Multimedia Items
A Newfound Cog in the Ocean Conveyor
The Ocean Conveyor
A global system of currents, often called the Ocean Conveyor, carries warm surface waters from the tropics northward. At high latitudes, the waters cool, releasing heat to the atmosphere and…
Read MoreOceanic conveyor belt
Ocean conveyor belt. (Illustration by Jayne Doucette, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
Read MoreGreat Ocean Conveyor
A schematic of the ocean circulation system, often called the Great Ocean Conveyor, that transports heat throughout the world oceans. Red arrows indicate warm surface currents. Blue arrows indicate deep…
Read MoreThe Great Ocean Conveyor
In the North Atlantic Ocean in winter, the contrast between frigid, dry winter air and warm water draws heat from the ocean into the atmosphere and leaves ocean water colder…
Read MoreWorld thermohaline circulation; the “Conveyor Belt”
In the North Atlantic Ocean in winter, the contrast between frigid, dry winter air and warm water draws heat from the ocean into the atmosphere and leaves ocean water colder…
Read MoreSchematic road map of the ocean’s circulation
A schematic roadmap of the ocean’s circulation: Each ocean basin contains large spinning gyres, driven by Earth’s rotation and winds. The gyres are mostly self-contained, so that waters circulate within…
Read MoreNorth Atlantic ocean currents circulation map
One of the “pumps” that helps drive the ocean’s global circulation suddenly switched on again last winter for the first time this decade. The “pump” is in the western North…
Read MoreA Road Map for the Ocean
Sam Levang, a graduate student in the MIT-WHOI Joint Program, investigates the pathways of ocean water circulating throughout the globe. The oceans circulate heat and have a significant role in regulating Earth’s…
Read MoreA Slice of the Ocean
During a visit to WHOI’s Ocean Science Exhibit Center, two future ocean scientists watch a demonstration of how salinity affects the density of water. Higher salinity makes water denser. As this…
Read MoreOcean Current Detour
The ocean’s global circulation transports heat around the planet, from the equator to the poles, thus regulating Earth’s climate. Two major cogs in this planetary system are the Gulf Stream-North…
Read MoreWorld Oceans Day 2012
On June 8, we join the international community in celebrating World Oceans Day. The ocean is vast (more than two-thirds of Earth’s surface is covered by ocean), deep (it averages…
Read MoreA Line in the Ocean
Line W is an array of five moorings that has been monitoring changes in two currents that play important roles in regulating Earth’s climate: the Gulf Stream (orange area) and…
Read MoreCirculatory System of the Ocean
A global system of ocean circulationoften called the “great ocean conveyor” transports vast amounts of heat and salt around the planet via warmer surface currents (red) and colder deep currents…
Read MoreIllustration depicting the North Icelandic Jet current
The newly confirmed North Icelandic Jet forms when the warm surface of the North Icelandic Irminger Current sheds eddies that cool and disperse within the Iceland Sea Gyre. Cold, dense…
Read MoreTurbulent Times
Brian Hogue and Sophia Merrifield assist WHOI Senior Scientist Louis St. Laurent in deploying a Vertical Microstructure Profiler (VMP) from the deck of the R/V Nathaniel B. Palmer during the Dynamics on Mid-Ocean…
Read MoreThe Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC)
The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) propels warm surface water to high-latitude regions. There, the water encounters strong winds and cold air temperatures, which causes it to become colder and…
Read MoreCO Solubility Pump
Solubility Pump: Many different gases dissolve in seawater including oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide. Solubility of CO2 is strongly dependent on temperature, among other factors. The colder the water, the…
Read MoreBeneath the Surface
A CTD—a device that measure the conductivity, temperature and depth of seawater—descends through the water of glacial fjord in Greenland. Data from the instrument will help a team led by…
Read MoreGulf Stream Waters
Sam Levang, a graduate student in the MIT-WHOI Joint Program, has been studying the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, a critical component of Earth’s climate system. It transports warm and salty…
Read MoreView from Above
The research vessel Neil Armstrong paused at the mouth of Prince Christian Sound in southern Greenland recently so its crew could carry out deck work in sheltered waters. The team…
Read MoreWash Day
The research vessel Neil Armstrong ducked into Prince Christian Sound last week to take advantage of the calm seas. The ship is currently on a mission to replace a set of…
Read MoreBack to the Sea
The crew of the research vessel Neil Armstrong and WHOI mooring technicians return a seafloor tripod into the Labrador Sea southwest of Greenland for another two-year deployment as part of the…
Read MoreRAFOS floats
Scientists deploy a RAFOS float during a research cruise in the Denmark Strait to track the sources of sinking waters of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation—a key component of the Great Ocean…
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