Why do currents move north from the equator?
Currents Tutorial In the Northern Hemisphere, warm air around the equator rises and flows north toward the pole. As the air moves away from the equator, the Coriolis effect deflects it toward the right.
Why does energy move from the equator to the poles?
This pattern, called atmospheric circulation, is caused because the Sun heats the Earth more at the equator than at the poles. In the tropics, near the equator, warm air rises. When it gets about 10-15 km (6-9 miles) above the Earth surface it starts to flow away from the equator and towards the poles.
What causes surface currents to move in different directions north and south of the equator?
Because the Earth rotates on its axis, circulating air is deflected toward the right in the Northern Hemisphere and toward the left in the Southern Hemisphere. This deflection is called the Coriolis effect. Click the image for a larger view. Coastal currents are affected by local winds.
What currents move away from the equator?
A warm current is moving away from the Equator toward the poles. The water in a warm current is warmer than the surrounding water.
Why do most currents form near the poles?
If salt is added to a volume of water, there are more molecules in the same volume so the water is denser. Changes in temperature and salinity of seawater take place at the surface. Water becomes dense near the poles. Cold polar air cools the water and lowers its temperature, increasing its salinity.
Why is the North Pole warmer than the South Pole?
The North Pole is much warmer than the South Pole. This is because sits at a lower elevation (sea level) and is located in the middle of an ocean, which is warmer than the ice-covered continent of Antarctica. From the North Pole, the sun is always above the horizon in the summer and below the horizon in the winter.
What happens to incoming energy as you move from the equator to the South Pole?
A lot of the solar energy that reaches Earth hits the equator. Much less solar energy gets to the poles. The difference in the amount of solar energy drives atmospheric circulation.
How do the causes of surface and deepwater currents differ?
Surface wind-driven currents generate upwelling currents in conjunction with landforms, creating deepwater currents. Currents may also be caused by density differences in water masses due to temperature (thermo) and salinity (haline) variations via a process known as thermohaline circulation.
Where does the Benguela Current come from?
Flowing along the coast of South Africa, Namibia, and Angola, the Benguela Current is the eastern boundary of a large gyre in the South Atlantic Ocean. The current mixes water from the Atlantic and Indian Oceans as they meet off the capes of South Africa.
Why do gyres rotate clockwise?
Ocean gyres in the Northern hemisphere rotate clockwise and gyres in the Southern hemisphere rotate counter-clockwise due to the Coriolis effect. The Beaufort gyre is a huge vortex of water being driven by strong winds that force currents in a clockwise direction.
Why is the North Pacific gyre important?
This gyre covers most of the northern Pacific Ocean. It is the largest ecosystem on Earth, located between the equator and 50° N latitude, and comprising 20 million square kilometers. It is the site of an unusually intense collection of man-made marine debris, known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.