east of the tropical Pacific. Such phenomena were noted in 1984-1985, 1988-1989 and 1995-1996. During this period, unusually cold weather sets in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The winds shift the zone of warm water and the "language" of cold waters stretches for 5000 km, in the region of Ecuador - the Samoa Islands, exactly in the place where at Elninho there should be a belt of warm waters. During this period, powerful monsoon rains are observed in Indochina, India and Australia. The Caribbean and the United States suffer from droughts and tornadoes.

Abnormal weather conditions on the globe during Laninho years. During Laninho periods, precipitation intensifies over the western equatorial Pacific, Indonesia, and the Philippines, and is almost completely absent in the eastern ocean. Predominantly precipitation falls in December-February in the north of South America and over South Africa, and in June-August over southeastern Australia. Drier conditions occur over the coast of Ecuador, northwest Peru and over equatorial east Africa during December-February, and over southern Brazil and central Argentina in June-August. There are large-scale deviations from the norm all over the world. The largest number of areas with abnormally cool conditions are observed, for example, cold winters in Japan and the Primorye, over South Alaska and western, central Canada, as well as cool summers over southeast Africa, over India and southeast Asia. Warmer winters occur in the southwestern United States.

Laninho, like Elninho, most often occurs from December to March. The difference is that Elninho occurs on average once every three to four years, while Laninho occurs once every six to seven years. Both phenomena bring with them an increased number of hurricanes, but during Laninho there are three to four times more than during Elninho.

According to recent observations, the reliability of the onset of Elninho or Laninho can be determined if:

1. Near the equator, in the eastern Pacific Ocean, a patch of warmer water than usual forms in the case of Elniño and colder than usual in the case of Laninho.

2. If the atmospheric pressure in the port of Darwin (Australia) tends to decrease, and on the island of Tahiti - to increase, then Elninho is expected. Otherwise it will be Laninho.

Elninho and Laninho are the most pronounced manifestations of global annual climate variability. They represent large-scale changes in temperature ocean, precipitation, atmospheric circulation, vertical air movements over the tropical Pacific Ocean.

Glaciers.

Mantle.

Between the crust and the core of the Earth, there is a silicate (mainly olivine) shell, or mantle. Earth, in which the substance is in a special plastic, amorphous state, close to molten (the upper mantle is about 700 km thick). inner mantle about 2000 km thick is in a solid crystalline state. The mantle occupies about 83% of the volume of the entire Earth and makes up to 67% of its mass. The upper boundary of the mantle runs along the boundary of the Mohorovichic surface at various depths, from 5–10 to 70 km, and the lower one is at the boundary with the core at a depth of about 2900 km.

Core.

As you approach the center, the density of the substance increases, the temperature rises. The central part of the globe up to about half the radius is a dense iron-nickel core with a temperature of 4-5 thousand kelvins, the outer part of which is melted and passes into the mantle. It is assumed that in the very center of the Earth the temperature is higher than in the atmosphere of the Sun. This means that the Earth has internal sources of heat.

The relatively thin earth's crust (moreover, under the oceans is thinner and denser than under the continents) makes up the outer cover, which is separated from the underlying mantle by the Mohorovichic boundary. The densest material composes the core of the Earth, apparently consisting of metals. The crust, inner mantle, and inner core are in a solid state, while the outer core is in a liquid state.

Edward Kononovich

Many people know about the Gulf Stream, which, carrying huge masses of water from the equatorial latitudes to the polar ones, literally warms the north of Western Europe and Scandinavia. But few people know that there are other warm and cold currents of the Atlantic Ocean. How do they affect the climate of coastal areas? Our article will tell about it. In fact, there are a lot of currents in the Atlantic. We briefly list them for general development. These are the West Greenland, Angola, Antilles, Benguela, Guinea, Lomonosov, Brazilian, Guiana, Azores, Gulf Stream, Irminger, Canary, East Icelandic, Labrador, Portuguese, North Atlantic, Florida, Falkland, North Equatorial, South Equatorial, and also the Equatorial countercurrent . Not all of them have a big impact on the climate. Some of them are generally part or fragments of the main, larger currents. That's about them and will be discussed in our article.

Why do currents form?

In the World Ocean, large invisible "rivers without banks" are constantly circulating. Water in general is a very dynamic element. But everything is clear with rivers: they flow from the source to the mouth due to the difference in heights between these points. But what makes huge masses of water move within the ocean? Of the many reasons, two are the main ones: trade winds and changes in atmospheric pressure. Because of this, the currents are divided into drift and barogradient. The first are formed by trade winds - winds constantly blowing in one direction. Most of these currents Mighty rivers carry into the seas a large amount of water, different from sea water in density and temperature. Such currents are called stock, gravity and friction. Consideration should also be given to the great north-south extent of the Atlantic Ocean. The currents in this water area are therefore more meridional than latitudinal.

