chapter 9: circulation of the ocean -...
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Chapter 9:
Circulation of the Ocean
“Tropical” gardens on Britain’s
Scilly Isles. Only 48 kilometers
(30 miles) off the coast of
Cornwall at 50° N, these
scenic islands lie in the path of
the warm waters of the Gulf
Stream.
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Learning Goals:
Circulation of the Ocean
• Ocean circulation is driven by winds and by differences
in water density. Winds and ocean currents distribute
heat worldwide.
• Surface currents: driven by wind, they move in
circular patterns (gyres) around the edges of major
ocean basins. Surface = top 100 meters
• Upwelling supports the most productive fisheries.
• Thermohaline currents: slow, deep currents that affect
the bulk of seawater below the pycnocline.
• El Niño and La Niña affect ocean and atmosphere.
In El Niño years, the normal wind and current flow
changes near the coast of Peru (and influences the
whole world). 2
3
Winds, driven by
uneven solar heating
and Earth’s spin,
drive the movement
of the ocean’s surface
currents.
Two types of winds
are most important to
ocean circulation:
1) powerful westerlies
and
2) persistent trade
winds (easterlies).
4
Compare the two figures.
5
Hurricanes move with trade winds then westerlies at higher latitudes.
Cannot form on equator (air is too still here).
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Another example of isobars…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3gw8DyVsco
The low pressure cell in the northeast is
Hurricane Sandy.
7
Low pressure over ocean picks up evaporation from the ocean.
Hurricanes
8
In Southern hemisphere,
winds spin opposite.
In the Northern
Hemisphere,
hurricanes
(tropical cyclones)
turn
counterclockwise,
as winds become
deflected to the
right.
9
Two major things are needed for hurricane development:
1) High humidity
2) High temperatures (>79°F)
Red zones = where hurricanes develop 10
Compare the two figures.
11
Winds, driven by
uneven solar heating
and Earth’s spin,
drive the movement
of the ocean’s surface
currents.
Two types of winds
are most important to
ocean circulation:
1) powerful westerlies
and
2) persistent trade
winds (easterlies).
12
Northern
Hemisphere:
Coriolis Effect moves
surface waters to
right of winds.
13
Gyres – surface
currents circulating
around ocean
basins
Four forces
cause gyres:
1.Surface
winds
2.Sun’s heat
3.Coriolis
effect
4.Gravity
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For example,
the North
Atlantic Gyre
includes four
currents.
15
Earth has 2 northern gyres, 4 southern.
North Pacific Gyre
North
Atlantic Gyre
South Pacific GyreSouth
Atlantic Gyre
Indian
Ocean Gyre
Circum - Antarctic Gyre
Surface currents can be illustrated by
sea surface temperature.
Red: 25°–28°Celsius (77°–82°F).
Yellow: 20°–25°C (68°–77°F);
Green: 15°–20°C (59°–68°F);
Blue: 0°–15°C (32°–59°F).
Purple: below the freezing point of fresh water.
Note the distortion of the temperature patterns we might expect
from the effects of solar heating alone—the patterns twist
clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere, counterclockwise in the
Southern.
16
Waters brought from equator – warm-water current
“ “ “ poles – cold-water current
Surface currents, summarized with
names and usual directions.
17
Ekman spiral –
two examples of what happens
1. How water is transported in the North Atlantic
(as one example of an ocean gyre)
2. Upwelling vs. downwelling
18
Coriolis Effects felt
increasingly smaller
below sea level.
Net Effect –
90⁰ motion of winds.
Ekman spiral and
Ekman transport:
how the process works
19
Ekman Spiral – circular motion caused by geostrophic flow.
Hill pushes mixed layer deeper.
20
Center of hill not at basin center as expected.21
If the Coriolis effect didn’t exist,
ocean gyres would look like this:
Because of the Coriolis effect,
ocean gyres are “curved”:
22
Key points:
The Coriolis effect is strongest near the poles.
Red arrows: Water flowing eastward at high latitudes turns sooner
to the right (doesn’t make a square)
Green arrows: water flowing westward near the equator doesn’t
turn right until it “hits” a continent
If the Coriolis effect didn’t exist,
ocean gyres would look like this:
Because of the Coriolis effect,
ocean gyres are “curved”
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Western boundary currents are stronger than
eastern boundary currents.
24
Sverdrup – 1 million m3 of flow per second.
Western part of gyre has stronger, narrower, deeper flow.
Eastern section has weaker, wider, shallower flow.
25
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Upwelling – Cold, nutrient-rich waters brought from below.
Downwelling – warm, nutrient-poor waters forced down.27
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29
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Slightly off equator with minimal Coriolis, upwelling caused by trade winds.
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Upwelling:
cold water brings nutrients to the surface.
Canary Current
There are four major upwelling zones, and they are eastern boundary currents:
Where are they?
Benguela
Current
California Current
Humboldt Current.
33
Normally trade winds
bring upwelled nutrient-
rich waters to
Peru/Ecuador.
https://media.pearsoncmg.com/bc/bc_0media_geo/interactiveanimations/noqzs/026_ElNinoLaNina_HS_GG_Ins.html
El Niño and upwelling
34
El Niño - When trade winds slow, upwelling stops.
35
A non-El Niño year
36
An El Niño year
37
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Deep bottom waters - Arctic caused by
cooling waters39
Thermohaline circulation
also known as
the global conveyor belt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EafneRiy1ls
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuGrBhK2c7U
Fundamental process:
Gulf Stream & conveyor belt:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3niR_-Kv4SM
Conveyor belt animation (takes 1,000 years)
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Thermohaline circulation (temperature and
salinity) influence sub-surface circulations.
Distributes excess Earth’s heat. 43
Deep bottom waters – Antarctic caused by
freezing ice increasing salinity44
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