OCS 1005 : Test 3 Circulation Of Ocean
15 Mar 2019
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Document Summary
Currents- the mass flow of water; moving loops of water. Surface currents - the wind driven movement of water at or near the ocean"s surface. Influenced by major wind belts: redistribute global heat. Thermohaline currents the slow, deep currents that effect the vast bulk of seawater beneath the pycnocline: affect marine life. Water flowing horizontally at the uppermost 400 meters (1300 feet: above the pycnocline. Involves about 10% of the water in the oceans. Driven mainly by friction between the wind and the ocean: most of the earth"s surface wind energy is concentrated in each hemisphere"s trade winds (easterlies) and westerlies. Gyre- the circular flow of water around the periphery of an ocean basin. Direct methods: floating device tracked through time fixed current meter indirect methods, pressure gradients, radar altimeters, doppler flow meter. Ekman spiral a theoretical model of the effect on water of the wind blowing over the ocean.