What are trade winds

Winds are the main reason for the movement of huge masses of water in the oceans. But what are the trade winds? The answer is to be found in the equatorial regions. The air warms up there more than in other latitudes. It rises and spreads along the upper layers of the troposphere towards the two poles. But already at a latitude of 30 degrees, having cooled thoroughly, it descends. Thus, a circulation of air masses is created. In the equatorial region, a zone of low pressure arises, and in tropical latitudes, a zone of high pressure. And here the rotation of the Earth around its axis manifests itself. If not for it, the trade winds would blow from the tropics of both hemispheres to the equator. But, as our planet rotates, the winds are deflected, becoming westerly. This is how the trade winds form the main currents of the Atlantic Ocean. In the Northern Hemisphere, they move clockwise, and in the Southern Hemisphere, they move counterclockwise. This is because in the first case, the trade winds blow from the northeast, and in the second - from the southeast.

Climate impact

Based on the fact that the main currents originate in the equatorial and tropical regions, it would be reasonable to assume that they are all warm. But this does not always happen. The warm current in the Atlantic Ocean, having reached the polar latitudes, does not fade away, but, having made a smooth circle, reverses, but has already cooled down considerably. This can be seen in the example of the Gulf Stream. It carries warm masses of water from the Sargasso Sea to northern Europe. Then, under the influence of the rotation of the Earth, it deviates to the west. Under the name of the Labrador Current, it descends along the coast of the North American continent to the south, cooling the coastal regions of Canada. It should be said that these masses of water are conventionally called warm and cold - relative to the ambient temperature. For example, in the North Cape current in winter the temperature is only +2 °С, and in summer - maximum +8 °С. But it is called warm because the water in the Barents Sea is even colder.

Major currents of the Atlantic in the Northern Hemisphere

Here, of course, one cannot fail to mention the Gulf Stream. But other currents passing through the Atlantic Ocean also have an important influence on the climate of nearby territories. Near Cape Verde (Africa), the northeast trade wind is born. It drives huge warm masses of water to the west. Crossing the Atlantic Ocean, they connect with the Antilles and Guiana currents. This enhanced jet moves towards the Caribbean Sea. After that, the waters rush to the north. This continuous clockwise movement is called the warm North Atlantic Current. Its edge at high latitudes is indefinite, blurred, and at the equator it is more distinct.

The mysterious "Current from the Gulf" (Golf-Stream)

This is the name of the course of the Atlantic Ocean, without which Scandinavia and Iceland would turn, based on their proximity to the pole, into the land of eternal snows. It used to be thought that the Gulf Stream was born in the Gulf of Mexico. Hence the name. In fact, only a small part of the Gulf Stream flows out of the Gulf of Mexico. The main flow comes from the Sargasso Sea. What is the mystery of the Gulf Stream? The fact that, contrary to the rotation of the Earth, it does not flow from west to east, but in the opposite direction. Its capacity exceeds the discharge of all the rivers of the planet. The speed of the Gulf Stream is impressive - two and a half meters per second on the surface. The current can be traced at a depth of 800 meters. And the width of the stream is 110-120 kilometers. Due to the high speed of the current, the water from the equatorial latitudes does not have time to cool. The surface layer has a temperature of +25 degrees, which, of course, plays a paramount role in shaping the climate of Western Europe. The mystery of the Gulf Stream is also that it does not wash the continents anywhere. There is always a strip of colder water between it and the shore.

Atlantic Ocean: Currents of the Southern Hemisphere

From the African continent to the American continent, the trade wind drives a jet, which, due to low pressure in the equatorial region, begins to deviate to the south. Thus begins a similar northern cycle. However, the South Equatorial Current moves counterclockwise. It also runs across the entire Atlantic Ocean. Currents Guiana, Brazilian (warm), Falkland, Benguela (cold) are part of this cycle.

Water masses that continuously move through the oceans are called currents. They are so strong that no continental river can compare with them.

What are the types of currents?

A few years ago, only currents moving along the surface of the seas were known. They are called superficial. They flow at a depth of up to 300 meters. Now we know that deep currents arise in deeper areas.

How do surface currents occur?

Surface currents are caused by constantly blowing winds - trade winds - and reach speeds of 30 to 60 kilometers per day. These include equatorial currents (directed to the west), off the eastern coast of the continents (directed towards the poles) and others.

What are trade winds?

