Major ocean currents and how they affect global temperatures

Hi everyone,

This week we're talking about ocean currents. Ocean currents are part of the ocean's circulation system and influence local and global weather patterns. They are produced by gravity, differences in water density, winds on the ocean surface and Earth's rotation on its own axis. They cause the movements and exchanges of different ocean properties such as salinity, temperature and nutrients. Ocean currents can flow at speeds of up to 4m per second however most flow at speeds between 5cm and 50cm per second. Weather patterns and ocean currents constantly influence one another. Ocean currents follow similar paths as global wind do, transferring heat from the equator to polar regions. They create and influence ecosystems worldwide, especially marine ones. However they also spread plastics and microplastics around the world far from their original source. This system of ocean currents is often referred to as a global conveyor belt. Today we're going to look at six major ocean currents.

Gulf Stream

The Gulf Stream is caused by movement of water in the Gulf of Mexico. It flows from the Caribbean up the eastern coast of the USA, before crossing the Atlantic and flowing towards the western coast of Europe. It is a warm surface current, meaning that it transports warm water to northeastern USA and into the Atlantic. As it reaches higher latitudes, it cools and the water sinks before flowing back towards the tropics. This current regulates the temperature in the North Atlantic region and causes milder winters in Western Europe.

Gulf Stream

California Current

This current flows from the arctic, down the west coast of the USA and towards the equator. Arctic waters are known to be very rich in nutrients, so this cold, nutrient-rich current flows southwards and has a significant effect on local ecosystems. It is vital for many sea creatures especially marine mammals such as dolphins and whales.

California Current

Kuroshio Current

The Kuroshio Current is caused by movements in western Pacific waters as the sun heats the ocean. This warm water flows up the east coast of Japan. It regulates the temperature in the North Pacific region and leads to milder winters in Japan and some other East Asian countries. It also serves as a migration route for many species.

Kuroshio Current

Agulhas Current

This current flows southwards down the East coast of Africa. It impacts the temperatures across the Indian Ocean Region and transports warmer water towards South Africa. This leads to higher temperatures in southeastern Africa. This current is also an important migration route.

Antarctic Circumpolar Current

The Antarctic Circumpolar Current is a cold surface current around Antarctica. It also transports cold water to the tropics. This current regulates the temperature of the Southern Ocean region and the coastal areas of Antarctica.

Antarctic Circumpolar Current

Thermohaline Circulation

The Thermohaline Circulation is a global deep current. It's caused by differences in water density. Transporting warm water to the poles and cold water to the tropics, it affects surface temperatures worldwide and distributes heat and nutrients.

Thermohaline Circulation

We hope you enjoyed learning about different ocean currents and how they affect global temperatures. We'll be back next week!

Your Green World Blog Team💚

Sources:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/10/231017123428.htm

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/10/231009191640.htm

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/10/231013114900.htm

https://www.britannica.com/science/ocean-current

https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/ocean-currents/

https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/ocean-coasts/ocean-currents

https://oceaninfo.com/list/ocean-currents/

Images:

Gulf Stream: Georges Clerc-Rampal, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

California Current: Cormorant24, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Kuroshio Current: Frank Geerlings, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Antarctic Circumpolar Current: NASA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Thermohaline Circulation: Brisbane, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Comments

Discussion || Should Everyone Switch To Electric Cars?

Hi Everyone! Thank you so much for joining me today, as I hop on the blog to discuss whether everyone switching to electric cars would really help the environment. In other words, should everyone switch to electric cars? This is the first part of a two-part series, discussing electric cars, so stay tuned for part two!! I would like to start this post by stating that I am by no means an expert. This is knowledge I have from my own experience, and from research I have done. If anything is incorrect please take it as it is and accept that this is a discussion and I am taking on board all opinions from reliable sources on this complex topic. Electric cars are a huge topic when it comes to sustainability and "saving our planet". There is no debating the fact that electric cars are better for the environment than diesel or petrol once they are on the road. But the production of them is often very polluting, with one study show...

Ozone layer

Hi everyone, What even is ozone? And the ozone layer? Where does the hole in the ozone layer come from and what does it mean? Is it dangerous? What can be done? Often the ozone-talk can be complicated and confusing, keeping an overview is hard and understanding all the problems always difficult. Let us break it down a bit for you: What is the ozone layer? We'll start with the basics: The ozone layer is part of the stratosphere, which is the second layer of the Earth's atmosphere, between 10 and 50 km above the Earth's surface and made up of protective gases. One of these protective gases is ozone. There is not much ozone in the atmosphere, only 0.3 molecule of ozone per 1 million molecules of air. This is because ozone is chemically unstable and only forms when ultra violet radiation (UV light) hits oxygen and breaks the bonds between the atoms. It fact it is so unstable that even when it has formed, it breaks down again relatively quickly. This leads to ozone turning back ...

Animals 21-25 in our '50 incredible animals' series

Hi Everyone! Here are the next five animals in our current series! We hope you learn something from this. 21. Stick insect Stick insects are masters of disguise. They look like twigs or leaves. This strange appearance makes them hard to spot when stationary. Stick insects are herbivores, feeding on leaves, and can live for up to three years. Their habitat includes most tropical and subtropical regions, but there are a few species that live in temperate areas as well. There are roughly 3 000 different stick insect species! Not much more is known about them, because they are difficult to find. The two main threats to their populations are the pet trade and people killing them so as to frame their carcasses, like butterflies. Their conservation status ranges from critically endangered to least concern - so basically every category that is on the list! 22. Glass frog The glass frog is, well, see through. You can literally ...

