What Do You Know About Gulf Stream?

An ocean current is called a gulf stream. It is the most famous ocean current of all and is like a river that flows through the sea instead of on land. The Gulf stream is larger than all the rivers in the world put together.

Along the coast of the Eastern United States, the Gulf stream moves northward across the North Atlantic ocean and then to northwest Europe. The indigo-blue color of the Gulf stream can be very clearly identified in contrast to the green and grey waters that it flows through.

The movement of the surface waters near the Equator in the Atlantic gives rise to the origin of the Gulf stream. This is a westward drift. The Gulf stream, as such starts by moving north of South America and into the Caribbean Sea. We name it the Gulf stream when it assumes northward movement along the east coast of the United States.

Since its origin is in the warm part of the world, it is a current of warm water. This huge warm current of water affects amazingly the climate of many places.

There are some curious things connected with it. The winds passing over this current in northern Europe carry warm air to parts of Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, and the Netherlands. In this region, it is called “the North Atlantic Drift”. The winter temperatures in these places are milder as compared to those in far north. The ports along the Norwegian coast are ice-free year-round.

London and Paris enjoy mild-winter climates, through their lie is placed just as far as Southern Labrador, where the winters are bitter cold. The overpassing winds are made warm and moist, but, become chilled near New Foundland. This causes famous, danger-ous, fogs of the Grand Banks of New Foundland. The Gulf stream, does not, however, affect the winter climate of North America, as it does in Europe. The winter winds do not blow over it and then inland, as they do in Europe.