HomeEducationCurrents

# Boundary Currents

## Currents Tutorial

Global winds drag on the water’s surface, causing it to move and build  up in the direction that the wind is blowing. And just as the Coriolis  effect deflects winds to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to  the left in the Southern Hemisphere, it also results in the deflection  of major surface ocean currents to the right in the Northern Hemisphere  (in a clockwise spiral) and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere (in  a counter-clockwise spiral). These major spirals of ocean-circling  currents are called “gyres” and occur north and south of the equator.  They do not occur at the equator, where the Coriolis effect is not  present (Ross, 1995).

**Click the image**

----

One particularly powerful western boundary current is the Gulf Stream.  The Gulf Stream, paired with the eastern boundary Canary Current,  flanks the North Atlantic gyre. The Gulf Stream, also called the North  Atlantic Drift, originates in the Gulf of Mexico, exits through the  Strait of Florida, and follows the eastern coastline of the United  States and Newfoundland. It travels at speeds of 25 to 75 miles per day  at about one to three knots (1.15-3.45 miles per hour or 1.85-5.55  kilometers per hour). It influences the climate of the east coast of  Florida, keeping temperatures warmer in the winter and cooler than the  other southeastern states in the summer. Since it also extends toward  Europe, it warms western European countries as well.

### Currents Lessons

              - Welcome
              - Tidal Currents 1
              - Tidal Currents 2
              Coastal Currents
              - Waves
              - Longshore Currents
              - Rip Currents
              - Upwelling
              Surface Ocean Currents
              - The Coriolis Effect
              - Surface Ocean Currents
              - Boundary Currents
              - The Ekman Spiral
              The Global Conveyor Belt
              - Thermohaline Circulation
              - The Global Conveyor Belt
              - Effects of Climate Change
              How Are Currents Measured?
              - Age of Exploration
              - What is a "knot"?
              - Shallow Water Drifter
              - Deep Ocean Drifter
              - Current Profiler
              - Shore-based Current Meters
              - How Currents Affect Our Lives?
              - References
              - Roadmap to Resources
              - Subject Review

###### **Search** Education

###### Get **Social**

Contact Us

            - Provide Feedback 
            -  Contact Us 
            -  Report an error 

##### Science. Service.Stewardship.

###### 						About NOS 					

            - About Us
            - NOS Program Offices
            - Media Inquiries
            - Website Acknowledgements

###### 						Resources 					

            - Site Index
            - Disclaimer
            - Freedom of Information Act
            - Accessibility

###### 						More Resources 					

            - Information Quality
            - Privacy Policy
            - NOS For Employees
            - USA.gov

          -  National Ocean Service
          -  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
          -  Department of Commerce

##### 						Social 					

            - 
            - 
            - 
            - 
            -