The solid contours indicate the location of the loop current and anticyclonic rings and eddies red and cyclonic eddies blue. Download a pdf of understanding and predicting the gulf of mexico loop current by the national academies of sciences, engineering, and medicine for free. Gulf oil spill stays off shorelines, but enters floridabound current. This video shows the deepwater horizon oil spill entering the loop current. The current brings the warm water through the florida straits and to the west of the bahamas, where it begins to flow north and connect with the gulf. Oil from the gulf of mexico spill is being dragged into an eddy of the loop current that hugs floridas coasts, satellite images show.
The images presented here show a comparison of two observational analyses of the gulf stream, one from the naval oceanographic office navoceano and the second from the naval eastern ocean center naveastoceancen with the gulf stream location as determined directly from the global rtofs model, overlaid on maps of the global rtofs sea surface temperature, sea surface height, surface currents. Jet streams are fast flowing, relatively narrow air currents found in. Understanding and predicting the gulf of mexico loop. Users who download it do not need to download any additional files below. It is unknown if the loop current will recover its normal shape and dynamic. Teacher background information the gulf of mexico is a large body of water almost completely surrounded by land. The gulf of mexico loop current is one of the most dynamic ocean currents in the world. The currents in the gulf of mexico are influenced by the corriolis effect and the shape of the gulf basin.
Gulf stream imagery and data the data below is provided to the ocean prediction center by the naval oceanographic office navo. The northern gulf of mexico operational forecast system ngofs has been implemented by noaas national ocean service nos to provide the maritime user community with shortterm predictions of water levels, water currents, water temperatures and salinity of the northern gulf of mexico. The model takes into account deep water and coastal waters. The corriolis effect causes the loop current to rotate clockwise, while the shape of the basin allows the loop current to flow into the gulf stream. The red star indicates the location of the deepwater horizon. Austin 1955 provided the first use of the term loop to. In the gulf of mexico, an ocean circulation pattern called the loop current generates forces strong enough to damage the steel infrastructure of oil and gas rigs. The jet stream map shows todays high wind speed levels and jetstream directions. Geological survey anchored a sediment trap in the northern gulf of mexico beginning in 2008 to collect seasonal timeseries data on the flux and assemblage composition of live planktic foraminifers. When you have eliminated the javascript, whatever remains must be an empty page. Wfe, the dynamic positioning system cannot always beat all the forces of a unique current system, the gulf of mexico loop current. The main dynamical feature of the gulf of mexico is the loop current, which is a portion, upstream of the gulf stream, of the north atlantic western boundary current that carries ocean waters from the tropics towards the high latitudes. It flows northwestward along the north side of the greater antilles islands and merges with the florida current, which issues from the gulf. The loop current is an extension of the western boundary current of the north atlantic subtropical gyre.
The current is also known as the florida current as it flows through the florida strait, into the gulf stream, and heads north up the eastern coast of the u. Dietrich 1937 provided perhaps the first comprehensive depiction of the surface circulation in the gulf of mexico, which shows the major circulation features now known as the lc in the eastern gulf and a detached mesoscale anticyclonic eddy in the western gulf. Ocean observation systems monitor the loop current and. The loop current is an area of warm water that travels up from the caribbean, past the yucatan peninsula, and into the gulf of mexico. Use the drop down menus below to change the display. Ancient shorelines of the gulf coast 772kb jpg this map was used as part of the secrets of. The gulf of mexico is a semienclosed basin connected, to the south, to the caribbean sea, and to the north atlantic ocean to the east.
As the expedition moves north, it will escape the unfavorable impact of the loop. The currents in the gulf are dominated by whats called the loop current, which enters the gulf between cuba and the yucatan. The average shipdrift dervied surface velocities show the wellknow omegashaped flow pattern of the loop current. Noaa realtime ocean forecast system rotfs 72hour forecast projected trajectory of bp oil spill in.
The gulf of mexico loop current is an ocean current that transports warm water from the caribbean sea into the gulf of mexico. A parent to the florida current, the loop current is a warm ocean current that flows northward between cuba and the yucatan peninsula, moves north into the gulf of mexico, loops east and south before exiting to the east through the florida straits and joining the gulf stream. Although the eddy first separated in november 2015, this separation was shortlived and the eddy was reabsorbed entirely into the loop current within weeks. It seems the loop current has been aborted by oil from the deep horizons disaster. If you are looking for high resolution, photographic quality satellite imagery of hurricanes and other storms please visit nesdis. The gulf stream location and speed maps from passageweather are not quite as detailed as the professional services, but i have always found them to be sufficient for our purposes. Climate and environmental change in the gulf of mexico and. In addition to paid services, though, there is also a good source for free maps showing the location and speed of the gulf stream and counter currents. Physical oceanography division monitoring the gulf of. Antilles current, branch of the atlantic north equatorial current, forming part of the clockwisesetting ocean current system in the north atlantic ocean. Sometimes the loop current s path is confined to the coast of cuba.
