Upwelling

• brings cold water from deeper regions to surface
• Northerly surface winds create offshore surface water flow
• Cold, nutrient-rich water rises to replace the surface water (good for fishing- Peru)
• process is dominant when winds are parallel to coastline
• check out this SST image off the west coast of the US - can you see the effects of upwelling in the data?

QUESTIONS FOR THOUGHT:

1.  Why do the major ocean currents in the North Indian Ocean reverse direction between summer and winter?

2.  Explain why icebergs tend to move at right angles to the wind direction.