Earth  ID: 4563

Ocean flows at surface and 2000 meters below sea level

Visualizations by Greg Shirah Released on November 13, 2017
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Visualization showing global ocean currents from Jan 01, 2010 to Dec 31, 2012 at sea level then at 2000 meters below sea level.

These visualizations show ocean current flows first at sea level then at 2000 meters below sea level. There are 2 versions of each visualization: one version is global; the second version is of the Northern Atlantic.

Notice some of the differences in speed and direction of the flows between sea level and 2000 meters below sea level. For example, the Gulf Stream off the coast of Eastern North America flows strongly towards the northeast, while at 2000 meters below sea level, the flow is weaker and in the opposite direction.

These animations were created in support of an educational series produced by WGBH.
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Visualization showing ocean currents in Northern Atlantic from Jan 01, 2010 to Dec 31, 2012 at sea level then at 2000 meters below sea level.

Visualization Credits

Greg Shirah (NASA/GSFC): Lead Visualizer
Horace Mitchell (NASA/GSFC): Visualizer
Laurence Schuler (ADNET Systems, Inc.): Technical Support
Ian Jones (ADNET Systems, Inc.): Technical Support
Susan Lozier (Duke University): Scientist
Rachel Connolly (MIT): Lead Producer
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio

Short URL to share this page:
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4563

Data Used:
GTOPO30 Topography and Bathymetry
Data Compilation - USGS
view all stories where this data set is used
ECCO2 High Resolution Ocean and Sea Ice Model also referred to as: ECCO2
Model - NASA/JPL - 01/2010 - 12/2012
view all stories where this data set is used
Note: While we identify the data sets used in these visualizations, we do not store any further details nor the data sets themselves on our site.

Keywords:
DLESE >> Physical oceanography
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Oceans >> Ocean Circulation >> Ocean Currents
SVS >> Hyperwall
NASA Science >> Earth
SVS >> Ocean

GCMD keywords can be found on the Internet with the following citation: Olsen, L.M., G. Major, K. Shein, J. Scialdone, S. Ritz, T. Stevens, M. Morahan, A. Aleman, R. Vogel, S. Leicester, H. Weir, M. Meaux, S. Grebas, C.Solomon, M. Holland, T. Northcutt, R. A. Restrepo, R. Bilodeau, 2013. NASA/Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Earth Science Keywords. Version 8.0.0.0.0