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Ocean Currents – Shortcut method by to

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What are Ocean Currents? Which are the major Ocean Currents? How to learn
the names of various Ocean Currents? Read to know more.

In our geography notes (https://www.clearias.com/category/geography-notes/) on the

hydrosphere, we have seen the major movements of the ocean water
(https://www.clearias.com/movements-ocean-waves-tides-currents/). They are – waves,
tides and ocean currents.
https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

Having covered the fundamentals, we shall see in this post, a super-fast way to learn the
details of ocean currents.

Table of Contents
1. Names, direction, nature….and what not!
2. How can you learn the names of ocean currents, faster?
3. What are the points to remember?
3.1. North Equatorial Current
3.2. South Equatorial Current
3.3. Equatorial Counter Current
3.4. Antarctic Circumpolar Current or West Wind Drift
4. Gyres of Ocean Currents in each of the major Oceans
5. Currents of the Atlantic Ocean

5.0.1. Atlantic Ocean: Northern Hemisphere

5.0.2. Atlantic Ocean: Southern Hemisphere
6. Currents of the Pacific Ocean
6.0.1. Pacific Ocean: Northern Hemisphere
:
 6.0.2. Pacific Ocean: Southern Hemisphere
7. Currents of the Indian Ocean
7.0.1. Indian Ocean: Northern Hemisphere during winter
7.0.2. Indian Ocean: Northern Hemisphere during summer
7.0.3. Indian Ocean: Southern Hemisphere
8. Summary

Names, direction, nature….and what not!

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WarmCurrent ColdCurrent

Well, you might have heard so many names like Kuroshio current, Oyashio current, Peru
current etc. Is Kuroshio a cold current or warm current? Where is its location?

It’s not easy to remember all the names, locations and types (warm or cold) of ocean
currents – without the right guidance. UPSC often ask questions in Prelims and Mains from
the topic of ocean currents. So, what is the short-cut approach to learning fast? Well, wait
and see.

How can you learn the names of ocean currents,

https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

faster?
ClearIAS has prepared a mind map from the above map. We have shown the major current
systems in the three oceans – Atlantic ocean, Indian Ocean and Pacific ocean – from left to
right. Continents are represented in ‘Green’, warm ocean currents in ‘Red’, and cold ocean
currents in ‘Blue’. Hope it’s easy now!
:
 What are the points to remember?
There are gyres in each of the oceans – The Pacific, Atlantic and Indian ocean. (Any
large system of rotating ocean current, particularly those involved with large wind
movements is called a Gyre.).
Current direction: In general, currents in the northern hemisphere travel in the
clockwise direction in a gyre, while currents in the southern hemisphere travel in the
anti-clockwise direction ( the only exception is the current direction in the Indian
ocean, which changes seasonally.)
The ocean current movement in the north-Atlantic gyre, as well as north-Pacific gyre,
is clockwise, while the gyres in the Southern hemisphere are anti-clockwise.
Current temperature: In general, currents in the western part of every continent
are cold (the exceptions are mentioned in the article on movements of the ocean water
(https://www.clearias.com/movements-ocean-waves-tides-currents/)).
Currents coming from the polar region are generally cold.
Currents near to equator are generally warm.
There is a counter-equatorial current, which moves from west to east (warm).
The west-wind drift moves from west to east (cold)
https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

Now, that’s the only quick note you need to learn the flow pattern of ocean currents. With
the above points, you can find the nature of almost all currents. Let’s analyse the major
ocean currents.

1. North Equatorial Current

It is a significant Pacific and Atlantic Ocean current that flows from east to west.
They flow in between 100 north and 200 north latitudes.
Despite its name, the North Equatorial Current is not connected to the equator.
In both oceans, it is separated from the equatorial circulation by the equatorial
countercurrent, which flows eastward.

2. South Equatorial Current

It is a significant ocean current in the Pacific, Atlantic and the Indian Ocean that flows
from east to west.
:
 from east to west.
They flow in between the equator and about 200 south.
In the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, it extends across the equator to about 50 north.

