COSEE Ocean Systems: News
Global ocean currents explain why Northern Hemisphere is the soggier one
Description: A quick glance at a world precipitation map shows that most tropical rain falls in the Northern Hemisphere. The Palmyra Atoll, at 6 degrees north, gets 175 inches of rain a year, while an equal distance on the opposite side of the equator gets only 45 inches. Scientists long believed that this was a quirk of the Earth's geometry. But a new study shows that the pattern arises from ocean currents originating from the poles, thousands of miles away. [Source: University of Washington]
URL: http://www.washington.edu/news/2013/10/20/global-ocean-currents-explain-why-northern-hemisphere-is-the-soggier-one/
Availability: Full Text
Source: University of Washington
Publish Date: 10/20/2013
Reading Level: Basic
Page Length:  

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