- published: 01 Dec 2012
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An ocean current is a continuous, directed movement of seawater generated by forces acting upon this mean flow, such as breaking waves, wind, the Coriolis effect, cabbeling, temperature and salinity differences, while tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the Sun and Moon. Depth contours, shoreline configurations, and interactions with other currents influence a current's direction and strength.
Ocean currents flow for great distances, and together, create the global conveyor belt which plays a dominant role in determining the climate of many of the Earth’s regions. More specifically, ocean currents influence the temperature of the regions through which they travel. For example, warm currents traveling along more temperate coasts increase the temperature of the area by warming the sea breezes that blow over them. Perhaps the most striking example is the Gulf Stream, which makes northwest Europe much more temperate than any other region at the same latitude. Another example is Lima, Peru where the climate is cooler (sub-tropical) than the tropical latitudes in which the area is located, due to the effect of the Humboldt Current.
An ocean (from Ancient Greek Ὠκεανός, transc. Okeanós, the sea of classical antiquity) is a body of saline water that composes much of a planet's hydrosphere. On Earth, an ocean is one of the major conventional divisions of the World Ocean, which covers almost 71% of its surface. These are, in descending order by area, the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern, and Arctic Oceans. The word sea is often used interchangeably with "ocean" in American English but, strictly speaking, a sea is a body of saline water (generally a division of the world ocean) partly or fully enclosed by land.
Saline water covers approximately 72% of the planet's surface (~3.6×108 km2) and is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas, with the ocean covering approximately 71% of Earth's surface. The ocean contains 97% of Earth's water, and oceanographers have stated that less than 5% of the World Ocean has been explored. The total volume is approximately 1.35 billion cubic kilometers (320 million cu mi) with an average depth of nearly 3,700 meters (12,100 ft).
Current may refer to:
This video explains in detail the phenomenon of ocean currents and their role in nature. This is a product of Mexus Education Pvt. Ltd., an education innovations company based in Mumbai, India. http://www.mexuseducation.com, http://www.ikenstore.in
Demonstration and do-it-yourself experiment about how hot and cold currents mix. ©2015 Tamara T Helfer
Language: Hindi, Topics Covered: 1. Motion of ocean water: horizontal (waves and currents), vertical (upwelling and tides) 2. Ocean currents: meaning, importance, distribution and factors responsible. 3. Effect of Insolation and Salinity gradients on the ocean currents 4. Factor modifying the ocean currents: coastline and coriolis force 5. Ocean currents of the world 6. North Atlantic currents 7. New foundland islands – meeting of warm and cold currents 8. Effect of North Atlantic drift, Effect of Canary current 9. Sargasso Sea 10. South Atlantic currents 11. Meeting of warm and cold currents at Bahia Blanca, New Foundland Islands, Japanese Coast 12. Currents of North Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Indian Ocean, South Indian Ocean 13. Solution of UPSC Prelim Questions from 1997, 2002, 201...
Very easy trick to remember ocean currents
This video explains in detail the importance of ocean currents. This is a product of Mexus Education Pvt. Ltd., an education innovations company based in Mumbai, India. http://www.mexuseducation.com, http://www.ikenstore.in
MPPSC, SSC exams
Saltstraumen is a small strait with the strongest tidal current in the world. It is located in the municipality of Bodø in Nordland county, Norway. It is located about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) southeast of the town of Bodø. The narrow channel connects the outer Saltfjorden to the large Skjerstadfjorden between the islands of Straumøya and Knaplundsøya. The Saltstraumen Bridge on Norwegian County Road 17 crosses the Saltstraumen. SUBSCRIBE to my YouTube channel for more great videos: http://www.youtube.com/norwegianrobot Saltstraumen has the strongest tidal current in the world. Up to 400,000,000 cubic metres (520,000,000 cu yd) of seawater forces its way through a 3-kilometre (1.9 mi) long and 150-metre (490 ft) wide strait every six hours, with water speeds reaching 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 ...
Currents keep the ocean moving. They start with spin of the Earth and the heat of the Sun. The salt in seawater makes the density, water's weight, change. That helps push water from one side of the world to the other. Without motion in the ocean, there wouldn't be nearly as many different things living in the sea. There would probably be none of us. Currents out in the Ocean make our world the way it.
Find 1500+ education videos available at http://www.youtube.com/user/IkenEdu Water is an important part of our life. The biggest source of water is Ocean. There are a lot of things we can see in an ocean. Human designed so many machines that can measure the depth and life within the ocean. In this video, you will learn all about those things as well as Tides, Ocean currents and waves. Don't miss to share this with your friends!
PHS165 Monsoons Jet Streams Ocean Currents S Oscillation
Language: Hindi, Topics Covered: 1. Motion of ocean water: horizontal (waves and currents), vertical (upwelling and tides) 2. Ocean currents: meaning, importance, distribution and factors responsible. 3. Effect of Insolation and Salinity gradients on the ocean currents 4. Factor modifying the ocean currents: coastline and coriolis force 5. Ocean currents of the world 6. North Atlantic currents 7. New foundland islands – meeting of warm and cold currents 8. Effect of North Atlantic drift, Effect of Canary current 9. Sargasso Sea 10. South Atlantic currents 11. Meeting of warm and cold currents at Bahia Blanca, New Foundland Islands, Japanese Coast 12. Currents of North Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Indian Ocean, South Indian Ocean 13. Solution of UPSC Prelim Questions from 1997, 2002, 201...