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Ocean - not flat
People often perceive the planet as a perfect sphere, but nothing is perfect in nature, and there is not even oceans isklyuchenie
globe - is not flat, so that the oceans on it too can not be flat. And we are not talking only about the bottom of the ocean, but also on the surface.
Oceans have different heights. Even the flat meadows on the Earth's surface have a certain variation in height. And the difference between the meadows and the ocean that the sea level is due to two main factors: high tides and ocean currents. Gravity causes the tides of the moon acting on the surface of the planet. Ocean currents - is the result of the action of winds and the result of the mixing of water of different densities.
Earth as a complex system always tries to reach equilibrium. Wind occurs when the air masses are moved from the high pressure region to the low pressure region. In the process moves and some moisture. As a result, the Atlantic Ocean is 20 cm below the Pacific.
The difference in the levels of the oceans can have dramatic effects. One of the most obvious examples of this difference can serve as El Niño. In the Pacific Ocean winds cause accumulation of warm ocean water near the Indonesian coast, which is 60 cm higher than the rest of the coast of South America. When the winds begin to weaken, the warm water starts to walk away from the coast back to the east. This happens every 10 years, and a powerful effect on the climate. In Peru could begin monstrous floods, while Indonesia and Australia suffer from drought (weak El Niño is expected to occur at the end of 2014.).
A colleague of El Niño, La Niña - the result of high wind pressure. He is able to cause "too normal" climatic conditions. The relief of the Earth's diverse, so it was never a perfect sphere. With such a wide variety of heights, both on land and in the ocean, the earth can be considered technically very bumpy geoid. This is the most realistic view of our planet, which is based on the Earth's gravity.
via factroom.ru
globe - is not flat, so that the oceans on it too can not be flat. And we are not talking only about the bottom of the ocean, but also on the surface.
Oceans have different heights. Even the flat meadows on the Earth's surface have a certain variation in height. And the difference between the meadows and the ocean that the sea level is due to two main factors: high tides and ocean currents. Gravity causes the tides of the moon acting on the surface of the planet. Ocean currents - is the result of the action of winds and the result of the mixing of water of different densities.
Earth as a complex system always tries to reach equilibrium. Wind occurs when the air masses are moved from the high pressure region to the low pressure region. In the process moves and some moisture. As a result, the Atlantic Ocean is 20 cm below the Pacific.
The difference in the levels of the oceans can have dramatic effects. One of the most obvious examples of this difference can serve as El Niño. In the Pacific Ocean winds cause accumulation of warm ocean water near the Indonesian coast, which is 60 cm higher than the rest of the coast of South America. When the winds begin to weaken, the warm water starts to walk away from the coast back to the east. This happens every 10 years, and a powerful effect on the climate. In Peru could begin monstrous floods, while Indonesia and Australia suffer from drought (weak El Niño is expected to occur at the end of 2014.).
A colleague of El Niño, La Niña - the result of high wind pressure. He is able to cause "too normal" climatic conditions. The relief of the Earth's diverse, so it was never a perfect sphere. With such a wide variety of heights, both on land and in the ocean, the earth can be considered technically very bumpy geoid. This is the most realistic view of our planet, which is based on the Earth's gravity.
via factroom.ru
