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Article: Ocean Currents
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- Water:Science and Issues
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CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Ocean Currents
Mariners have known for many centuries that the ocean contains currents that flow along generally consistent paths. The Spanish galleons transporting gold and silver from Mexico to Spain made use of the Gulf Stream to help them return home, while Benjamin Franklin used ships' log books to draw a map of this current in 1772 (see illustration on page 139 based on his original map). Since then, scientists have gained much more information on both where currents flow and why.
Why Do Currents Flow?
Currents exist at all depths in the ocean; in some regions, two or more currents flow in different directions at different depths. Although the current system is complex, ocean ...