Ocean current

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An ocean current is a current that flows more or less permanently in one of the Earth's oceans.

Ocean currents may flow for thousands of kilometers. They are very important in determining the climates of the continents bordering on the oceans they flow in. The most striking example is the Gulf Stream, which makes north-west Europe much more temperate than any other region at the same latitude. However the importance of currents is also illustrated by the El Niño effect, in which the temporary reversal of an ocean current causes devastating climatic change in South America, whose effects spread as far as Australia.

Currents that flow under the surface of the ocean, and are thus hidden from immediate detection, are called submarine rivers.

Ocean currents are also very important in the dispersal of many life forms. A dramatic example is the life-cycle of the eel.

Important currents include:

Arctic Ocean

• East Greenland Current
• Norwegian Current

Atlantic Ocean

• Labrador Current
• Gulf Stream
• North Equatorial Current
• South Equatorial Current
• North Brazil Current
• Guinea Current
• Angola Current
• Brazil Current
• Benguela current
• South Atlantic Current

Pacific Ocean

• Aleutian Current
• North Pacific Current (or North Pacific Drift)
• Humboldt Current (or Peru Current)
• Kuroshio Current (or Japan Current)
• Oyashio Current
• North Equatorial Current
• South Equatorial Current
• Cromwell current

Indian Ocean

• Agulhas Current
• East Madagascar Current
• Somali Current
• Mozambique Current
• Leeuwin Current
• Indonesian Through-flow
• North Equatorial Current
• South Equatorial Current
• Indian Monsoon

Southern Ocean

• Antarctic Circumpolar Current
• Weddell Gyre

External link

• NOAA Ocean Surface Current Analyses - Realtime (OSCAR) Near-realtime Pacific Ocean Surface Currents derived from satellite altimeter and scatterometer data

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