Process of accumulation and sinking of higher density material beneath lower density material
"Downwell" redirects here. For the video game, see Downwell (video game).
Schematic of coastal downwelling in the Northern Hemisphere.
Downwelling is the downward movement of a fluid parcel and its properties (e.g., salinity, temperature, pH) within a larger fluid. It is closely related to upwelling, the upward movement of fluid.
While downwelling is most commonly used to describe an oceanic process, it's also used to describe a variety of Earth phenomena. This includes mantle dynamics, air movement, and movement in freshwater systems (e.g., large lakes). This article will focus on oceanic downwelling and its important implications for ocean circulation and biogeochemical cycles. Two primary mechanisms transport water downward: buoyancy forcing and wind-driven Ekman transport (i.e., Ekman pumping).[1][2]
Downwelling has important implications for marine life. Surface water generally has a lower nutrient content compared to deep water due to primary production using nutrients in the photic zone. Surface water is, however, high in oxygen compared to the deep ocean due to photosynthesis and air-sea gas exchange. When water is moved downwards, oxygen is pumped below the surface, where it is used by decaying organisms.[3] Downwelling events are accompanied by low primary production in the surface ocean due to a lack of nutrient supply from below.[3]
^Cite error: The named reference Elsevier, AP-2011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
resulting in downwelling. Typical downwelling rates associated with ocean gyres are on the order of 10’s of meters per year. Coastal downwelling occurs when...
current can induce secondary water flow in the form of upwelling and downwelling, geostrophic flow, and western boundary currents. Friction between wind...
silhouette of a small fish, while the rest of its body blends into the downwelling light via its ventral photophores. When a would-be predator approaches...
column, resulting in areas of downwelling. Ekman pumping has dramatic impacts on the surrounding environments. Downwelling, due to Ekman pumping, leads...
upwelling of air from the tropical troposphere and the extra-tropical downwelling of air. Stratospheric circulation is a predominantly wave-driven circulation...
summer pole and downwelling at the winter pole. Air rising will expand and cool resulting in a cold summer mesopause and conversely downwelling air results...
stress curl that drives Ekman pumping in the subtropics (resulting in downwelling) and Ekman suction in subpolar regions (resulting in upwelling). Ekman...
downwelling current in convergent zone, upwelling current in divergent zone, retention zone in LC vortex and region between upwelling and downwelling...
currents send warm, oxygenated, nutrient-poor water into the deep ocean (downwelling), while the cold, oxygen-limited, nutrient-rich water travels upwards...
flocculate and increase the density of the drilling fluid to overcome high downwell gas pressures. Whenever a drill hits a salt formation, salt is added to...
Indonesia from May to September (shown here, June). This may signify coastal downwelling in the summer. It is also observed that the region develops a weak but...
strength. Cyclonic (Anticyclonic) eddies lead primarily to upwelling (downwelling). It is a key mechanism driving biological and biogeochemical processes...
arcade-style game where the player continuously moves downwards. The teams cited Downwell as one of the game's earliest inspirations, and drew further influence...
concentrations. Periodic depression of the thermocline and associated downwelling may also play an important role in the vertical transport of planktonic...
of the North Atlantic and regions of Southern Ocean where downwelling occurs. This downwelling brings young, surface water with relatively low concentrations...
veranyi) use counter-illumination camouflage, generating light to match the downwelling light from the ocean surface. This creates the effect of countershading...
movement of ocean currents is observed, this is known as upwelling and downwelling. An international program called Argo began researching deep ocean currents...
Baumgardner, John, "Mantle Viscosity and the Thickness of the Convective Downwellings", igw.uni-jena.de, archived from the original on 2007-06-11 Xie, Hong-Yi;...
or 159 W/m2. Some emitted radiation is effectively cancelled out by downwelling radiation and so does not transfer heat. Evaporation and convection partially...
camouflage in which an organism emits light to match the intensity of downwelling light to hide from predators below. Currently, bioluminescence provides...
overcome the visual complications of the pelagic zone (the combination of downwelling daylight, bioluminescence, and light scattering with increasing distance)...
filters which may alter the wavelength of luminescence closer to that of downwelling moonlight and starlight; a lens with biochemical similarities to the...
Pitcher and Parish 1993 "Wind Driven Surface Currents: Upwelling and Downwelling". Biology of Copepods Archived 2009-01-01 at the Wayback Machine at Carl...
Venus, particularly in Ovda Regio: This model describes that the mantle downwelling flow assisted the development of crustal thickening and shortening of...
mesosphere (upwelling and adiabatic cooling) and wintertime heating (downwelling and adiabatic heating). Therefore, they cannot be observed (even if they...
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