2. Ocean Temperature
Expedition Menu
1. Introduction
2. Ocean Temperature
3. Circulation
4. Atmospheric Heat
5. Heat and Pressure
6. Atmospheric Pressure
7. Air Pressure and Wind
8. Wind Directions
9. Global Wind Patterns
10. Measuring Circulation
In a previous expedition we examined the role of solar radiation in warming the surface layer of the ocean.
This process produces warm surface water at the equator and colder surface water towards the poles.
By examining the map below of todays' sea surface temperature in the global ocean, however, it should be clear that the pattern of sea surface temperature is more complex than portrayed in our previous, simple discussion.
Courtesy of the Space Science and Engineering Center at the University
of Wisconsin-Madison
Last
Updated on
April 26, 2005
In this expedition, we will examine the distribution of heat on our planet and the fundamental role that the ocean plays in regulating this distribution. The capacity of the ocean to store and radiate this heat, as well as transport the heat around the globe, by the ocean currents (circulation) is a first order influence in global climate change.
