GEOB 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Coriolis Force, Thermohaline Circulation, Thermocline

• School: UBC
• Department: Geographical Biogeosciences
• Course: GEOB 102
• Professor: Greg Henry

Document Summary

Taken together, the upper level looks quite diference from the surface. Why is it important: what are the winds like in the upper atmosphere. Two general forms of currents: surface currents(wind-driven) Tracking the movements of air around the sub-tropical high pressure cells. Equatorial currents move warm water westward and then poleward along the east coasts of coninents. Water has a double- coriolis efect(water controlled by wind, which has a coriolis efect already) Planet is rotaing, creaing a gulf stream: deep overturning currents (density-driven) Salt content of seawater difers around the planet due to temperature. In the oceans, 90% of insolaion is absorbed within the top 100 m. Large variaion in temperature, as you go deeper into the sea. North: temperature variaion is less, so water mixes well. Large bodies of water develop a verical temperature structure: high temperatures at the surface(thermocline) Density-driven global circulaion of the ocean is called the thermohaline circulaion. Deep currents are much slower than surface currents.