Coral reefs

Hello! We would love to introduce you to the topic of coral reefs and especially coral reef bleaching, as it is a greatly ignored but certainly significant topic. Have fun! 5 coral reef facts 1. The Great Barrier Reef is the largest living structure on the planet and is 2300 km long! 2. Less than 0.1% of the world's ocean surface is covered in coral reefs. 3. At least 25% of all marine animals live there. 4. Coral reefs are often known as the rainforests of the ocean. 5. In 1 square kilometre of coral reef, up to 35 tons of fish can be 'produced'. The 5 biggest coral reefs in the world 1. Great Barrier Reef (near Australia) 2. Red Sea Coral Reef (near Egypt, Israel and Djibouti) 3. New Caledonia Reef (Pacific Ocean near New Caledonia) 4. The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef (near Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras) 5. Florida Reef (Atlantic Ocean/Gulf of Mexico near Florida) What is coral? Coral is actually made up of small anim...

April Top Tips: ten tips for environmentally friendly travel

Hi Everyone! We haven't been very present on the blog again recently but we are back today with ten top tips for environmentally friendly travel. Most forms of travel over long distances (unless you are willing to put in a lot of physical effort) use fossil fuels and are generally not good for our planet. So today we will be giving you a few tips which although won't mean that your travel is 100% planet friendly, will be a good start to doing as much as you can. Your Green World Blog Team💚 1. Use trains and boats rather than planes where possible Planes are awful for the environment. They are, however, extremely practical and so easy to use, cheap...It's hard to avoid them! They are so quick too so you don't have to spend as much time travelling. However, they are really bad for the environment. For example, you could fly once to Edinburgh from Heathrow for the same carbon dioxide levels as driving to Edinburgh 336 times! 2. Fly...

Photo Essay | dolphin spotting boat ride

Hi Everyone! Quite a while ago now, me and my family went on a dolphin spotting boat ride, and I've been meaning to share some photos for ages now! We saw so many dolphins very close up and we managed to get some good shots, although it can never be as magical as in person! All photos in this post were taken by me or my family. They were so close to the boat! This photo is stunning! It's under the water! Again - under the water! It was so hard to capture them jumping! This was the boat.... ...

4 tips for eco-eating

Hi everyone, Today we are going to be sharing some tips for making sure that what you are eating is environmentally friendly. 1. Check for Palm Oil As you can probably tell from past posts, we are strongly against using palm oil . Palm oil is often used in food products, so by quickly glancing over the ingredients list on the product's packaging, you can make sure that no rainforest has been cut down to make it. For instance, we would recommend buying "McVites Digestive light" instead of the classic version as it was specifically designed to not contain palm oil. 2. Shop Locally The shops in your local area will probably get their produce from local sources, so by buying your food from them will ensure that no CO2 has been produced from shipping, as well as supporting the local community. Some shops have recently started to serve dry ingredients (such as flour and sugar) in paper bags or in your own containers, which leads onto... ...

06.09.2020 Animal Of the Week: Seven-spotted Ladybird

Hello Everyone, Welcome to this week's animal of the week post. This time about the ladybird, and personally I can't wait to find out more about these creatures. Enjoy! Which ladybird we are investigating today? Today, I am telling you about the seven-spotted ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata), which is the most common ladybird in Europe. Other species include the Two Spot Ladybird and other uncommon ladybirds such as the 16 Spot and other peculiar types. Habitat The seven-spotted ladybird lives in a variety of habitats such as meadows, gardens and hedgerows. They can also be found on farmland, especially with crops such as alfalfa, clover and wheat and corn before it grows too tall. Diet The seven-spotted ladybird feeds on a range of aphid species. This is why they are often referred to as a gardener's best friend as they eat these creatures who can damage plants. They can also eat white flies and anything else that is soft-bo...

19.07.2020: Animal of the week: Honey Bees

Hi everyone, This week's animal is the honey bee. Enjoy! General Information An average honeybee hive is made up of one queen, hundreds of male drones and thousands of female workers. If the queen bee dies then a new queen is created. The workers select a young larva and feed it with a special food called ‘royal jelly’. The ‘royal jelly’ makes the larva grow into a fertile queen. Queens live for several years but the workers only live for five or six weeks. An average worker will make a twelfth of a tee spoon of honey during her entire life. Drones are turned out of the hive and left to die in Autumn. In the summer months, the queen bee is very busy, she can lay up to 2500 eggs in a single day. How they affect the world around them Honey bees are very important for flowers, fruit and vegetables. This comes from the fact that they are pollinators. They help the plants by transferring pollen between male and female parts, meaning the plants can g...

The life of ... a koala

Hello everyone, Today we're talking about koalas. Also known as koala bears, koalas are marsupials. So they're actually not bears. Koalas, phascolarctos cinereus , are tree dwelling and probably best known for spending most of the day sleeping. They live for up to 15 years in the wild although captive koalas generally live for longer. Koalas have a stout, gray body and a cream-coloured chest. They have a broad face, small yellow eyes and big fluffy ears. In adaptation to climbing, their feet are strong and clawed. Adult individuals in South Australia weigh 14kg and are 60-84cm big. Their Eastern cousins are considerably smaller. Koalas are found in Eastern and Southern Australia, where they live in eucalyptus trees. They feed on the leaves of these eucalyptus trees, eating up to 1.3kg a day. With a body weight of up to 14kg, this means they eat just under 10% of their body weight every single day. However, the le...

Green World

Search This Blog