What is The Antarctic Circumpolar Current?
“The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) is an ocean current that flows from west to east around Antarctica. An alternate name for the ACC is the West Wind Drift. The ACC is the dominant circulation feature of the Southern Ocean. It keeps warm ocean waters away from Antarctica, enabling that continent to maintain its huge ice sheet.” “It is the strongest current system in the world oceans, the one that links the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific basins.” Source and more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antarctic_Circumpolar_Current Interesting, thanks for the Q.
“The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) is the most important current in the Southern Ocean, and the only current that flows completely around the globe. The ACC, as it encircles the Antarctic continent, flows eastward through the southern portions of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans.” “The ACC is arguably the “mightiest current in the oceans” (Pickard and Emery, 1990). Despite its relatively slow eastward flow of less than 20 cm s-1 in regions between the fronts, the ACC transports more water than any other current (Klinck and Nowlin, 2001). The ACC extends from the sea surface to depths of 2000-4000 m and can be as wide as 2000 km. This tremendous cross-sectional area allows for the current’s large volume transport.
