FREE ESSAY ON STICKING WITH THE THEME OF OCEAN CURRENTS

STICKING WITH THE THEME OF OCEAN CURRENTS

Sticking with the theme of ocean currents, (from portfolio #2), I will reflect on Jan
Kay?s Dec. 4, 2000 article titled ?Warming taking food from Pacific.? This article was
retrieved from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel .
According to this article, warmer waters and changing ocean currents within the Pacific
Ocean maybe causing a decline in plankton. Ocean plankton are the food source for many
larger ocean creatures. According to a 50 year study, conducted by California Cooperative
Fisheries Investigation (CCFI), ocean waters are 2 degrees warmer. CCFI states that
within the past two decades, especially in an El Nino year, warmer tropical Pacific Ocean
currents have moved south to north along the California coast. Winds blow in directions
that don?t cause upwelling. Thus, the plants and and animals, which are usually, brought
to the surface during upwelling are not arriving.
According to yearly research, conducted by a multitude of agencies, plankton counts
dwindle every November and February due to warmer waters.
I am unfamiliar with the basic requirements of life for plankton. What I am familiar with
are ocean currents and, this article seems to be accurate in comparssion to other
sources.* 
It is commonly thought that water within the South Pacific is warmed by the tropical sun.
The Coriolis effect, in the Northern hemisphere, diverts surface currents to the right
which moves the water westerly towards SE Asia . This causes colder more dense water from
the higher latitudes along the western coast of Canada and the U.S. The water from the
higher latitudes begins to upwell as it moves south. This water begins to upwell because
it is becoming warmer and less dense as it approaches the tropics. According to this
article and satellite sensors which, help scientist map the oceans circulation, show that
waters along the western U.S. have been relatively warmer. Possible reasons for this
could be a result of global warming, warmer climates in the North Pacific Ocean, and/or
an increase frequency in the appearance of El Nino.
Bibliography
References
1. National Geographic Oct. 2000
2. http://www.acl.lanl.gov/GrandChal/GCM/currents.html