3. Equatorial Counter Current

It is an eastward flowing current found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans.
It is found in between the North Equatorial and South Equatorial Currents at about 3-
100 northern latitudes.
This counter-current replaces the water removed from the eastern side of the ocean by
the North Equatorial and South Equatorial Currents.
In the Indian Ocean, the current tends to reverse hemispheres seasonally due to the
impact of reversing Asian monsoons.

4. Antarctic Circumpolar Current or West Wind Drift

It is an ocean current that flows from west to east around Antarctica.

The current is circumpolar due to the lack of any landmass connecting with Antarctica
and thus keeps warm ocean waters away from Antarctica.

https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

The Antarctic Convergence is associated with this current. It is the region where the
cold Antarctic waters meet the water of the Sub-Antarctic, creating a zone of upwelling
(a zone of very high marine productivity).

Gyres of Ocean Currents in each of the major Oceans

:
 The major loops are seen in the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean in both
the hemispheres. Each of the currents follows more or less a definite pattern. But the
currents in the Indian Ocean (Northern Hemisphere) change the flow direction between
summer and winter.

Currents of the Atlantic Ocean

To the north and south of the equator, there are two westward-moving currents, i.e.,
the North and the South Equatorial Currents.
Between these two, there is the counter-equatorial current which moves from west to
east.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: NORTHERN HEMISPHERE

The South Equatorial Current bifurcates into two branches near the Cape De Sao
Roque in Brazil and its northern branch joins the North Equatorial Current.
A part of this combined current enters the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, while
the remaining current passes along the eastern side of the West Indies as the Antilles
Current.
The part of the current which enters the Gulf of Mexico comes out from the Florida
Strait and joins the Antilles Current.
https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

This combined current moves along the south-eastern coast of the U.S.A. and is known
as the Florida Current up to Cape Hatteras.
Beyond Cape Hatteras, it is known as the Gulf Stream.
The Gulf Stream starts when it exits the Florida Strait and follows North America
northward to Newfoundland.

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A cold current from the Arctic Ocean called Labrador Current, which flows along
the eastern coast of Canada, meets the warm Gulf Stream near the northeast corner of
the U.S.A.
The confluence of these two currents, one cold and the other warm, produce fog
around the region and makes it the most important fishing ground in the world.
The Gulf Stream then deflected eastward under the combined influence of the
westerlies and the rotation of the earth.
It then crosses the Atlantic Ocean as the warm North Atlantic Drift.
In this journey, another cold current from the Arctic called the East Greenland Current
joins with the North Atlantic Drift.
The North Atlantic Drift bifurcates into two branches on reaching the eastern part of
the ocean.
The northern branch continues as North Atlantic Drift; reaches the British Isles from
where it flows along the coast of Norway as the warm Norwegian Current and
enters the Arctic Ocean.
The southern branch flows between Spain and Azores Island as the cold Canaries
Current.
The Canaries Current finally joins the North Equatorial Current and completes the
circuit.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE

https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

The South Equatorial Current turns south and flows along the eastern coast of South

America as Brazil Current.

At about 350 south latitude, due to the influence of westerlies and the rotation of the
earth, the current moves eastward.
A cold current called the Falkland Current which flows along the south-eastern
:
 A cold current called the Falkland Current which flows along the south-eastern
coast of South America from south to north joins with the current at this time.
The Brazil Current moves eastward and crosses the Atlantic Ocean as South Atlantic
Current.
A part of the west wind drift or the Antarctic Circumpolar Current merges with the
South Atlantic Current while crossing the Atlantic.
Near the Cape of Good Hope, the South Atlantic Current is diverted northward as the
Cold Benguela Current.
Benguela Current finally joins with the South Equatorial Current and completes the
circuit.

