The Gulf Stream in an Aquarium

Major ocean currents, such as the Gulf Stream, transport enormous masses of water, heat, and biogeochemical elements, enabling transfers across ocean basins. These currents are driven by various factors, including winds that create surface friction, and pressure differences resulting from variations in sea level and density—which are themselves caused by differences in salinity and temperature. Other effects, such as gravitational and centrifugal forces, give rise to tidal currents. The Coriolis force, meanwhile, tends to deflect currents to their right (or left) in the Northern Hemisphere (or Southern Hemisphere), respectively, giving ocean circulation a swirling character. Other nonlinear effects are also at play. General ocean circulation is therefore quite complex and can sometimes be difficult to understand.

In this tank-based educational experiment, the goal is to isolate a motor from ocean currents—specifically, temperature differences.

Antoine Boucher is a first-year master's student in the Coastal Water program. He is supervised by Yann Leredde, an associate professor of physical oceanography.