Thibodaux minerva., 1856-03-08
Influence of the Gulf Stream upon Oh.

| influence Of the Gulf Stream uno, rr,:-
lieut. Maury, in his Physical Geo,,,,,
t.e sea, devotes chapter to the discnSlp;uy Of
Ellis interesting subject, and clearly exnI,ro" Of
,e'sons why the climate OF Great Britain w." We
fA"oPe ana the North Atlantic Ocean is 50 ,serH s'
o'e ., en'ai 'hall tat OF the same latitudes MUM n
s,e Al'ier'can continent He says that tho on p,
| Stream Is nothing more than the copdrc,;r ruf
| OF an immense heating apparatus of W., ~ Pipe
| torrid zone is the furnace. and tho Nm: '''ch The
| and the Caribbean Sea the cauldrnn, r., daf
mum temperature of the waters in tho rae,att natt
| Sea and the Gulf of Mexico is nine,v a''ooeaa
That of the Gulf Stream when it leaves ~ esfeeS
Is eighty-sN, Or about nine degrees above y 'uf
the ocean in the same latitude Increas;no : "s, OF
t'le ten degrees, it loses but two degrees IS ~s'
perature, and after having three tlous,na 't,N'
towards the north, it still preserves, even in
the heat of summer. With this temno.,. winter,
crosses the tortieth degree of north ati,na ue 1t
then, overflo"ing its liquid banks, sprc,JS and
out for thousands of square leagues over ~ iseif
waters around and covers the ocean with "'e cold
OF warmth. Moving more slowly, but ds,a.'e mantle
its genial influences more freely, it fn,f" pensIhg
the British Islands, and dividing, one n,', '."cnes
into the polar basin Of Spitzberyen and ,"' ,t goes
enters the Bay of Bscay, each with x.,,n WI. Other
slderably above the ocean temperature "''' Coll
such an immense volume of heated vo,.
inevitably carry with it beyond the seas Mia must
moist climate. Every west wind that bows aa' anu
the stream, on its way to Europe, carries with ;,s
part OF Its heat to temper there the north.n a
of winter. ''e'h "lnds
1t is the influence Of this stream upon tho cl;,.
that makes Ireland the Emerald Isle Of tho "nae a'
and clothes the shore of Albion in evergreen .os
The Gulf Stream carries drift wood from tho 'es VS.
lndles to the Orkney Islands, and its genial ;nan
ence among those Islands, at a latitude Of sixty ds
srees is said to be such that the ponds in them w.
seldom frozen IN the winter. Liverpool, which :.
two degrees north OF the harbor of St. johns a.
Newfoundland, is comparatively warm and pleas,n.
Lieutenant Maury estimates that if the tempa.ss
and velocity of the Gulf Stream are the same y,
a depth Of two hundred fathoms, as they ara a. ~
surface, the quantity of heat discharged a'ae
Atlantic, from its waters, i'll a winters dav u,",s m
be sufficient to raise the whole column ~ WV. "ouu
sphere that rests upon France and the R.;.;"p a'
Islands, from the freezing point to summe, ho. 'n
But the beneficial effects of the Gulf St,a.ua nsa
not confined to the diffusion Of warmth in ,,aa a.e
parts Of the surface of the earth which travsrsa
an all-wise Providence has made it vehicle ts'
away the surplus heat of Central Amercs
and Mexico, which would otherwise make tho lor
lands OF those countries the hottest and perban.
the most pestilential regions in the world Tbs
heated waters of the Caribbean Sea and the (,plfr
Mexico are carried off by the Gulf Stream and
their place supplied by constant flow of cooa
water from the ocean depths. calculation h,sod
lpon the difference in the temperatures of the va.
ers which enter the Gulf OF Mexico and tboo
which flow from it in the Gulf Stream, show tb,,
he quantities OF specific heat daily carried off bv
his huge river, and discharged over the Atlantic
sufficient to raise mountains of iron from zero to
he melting point, and to keep in flow from them A
molten stream OF metal, greater in volume than the
vater discharged from the mouth of the Missssnn;
iver. Who can calculate the benign influence Of
his wonderful current upon the climate Of tho
'outhe
Lieutenant Maury saws that the Gulf Stream il
lso the greatest water-breeder of the North At.
'ntic ocean. The most furious gales sweep along
, and doubtless the fogs Of Newfoundland, which
ndanger navigation in winter, owe their existence
} the presence of its volumes of warm water. Iu
ulrles which were set on foot some years ago bv
lie British Admiralty rs to the cause of disastrous
.orns in certain parts of the Atlantic, resulted in
1e conclusion that they are occasioned by the dif
renee between the temperature of the Gulf Stream
nd that of the neighboring regions. The course
many gales has been traced from the place Of
'eir origin directly to the Gulf Stream They
ave been known to take their rise upon the coas.
Africa as far down as the parallel of ten or ff
en- degrees north latitude, and crossing the ocean
the Gulf Stream, turn about, and travelling along
course, recross the. Atlantic, and so reach the
Ores of Europe. The tracks of storms have
zen traced out and followed in this way for week
ten days, and their paths are marked by ship
Cssoc Dl,. l.,
lie to satisfactorily explain why these storms al.
ost always travel towards the Gulf Stream, and
ming it sweep along its current. Even Mauy
empts to offer no solution of the mystery