7. Additional Material

Chapter 1: What are ocean currents and why are they important?

Answers

ship in ice Arctic sea ice paradox:   Why was the entrance to Scoresbysund on the east coast of Greenland blocked by ice in September 2007 at a time when Arctic sea ice reached a record low?

Answer:   When sea ice starts to melt it breaks up into ice floes that drift with the currents. The main exit route for this ice is in the East Greenland Current, which flows southward along the east coast of Greenland. The record ice melt meant that more ice floes than normal left the Arctic Ocean by this route.

Exercises / Worksheets

oil rig

c01-02: Imagine you are... What would you do?

Put yourself in the shoes of people who use their knowledge of ocean currents in their daily lives. Ship scheduling, ocean forecasting, environmental work, sailing around the world.

Educational Games

tropical forest

Ocean Currents Game: Match the climate to the location

Use your knowledge of how ocean currents transport heat and moisture to solve this climate quiz.