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A geostrophic current is an oceanic current in which the pressure gradient force is balanced by the Coriolis effect. The direction of geostrophic flow is parallel to the isobars , with the high pressure to the right of the flow in the Northern Hemisphere , and the high pressure to the left in the Southern Hemisphere .
Ocean currents are patterns of water movement that influence climate zones and weather patterns around the world. They are primarily driven by winds and by seawater density, although many other factors influence them – including the shape and configuration of the ocean basin they flow through. The two basic types of currents – surface and ...
Rip currents are the proximate cause of 80% of rescues carried out by beach lifeguards. [10] Rip currents typically flow at about 0.5 m/s (1.6 ft/s). They can be as fast as 2.5 m/s (8.2 ft/s), which is faster than any human can swim. Most rip currents are fairly narrow, and even the widest rip currents are not very wide.
Ocean tides; The precise measurements of TOPEX/Poseidon's and Jason-1 have brought knowledge of ocean tides to an unprecedented level. The change of water level due to tidal motion in the deep ocean is known everywhere on the globe to within 2.5 centimetres (one inch). This new knowledge has revised notions about how tides dissipate.
The Agulhas Current flows south until it joins the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, which flows east at the southern edge of the Indian Ocean Gyre. Due to the African continent not extending as far south as the Indian Ocean Gyre, some of the water in the Agulhas Current "leaks" into the Atlantic Ocean, with potentially important effects for ...
The Mediterranean Sea had two high tides and low tides, though Galileo argued that this was a product of secondary effects and that his theory would hold in the Atlantic. However, Galileo's contemporaries noted that the Atlantic also had two high tides and low tides per day, which led to Galileo omitting this claim from his 1632 Dialogue. [27]
Ocean temperature and motion fields can be separated into three distinct layers: mixed (surface) layer, upper ocean (above the thermocline), and deep ocean. Ocean dynamics has traditionally been investigated by sampling from instruments in situ. [1] The mixed layer is nearest to the surface and can vary in thickness from 10 to 500 meters.
Depending on the scale of the chart, it may show depths of water and heights of land , natural features of the seabed, details of the coastline, navigational hazards, locations of natural and human-made aids to navigation, information on tides and currents, local details of the Earth's magnetic field, and human-made structures such as harbours ...