The trade winds are air currents (winds) that are stable throughout the year in the tropical latitudes of the oceans. In the Northern Hemisphere, these winds are directed from the northeast, in the Southern Hemisphere - from the southeast. Due to the rotation of the Earth, they always deviate to the west. The winds that blow in the Northern Hemisphere are called the northeast trade winds, and in the Southern Hemisphere they are called the southeast. Sailing ships use these winds to reach their destination faster.

What are equatorial currents?

Trade winds blow constantly and so strongly that they divide the ocean waters on both sides of the equator into two powerful westerly currents, which are called equatorial. On the way, they have the eastern coasts of parts of the world, so these currents change direction to the north and south. Then they fall into other wind systems and break up into small currents.

How do deep currents form?

Deep currents, unlike surface currents, are not caused by winds, but by other forces. They depend on the density of water: cold and salty water is denser than warm and less salty, and therefore sinks lower to the seabed. Deep currents are caused by the fact that the cooled salt water in the northern latitudes sinks and continues to move above the seabed. A new, warm surface current begins its movement from the south. A cold deep current carries water towards the equator, where it warms up again and rises up. Thus, a cycle is formed. Deep currents move slowly, so it sometimes takes years before they rise to the surface.

What is worth knowing about the equator?

The equator is an imaginary line that passes through the center of the Earth perpendicular to the axis of its rotation, that is, it is equally distant from both poles and divides our planet into two hemispheres - Northern and Southern. The length of this line is about 40,075 kilometers. The equator is located at the zero degree of geographic latitude.

Why does the salt content of sea water change?

The salt content of sea water increases when the water evaporates or freezes. There is a lot of ice in the North Atlantic Ocean, so the water there is saltier and colder than at the equator, especially in winter. However, the salinity of warm water increases with evaporation, as salt remains in it. The salt content decreases when, for example, ice melts in the North Atlantic and fresh water flows into the sea.

What are deep currents?

Deep currents carry cold water from the polar regions to warm tropical countries, where the water masses mix. The rise of cold water affects the coastal climate: rain falls directly on the cold water. The air comes to the warm mainland almost dry, so the rains stop and deserts appear on the coastal shores. This is how the Namib Desert on the South African coast arose.

What is the difference between cold and warm currents?

Depending on the temperature, sea currents are divided into warm and cold. The first appear near the equator. They carry warm waters through cold waters located near the poles and heat the air. Counter sea currents flowing from the polar regions towards the equator transport cold waters through the surrounding warm ones, and as a result, the air cools. Sea currents are like a huge air conditioner that distributes cold and warm air around the globe.

What are burs?

Bors are called tidal waves, which can be observed in those places where rivers flow into the sea - that is, at the mouths. They arise when so many waves running towards the shore accumulate in a shallow and wide funnel-shaped mouth that they all suddenly pour into the river. In the Amazon, one of the South American rivers, the surf raged so much that a five-meter wall of water advanced more than a hundred kilometers deep into the mainland. Bors also appear in the Seine (France), the Ganges Delta (India) and on the coast of China.

Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859)

The German naturalist and scientist Alexander von Humboldt traveled extensively in Latin America. In 1812, he discovered that a cold deep current moves from the polar regions to the equator and cools the air there. In his honor, the current that carries water along the coasts of Chile and Peru was named the Humboldt Current.

Where are the largest warm sea currents on the planet?

The largest warm sea currents include the Gulf Stream (Atlantic Ocean), Brazilian (Atlantic Ocean), Kuroshio (Pacific Ocean), Caribbean (Atlantic Ocean), North and South Equatorial Currents (Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans), as well as Antilles (Atlantic Ocean).

Where are the biggest cold sea currents located?

The largest cold sea currents are Humboldt (Pacific Ocean), Canary (Atlantic Ocean), Oyashio, or Kuril (Pacific Ocean), East Greenland (Atlantic Ocean), Labrador (Atlantic Ocean) and California (Pacific Ocean).

How do sea currents affect climate?

Warm sea currents primarily affect the surrounding air masses and, depending on the geographical position of the continent, warm the air. So, thanks to the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic Ocean, the temperature in Europe is 5 degrees higher than it could be. Cold currents, which are directed from the polar regions to the equator, on the contrary, lead to a decrease in air temperature.

What is affected by changes in the sea current?

Sea currents can be affected by sudden events such as volcanic eruptions or changes associated with El Niño. El Niño is a warm water current that can displace a cold current off the coast of Peru and Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean. Although the influence of El Niño is limited to certain areas, its effects affect the climate of outlying regions. It causes heavy rainfall along the coasts of South America and East Africa, resulting in devastating floods, storms and landslides. In contrast, tropical rainforests around the Amazon experience a dry climate that reaches Australia, Indonesia, and South Africa, causing droughts and wildfires. Off the Peruvian coast, El Niño is leading to mass extinction of fish and corals as plankton, which lives predominantly in cold water, suffers when it warms up.

