FACTOR AFFECTING CLIMATE: OCEAN CURRENT

OCEAN CURRENTS Water in the ocean travels in paths called currents. Currents can either be warm or cold. The temperature of the water affects the temperature of the air above it. If the water is cold, it cools the air above it. If it is warm, it heats up the air above it. Ocean currents traveling away from the equator are warm, warming the air which moves onto the land near these areas. Currents flowing toward the equator are colder, so the air masses, moving over these currents, are cooled. These cooled air masses then flow over the regions in their path.