Rtofs produces nowcasts and forecasts of sea levels, ocean currents, temperatures and salinity. Basic current patterns in the gulf of mexico, including the loop current 328kb jpg for more information about how current movement in the gulf of mexico affects flower garden banks national marine sanctuary, please visit our natural settings web page. This strong surface current carries warm water from the caribbean and is the primary reason for the corals reefs and marine life that we see in the florida keys. The northern gulf of mexico operational forecast system ngofs has been implemented by noaas national ocean service nos to provide the maritime user community with shortterm predictions of water levels, water currents, water temperatures and salinity of the northern gulf of. Thursday, may 1, 2014, is a very special time for dedicated anglers who like nothing better than to challenge the pelagics deep into the very heart of the gulf of mexico. The loop current 1 feeds the florida current that transports significant amounts of heat poleward. Gulf stream imagery and data national weather service. Alabama bahamas northeast cape cod cape hatteras chesapeake bay eastcoast eddies project florida current florida coast georgia coast gulf of mexico gulf stream jcnerrs latte leo15 louisiana maine north midatlantic bight new york bight ft. Committee on advancing understanding of gulf of mexico. Gulf spill loop current destabilizes, lowering threat to florida for now.
Antilles current current, atlantic ocean britannica. Northern gulf of mexico operational forecast system ngofs. Fishing the loop current offshore fishing reports the. Scientists monitoring the us oil spill with esas envisat radar satellite say that it has entered the loop current, a powerful conveyor belt that flows clockwise around the gulf. Seasonal flux and assemblage composition of planktic foraminifera from the northern gulf of mexico, 20082012. Flower garden banks national marine sanctuary regional maps. The gulf loop is the segment of the intensified western boundary current, which flows into the gulf of mexico through the straits of yucatan and exits through the straits of florida. A sst map illustrating the large extent of the loop current into the gulf of mexico. The gulf of mexico loop current brings warm caribbean water northward between the yucatan peninsula and cuba and into the gulf. It is bordered on the east by the florida peninsula. Gulf stream location, speed and countercurrents the.
Although part of the whole gyre, it has been a maritime tradition to name the local segments. Also evident is the florida current, offshore of the east coast of florida, cool coastal waters around the gulf coast states and northern florida, and a warmer filament of surface water being wrapped around the loop. The national academies of sciences, engineering, and medicine has formed a committee to make recommendations to the gulf research program on activities including research, observations, and analyses needed to characterize the gulf of mexico loop current system dynamics and improve the effectiveness of modeling and forecasting efforts. The gulf loop current synopsis students will conduct experiments and explore wind driven currents, determining patterns of current flow in a body of water. Radar and satellite imagery national weather service. Boem northern gulf of mexico deepwater bathymetry grid. The map below shows the estimate of the surface currents in the gulf of mexico. Sea surface temperature daily composite of gulf of mexico.
The effect the loop current has on the gulf stream warming it and giving it more flow towards europe is fairly well known and will be of huge consequence this winter. Gulf oil spill stays off shorelines, but enters florida. Unless otherwise noted, the images linked from this page are located on servers at the satellite products and services division spsd of the national environmental satellite, data, and information service nesdis. Walker and staff have developed specialized image processing techniques that provide better and more frequent sst retrievals in the gulf to monitor these currents. Sea surface temperature daily composite imcs coastal. Latest satellite imagery national hurricane center. The fastmoving waters of the loop current have complicated drilling plans and rig construction in the gulf of mexico. Depending on a variety of factors, the loop can extend well north in a large clockwise sweep through the gulf before exiting into the atlantic near the florida keys. It is usually updated 3 times per week, not including weekends and holidays. Currents in the gulf of mexico the coastal classroom. Ncom high resolution oceanic model national weather service. Elliot 1979 suggested that cyclones observed in the western gulf were formed along the loop current in the eastern gulf and propagated into the western gulf during the formation of a loop current ring. O riginating in the south atlantic and caribbean sea, the florida current is formed when the gulf of mexico loop current and the yucatan current come together. Use this map of offshore oil drilling in the gulf of mexico to understand and communicate the challenges and risks associated with accessing fossil fuels.