OCEAN CURRENTS and HEAT TRANSFER

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OCEAN CURRENTS and HEAT TRANSFER
Water heats up and cools down very slowly. But
once it has stored it, it holds on to that
temperature for a long time. As currents move,
they transport heat and cold around the globe.
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• The pattern of ocean currents is linked to the
  pressure belts and wind patterns.
• Land masses disrupt an otherwise straight-forward
  water flow pattern.
• Winds blowing over currents assist them in
  transferring heat from warm to cool areas and
  vice versa.
• Winds deflected by the Coriolis force help to
  create the currents.
• The nature of the current affects the land masses
  it flows beside.

Copy this
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Read pages 16-18 and then answer the questions on
the slides.

• Q1. What sets off ocean currents?
• Surface prevailing winds set off most currents.

Q2. In what direction does a northern hemisphere
current bend, and why? A. It bends to the right
due to the Coriolis effect.
Q3. What happens to the coldest ,densest water at
the Poles? A. It sinks to the ocean floor and
returns to the Equator below the warmer water
layer.
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Q4. What happens therefore to warmer, lighter
water? A. It rises to the surface and flows away
from the Equator. (i.e. A convection cell is
created ! )
Q5. What is a gyre? A. It is a three-dimensional
circular flow of water.

• Q6. In which directions do each flow?
• In the northern hemisphere, clockwise ( and
  v.v.). Is this the same as bathwater down your
  plug? Do this for homework !

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• Q7. Give an example of a current which-
• Is warm, coast-hugging and in the Northern
  hemisphere.
• Is cool, coast-hugging and in the Northern
  hemisphere.
• c) Is warm, coast-hugging and in the Southern
  hemisphere.
• d) Is cool, coast-hugging and in the Southern
  hemisphere.
• e). A high- latitude gyre.

Q8. Why is the Antarctic current so simplistic?
END
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Colour your diagram 17 map as follows- Blue
for the cold currents Red for the warm
currents Yellow for coasts warmed by a
current Green for coasts cooled by a current.