Also read: Bottom topography of Atlantic Ocean (https://www.clearias.com/bottom-

topography-atlantic-ocean/)

Currents of the PaciPc Ocean

PACIFIC OCEAN: NORTHERN HEMISPHERE
The North Equatorial Current turns northward and flows along the Philippines
Islands, Taiwan, and Japan to form the warm Kuro Shio or Kuro Siwo current.

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https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

Later, a cold current called Oya Shio or Oya Siwo which flows along the eastern
coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula merges with the Kuro Shio Current (Okhotsk
Current is a cold current that merges with the Oya Shio before its confluence with Kuro
Shio).
From the southeast coast of Japan, the Kuro Shio current comes under the influence of
westerlies and flow right across the ocean as the North Pacific Current.
After reaching the west coast of North America, it bifurcates into two branches: the
northern branch flows anti-clockwise along the coast of Alaska as warm Alaska
Current and the southern branch moves southward along the coast of California as
the cold California Current.
California Current eventually joins with the North Equatorial Current and completes
the circuit.

PACIFIC OCEAN: SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE

:
 In the South Pacific Ocean, the South Equatorial Current flows towards the west and
turns southward as the East Australian Current.
From Tasmania, it flows as the cold South Pacific Current from west to east and
crosses the Pacific Ocean along with the West Wind Drift.
On reaching the south-western coast of South America, it turns northward and flows
as the cold Peru Current or Humbolt Current.
The cold waters of the Peru Current
(https://geography.about.com/od/physicalgeography/a/oceancurrents.htm) are
partially responsible for making the coast of northern Chile and western Peru with
very scanty rainfall.
Peru Current eventually joins with the South Equatorial Current and completes the
circuit.

Currents of the Indian Ocean

The pattern of circulation of ocean currents in the Indian Ocean differs from the
general pattern of circulation in the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans.
This is because the Indian Ocean is blocked by the continental masses in the north.
The general pattern of circulation in the southern hemisphere of the Indian Ocean is
anti-clockwise as that of the other oceans.
In the northern hemisphere, there is a clear reversal of currents in the winter and
summer seasons, which are completely under the influence of the seasonal changes of
monsoon winds.
https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

INDIAN OCEAN: NORTHERN HEMISPHERE DURING WINTER

During winter, Sri Lanka divides the currents of the Arabian Sea from those of the Bay
of Bengal.
The North-East Monsoon Drift flows westward just south of Sri Lanka with a
countercurrent flow between it and the South Equatorial Current.
:
 countercurrent flow between it and the South Equatorial Current.
During the winter season, in the northern section, the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian
Sea are under the influence of North East Monsoon Winds.
These North East Monsoon winds drive the waters of the Bay of Bengal and the
Arabian Sea westward to circulate in an anti-clockwise direction.

INDIAN OCEAN: NORTHERN HEMISPHERE DURING SUMMER

In summer, the northern part comes under the influence of the South West Monsoon.
It results in an easterly movement of water in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea in
a clockwise direction.
This current is called the South West Monsoon Drift.
In the Indian Ocean, the summer currents are more regular than those of the winter.

INDIAN OCEAN: SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE

In the southern part, the South Equatorial Current which flows from east to west is
strengthened by its corresponding current of the Pacific Ocean.
It then turns southward along the coast of Mozambique in Africa.
A part of this current moving in between the African mainland and Mozambique is
called the warm Mozambique Current.
https://www.clearias.com/ocean-currents/#indian-ocean-southern-hemisphere

After the confluence of these two parts, the current is called Agulhas Current.
Agulhas Current merges with the West Wind Drift when it crosses the Indian Ocean.
A branch of this merged current flows along the western coast of Australia as the cold
West Australian Current.
It later joins with the South Equatorial Current to complete the circuit.

Also read: Indian Ocean Geoid Low (https://www.clearias.com/indian-ocean-geoid-low/)

Summary
As mentioned above, the quick way to remember ocean currents is to remember the gyres.

Currents in the western part of every continent are cold.

Currents coming from the polar region are generally cold.

Currents near to equator are generally warm.

:
 Article by: Jijo Sudarsan

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