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Surface Ocean Currents
What are surface ocean currents?
• Ocean water that flows on the top layer of the ocean in predictable
patterns around the Earth.
What causes surface ocean currents?
• Global Wind currents push them either east or west
• When the current runs into a continent it will turn and flow along the
coastline.
• The spinning of the Earth (Coriolis Effect) makes them move in a circular
pattern.
Why does the Earth need surface ocean currents?
• They move living things and warm and cold water around the planet.
How do they affect the climates of different places around the Earth?
• Currents that bring warm water will increase the air temperature of a
region.
• Currents that bring cool water will decrease the air temperature of a
region.
Where do warm surface currents begin?
• They are created near the equator where there are very warm
temperatures and a lot of direct sunlight. They then flow toward the
polar regions. Most of them are on the eastern side of the continents.
Where do cold surface currents begin?
• They are created near the polar regions where there are very cold
temperatures and much less direst sunlight. They then flow toward
the tropical regions. Most of them are on the western side of the
continents.
Medium Temperature
World Surface Currents Map
What global winds push surface ocean currents to the west?
What global winds push surface ocean currents to the east?
What is the largest and strongest warm surface current in the world?
• The Gulf Stream/North Atlantic Drift
What is the largest cold surface current that affects the United States?
• The California Current
Gulf Stream