Ocean current that flows clockwise from west to east around Antarctica
Antarctic Circumpolar Current, showing branches connecting to the larger thermohaline circulation
Animation of the thermohaline circulation. The later part of this animation shows the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.
Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) is an ocean current that flows clockwise (as seen from the South Pole) from west to east around Antarctica. An alternative name for the ACC is the West Wind Drift. The ACC is the dominant circulation feature of the Southern Ocean and has a mean transport estimated at 100–150 Sverdrups (Sv, million m3/s),[1] or possibly even higher,[2] making it the largest ocean current. The current is circumpolar due to the lack of any landmass connecting with Antarctica and this keeps warm ocean waters away from Antarctica, enabling that continent to maintain its huge ice sheet.
Associated with the Circumpolar Current is the Antarctic Convergence, where the cold Antarctic waters meet the warmer waters of the subantarctic, creating a zone of upwelling nutrients. These nurture high levels of phytoplankton with associated copepods and krill, and resultant food chains supporting fish, whales, seals, penguins, albatrosses, and a wealth of other species.
The ACC has been known to sailors for centuries; it greatly speeds up any travel from west to east, but makes sailing extremely difficult from east to west, although this is mostly due to the prevailing westerly winds. Jack London's story "Make Westing" and the circumstances preceding the mutiny on the Bounty poignantly illustrate the difficulty it caused for mariners seeking to round Cape Horn westbound on the clipper ship route from New York to California.[3] The eastbound clipper route, which is the fastest sailing route around the world, follows the ACC around three continental capes – Cape Agulhas (Africa), South East Cape (Australia), and Cape Horn (South America).
The current creates the Ross and Weddell gyres.
^Smith et al. 2013
^Donohue, K.A.; et al. (21 November 2016). "Mean Antarctic Circumpolar Current transport measured in Drake Passage". Geophysical Research Letters. 43 (11): 760. Bibcode:2016GeoRL..4311760D. doi:10.1002/2016GL070319. hdl:11336/47067.
^London 1907
and 27 Related for: Antarctic Circumpolar Current information
AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent (ACC) is an ocean current that flows clockwise (as seen from the South Pole) from west to east around Antarctica. An alternative...
Associated with the CircumpolarCurrent is the Antarctic Convergence encircling Antarctica, where cold northward-flowing Antarctic waters meet the relatively...
Pacific and Indian) to be connected via the AntarcticCircumpolarcurrent (ACC), the strongest oceanic current, with an estimated transport of 100–150 Sv...
major currents of the world's oceans, such as the Gulf Stream, the Kuroshio Current, the Agulhas Current, and the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent, are all...
up circumpolar in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Circumpolar may refer to: Antarctic region Antarctic Circle the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent Subantarctic...
to create a true AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent. If the opening occurred as late as hypothesized, then the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent could not have had...
flowing current that carries cold and relatively fresh subantarctic water. The Falkland Current is a branch of the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent. It transports...
The AntarcticCircumpolar Wave (ACW) is a coupled ocean/atmosphere wave that circles the Southern Ocean in approximately eight years at 6–8 cm/s (2.4–3...
ocean, and hence the mid-latitude westerlies force the strong AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent. In the northern hemisphere the land masses prevent this and...
past Tasmania into the Indian Ocean Currents of the Southern Ocean AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent – Ocean current that flows clockwise from west to east...
remainder will flow south on the EAC Extension until it reaches the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent. The Tasman Front transport is estimated at 13 Sv. The eastward...
the current retroflects (turns back on itself) in the Agulhas Retroflection due to shear interactions with the strong AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent, also...
tidal currents, while wind and waves cause surface currents. The Gulf Stream, Kuroshio Current, Agulhas Current and AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent are all...
boundary of the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent (or ACC). The ACC is the most important ocean current in the Southern Ocean, and the only current that flows...
creation of the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent. The creation of the Antarcticcircumpolarcurrent would isolate the cold water around the Antarctic, which would...
drive eastward-flowing currents that are difficult to distinguish from the northern boundary of the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent. Like other oceanic gyres...
moves south in the Brazil Current, the western boundary current of the South Atlantic Gyre. The AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent forms both the southern boundary...
This sudden cooling was caused partly by the formation of the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent, which significantly lowered oceanic water temperatures. During...
The gyre is formed by interactions between the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent (ACC) and the Antarctic Continental Shelf. The gyre is located in the Weddell...
system of rotating ocean currents, bounded by the Equator to the north, Australia to the west, the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent to the south, and South...
30 Sv in the Florida Current to a maximum of 150 Sv south of Newfoundland at 55° W longitude. The AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent, at approximately 125 Sv...
large portions of the Antarctic ice sheet. In its positive phase, the westerly wind belt that drives the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent intensifies and contracts...
the cold AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent also started as a continuous circumpolar flow only around 30 mya, on the one hand forcing the Antarctic cooling...
creation of the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent that completely isolated the continent. Models of Antarctic geography suggest that this current, as well as...
current ice age). Hassold, N. J. C.; Rea, D. K.; Pluijm, B. A., van der; Parés, J. M. (2009). "A physical record of the AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent:...
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