oceanlove

 The Florida Institute of Technology and UGA Skidaway Institute of Oceanography recently installed four high frequency radars on the east coast of Florida. These systems measure the speed and direction of ocean currents, which is helpful for search & rescue operations and tracking marine debris. High frequency radars (HFR) are land-based systems that use radio waves to measure the speed and direction of ocean surface currents in near real-time. They provide broad spatial coverage of ocean surface currents along the coast. Recently, four HFRs have been installed on the central east coast of Florida to address gaps in coverage: Hightower Beach Park (Florida Institute of Technology) Treasure Shores Park (Florida Institute of Technology) Canaveral National Seashore (University of Georgia Skidaway Institute of Oceanography) Kennedy Space Center (University of Georgia Skidaway Institute of Oceanography) The locations of HFR stations are carefully selected to maximize surface curren...

  Will the Gulf Stream really shut down?   BY ALISON PEARCE STEVENS | NOVEMBER 9, 2023   Recent news headlines suggest the Gulf Stream current could shut down in just a few years — or perhaps a few decades — bringing about a catastrophic change in global climate. Will the Gulf Stream actually shut down? No, say oceanographers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.   Why do headlines say otherwise? It’s due to an oversimplification of the currents that drive global climate. People conflate the Gulf Stream with a more complex system of currents known as the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC.   “The Gulf Stream plays a role in the AMOC, but it is also distinct from the AMOC,” explains WHOI physical oceanographer Robert Todd. It’s one arm of a multi-tiered system that circulates water horizontally and vertically throughout the Atlantic Ocean. The Gulf Stream flows along the east coast of North America, carrying warm water fro...