|
|
Article: Oceans, Polar
- Article from:
- Water:Science and Issues
- Author:
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)
|
Oceans, Polar
The Arctic Ocean and the Southern Ocean (the ocean around Antarctica) have different characteristics than the rest of the world's oceans in terms of circulation, formation of bottom water, convergent and divergent water masses, productivity, ice cover, and biological diversity. In addition, polar oceans are inextricably linked to climate change, and hence continued to be studied in the context of global warming.
Antarctic Ocean
The water surrounding the Antarctic continent is often called the Antarctic or Southern Ocean. The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), at 0 to 200 meters (0 to 650 feet) in depth, is the dominant surface-water circulation pattern in this polar ...