How far can sea currents carry objects out to sea?

Sea currents can carry objects that have fallen into the water for great distances. So, for example, wine bottles can be found in the sea, which 30 years ago were thrown from ships in the ocean between South America and Antarctica and carried away for thousands of kilometers. The currents carried them across the Pacific and Indian oceans!

What is worth knowing about the Gulf Stream?

The Gulf Stream is one of the most powerful and famous sea currents that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and carries warm waters to the Svalbard archipelago. Thanks to the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, northern Europe has a mild climate, although it should be much colder here, since this area is located as far north as Alaska, where it is freezing cold.

What are sea currents - video

As a rule, their movement occurs in a strictly defined direction and can be of great length. The current map, which is located below, displays them in full.

Water flows are of considerable size: they can reach tens or even hundreds of kilometers wide, and have a great depth (hundreds of meters). The speed of oceanic and sea currents is different - on average, it is 1-3 thousand m / h. But, there are also so-called high-speed ones. Their speed can reach 9,000 m/h.

Where do currents come from?

The causes of water currents may be a sharp change in water temperature due to heating, or, conversely, cooling. They are also affected by different densities, for example, at a place where several flows (marine and oceanic) collide, precipitation, evaporation. But mostly cold and warm currents arise due to the action of winds. Therefore, the direction of the largest oceanic water flows depends mainly on the air currents of the planet.

Currents formed by the action of the winds

Trade winds are an example of constantly blowing winds. They start their life from the 30th latitude. The currents that are created by these air masses are called trade winds. Allocate the southern trade wind and the northern trade wind current. In the temperate zone, such water flows are formed under the influence of westerly winds. They form one of the largest currents on the planet. There are two cycles of water flow in the northern and southern hemispheres: cyclonic and anticyclonic. Their formation is influenced by the inertial force of the Earth.

Varieties of currents

Mixed, neutral, cold and warm currents are varieties of circulating masses on the planet. When the temperature of the water in the stream is lower than the temperature of the surrounding water, this is If, on the contrary, it is its warm variety. Neutral currents do not differ from the temperature of the surrounding waters. And mixed ones can change over the entire length. It is worth noting that there is no constant temperature indicator of currents. This figure is very relative. It is determined by comparing the surrounding water masses.

In tropical latitudes, warm currents circulate along the eastern margins of the continents. Cold - along the western. In temperate latitudes, warm currents pass along the western shores, and cold ones - along the eastern ones. The variety can also be determined by another factor. So, there is an easier rule: cold currents go to the equator, and warm ones - away from it.

Meaning

It is worth talking about it in more detail. Cold and warm currents play an important role on planet Earth. The significance of water circulating masses is that due to their movement, the solar heat is redistributed on the planet. Warm currents increase the air temperature of nearby areas, and cold currents lower it. Formed on the water, water flows have a serious impact on the mainland. In areas where warm currents constantly pass, the climate is humid, where cold ones, on the contrary, are dry. Also, ocean currents contribute to the migration of the ichthyofauna of the oceans. Under their influence, plankton moves, and fish migrate behind it.

Examples of warm and cold currents can be given. Let's start with the first variety. The largest are such water flows: Gulf Stream, Norwegian, North Atlantic, North and South Tradewinds, Brazilian, Kurosio, Madagascar and others. The coldest currents of the oceans: Somali, Labrador, California.

major currents

The world's largest warm current is the Gulf Stream. This is a meridional circulating flow that carries 75 million tons of water every second. The width of the Gulf Stream is from 70 to 90 km. Thanks to him, Europe gets a comfortable mild climate. From this it follows that the cold and warm current largely affects the life of all living organisms on the planet.

Of the zonal, cold streams, the current is of the greatest importance. In the southern hemisphere, not far from the coast of Antarctica, there are no island or continental accumulations. A large area of ​​the planet is completely filled with water. Here, the Indian, the Pacific converge into one stream and unite into a separate huge reservoir. Some scientists recognize its existence and call it Southern. It is here that the largest flow of water is formed - the course of the Western winds. Every second it carries a stream of water that is three times the size of the Gulf Stream.

Canarian or cold?

Currents can change their temperature. For example, the flow begins with cold masses. Then it warms up and becomes warm. One of the variants of such a circulating water mass is the Canary Current. It originates in the northeast of the Atlantic Ocean. It is directed by a cold stream along Europe. Passing along the western coast of Africa, it becomes warm. This current has long been used by navigators to travel.