What drives Ekman transport?

What drives Ekman transport?

Winds are the main source of energy for ocean circulation, and Ekman Transport is a component of wind-driven ocean current. Ekman transport occurs when ocean surface waters are influenced by the friction force acting on them via the wind.

What force is responsible for Ekman spiral?

The effect is a consequence of the Coriolis effect which subjects moving objects to an apparent force to the right of their direction of motion in the northern hemisphere (and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere).

What is the primary mechanism for the Ekman spiral effect?

1 The Ekman spiral, shown for the Northern Hemisphere. Wind blowing over the water (blue arrow) creates a surface current 45o offset from the wind. Each successive layer of water is moved and deflected by the layer above, creating a spiraling pattern of water movement that diminishes with depth.

What is true Ekman transport?

Ekman transport is to the right of the wind direction in the Northern Hemisphere. The Coriolis effect causes surface waters to move at an angle relative to the wind direction. In the deeper layers of the Ekman spiral, water can move in a direction opposite of the wind direction.

What is the Ekman spiral quizlet?

Ekman spiral. A thoretical model of the effect on water of wind blowing over the ocean. Due to the Coriolis effect, the surface layer is expected to drift 45 degrees to the right or left of the wind. Water at lower layers drifts to the right or left, though not as fast as the layers above it due to friction.

What does the Ekman spiral describe quizlet?

Ekman spiral: Wind creates a surface current that spirals in a clockwise direction as depth decreases, flowing in the opposite direction of the wind at about 100m depth. ( spiral is in the opposite direction in the southern hemisphere)

Where does Ekman divergence occur?

Coastal Upwelling In the northern hemisphere, Ekman divergence occurs when the wind blows parallel to a coastline on its left. For example, during spring and summer the mean winds along the west coast of North America are southward. Associated with these winds is a net westward Ekman transport.

What does the Ekman spiral describe?

An Ekman spiral (A) is a rotating column of water that forms when water moves at an angle to the wind direction due to the Coriolis Effect. The net effect of the rotating water (B) is movement at right angle to the wind direction. The water turns to the left instead of right in the Southern Hemisphere.

What is the caused of the Ekman spiral quizlet?

Ekman Spiral Is Caused By. Surface Ocean Currents. Salinity And Temperature.

What are the layers of water referred to in an Ekman spiral?

Ekman layer, a vertical region of the ocean affected by the movement of wind-driven surface waters. This layer, named for the Swedish oceanographer V. Walfrid Ekman, extends to a depth of about 100 metres (about 300 feet). This phenomenon is called Ekman transport, and its effects are widely observed in the oceans.

Where Ekman transport is deflected away from the shore?

Coastal upwelling occurs where Ekman transport moves surface waters away from the coast; surface waters are replaced by water that wells up from below.

Where is the Ekman layer?

ocean
The Ekman layer is the layer in a fluid where there is a force balance between pressure gradient force, Coriolis force and turbulent drag. It was first described by Vagn Walfrid Ekman. Ekman layers occur both in the atmosphere and in the ocean.

How did the Ekman spiral get its name?

Click the image for a larger view. The Ekman spiral, named after Swedish scientist Vagn Walfrid Ekman (1874-1954) who first theorized it in 1902, is a consequence of the Coriolis effect. When surface water molecules move by the force of the wind, they, in turn, drag deeper layers of water molecules below them.

Where does the water move in the Ekman spiral?

The causes the surface water to move in a direction about 45 degrees offset from the wind direction, with the deflection to the right of the wind in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere.

How does Ekman transport affect the surface of the ocean?

Ekman transport contributes to fundamental features of the surface ocean. In coastal areas where prevailing winds blow along the coast, Ekman transport causes surface water to flow offshore. This movement of water away from the coast at the surface causes deeper water to upwell.

How does the Ekman transport affect the gyre?

The Ekman transport piles up water in the center of the gyre, making the water level higher in the gyre center than on the edges of the gyres. This pile of water then has a tendency to flow back “downhill” due to gravity. As the water flows “downhill” away from the gyre center, it is deflected to the right by the Coriolis force.