the gulf stream - why does it happen?
354326
The answer is kind of complicated.  To explain it as simply as possible, it has to do with the fact that the Gulf Stream is just one part of an enormous, clockwise-spinning gyre in the North Atlantic that is powered by a combination of the Earth's rotation, interaction with semi-permanent high and low pressure regions, and surface winds.  The net effect is  to channel large of amounts of warm water northward in the  west Atlantic (as the Gulf Stream), and an equal amount of cool water south in the eastern Atlantic (as the Canary Current).
662087
water temperature is a biggie..and more recently..since they've been collecting data on hurricanes for around 30 years now...they're using trend maps to try to see any kind of pattern in Hurricane occurances each year\n\nthere are "ups" and "downs" when it comes to the numbers of hurricanes each year..and this up/down period lasts for several years...we are currently in one of hte "up" periods..and using that past history..correlated with water temperatures off the coast of africa and the location/temperature of the jet stream..its fairly safe to assume a good number..due to large amounts of moisture down there..and the always predictable convective activity (what starts hurricanes..a lifting force that gets the clouds to build)
517695
tradewinds\n"During El Niño events, the normal pattern relaxes. The tradewinds weaken, particularly west of the Dateline, and the piled-up water in the west sloshes back east, carrying the warm pool with it. The region of rising air moves east with the warm pool, and so does the pumping of heat and moisture into the upper atmosphere. Deflections in the normal wind patterns distort the usual paths of the jetstreams, pushing them from their accustomed places, which eventually causes the changes in the weather that the rest of the world experiences. With weakened tradewinds, the deep cool waters coming up in the east slow their ascent. The food supply for plankton dwindles, and the effect travels up the food chain. When eastern sea surface temperature becomes warm, the east-to-west temperature contrast is small, and so the tradewinds weaken even further, leading to a complete collapse with essentially flat conditions across the entire equatorial Pacific."
417730
It could also be the wind going in different directions pushing the top layer of the water in different directions which in turn, gives you different reflections which can appear to be separated.
847104
I can see that you have never been to the Panama Canal and discovered that the Pacific Ocean is higher than the Gulf of Mexico...a sea level ditch would cause the Pacific Ocean to flow into the Gulf of Mexico until it had reached an equal hieght...flooding all cities along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.
552585
Oceanic currents are part of the global system of circulation that distributes the Sun's energy (including warmth) in the planet. Just like the wind currents transport warmer and colder air masses, oceanic currents distribute colder water from the poles to lower latitudes (cold currents are usually deep because cold water sinks under warmer water masses), and warm water from intertropical areas gets transported to higher latitudes (surface currents). \nOceanic currents also differ in their salinity (salt concentration) levels, which is also very important for aquatic organisms as well as for the global circulation, because salinity affects the freezing point of water. Therefore, oceanic currents affect the normal formation of ice, which also affects neighboring land masses and in turn alters the global circulation. \n\nThe influence of oceanic currents is especially important in coastal areas, but the amounts of energy transported by oceanic currents equals the transport by wind currents, and can affect temperature/precipitation balances throughout the world. El Niño (it's complete name is ENSO - El Niño Southern Oscillation) is a good example of the way a change in an oceanic current can alter land climate, e.g. causing droughts.\nAnother example is the Gulf Stream which "warms up" the North Atlantic Ocean and northeaster Europe.\n\nAbout the El Niño-La Niña cycle (ENSO):\nhttp://www.cdc.noaa.gov/ENSO/
901542
It is not a place.  It is an atmospheric phenomenon.  It is a periodic weather pattern that results in more severe weathe patterns than normal.  This usually means heavier winds and rains during the season.\n\nIt is NOT an ocean current, although ocean currents are the reason weather patterns persist.\n\nThe pattern is not exactly repetitive, so it cannot be particulary predicted with any accuracy.  While some try, no one can really say that we are in an "El Nino" westher pattern until we are well in one.
706341
The Gulf Stream acts as a heat supply for Western Europe during the winter, keeping it milder than west coast of USA.  During the summer the sea acts as a source of cooler winds keeping much of the land mass in a temperate climate.
929832
the pacific on the west coast at least. there is the gulf current that runs along the east coast which brings warm water fromt he gulf up. on the western side of the pacific (japan) there are warm currents there also called the kiroshio(sp?) current. it depends what part of the atlantic or pacific you are in =)
219448
The warm waters of the Gulf Stream are nutrient-poor compared to more fertile waters closer to shore; hence, the reason they are clear and blue.  Warm, tropical waters are nutrient-poor in general.
1123549
The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension, the North Atlantic Drift, is a powerful, warm, and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico, exits through the Strait of Florida, and follows the eastern coastlines of the United States and Newfoundland before crossing the Atlantic Ocean
1017101
I think you mean the Gulf of Oman. Right? It's a strait. I'm not sure of the age. I think it's been around before records because it is from the real world. Like when the land filled with water, with the ocean and such, yeah.
171188
There are several answers to this question, Atmospheric pressure. The jet stream. The spinning of the earth. But the underlying principal cause is the sun. The suns rays create heat. The heat hits the earth in an uneven way, and that temperature differential creates differences in pressure it these differences in pressure that drive our winds and move air masses of different temperatures that create weather
520750
When swimming in the ocean, have you ever wondered why you tend to be carried down the beach, away from your towel in an undertow? \n\nThe answer is simple. This process is called longshore drift and is generated by wave and current action. \n\nWater and sediment are transported in a zig-zag pattern as waves and currents approach the shoreline at an angle. This zig-zag pattern is the mechanism for sediment transport as the swash is immediately followed by the backwash to the ocean. This energy created from the breaking waves allows for weak currents to carry large amounts of coarse-grained sediment down the shoreline. These weak currents, known as longshore currents, carry water and sediment parallel to the shoreline toward the downdrift end of the beach
86454
Various explanations for the apparent high number of dissapperances have been put forward, ranging from the mundane to the hyper-fantastic.\n\nSkeptics contend that this region has a comparable rate of maritime and aerial incidents as any other similar sized region of the ocean. They point out that Lloyd's of London, a world-reknowned insurer of maritime vessels, does not charge a higher insurance premium for ships that regularly traverse the triangle.\n\nScientific considerations for an increased dissaperance rate take into acount that this region experiences severe tropical storms and is the source of many hurricanes. These storms create an increased danger to both ship and air traffic.\n\nRougue waves have also been put forward as a possible cause. These rare waves can reach heights of as much as 100 feet (30 meters), easily swamping most ships. Rouge waves, however, would have no effect on air travel.\n\nA third scientific explanation is methane hydrates. Methane deposits on the ocean floor may release bursts of methane gas that reduces the density of the water it permeates. Since ships rely on displacement to stay afloat, a reduction of density in the water would cause a ship to immediately sink. As the methane leaves the water and rises into the air, it would reduce the density of the air as well, thus reducing lift on aircraft, causing them to descend rapidly. In addition, the methane would change the air mixture taken into the engines of the aircraft, causing the engine to stall. While these events have not been witnessed in nature, they have been proven in lab experiments.
903178
Deep water cycling due to deep currents (like the Gulf Stream) brings in waters with different temps, pH and diversity.
894097
This is what causes a surface current. \nAs winds blow across the ocean, there is friction between the wind and the water. Some of the energy of the wind is transferred to the water to make waves which travel across the surface of the ocean and some of the energy is transferred into surface currents.\nWhen currents run into something, like a continent, they must change direction. The current must turn right or left to form boundary currents or flow below the surface of the ocean to form a subsurface current.