Ocean currents - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Aug 1, 2011 · Ocean water is on the move, affecting your climate, your local ecosystem, and the seafood that you eat. Ocean currents, abiotic features of the environment, are continuous and directed movements of ocean water. These currents are on the ocean’s surface and in its depths, flowing both locally and globally.
Ocean Circulations - National Oceanic and Atmospheric …
Mar 28, 2023 · While ocean currents are shallow-level circulations, there is global circulation which extends to the depths of the sea called the Great Ocean Conveyor. Also called the thermohaline circulation, it is driven by differences in the density of the sea water which is controlled by temperature (thermal) and salinity (haline).
Rip Currents - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Sep 19, 2024 · Rip currents are powerful, channeled currents of water flowing away from shore. They typically extend from the shoreline, through the surf zone, and past the line of breaking waves. Rip currents can occur at any beach with breaking waves, including the Great Lakes. Anatomy of the rip current. Download
JetStream Max: Major Ocean Currents | National Oceanic and …
Apr 14, 2023 · This image will help identify the top 25 of the world's wind driven ocean currents. To view each current individually, uncheck the "All Currents" box, then check the box for each of the individual currents. Currents indicated by the red color are considered "warm" currents as they transport warm water (and heat) toward the poles.
Ocean pollution and marine debris | National Oceanic and …
Apr 1, 2020 · These patches are formed by large, rotating ocean currents called gyres that pull debris into one location, often to the gyre’s center. There are five gyres in the ocean: one in the Indian Ocean, two in the Atlantic Ocean, and two in the Pacific Ocean. Garbage patches of varying sizes are located in each gyre.
Ocean Currents | NASA Earthdata
4 days ago · Climate Indicators hold key information for the most relevant domains of climate change: temperature and energy, atmospheric composition, ocean and water as well as the cryosphere. Cryosphere The cryosphere encompasses the frozen parts of Earth, including glaciers and ice sheets, sea ice, and any other frozen body of water.
Ocean acidification - National Oceanic and Atmospheric …
Apr 1, 2020 · Ocean acidification is currently affecting the entire ocean, including coastal estuaries and waterways. Billions of people worldwide rely on food from the ocean as their primary source of protein. Many jobs and economies in the U.S. and around the world depend on the fish and shellfish that live in the ocean. Current research
Understanding El Niño - National Oceanic and Atmospheric …
Feb 2, 2016 · Warmer ocean temperatures and altered currents during El Niño cause changes in the distribution and abundance of fish and other species off the coast of northern South America; marine life migrates north and south, following colder water. During strong El Niños, these changes can be seen as far north as the Gulf of Alaska.
Tracking Ocean Currents from Space: A New Application of
Nov 4, 2020 · A team of NASA and university scientists has developed a new way to use measurements from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment mission to track changes in Atlantic Ocean currents, which are a driving force in global climate. The finding opens a path to better monitoring and understanding of how ocean circulation is changing and what ...
What are Ocean Currents? | Every Full Moon | Ocean Today
This is the ocean's largest current. It can travel between 25-75 miles a day and is equal in volume to 6,000 large rivers. Surface ocean currents on the open ocean are fantastically complicated and beautiful, driven by a complex global wind system. But there's one more ocean current force that you may have never heard of.