Why I Chose This Topic I chose this topic because I have always loved the ocean. I remember one summer we went to Virginia beach. I remember the smell, feeling, and hearing all the noisy people. But above all of the noise I loved hearing the waves crashing into the rocks and hearing the seagulls, it was peaceful. Even though I was only six I still remember that peacefulness. It made me fall in love with the ocean.
Science Concept An application of ocean currents is by moving heat from the equator toward the poles, ocean currents play an important role in controlling the climate. Ocean currents are also critically important to sea life.Ocean currents are the continuous, predictable, directional movement of seawater driven by gravity, wind, and water density.
Ocean water moves in two directions horizontally and vertically. Horizontal movements are currents, while vertical changes are called upwellings or downwellings. Some of the major ocean currents are North Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Pacific, South Pacific, and Indian Ocean gyres. The biggest ocean current is the Antarctic Circumpolar current. The ocean currents are called thermohaline circulation.
Application
Current measurements are important to shipping, commercial fishing, recreational boating, and safety. By using predicted, real-time and short-term forecasted currents, people can safely dock and undock ships, maneuver them in confined waterways and safely navigate through coastal waters.
Career Path Physical oceanographers are a career in ocean currents. Oceanographers are more concerned with movements of the ocean, in the waves and currents, tides that move the water itself. Physical oceanography is a more challenging job. The average oceanography in the US makes $97,861 per year.